Hosea 11

Unreturned love verse 1- 2

When Israel was a child – THEN I loved him

and called MY son out of Egypt

As they called them – so they were from them

they sacrificed unto Baalim

and burned incense to graven images

Training not accepted verse 3- 4

I taught Ephraim also to go

taking them by their arms

BUT they knew not that

I healed them

I drew them with cords of a man – with bands of love

and I was to them as they

that take off the yoke on their jaws

and I laid meat unto them

Refusal to honor the LORD verse 5- 7

He shall not return into the land of Egypt

and the Assyrian shall be his king

BECAUSE they refused to return

AND the sword shall abide on his cities

and shall consume his branches

and devour them

BECAUSE of their own counsels

AND MY people are BENT to backsliding from ME

though they called them to the most High

none at all would exalt HIM

Compassion of the LORD verse 8- 9

HOW shall I give you up – Ephraim?

HOW shall I deliver you Israel?

HOW shall I make you as Admah?

HOW shall I set you as Zeboim?

MINE heart is turned within ME

MY repentings are kindled together

I will not execute the fierceness of MINE anger

I will not return to destroy Ephraim

FOR I am God and not man

the Holy One in the midst of you

and I will not enter into the city

Promise of a bright future verse 10- 11

They shall walk after the LORD

HE shall roar like a lion

WHEN HE shall roar

THEN the children shall tremble from the west

they shall tremble as a bird out of Egypt

and as a dove out of the land of Assyria

and I will place them in their houses

says the LORD

Judah still faithful to the LORD verse 12

Ephraim compasses ME about with lies

and the house of Israel with deceit

BUT Judah yet rules with God

and is faithful with the saints

COMMENTARY:

DAILY SPIRITUAL BREAKFAST: Young Believers

: 1 When Israel was a child, then I LOVED him, and called MY SON out of Egypt. (7121 “called” [qara’] means to shout, appoint, summon, proclaim, announce, invite, or utter a loud sound.)

DEVOTION: Matthew in his Gospel [2:15] quotes this verse in reference to Jesus. An angel told Joseph to go to Egypt to save Jesus from being killed by Herod’s men. Herod had sent his army to kill all the babies from two years old and younger. He didn’t want any other king born in his kingdom. The LORD knew the plan and sent Jesus away. Then HE called HIM back to Nazareth.

One of the words used in this chapter is “love.” It is used two times in relation to Israel who was going to be judged because they wouldn’t repent and stop living in sin. There is a difference between living in sin and sinning. We all sin daily. We are supposed to confess our sin and ask the LORD to restore us to a state of fellowship with HIM. Those who are living in sin are those who practice sin on a daily basis and never ask for forgiveness. They are individuals who are genuine believers who need to be chastened of the LORD because they are not listening. Or they are individuals who have never made a genuine commitment to the LORD and there is no chastening happening in their life, so they think God doesn’t care. The real truth is that they are not in HIS family. HE doesn’t chasten those who are on their way to the lake of fire. They are the ones who will stand before HIM and say “didn’t we do these things in your name” and HE will say “I never knew you.”

CHALLENGE: If we sin and continue in it without the LORD getting our attention we should go back and examine to see if we really care to please HIM.

DAILY SPIRITUAL LUNCH: Transitional Believers

: 7MY people are bent on backsliding from ME. though they called them to the Most High, none at all would exalt HIM. (7311 “exalt” [ruwm] means to be high above, to praise, glorify, honor, show oneself powerful, or lift high)

DEVOTION: God’s people indulge themselves with going away from the LORD. They like the other side of the tracks. They like sin. It is the natural flow of their lives. This is very displeasing to the LORD.

The LORD has sent HIS prophets to warn them that there are consequences to their actions but they don’t care. They only seem to care when they need something from the LORD.

Most of us have gotten into trouble and call on the LORD to get us out of the trouble with a promise that we will serve HIM better from that point on.

However most of the time we forget our promise to the LORD and go back to our old lifestyle. It is better not to promise than to promise and not keep it. The LORD continued to be longsuffering with Israel and HE is longsuffering with us.

In the long run HE wants us to come to the point where our life starts to exalt HIM. We are here to bring glory to HIS name. We can only do it through the strength that HE can provide.

CHALLENGE: Exalting HIM requires work on our part. HE provides the strength to do the work. Praise HIM!!

DAILY SPIRITUAL SUPPER: Mature Believers

: 9 I will not execute the fierceness of mine anger, I will not return to destroy Ephraim: for I am God, and not man; the Holy One in the midst of thee: and I will not enter into the city. (6918 “Holy One” [qadowsh] means saint, holy, set apart, sacred, divine name, pure, clean, or title of God.)

DEVOTION: This title is used forty-four times in the Old Testament. There has always been a distinction between God and man. God acts in a manner that represents HIS attributes. The attribute mentioned in this chapter is LOVE. HE loves HIS people Israel in spite of their reaction to HIM. HE has to chasten them but HE is doing it out of love.

Human beings are not always as loving as they discipline those who have done them wrong. Human beings have a tendency to get even with those who mistreat them. Human beings tend to be unforgiving even after they have rendered their punishment. Human being tend to not forgive and forget.

God on the other hand is not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance. Does that mean that all will repent? NO!! The majority reject the offer of salvation the LORD gives. HIS people in the Old Testament were continually rejecting HIS offers. They wanted to do their own thing without answering to the LORD which was impossible. They were always going to answer to the LORD either here or in eternity. So are we.

One promise we have in this verse is that the LORD is in the midst of HIS people. HE promises to never leave us. This means even when HE is chastening us HE is right there by our side to help us through that time period. HE loves HIS people even when HE is mad at them for what they are doing. Humans can’t seem to do that.

CHALLENGE: We need to be able to love those who are making us angry. We can lovingly discipline them. Remember our ministry with others to one of reconciliation.

_____________________________________________________

: 12 Ephraim compass me about with lies, and the house of Israel with deceit: but Judah yet rules with God, and is faithful with the saints. (539 “faithful”[’aman] means to support, confirm, uphold, nourish, or pillars.)

DEVOTION: There is a contrast here between what is happening in Israel and Judah. The ten tribes are not following the LORD. They are given to backsliding. They are given to false worship. They are taking counsel of themselves and not of God. They are lying and full of deceit regarding their relationship to the LORD. They had a low opinion of God. Their view of God was that HE was too small.

The LORD asks some questions regarding the northern kingdom. How can HE give them up? How can HE deliver them as they continue in sin? HE doesn’t want to make them like the cities HE destroyed in Abraham’s time while Lot escaped. Remember the LORD destroyed four of the five cities of the plain where Sodom and Gomorrah were located. HE loved the nation but they had turned their back on HIM. HE had to chasten them but HE was not going to destroy them like other nations HE has dealt with. HE promised a return in the future.

Judah or the southern nations were different at this time. They were ruling by obeying the rules of the LORD. Judah was nourishing to the saints. The leaders were feeding the people with the word of God. They were still sinners but they were trying to worship the LORD.

Today we need leaders that are feeding the LORD’S people the Word of God. Too often the leaders are scattering the people of God. Too often they are only feeding milk to Christians who have followed the LORD for years. There needs to be meat served at our church services. The people of God need the whole counsel of God not their own counsel like the Israelites. What do the people attending our churches know regarding the Word of God? Are we able to defend our faith to those around us? We are the witnesses the LORD has left on this earth to reach our world for Christ. Are we reaching out? Are we supporting those who are serving the LORD? Who has our backs as we serve the LORD?

This one attitude of God is very reassuring to those of us who need to know someone really loves us enough to be there to support us at all times. A saint is a sinner saved by grace alone through Christ alone.

CHALLENGE: We need someone always at our side to encourage us in these dark days. Will you be an encourager????

______________________________________________________________

DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:

BODY

Chastity (Purity in living)

Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)

Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)

Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)

Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)

SOUL

Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)

Frugality (wise use of resources)

Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD)

Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)

Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)

SPIRIT

Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)

Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)

Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level)

Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)

Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group)

______________________________________________________________

DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:

Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)

God the Father (First person of the Godhead)

MY people verse 7

Most High verse 7

Anger of the LORD verse 9

Holy One verse 9

LORD – Jehovah (Covenant keeping, Personal) verse 10, 11

God the Son (Second person of the Godhead –God/man, Messiah)

God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)

Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)

God – Elohim (Creator, Sovereign, Plural name) verse 9, 12

Angels (Created before the foundation of the world

– Good and Evil)

Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)

Egypt verse 1, 5, 11

Assyrian verse 5, 11

Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)

Sacrificed to Baalim verse 2

Burned incense to graven images verse 2

Israel refused to turn verse 5

Israel listened to their own counsels verse 6

Israel bent to backsliding verse 7

Israel would not exalt the Most High verse 7

Ephraim lies verse 12

Israel deceit verse 12

Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)

Love verse 1, 4

Healing verse 3

God in the midst of HIS people verse 9

Walk after the LORD verse 10

Rules with God verse 12

Faithful verse 12

Saints verse 12

Israel (Old Testament people of God)

Israel verse 1, 8, 12

Ephraim verse 3 , 8, 9, 12

Admah verse 8

Zeboim verse 8

Judah verse 12

Church (New Testament people of God)

Last Things (Future Events)

_______________________________________________________________

DONATIONS:

Remember that all donations to Small Church Ministries are greatly appreciated. The treasurer will send a receipt, at the end of the year unless otherwise requested. Please be sure to make check out to “Small Church Ministries.” The address for the treasurer is P.O. Box 604, East Amherst, New York 14051. A second way to give to the ministry is through PayPal on the website: www.smallchurchministries.org. Also, if you can support this ministry through your local church please use that method. Thank you.

___________________________________________________________________

QUOTES regarding passage

11:1 The childhood of Israel, the period of history when the nation was young, was when Israel was in Egypt. This verse self-evidently refers to the exodus event, and in particular to Exod 4:22, where Yahweh declares to Pharaoh, “Israel is my firstborn son.” The word translated “child” (naʿar) can refer to a boy anywhere in the age range from infancy (Exod 2:6) to adolescence (Gen 21:12). The presentation of Israel as a male child here distinguishes it from Ezek 16:1–6, which describes the young nation as a female child. In a number of passages God calls the people of Israel his “children,” but it is not extremely common for God to speak of the nation as a whole as his son. The metaphor of Israel as God’s son is distinct from the earlier terminology (Hos 1:10) in which the text describes the people as Yahweh’s children but describes the corporate nation, with its culture and institutions, as Yahweh’s adulterous wife. Here the corporate nation is Yahweh’s son. Wolff argues that the metaphor of “son” implies that Yahweh raised up and educated Israel. Also, although he finds a few parallels to this text in non-Israelite sources, he sees no evidence that Hosea has borrowed the metaphor from another culture. Thus it is fair to say that this metaphor, although founded on Exod 4:22, is a striking and unexpected move on Hosea’s part. The “love” of God for Israel here implies divine election. In the context of Hosea 11, v. 1 plainly concerns the exodus from Egypt. Matthew 2:15, however, asserts that Jesus fulfilled this verse when the holy family returned from Egypt after the death of Herod: “And so was fulfilled what the Lord had said through the prophet: ‘Out of Egypt I called my son.’ ” One cannot but wonder, therefore, whether Matthew has wrenched Hos 11:1b from its context and applied it gratuitously to Jesus. Or, to put it in perhaps gentler terms, whether Matthew has engaged in a bit of midrashic exegesis, reading back into the text something that is not really there but which might nevertheless be justified on theological grounds.

It is noteworthy that Matthew chose a translation that reflects the Hebrew text over against the LXX, which reads, “And out of Egypt I called his children.” Assuming he was aware of the LXX, Matthew’s choice of the Hebrew reading over the Greek must be regarded as deliberate.

In determining how Matthew came to interpret Hos 11:1 in the way that he did, scholars have observed that the apostle may have been influenced by the LXX rendition of Num 24:7–8, which reads, “A man shall come forth from his seed, and he shall rule many nations. And his kingdom shall be raised up higher than Gog, and his kingdom shall increase. God brought him out of Egypt.” The Hebrew text of Num 24:7–8 is quite different. If Matthew was aware of this text, which in the LXX is explicitly messianic, this could explain how he came to regard Hos 11:1 as messianic as well. On the other hand, if Matthew did accept the LXX of Num 24:7–8, why did he not cite it instead of or in addition to the more obscure Hos 11:1? Since he chose not to use it, one could argue that he actually considered the LXX of Num 24:7–8 to be unreliable. In that case it is hard to see how the Numbers text would have governed his reading of Hos 11:1.

Many interpreters observe that the idea that Jesus fulfilled Hos 11:1 corresponds to the typology that one finds throughout Matthew, in which Jesus recapitulates the story of Israel. Jesus was forty days in the wilderness, just as Israel was there for forty years. Jesus gave his law on a mountain, just as God gave the Torah at Sinai. Jesus miraculously fed his followers in the wilderness, just as Moses gave the people manna. As such it hardly is surprising that Matthew could see a parallel between Jesus’ departure from Egypt and the striking line of Hosea, “Out of Egypt I called my son.” The benefit of this approach to Matthew, aside from the fact that it fits not only with this passage but with the whole of his gospel, is that it does not require us to suppose Matthew was unaware of or sought to obscure the Old Testament context of Hos 11:1. To the contrary, for Matthew to have asserted that Jesus, in his return from Egypt, recapitulated the exodus experience, of necessity requires that Matthew understood the context and original meaning of Hos 11:1 to be Israel’s exodus. Nevertheless, although this approach to the text of Matthew is in my view correct, it still leaves one wondering whether Matthew has rightly appropriated Hos 11:1 or has simply applied his hermeneutic to the Old Testament verse.

One can always appeal to sensus plenior (Latin, “fuller meaning”), the hermeneutical principal that says that Old Testament writers sometimes wrote better than they knew because the Holy Spirit led them to use vocabulary that had a significance of which the writers themselves were unaware. This aspect of inspiration, while helpful if used carefully, actually fails to resolve the fundamental question of whether Matthew has rightly made use of Hosea. To say that God caused Hosea to frame his words in such a way that Matthew could appropriate them does not tell us anything about whether the text of Hos 11:1 really has anything to do with the Messiah’s return from Egypt.

To put it more pointedly, did Hosea suppose that this verse looked ahead to the Messiah? It is, of course, difficult if not impossible to show that Hosea intended readers to discern from this passage that the Messiah would come out of Egypt. This question, however, is the wrong question to ask of Hos 11:1. The real issue is not, Did Hosea intend this verse to be read messianically? but What did Hosea understand to be the nature of prophecy? In answer to this question, we must assert that Hosea, like all biblical prophets, saw prophecy not so much as the making of specific, individual predictions (which are actually quite rare among the writing prophets), but as the application of the Word of God to historical situations. In doing this the prophets brought to light certain patterns that occur repeatedly in the relationship between God and his people. These patterns or themes have repeated fulfillments or manifestations until the arrival of the final, absolute fulfillment. Thus, for example, the conquest of the land “fulfilled” the promises to the patriarchs but did not fulfill those promises finally or in their ultimate form. The inheritance of the “new earth” is the ultimate conclusion of this prophetic theme. All of the prophets were, to some degree, “like Moses” (Deut 18:5), but the ultimate prophet like Moses can only be the Messiah. Each of the kings of the line of David was a fulfillment of the promise that God would build him a “house” (2 Sam 7), but the Messiah is again the final fulfillment of this theme. Thus prophecy gives us not so much specific predictions but types or patterns by which God works in the world. We need look no further than Hosea 11 to understand that Hosea, too, believed that God followed patterns in working with his people. Here the slavery in Egypt is the pattern for a second period of enslavement in an alien land (v. 5), and the exodus from Egypt is the type for a new exodus (vv. 10–11). Thus the application of typological principles to Hos 11:1 is in keeping with the nature of prophecy itself and with Hosea’s own method. Understood in this way, we can regard the wording of Hos 11:1 not as fortuitous but as a work of God. Whether or not Hosea himself understood the ultimate fulfillment of his words, he knew that his words had significance that transcended his own time. We should note, however, that the surprising shift of metaphor from Israel as mother and children to Israel as son gives us further reason to regard this as a deliberate move and not as happy coincidence. (Garrett, D. A. (1997). Hosea, Joel (Vol. 19A, pp. 219–220). Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.)

________________________________________________________________

1 Once more (cf. 9:10; 10:1, 9) Hosea reverted to the earlier history of Israel, this time looking back to the Lord’s words in Exodus 4:22–23: “Israel is my firstborn son … ‘Let my son go, so he may worship me.’ ” The reason Israel was God’s son is that God had especially chosen him as his own (cf. Gen 12:2–3). (For the NT fulfillment of the words Out of Egypt I called my son, see Matt 2:13–15.) (Wood, L. J. (1986). Hosea. In F. E. Gaebelein (Ed.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Daniel and the Minor Prophets (Vol. 7, p. 212). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House.)

_____________________________________________________________

11:1–2. Once again the Lord recalled Israel’s early history to contrast the past with the present (cf. 9:10; 10:1). At the beginning the Lord’s relationship with Israel had been like that of a father to a son (cf. Ex. 4:22–23). (On the quotation of this passage, see comments on Matt. 2:15.) The Lord displayed His love toward the nation by summoning her from Egypt (cf. Deut. 7:8; also cf. Hosea 12:9, 13; 13:4). However, when God subsequently called them (11:2) to covenant obedience through His prophets, the people rejected Him (cf. Jer. 7:25–26) and turned instead to false gods (cf. 2 Kings 17:13–17) including the Baals (cf. Hosea 2:13, 17). Hosea 11:2a is literally, “The more they [i.e., the prophets] called them, the more they [the Israelites] went from them” (nasb; cf. kjv, niv marg.). (Chisholm, R. B., Jr. (1985). Hosea. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 1, p. 1402). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.)

___________________________________________________________

At least fourteen times in the Book of Deuteronomy, Moses used the word remember. Deuteronomy is Moses’ farewell address to the new generation of Israelites as they were preparing to enter the Promised Land. But why would Moses ask these young people to look back when they were getting ready to move forward? Because a correct understanding of God’s dealings in the past is the best way to be certain of success in the future. Philosopher George Santayana expressed this truth succinctly: “Those who do not remember the past are condemned to relive it.”

God’s love demonstrated at the Exodus (Hosea 11:1–2). God sent Joseph ahead into Egypt to prepare the way for Jacob and his sons. What Joseph’s brothers did to their brother was meant for evil, but God used it for good (Gen. 50:20). Because of Joseph, the people of Israel were kept alive during the severe famine and were able to multiply in the ensuing years. From this humble beginning, God formed a nation; Moses led that nation out of Egypt in great power and triumph (Ex. 12–15).

Hosea pictures the God of the Exodus as a tender father who freed his son from bondage. The emphasis here is not on Israel, the unfaithful wife, but on Israel, the ungrateful son. (For God as “Father” and Israel as a “son,” see Ex. 4:22–23; Isa. 1:2–4; and Deut. 32:5). After all God did for His son, he will refuse to return His love or obey His will. (Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). Be amazed (pp. 36–37). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.)

_____________________________________________________________

11:1 In tender words reminiscent of the Exodus from Egypt (cf. Ex 4:22, 23), the Lord reassured Israel of His intense love for her. His compassion for her was aroused (cf. Is 12:1; 40:1, 2; 49:13; Jer 31:10–14; Zec 1:12–17). See Mt 2:15 for Matthew’s analogical use of this verse in relationship to Jesus Christ. (MacArthur, J. F., Jr. (2006). The MacArthur study Bible: New American Standard Bible. (Ho 11:1). Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers.)

__________________________________________________________

Ver. 1. When Israel was a child, then I loved him, &c.] Or, for Israel was a child; a rebellious and disobedient one, therefore his king was cut off in a morning, and he has been, and will be, without a king many days; yet still I loved him: or, though Israel was a child; a weak, helpless, foolish, and imprudent one, yet I loved him; or, when a child; in the infancy of his civil and church state, when in Egypt, and in the wilderness; the Lord loved him, not only as his creature, as he does all the works of his hands, but with a more special love than he loved others; choosing them to be a special people above all others; giving them his law, his statutes, and his judgments, his word and his worship, which he did not give to other nations. So he loves spiritual and mystical Israel, all the elect of God, whether Jews or Gentiles, when children, as soon as born, and though born in sin, carnal and corrupt; yea, before they are born, and when having done neither good nor evil; and so may be expressive both of the earliness and antiquity of his love to them, and of the freeness of it, without any merits or motives of theirs. And called my son out of Egypt, not literal Israel, as before, whom God called his son, and his first-born, and demanded his dismission from Pharaoh, and called him, and brought him out of Egypt with a mighty hand and stretched-out arm; and which was a type of his calling spiritual Israel, his adopted sons, out of worse than Egyptian bondage and darkness: but his own natural and only-begotten son, our Lord Jesus Christ; for these words are expressly said to be fulfilled in him, Matt. 2:15. not by way of allusion; or by accommodation of phrases; or as the type is fulfilled in the antitype; or as a proverbial expression, adapted to any deliverance; but literally: the first and only sense of the words respects Christ, who in his infancy was had to Egypt for shelter from Herod’s rage and fury, and, when he was dead, and those that sought the life of Jesus, he was by an angel of the Lord, warning Joseph of it, called out of Egypt, and brought into Judea, Matt. 2:19–23 and this as a proof of the love of God to Israel; which as it was expressed to him in his infancy, it continued and appeared in various instances, more or less, unto the coming of Christ; who, though obliged for a while to go into Egypt, must not continue there, but must be called from thence, to be brought up in the land of Judea; to do his miracles, preach his doctrines, and do good to the bodies and souls of men there, being sent particularly to the lost sheep of the house of Israel; and, above all, in order to work out the salvation and redemption of his special people among them, and of the whole Israel of God everywhere else; which is the greatest instance of love to them, and to the world of the Gentiles, that ever was known, John 3:16; 1 John 2:2 and 4:9, 10. (Gill, J. (1810). An Exposition of the Old Testament (Vol. 6, pp. 432–433). London: Mathews and Leigh.)

_________________________________________________________________

FROM MY READING:

Nehemiah 5
Nehemiah stops the internal mistreatment among the Jews by force of example.
INSIGHT

The prospects for some of the returned exiles are bleak. There are deficient rains and poor harvests. As a result, the farmers mortgage their lands to their wealthier brethren and, in extreme cases, sell their children into slavery to pay the king’s taxes. The rich Jews, rather than helping out, are capitalizing on the situation to line their own pockets. This is inexcusable! Few things bring on more reproach to the cause of the Lord than the worldliness and hard-heartedness of those who claim to follow Him. Unselfish dedication to the common welfare of others in Christ is our spiritual obligation. (Quiet Walk)

______________________________________________________________

“AN UNCERTAIN SOUND”

For if the trumpet give an uncertain sound, who shall prepare himself to the battle?

1 Corinthians 14:8

The apostle Paul says to the Corinthians, “If the trumpet give an uncertain sound, who shall prepare himself to the battle?” If the sound is uncertain, then we shall add to the confusion. And that is why nothing is more important than that we should be perfectly clear in our minds as to what this Christian message really is. What does Christianity offer to people; what is it? How can we become Christians? These are the questions that we must answer.

Furthermore, what makes this terrible confusion so utterly inexcusable, of course, is that we have an open Bible before us, and we have it in a language that we can understand. If we had no Bible but merely some oral tradition, then there would be some excuse for the confusion. Or if we only had the Bible in a language that we

could not understand, again there would be considerable excuse. But that is not our position at all. So why is there any confusion? And there is only one answer to that question. It is because men and women, instead of taking the message as it is in the Bible, are imposing their own message upon it. They are approaching it with their philosophies, their theories, their ideas, and their attempts to understand; and they are bypassing what is stated in this Book that is open before them in a language that all can understand.

So my plea is that in all honesty, apart from anything else, we must come back to the Bible. Here are the documents of the early Church; here are the records of how Christianity came into being, of what the Church taught at the beginning and something of what happened as the result of that. In particular we must come back to the words and to the teaching and the message of the Lord Jesus Christ Himself.

A Thought to Ponder: We must come back to the Bible. (From The Kingdom of God, p. 50, by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones)

_______________________________________________________________

Stand Fast

“Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold to the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.” (2 Thessalonians 2:15)
Liberals commonly question the authority of the Scriptures on the assumption that they were based on ancient traditions.
However, the word “traditions” itself as used here conveys no such idea. It means simply “that which has been delivered.” Paul used the same word in defining the gospel. “For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures” (1 Corinthians 15:3). Paul did not add or subtract anything to what he had received directly from God. “For I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ” (Galatians 1:12).
He was making the same claim to the Christians at Thessalonica. He had first taught them “by word” when he preached there in person (Acts 17:1-4), then later by “our epistle” in his first letter. Now, in his follow-up letter to them, he was reminding them that, in both instances, he (as an apostle) had communicated to them only those things he had directly received from God by divine revelation. Therefore, it was indeed vital that they should “stand fast, and hold” these great truths “which ye have been taught.” Paul was asserting that God had directly communicated, through him, the new truths that He wanted them to have.
Before the New Testament was written, much had to be conveyed verbally to the early church, through the apostles and prophets. Later, the portions of those teachings that were of permanent application were inscripturated (compare Acts 17:3 with 1 Corinthians 15:3-4). The end result of this marvelous process was the inerrant Bible we have today, and it is this completed revelation of God that we must hold fast. (HMM, The Institute for Creation Research)

________________________________________________________________

Charles Spurgeon and a Regenerate Church Membership July 9, 2019

Charles Spurgeon began pastoring the Metropolitan Tabernacle of London, England, in 1853 at age 19, and was the senior pastor until his death in 1892. His superlative preaching drew massive crowds, and the church grew from two to three hundred to a membership of over 5,300.

Spurgeon believed in a regenerate church membership and was very careful in this regard.

He didn’t give invitations to come forward after his sermons. Instead, he invited seekers to meet with him at his office on Monday morning. He wanted to deal with seekers carefully and properly.

Prospective candidates for baptism and membership went through a multi-step process.

1. The enquirer met with one of the elders or deacons to share his or her testimony.

“On a weeknight evening each week church elders would see enquirers at the Tabernacle. For each one they would write an account of their spiritual journey. Often the discernment they exercised can be seen in the advice given, and in further visits over weeks or months until they were sure that the enquirer was truly saved. The core of the testimony would need to show that the person was relying only on the blood of Christ for salvation. They would also be asked if they understood the need for the imputed righteousness of Christ. They would talk about the doctrines of grace and whether they would-be member was looking only to Christ rather than their own merit. If the applicant was not quite clear on some things, the elders might give further questions to be answered, Bible passages to be read and prayed over, or as one elder put it, he ‘prescribed her some pills of precious promise with a little draught of sympathetic experience to wash them down.’ They might be given the Baptist Confession of Faith to study, or be directed to attend one of the Bible classes to help them further. … The Sword and the Trowel of 1865 says that elders look for four things: Tenderness of conscience, attachment to the means of grace, desire to come out of the world, and deep interest in the unconverted.”

2. If the elder or deacon was satisfied with the testimony, the enquirer was recommended to meet with Spurgeon.

“If satisfied, an interviewing elder would give a card, with the number matching the report, for the enquirer to see C.H. Spurgeon” (Wonders of Grace).

3. If Spurgeon was satisfied, he nominated someone to visit the candidate “to enquire as to the moral character and repute.”

“Spurgeon would spend several hours every Tuesday afternoon seeing many such people, taking a brief interval to compare notes with his elders. He would then appoint an elder or deacon to visit to ensure the applicant was living a consistent, godly life at home. Attendance at as many meetings as possible on Sundays and during the week was seen as a sign of true Christian life. Many were in service and had very little free time away from their work, but their new Christian instinct should be seen–to assembly together whenever possible. … [A] theme which shines out distinctly in the vast majority of records is the forsaking of worldliness at conversion. All is changed for the convert. Worldly pleasures are given up and the life devoted to Christ and his people from that time on. Pursuits such as the penny theater, public houses, music parties, the use of popular songs, and gambling are spoken of repeatedly as holing no pleasure for the new believer. The markedly different life of believers is often mentioned as instrumental in bringing others to enquire into Christian things. The change was not limited to church attendance, but extended to all areas of life” (Wonders of Grace).

4. If the home visitor was satisfied, he invited the candidate to attend a special congregation meeting to appear before the church family. There the candidates would again give their testimonies and answer any questions from church members. These meetings were not rushed and could last several hours, beginning at 2pm and sometimes “lasting till a late hour at night.”

5. The church then voted whether to receive the candidate as a member.

6. If approved by the vote of the church, the candidate was baptized and received into membership and participated in the next communion service.

This process began during the earliest days of Spurgeon’s pastorate at Metropolitan. During the first six and a half years, there were 1,442 new members, most by baptism. “That’s 1,442 membership interviews by a deacon, 1,442 meetings with Spurgeon, 1,442 membership visitations, 1,442 testimonies before the congregation, and 1,442 approvals by the congregation (not to mention over a thousand baptisms, as most of these were new converts)” (“Meaningful Membership at Spurgeon’s Metropolitan Tabernacle,” The Spurgeon Center, Feb. 8, 2018).

To maintain church membership required faithfulness to the Lord’s Supper. “Upon joining the church, members were given a communion card, divided by perforation into twelve numbered parts, one of which was to be delivered every month at the communion. These tickets would checked by the elders and if any member was “absent more than three months. This enabled the church to work towards meaningful membership by providing better care and discipleship, or by removing those members from the membership” (“Meaningful Membership at Spurgeon’s Metropolitan Tabernacle”).

Spurgeon preached against the practice of puffing up the church’s membership roles with people who are not present and active. “Let us not keep names on our books when they are only names. Certain of the good old people like to keep them there, and cannot bear to have them removed; but when you do not know where individuals are, nor what they are, how can you count them? They are gone to America, or Australia, or to heaven, but as far as your roll is concerned they are with you still. Is this a right thing? It may not be possible to be absolutely accurate, but let us aim at it… Keep your church real and effective, or make no report. A merely nominal church is a lie. Let it be what it professes to be” (Spurgeon’s final message to the Pastors’ College, cited from “Meaningful Membership at Spurgeon’s Metropolitan Tabernacle”).

__________________________________________________________________

We now have a Facebook page for Small Church Ministries – please invite others to join us on Facebook. Thank you. Look for the logo from the devotionals.