A New Breed Of Sheepdog

(Permission obtained personally by Buddy Smith to use this article - though, since he had first given permission to Brother Cloud to use it, Buddy Smith has requested that I keep Bro. Cloud's headers and footers with the article.)

(Friday Church News Notes, December 28, 2007, www.wayoflife.org fbns@wayoflife.org, 866-295-4143) - The following is by Buddy Smith, Malanda, Queensland :

The old breed is almost gone. Border collies, Kelpies, Blue Heelers, and "Bitsers" (bits of this and bits of that) are seldom seen among the sheep any more. Instead of Old Blue guarding the flock, we see a new breed that is part poodle and part Basenji.

Basenji can't bark, but they can yodel and howl. Isaiah 56:9-12 is the only text in the Bible on sheepdogs. It describes "dumb dogs (that) cannot bark, sleeping, lying down, loving to slumber... greedy dogs which can never have enough... that cannot understand, they all look to their own way, every one for his gain." A better description of toothless, spineless, voiceless shepherds of God's flock could hardly be found.

We hear from them no warning growl to alert the flock of approaching apostasy. We hear no bark of authority from the pulpit. We see in them no fierce defenders of the lambs. Gone are the fangs, and the lightning attacks on ravening lions and wolves in sheep's clothing. How long has it been since we saw a pastor with backbone and grit who was set for the defence of the gospel? We might as well admit it; most of them have been pensioned off and replaced by a poodle/Basenji cross.

They can't bark, but they can put on a good show. They go to the hairdresser to be permed and perfumed, petted and pampered. They have been trained how to pirouette and beg and roll over and play dead. But barking is no longer part of the course.

Christianity Today recently printed an article on the "Attack Dogs of Christendom." The article was supposed to be an expose of the good men who still know how to bark. When I read it I thought I heard a "basenjipoodle" yelp because of a well aimed stone. Is it possible that Old Blue nipped a lapdog in the pocketbook? Or wakened it from its nap? Did someone rebuke a cute and cuddly clergyperson for welcoming a unitarian wolf into his flock? Did Fido eat Fifi's beefsteak? It might pay, the next time you hear one of the Pope's lapdogs howl to ask why?

If we listen to Christian radio stations and TV broadcasts, we will soon hear the yodel of a "basenjipoodle." It is a whiny sound that appeals to the megachurch crowd, and fits right in with the beat of CCM. But it has no resemblance whatsoever to the songs of the redeemed.

It isn't easy to find an old dog who still knows how to bark, but there are still a few around. If you come across one, hold on to him. They know how to obey the Good Shepherd, and will die for the sheep in order to protect them. Just like their Master.

[Distributed by Way of Life Literature's Fundamental Baptist Information Service, a listing for Fundamental Baptists and other fundamentalist, Bible-believing Christians. Our goal in this particular aspect of our ministry is not devotional but is TO PROVIDE INFORMATION TO ASSIST PREACHERS IN THE PROTECTION OF THE CHURCHES IN THIS APOSTATE HOUR. This material is sent only to those who personally subscribe to the list. If somehow you have subscribed unintentionally, following are the instructions for removal. To SUBSCRIBE or UNSUBSCRIBE: go to the web site and sign up or change addresses there: http://www.wayoflife.org/fbis/subscribe.html. We take up a quarterly offering to fund this ministry, and those who use the materials are expected to participate (Galatians 6:6). Some of these articles are from O Timothy magazine, which is in its 21st year of publication. Way of Life publishes many helpful books. The catalog is located at the web site: http://www.wayoflife.org/catalog/catalog.htm Way of Life Literature, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061. 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org (e-mail). We do not solicit funds from those who do not agree with our preaching and who are not helped by these publications, but for those who are, OFFERINGS can be made at http://www.wayoflife.org/fbns/offering.html PAYPAL offerings can be made to https://www.paypal.com/xclick/business=dcloud%40wayoflife.org]

God Manifest In Flesh

When Jesus described the heart He called it a treasure chest, "A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth good things; and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things." (Matthew 12:35)

Whenever I read this text I always think of a treasure chest, a place where the real nature of a man abides. Inside every one of us there is a strongbox of treasured values and morals and deepest beliefs. This is where we keep our memories, our loves and hates, our ambitions and our attitudes. These we guard jealously and protect as our own peculiar treasure. You have a treasure chest in your bosom and so do I. The Saviour said so.

Much of the treasure that is stored away in our hearts is never brought out and put on display. It is too private, too personal, too peculiar, and many times it is too perverse. We would be embarrassed for others to know what rubbish we have been saving up.

We will close the lid on the contents of our treasure chest. But I must tell you that the contents of our treasure chests are not all secret. The Saviour said, "…out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh." (Matt. 12:34) He says the treasure chest leaks, it overflows into our words. Solomon described this overflow as being like a spring, "Keep thy heart with all diligence; for out of it are the issues of life." (Proverbs 4:23)

A survey of the Scriptures reveals some painful facts.

Our words and our works and our attitudes and our relationships and our appearance and our worship conspire to show others what is in our treasure chest. Embarrassing, isn't it?

But this treasure chest analogy has a bright side to it as well. You see, the Scripture teaches that Jesus Christ is God incarnate. All His words and works and relationships and appearance and worship of God blended harmoniously to reveal the heart of God. It is true that our Lord concealed His own glory in His humanity. But it is also true that He revealed the glory of the Father in all He did.

When my Saviour opened the treasure chest of His heart, He brought forth the Diamonds of His Deity, the Rubies of His Righteousness, the Pearls of His Power, the Gold of His Father's Glory, the Garnets of His Grace, the Jasper of His Justice, the Sapphires of His Sovereignty, the Jade of His Joy, the Amethysts of His Affections, and the Opals of His Omniscience.

Is it any wonder the temple guards returned empty handed when they were sent to arrest Him, saying, "Never man spake like this man"! Is it any wonder Niocodemus honoured our Lord with the words, "No man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him "? Is it any wonder the apostle Paul described his own life goal as being, "That I may know him"? Is it any wonder we who know Him find Him to be altogether lovely?

Is it any wonder that we fall down speechless at His feet in eternal wonder that He has bestowed His treasure in these earthen vessels?

All glory to His Name!

Buddy Smith
Used With Permission

Grapes And Giants

(Permission obtained personally by Buddy Smith to use this article - though, since he had first given permission to Brother Cloud to use it, Buddy Smith has requested that I keep Bro. Cloud's headers and footers with the article.)

December 14, 2007 (David Cloud, Fundamental Baptist Information Service, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061, 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org; for instructions about subscribing and unsubscribing or changing addresses, see the information paragraph at the end of the article) -

The following article is by Pastor Buddy Smith, Grace Baptist Church, Malanda, Queensland, Australia:

“We have been reminded again just recently that grapes and giants are most often found in close proximity. They just seem to go together. When the spies brought back from Canaan a great cluster of grapes, they also brought back reports of giants living in walled cities. In fact, the Bible dictionary I use indicates that the grapes came from the very location, Hebron, where the giants lived. I must confess that I would rather it were not so. My flesh is a lover of grapes, but has no affinity for giants. I would like for them to be found far apart so that I could rest in peace under the shadow of the grapevine and eat to excess the grapes of Eshcol, all the while avoiding all contact with the giants. The apostle wrote to the Corinthian church this very truth when he penned the words, ‘There is a great door and effectual opened to me, AND there are many adversaries. (16:9). Great door, many adversaries! Opportunities and Opposition, Doors and Difficulties, Blessings and Burdens, Grapes and Giants! This is God's plan for His servants. The very fact that they are found together teaches us to be optimistically realistic and realistically optimistic. If there are giants who are harassing you at this moment, then there must be large clusters of grapes nearby! It is God's way to plant them in close proximity. If there are grapes growing in abundance in your, then you must be ever so watchful for giants! And just here you will see one of those Bible portraits of the servants of Christ. In one of his hands is a cluster of the very largest, lushest grapes, sweet and rich, blest of God. And in the other hand he holds a sharp sword, with which he fights off the giants. While he tastes the sweetness of God’s richest blessings, his eye is sharp and his arm is strong and he holds the Sword of the Spirit, because the giants, the enemies of God, are ever near. We have been enjoying many wonderful grapes of blessing in the church planting work here, and there are also giants. Over the past few months our church has been under severe attack from many quarters. False accusations, slander, threats of lawsuits, unrest in the homes of our members, dissatisfaction on the part of some, and a thousand other difficulties have come our way. These are our giants.”

[Distributed by Way of Life Literature's Fundamental Baptist Information Service, a listing for Fundamental Baptists and other fundamentalist, Bible-believing Christians. Our goal in this particular aspect of our ministry is not devotional but is TO PROVIDE INFORMATION TO ASSIST PREACHERS IN THE PROTECTION OF THE CHURCHES IN THIS APOSTATE HOUR. This material is sent only to those who personally subscribe to the list. If somehow you have subscribed unintentionally, following are the instructions for removal. To SUBSCRIBE or UNSUBSCRIBE: go to the web site and sign up or change addresses there: http://www.wayoflife.org/fbis/subscribe.html. We take up a quarterly offering to fund this ministry, and those who use the materials are expected to participate (Galatians 6:6). Some of these articles are from O Timothy magazine, which is in its 21st year of publication. Way of Life publishes many helpful books. The catalog is located at the web site: http://www.wayoflife.org/catalog/catalog.htm Way of Life Literature, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061. 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org (e-mail). We do not solicit funds from those who do not agree with our preaching and who are not helped by these publications, but for those who are, OFFERINGS can be made at http://www.wayoflife.org/fbns/offering.html PAYPAL offerings can be made to https://www.paypal.com/xclick/business=dcloud%40wayoflife.org]

Theological Dinosaurs

(Permission obtained personally by Buddy Smith to use this article - though, since he had first given permission to Brother Cloud to use it, Buddy Smith has requested that I keep Bro. Cloud's headers and footers with the article.)

November 9, 2004 (David Cloud, Fundamental Baptist Information Service, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061, 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org; for instructions about subscribing and unsubscribing or changing addresses, see the information paragraph at the end of the article) -

The following article is by Pastor Buddy Smith, Grace Baptist Church, Malanda, Queensland, Australia:

NEWS FLASH

Theological dinosaur fossils discovered in Canberra Seminary

"A complete fossil skeleton has been unearthed at Unity Theological Seminary in Canberra," The Rev. Dr. Ms. Barbarous Theorem commented to the press, "This is the most exciting discovery in the history of the Seminary. We have cause to believe this is the first complete skeleton of Pulpitosaurus Extinctus ever to be found." She identified the excavation site as being beneath the Seminary chapel platform. "The chapel, sealed up for almost fifty years, was opened only recently for research purposes."

After reading the above article, Mr. Steadfast, reporter for The Pilgrim Way, requested an interview with Ms. Theorem, and we print the following:

PW: "Ms. Theorem, can you give our readers any details as to the site where Pulpitosaurus Extinctus was found?"

MT: "Yes, but I should fill you in on the background first. We have an excellent history professor at the Seminary named Dr. Revision. He and some of his post grad students have been wanting to have a look in the old chapel for a couple of years. When permission was granted recently, they went right to work. He consulted me, and asked where he would most likely find remains of a theological dinosaur if there were any to be found. I told him that I had read in the Seminary archives that the chapel platform had been their domain, and would be a good place them to begin."

PW: "What do you mean by 'their domain'?"

MT: "Hmmm. I see I'm going to have to tell you about the early days of the Seminary. It was not always as broadminded as you see it at present. Many years ago it was a training college for the Baptist ministry. The founders were all Pulpitosaurus Extinctii -- real living fossils, theological dinosaurs. We call it 'The Dark Ages'. They were stuck in the swamps of primitive methods, old fashioned doctrines, and fire and brimstone preaching. Thank goodness, those days are gone forever. We are much more enlightened now. For instance, take the Feminar (Feminism Seminar) recently held here at the Seminary. We had almost 2000 women ministers, we dedicated the new meditation centre to Sophia, the goddess of wisdom, and had tremendous media coverage. I was privileged to chair the meetings that met to discuss re-imaging God, and to promote the new Politically Correct Bible Version (PCBV)."

PW: "I see. But I still don't understand about the chapel platform being the domain of Pulpitosaurus."

MT: "You men are all so dense. Didn't you understand what I just told you about the incredibly old fashioned beliefs of those relics of a bygone age? They used to stand on the chapel platform and roar at the poor helpless students. They actually thought the Bible was true. They believed in all those hopelessly outdated theories of inspiration, atonement, forgiveness, holiness, heaven and hell, etc. And they didn't just keep it to themselves. They tried to get everyone else to believe it as well! And they used the platform in the chapel to actually shout their beliefs at their hearers. That's why we describe it as being their domain. Is that simple enough for you?"

PW: "Yes, I understand it better than you think. Can you describe the Pulpitosaurus to our readers? The artist's sketches don't give much detail."

MT: "Gladly. The head of our Evolution Department, Dr. Darwin Huxley, has written several books on Pulpitosaurus. He says he believes this species had the largest backbone of any dinosaur, and that it had only three vertebrae, making it almost impossible for it to bend. It also had a really large chest cavity. Some of his colleagues think that indicates it had a very large heart. Others are of the opinion it had four lungs instead. The neck structure was such that it probably had a very efficient voice box and could project its cries for great distances. The capacity of the skull, according to Dr. Huxley, was quite small, leaving hardly any space for a brain. And he said one specimen even had a piece of very thick skin still attached."

PW: "Thank you for that interesting description. The old fossil must have been quite an impressive sight. Can you tell us about the subspecies that have been discovered?"

MT: "We are still collating much of the information that has been sent to us, but I can tell you about three subspecies of Pulpitosaurus we have identified so far. "The earliest relative was called Pulpitosaurus Apostolos. It had the longest legs of any theological dinosaur we have discovered, and covered great distances quickly, leaving offspring everywhere, Fossil remains of Apostolos have been found in the Himalayas, the Indus Valley, the Andes, Siberia, the Aleutian Islands and the Australian deserts."

PW: "Very interesting! What was the second subspecies?"

MT: "Actually the second and third subspecies seem to have developed simultaneously as offspring of Apostolos. The type most common seems to have been Pulpitosaurus Pastorus, He was amazingly prolific. Some nest sites discovered indicate the Pastorus may have cared for hundreds, even thousands of offspring at times. This species exerted such a great influence on their environment that whole primitive cultures were altered."

PW: "Amazing! And what about the third subspecies?"

MT: "This is the one that gives me nightmares! When reports first began to come in on this old fossil, we didn't know what to call it. We finally decided on Pulpitosaurus Evangelisticus. It had really sharp teeth, its voice box was the largest of all and its backbone had no vertebrae at all! Some researchers believe it was capable of breathing fire, and it was good at stirring the nests ruled over by the Pastorus. Amazingly, its visits to the nesting sites appear to have resulted in a great increase in the number of eggs that hatched out into Evangelisticuses and Pastoruses."

PW: "I wonder if you could tell our readers why the Pulpitosaurus became extinct?"

MT: "Most of our faculty hold the view that it was simply unable to evolve. It couldn't keep up with the changes happening all around it. One of our faculty members, Dr. Maverick, thinks it died out because it changed its diet from meat to milk. He thinks the latest specimens show symptoms of malnourishment and vitamin deficiency."

PW: "What creatures replaced them?"

MT: "Our research indicates the next step up the evolutionary ladder was much more sophisticated. Thankfully, it did not have a backbone at all, or teeth, or a thick hide. It didn't breathe fire or produce fear in others' hearts. Rather, it moved with the tide, adapted to its culture easily, and preferred lukewarm conditions...."

PW: "Pardon me for interrupting, but what you are describing sounds awfully like a jellyfish...."

MT: "You might say that. It has nice ring to it, doesn't it? Evangellyfish ... Hmm, I think that might be the very name. It conveys the thought of softness, conforming, drifting with the wind and current. Quite a suitable name that is."

PW: "I want to ask your opinion about this. From time to time we hear reports of living specimens of Pulpitosaurus Extinctus. Do you think it is possible that there may be some of these theological fossils still alive?"

MT: "Oh, no! Definitely not! Those are just unfounded rumours. People with small intellectual capacity will believe anything. Admittedly, some eggs were found recently in quite good condition. (Of course, the Board of Regents had them put in cold storage.) Pulpitosaurus Extinctus alive? It's not possible ... at least, I certainly hope not! Oh, my. that's a horrible thought! Modern society couldn't stand the shock. Dear, dear ... surely not! Oh, my ..."

PW: "We had some other questions to ask, but the Rev. Dr. Ms. Theorem became so distressed she had to take some Prozac and lie down. We will keep you informed as to any further developments."

[Distributed by Way of Life Literature's Fundamental Baptist Information Service, a listing for Fundamental Baptists and other fundamentalist, Bible-believing Christians. Our goal in this particular aspect of our ministry is not devotional but is TO PROVIDE INFORMATION TO ASSIST PREACHERS IN THE PROTECTION OF THE CHURCHES IN THIS APOSTATE HOUR. This material is sent only to those who personally subscribe to the list. If somehow you have subscribed unintentionally, following are the instructions for removal. To SUBSCRIBE or UNSUBSCRIBE: go to the web site and sign up or change addresses there: http://www.wayoflife.org/fbis/subscribe.html. We take up a quarterly offering to fund this ministry, and those who use the materials are expected to participate (Galatians 6:6). Some of these articles are from O Timothy magazine, which is in its 21st year of publication. Way of Life publishes many helpful books. The catalog is located at the web site: http://www.wayoflife.org/catalog/catalog.htm Way of Life Literature, P.O. Box 610368, Port Huron, MI 48061. 866-295-4143, fbns@wayoflife.org (e-mail). We do not solicit funds from those who do not agree with our preaching and who are not helped by these publications, but for those who are, OFFERINGS can be made at http://www.wayoflife.org/fbns/offering.html PAYPAL offerings can be made to https://www.paypal.com/xclick/business=dcloud%40wayoflife.org]

How God Preserves His Word

The Anvil of God's Word

Last eve I paused beside a blacksmith's door,
And heard the anvil ring the vesper chime;
Then, looking in, I saw upon the floor
Old hammers, worn with beating years of time.

"How many anvils have you had," said I,
"To wear and batter all these hammers so?"
"Just one," said he, and then, with twinkling eye,
"The anvil wears the hammers out, you know."

And so, thought I, the anvil of God's Word,
For ages sceptic blows have beat upon;
Yet, though the noise of falling blows was heard,
The anvil is unharmed - the hammers gone.

John Clifford

Broken hammers! Those two words sum up the entire history of men's attacks on the Word of God. The anvil of God's Word has for centuries suffered countless hammer blows from its enemies, yet it bears not a dent or scratch from all their spite! I see inscribed upon the broken hammers the names of those who wielded them! I see Sennacharib's name. Jehoiakim's name is there (Jer. 36). Diocletian, Voltaire, Paine, Hegel, Hume, Griesbach, Semler, Lachman, Strauss, Baur, Ingersoll, Fosdick, and a thousand others have wielded their infidel arguments against the Word of God, and yet it endures. The floor of history is littered with the broken hammers of critics, but the anvil is unharmed!

The Answer to a Great Mystery

There is a great mystery here. How is it possible that the Masoretic Hebrew Old Testament and the Received Text of the Greek New Testament, and so very many of the faithful translations of the Bible have survived the enmity of wicked men so that we have the very Word of God in our possession today? The Scriptures give us the answer, God has preserved His Word for us. He told us in His Word He would do so,“The words of the LORD are pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.” Psalm 12:6, 7 “For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled.” Matt. 5:18 “Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.” Matt. 24:35 Add to these verses Psa. 33:11; 100:5; 105:8-10; 111:7,8; 117:2; 119:89, 152, 160; Isa. 40:8;, and I Tim. 6:14 Our Lord Jesus stated this truth when He said, “...the Scripture cannot be broken.” Without a doubt, God has preserved His Words for us in English in the King James Bible.

When I was a young Christian it used to trouble me that men were forever attacking the Word of God. Since I came to understand the doctrine of preservation, I no longer fear that we will ever lose the Word of God or see the King James Bible displaced by the modern mistranslations. As a little boy fifty years ago, I remember listening to our dear old pastor as he preached on the Inspiration of the Bible, its Inerrancy, its Authority, and its Preservation. At the time, the doctrine of Inspiration was under attack. Faithless men hammered away at the Holy Scriptures with their pompous words while sceptics laughed and applauded, but they all passed away, and the anvil was unharmed. Some years later, the Inerrancy of the Scriptures came under attack. For many years now the Authority of the Word of God has been under attack. And over the past twenty or thirty years “scholars” have angrily attacked the doctrine of the Preservation of God's Word. Without exception, these “scholars” have held to what is called Modern Textual Criticism.

The Origins of Modern Textual Criticism

We must remember that the men who devised the basic principles of Modern Textual Criticism earned their degrees at the feet of the early modernists. In the eighteenth century modernists were known as German Rationalists. Using the “scientific” methods of the Renaissance, they sat in judgement on the Word of God and dispensed with everything supernatural in the Bible. This view came to be called Higher Criticism. The students of the Higher Critics carried their modernism one step farther and devised theories of modern textual criticism to hammer away at the Inspiration, the Inerrancy, the Authority, and the Preservation of the Bible. Over the past century most Bible colleges and seminaries have embraced modern textual criticism and, as a result, have jettisoned the doctrine of Preservation.

They seem to have forgotten that God has always preserved certain things.

The Doctrine of Preservation

Holy Scripture tells us in II Peter 3:7, “But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgement and perdition of ungodly men.” Two separate words are used here to describe God's preservation of the cosmos for the day of judgement. “Kept in store” is from the Greek word “thesaurus”. It carries the meaning of something being laid up as a treasure. “Reserved” is from the word “teereo” and means to keep, to preserve, or to hold fast. This verse agrees with Col. 1:17, “And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.” God is always actively preserving and keeping and holding together the heavens and the earth. He has a plan for them and will not allow them to be destroyed until His plan is fulfilled.

God has, for thousands of years, preserved the nation of Israel. Surely the words of God to Jacob in Gen. 28:15 “ And, behold, I am with thee, and will keep thee in all places whither thou goest...” were not to Jacob alone, but to all his seed. Again and again, God promised to Israel that He would preserve them. Exodus 23:20 reads, “Behold, I send an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared.” And the Jews were instructed to bless one another with the words of Num. 6:24, “The LORD bless thee and keep thee...” History bears solemn witness to the keeping power of God. He has preserved His covenant people in the face of bitter enmity and will yet bring them to faith in His Son. God has a plan for Israel and will not allow the Adolph Hitlers of the past, present, or future to destroy them.

God keeps His own children so that they can never be lost. Jude addressed his epistle to those who are “sanctified by God the Father and preserved in Jesus Christ, and called.” We are preserved and kept and held fast. Oh, brother, if you are washed in the blood of the Lamb, you can swing over the pit of Hell on a rotten cornstalk singing Amazing Grace and never fear that you will fall in! We are assured in Romans 8:38, 39 that no created thing or circumstance can “separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus.” My dear Saviour gave this poor little lamb all the assurance he would ever need when He said, “ And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than I, and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand.” (John 10:28, 29) In Ephesians 4:30 we are told that we are “sealed with the Holy Spirit.” What could be clearer than the fact that every member of the Trinity is involved in keeping us. God has a plan for us and will keep us all the way to Heaven. We are preserved!

How God Preserves His Word

It should not surprise us then, to read the verses on the preservation of the Bible. It is God's way to preserve those things for which He has a great purpose and plan. In simple faith we say a loud “AMEN” to every text that tells us God will preserve His Word. Church historians agree (often very reluctantly, I fear) that God HAS preserved His Word. Many preachers who should boldly preach this great truth (and don't!) will nod their heads ever so timidly and sheepishly admit that it seems to be true, but then they will qualify that admission by saying that there are no verses in the Bible that specifically state the doctrine of Preservation. And then they will say that there are no verses that tell us how God preserves His Word.

We Baptists used to believe that everything in life is basically theological. By that we mean that we believe that every subject, every issue, and every doctrinal controversy MUST be looked at from God's perspective, and we believe that His perspective is to be found in His Word. If you still hold that as a conviction, you will find that you are out of step with a great many Bible college professors and their graduates. And you wouldn't be able to pass some of the courses in their learned institutions. Why do I say this? Simply because it is now taboo in many circles for you to approach the subject of textual criticism from the perspective of faith. That is the perspective which believes that God has revealed in His Word how to discern which Greek text is reliable and which is not. We believe God has laid out for us in the Bible all the guidelines we need. If you hold to this position, you are pleading guilty to having a biblical bias. Most Bible “scholars” tell us that this perspective is not “neutral.” (Say, that sounds a lot like straddling the fence to me. I thought “neutralism” was something that new evangelicals were into.) When the “scholars” say they can find no verses in the Bible that teach that God has preserved His Word or how He does it, we are reminded of the three reasons a burglar can't find a policeman. 1) He isn't really interested in looking. 2) He tends to look in the wrong places. 3) And he would be in deep trouble if he did find one.

A Key Word

Now I would like to propose a little challenge for the scholarly gentlemen who tell us that the Bible has nothing to say about preservation. Since God uses the word “preserve” in the Bible, why not take the time to look up all the verses in the Bible that use the Greek word translated “preserved” (as in I Thess. 5:23 and in Jude 1)? It is the word, “teereo”. It is translated “preserved” twice, “reserved” eight times, “hold fast” once, “hold” once, “watch” twice, “observe” four times, “prison” once, and “keep, keepers, kept, keepeth, and keeping” almost sixty times. The overall definition we perceive through the Holy Spirit's uses of the word “teereo” is that of someone exercising a protective, custodial, watchful care over someone or some thing. The Spirit used it to describe the soldiers watching Jesus on the cross (Matt. 27:36, 54). It is used to describe those who watched the tomb of our Lord (Matt. 28:4). The ruler of the feast accused the bridegroom in John 2:10 of keeping back the best wine till last. In Acts 12:5, 6 and 16:23, Peter and Paul were kept in prison. In I Cor. 7:37 and I Tim. 5:22 a man is told to keep his body free from immorality. The Ephesian church was exhorted to keep the unity of the Spirit (Eph. 4:3). Paul faces death in II Tim 4:7 with the confidence that he has kept the faith. James writes that we are to keep ourselves unspotted from the world. The truth of preservation is very clearly taught in all these verses. In each case someone or some thing is being watched over protectively. If we believe that “every word of God is pure” (Prov. 30:5), if we believe in the Verbal Inspiration of Scripture, then we believe that God very carefully chose this word to convey to us the fact that men commonly exercise a custodial and careful watchfulness over things that have value and importance.

The Surprising Uses of the Word

So what does this word have to do with the preservation of God's Word? Simply this, the word, “teereo”, is used 28 times in the New Testament to describe men “keeping” the sayings of Christ, His commandments, His words, and God's law. See, for example, John 8:51, “If a man keep my saying, he shall never die.” and John 8:55 “...I know him and keep his saying.” John 14:15 is the best known of these verses, “If ye love me, keep my commandments.” Verses 21, 23, 24 emphasise the same truth, “He that hath my commandments and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me...”, “ If a man love me, he will keep my words...”, and “He that loveth me not keepeth not my sayings...” I John 2:3, 4, 5 add these words, “And hereby we do know that we know him, if we keep his commandments. He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whose keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby we do know that we are in him.” For over forty years I have been reading those verses and assuming that they were only describing the simple obeying of God's Word, but that is not all that is in the word “keep”. (It should be emphasised that there are three basic words for “obey” in the Greek New Testament, but this word “teereo” is never once translated “obey”.) The Holy Spirit's consistent use of the word “teereo” in the New Testament shows that it means to exercise a protective, watchful, custodial care of the thing kept. That is the basic meaning of the word. The verses which use the word “teereo” in reference to keeping our Lord's commandments teach us that God would have His children to preserve His Word. So have we been altogether wrong in supposing that we are to obey the words of Christ? I think not. God intended for us to lovingly exercise a protective watchcare over His Words, and in doing so, to obey them. If God's people have a grasp of the importance of standing guard over the purity of God's Word, and having a loving watchfulness over the Bible, they will also “keep” it in obeying it. Obedience to the Bible and Preservation of the Bible are inseparable. When the Lord Jesus said to His disciples in John 14:15, “If ye love me, keep my commandments,” He was instructing them to lovingly preserve His commandments from corruption by obeying them without alteration. That makes sense to this old hillbilly preacher. I will preserve God's Word so I can obey it carefully and I will obey it carefully so I can preserve it unchanged for the next generation of God's children. If I become careless in obeying it, I will become careless in preserving it. Say, have you noticed that those who are so opposed to the doctrine of preservation also become increasingly careless in obeying the Bible? And those who are most vocal in their support of the preservation of the Bible tend to be most concerned about simple obedience to it? It stands to reason that carelessness in preserving God's Word goes with carelessness in obeying it, and diligence in preserving it goes with diligence in obeying it.

Simple Steps of Preservation

Now, I think I hear someone saying, “You still haven't told us how God's Word is preserved.”

First, we should recognise that when the Lord told men to keep His words He was addressing His disciples. This charge is given to the Lord's disciples not only individually but collectively. In the simplest analysis churches are gatherings of disciples of Christ. It was the churches' task then and it is the churches' task now to “keep his commandments!” The little church I pastor has been given a divine mandate to preserve the Bible. It is not the task of parachurch organisations such as denominations, Bible societies, Bible colleges, seminaries, Christian universities, or museums to preserve God's Word. It is the work of the local church. This is how God has preserved His Word since the time of the apostles, through local churches standing guard over it. Read the history of the primitive churches in every land. They preserved the Word of God without anyone's help but God's. Roman emperors and Roman popes tried their hardest to take the Bible away from the churches, but they would not give it up.

Churches in this century must realise that no group of people in the world has the right to tell a local church that it is exceeding its mandate when it stands guard over the purity of the Bible. No author, no Baptist pope, no fellowship of churches, no university, and no seminary has the right to overrule our Saviour's charge to the local church to preserve God's Word.

Second, any church that sets out to preserve their Saviour's sayings commits itself inevitably to obey it in the letter and the spirit. The Great Commission of Christ to His disciples contains the words, “Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you.” (Matt. 28:20) “All things” teaches preservation. “Observe” teaches obedience. Preservation and obedience are forever joined together.

We need to read with discernment the histories of the churches. When the “scholars” of the 19th century discovered the mangled and mutilated manuscripts of the Alexandrian Greek text they should have exercised discernment as to the places they found them. The Vaticanus manuscript was discovered unused, unpreached, and unloved among the papists who had no desire to preserve it or obey it. Its credibility is immediately suspect because of the lawless obscurantism of its hosts. The Sinaitic manuscript was discovered in no better company. Godless priests were using it to kindle a fire. One of the rooms of the monastery was filled with the skulls of deceased priests. Dead rituals, dead prayers, dead doctrines, dead priests, and and a dead text, they all belong together.

A live text, the Received Text, should be found in a live church, filled with live doctrines, with a live preacher and live saints. They should actively worship the living God. They should be empowered by the Spirit of life. When the Spirit of God spoke through the apostle Paul, he described the local church as being “the pillar and ground of the truth.” (I Tim. 3:15) A church which trembles at the Word of God (Isa. 66:2, 5) will preserve it in the very fullest sense, lovingly obeying it.

And third, God has given us the very simplest instructions for the preserving of His Words. He tells us again and again not to add to it or take away from it. This is preservation in all its simplicity. Deut. 4:2 is the first text that warns us not to add to, nor take away from the Word of God, “Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you.” (Note how preservation and obedience go together in this and the next text!) Deut. 12:32 states this truth again, “What thing soever I command you, observe to do it: Thou shalt not add thereto, nor diminish from it.” The wise man of Proverbs 30:6 warns, “Add thou not unto his words, lest he reprove thee, and thou be found a liar.” God's commission to Jeremiah in chapter 26:2 is, “...(S)peak all the words that I command thee to speak unto them; diminish not a word.” Rev. 22:18, 19 are possibly the best known verses on the preservation of the Bible. They come at the close of the canon, and warn men most solemnly not to add to nor take away from the words of this book. What is not commonly known is that the 22nd chapter also contains two verses that speak of our part in preservation. Verse 7 promises a blessing on the man that “keepeth the sayings of this book.” And verse 9 identifies the angel who spoke with John as being the fellowservant of them which “keep the sayings of this book.” The word, again, is “teereo”. There is a blessing on the man who preserves the Word of God and avoids every alteration to the Bible. And a curse on those who add to or take away from it.

So God tells us how His Word is preserved. It is kept by those who love it and obey it. Down through the centuries He has kept His Word through His people. Wherever we find a church, large or small, that is committed to walking in the light of the Bible, we will find a church that takes its stewardship of the purity of God's Word seriously. And we will find that they measure everything, including Modern Textual Criticism, by the Word of God.

Many years ago, I pastored a church near an aboriginal mission. There was a missionary living and working there who told me one day that someone had donated copies of a modern translation for the church in the settlement. He said that after a few weeks, the people came to him and said, “Brother ________, we don't like this new Bible. We want the old one back again.” When he asked why, they said, “This Bible got no teeth!” In simple faith, with barely enough education to read, they knew the difference between the true Scriptures and the mangled thoughts of men. They knew that the Holy Scriptures have “teeth”, and they had discerned that the new “bible” didn't. They discerned that somebody had pulled the teeth of their Bible when they left verses out and added in the words of men.

They also knew that they should “keep” the sayings of Jesus by asking for their old Bibles back. Those old Bibles were the King James Version.

One of the saddest statistics of our generation is that more and more Bible colleges and seminaries have become hammer factories for sceptics. But we should be greatly encouraged to know that there are more and more faithful churches who believe in God's preservation of His Word. Many good books on preservation are being written and sermons preached and research done, so that there is an ever increasing body of Scriptural evidence that proves clearly that God is keeping His Word through His people.

I hear a new sound in the world today. It is the sound of hammers breaking as they beat themselves to pieces against the Word of God. It is music to our ears.

But it is not the hammers that make the music.

It is the anvil.

God is preserving His Word.

By Buddy Smith
(Used With Permission)