As time went on, I began to learn that there was another Bible, the English Bible called the 1901 or the American Standard. Some of the scholars or teachers began to say that this was more accurate than the King James. They said that it was the most accurate English Bible in print because it is American English instead of British English.

Well, I began to check out some things in the King James that were brought to my attention. One was in the 13th chapter of I Corinthians where the King James talks about charity. Well, what does it mean? They said, "Charity is an organization giving goods and so on and so forth." But when I looked it up in the old English dictionary, (the one I am looking at now is called The New Shorter Oxford Dictionary), the number one definition for the word charity is Christian love, and that is from the word agape. It does not say agape here, but it actually is, and agape is charitable, benevolent love, godly love, or as we love God. Well, the word charity in these verses is more expansive actually than the word love. Of course, charity is love and agape translates love. But love is not the only accurate word because the word charity was brought into the English language to describe Christian love.

Then there are other words that were questioned. We use the word rapture. When I first began to hear the word rapture, I thought, "Well, that is not in the Bible." I couldn't find it anywhere. I looked in the concordances. Finally, I found that it meant caught up. Well, it is very clearly stated in I Thessalonians chapter 4, verse 17 that we will be caught up. Now, I am not going to say it is inaccurate to say there will be a rapture of the church, because if you mean caught up well, that's what rapture means. However, it still confuses some people, especially of the amillennial belief, because the word rapture is not in the Bible. But it is accurate to say we will be caught up together with them in the clouds. Also, the Bible says in that same passage in I Thessalonians 4:15: For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. Well, they attacked that word prevent which actually means pre the event or precede. Here again, if you look up the word in your good old English dictionary, it will say the word prevent means to precede, to anticipate, or hinder or act before, which is pre the event. So each time someone brought up something in an effort to say that the King James Bible was inaccurate in its translation, I would look it up and find that it is accurate.

Now, I understand that we get our doctrine from the reading and studying of the Bible, whichever translation or edition you read. You see the King James Bible was translated in 1611 in Middle English, which we no longer speak, write, or preach in that vernacular. We use the 1769 or 1773 edition of the translation from 1611. So when we get our doctrine (the doctrine of eternal security, the doctrine of Christ, the virgin birth, the incarnation, God in the flesh, manifest in the flesh, and so forth and so on) if you get it accurately, you are on solid ground. Some people read Greek fluently. The old Puritan divines, who perpetuated much of the need for the translation into English in 1611, quote, from the Greek in their sermons, their writings, and their teachings. So, before you start condemning somebody for using a different translation, be sure that you have evidence that they have varied from the fundamental doctrinal teaching of the Bible.

Now, it is my conviction that the King James Bible is absolutely accurate. You must do your homework. You must study with as much information as you have from the Greek. I have the writings of four or five Greek scholars on the New Testament, and they all don't exactly agree on every point. There is going to be some opinion in any translation (any way you look at it), but the final truths are the doctrines. If we arrive at the right doctrine, get the doctrinal truth from the autographs, that is, from the originals as near as we can in the Greek and other languages, in Arabic, and so on and so forth, then, as I said before, we are on solid ground. These are my convictions. My convictions of doctrines are derived from my study of the King James Bible, New Testament and Old Testament.

Now, I meet people and hear people preach who do not use that particular translation, and it doesn't sound as good to me. But when they come through with sound doctrine, I have to say, "Amen," to the sound doctrine, no matter how they arrived at it. I totally trust and am completely content and satisfied with the King James Bible. All of the teachers in my church, all of those who preach in my church, all of those in the Gospel Preacher Association, all of those that we use in the Appalachian Baptist Fellowship read, preach, and teach from the King James Bible. We call it the King James translation (1769 to 1773 edition). This is my conviction. I believed the Bible when I was first saved, but over a period of time it has become such a conviction that I will live and die by the study of the Bible that I have daily.

Reading the King James translation is not an automatic guarantee for true doctrine. Many different views, doctrines, and practices are propagated from reading and analyzing the King James text.

Some King James readers have a mean spirit-not taught in the Bible-and some are extreme or radical in their judgment. Thank the Lord, they are not the majority. Most who read and teach the King James Bible are not extreme or radical. Truth with grace and love is the true Christian teaching from Jesus Christ and His example.

The Bible is a beautiful, inspiring, heavenly treasure that we can have here on earth. We learn from it, and we learn to live by it. We get strength from it during the hard times (the battles and struggles of life), and we also enjoy its richness when we are victorious (on the mountain top). It is good for us all the time, at home in our private devotions, in church, on the hillside, under the arbors, the tents, as well as in the cathedrals. It is a wonderful thing to have the Blessed Word of God in our own language.

I knew little of the doctrine of Christ but believed with all my being that He was God. Since that time, through study, prayer, and light from Him, I now have the conviction that Christ is God, Immanuel, virgin born, lived on the earth 33 ½ years, preached His own Gospel, performed miracles, was crucified, buried, and rose again the third day, ascended into the heavens where He sits on the throne of His majesty, hearing prayer in His Name, and making intercession for all believers.

I am convicted that He saves all who come to Him-whether Jew or Gentile, bond or free, and that the church (local) is His body and is made of all races and nations who are brothers and sisters in the family of God.

Denominations were formed by believers in Christ for a variety of reasons-both doctrinal and cultural. Most were begun by men of great convictions. It seems all preached the Gospel, claimed faith in Christ, and claimed to be led by the Holy Spirit.

Divisions and varied interpretations of the Holy Bible were at the base of the movements. Church history proves that regardless of the denomination, the Gospel is the power of God unto salvation to all who believe.

We will not have complete unity of belief until Jesus comes, but we should endeavor to have the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace (Ephesians 4:3) until we all come in the unity of the faith and the knowledge of the Son of God unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ (Ephesians 4:13).

The doctrine of Christ is where we unite or divide. II John 1:9-11 says: "Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ, hath not God. He that abideth in the doctrine of Christ, he hath both the Father and the Son. If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed. For he that biddeth him God speed is partaker of his evil deeds." The line of demarcation is between those who hold the doctrine of Christ and those who abide not in the doctrine of Christ.

I believe and am (convinced) convicted that Christ was/is God in the flesh, virgin born, the physical Son of God. The New Testament knows nothing of a worldwide church denomination. There is no church denomination recognized anywhere in the New Testament. The separation is believers from unbelievers and from worldliness. All born again, Bible believers are brothers and sisters in the family of God which is the worldwide kingdom of heaven on earth.

I soon learned by example, by teaching, and from my parents that everyone-even children-were to be quiet, reverent, and attentive, because God was to be worshiped and obeyed. The Gospel was sacred in the meeting house. At the age of twelve, I was saved and began to read the Bible regularly and attentively. The first book of the Bible that I read (the preacher suggested it) was the book of Matthew. When I read in the sixteenth chapter and verse 18 about the church with Jesus Christ, the head and the foundation, I grew even more fond of both the church and Jesus Christ, my Saviour.

The old preacher preached that the building was to be reverenced, though it was not the church. The people are the church. I realized that each assembly was a church. As the pastors preached that each local church was a sovereign body of its own, I gained a better understanding of the duty to preach the Gospel in my own community.

Once a year each local church would have a weeklong meeting. God began very soon after I was saved to anoint me to testify, exhort, and witness. Christ led me to tell my young friends what He had done for me, and six of them trusted Christ and were baptized in the first year after I was saved.

The church moved to license me to preach at the age of fourteen. I was used a lot in meetings in several churches, especially during spring and summer meetings. In 1945 and 1946, I attended the Berry Schools Academy near Rome, Georgia. There I received my first formal Bible classes and learned more about the local church.

Through the years I have become completely convicted that the Kingdom of God on earth consists of local churches in every country in the world. I believe each local church (assembly) is answerable only to Christ, the Head of the church, led by the Holy Spirit of God, guided by the written Word of God. The offices of the church are the pastor (or bishop) and deacons. The assembly is to be consulted, but the leader is the pastor. The book of Revelation uses the word angel, which means messenger of each of the seven churches.

The New Testament never speaks of a denomination nor a bishop over a group of churches. No popery is taught in Scripture. No one, not even the elders or the pastor, is given authority to lord over God's heritage. The Scripture teaches no hierarchy is the overlord in the local assembly, and certainly no one outside a local church has any authority over that assembly. Of course, churches are urged to fellowship, share burdens, and love one another.

As I began to pastor churches, at the age of 18, I soon learned that in every church there were deacons and laymen who thought they were the authority of the church and the preacher was limited to preaching, visiting, and performing weddings and funerals. I was told several times that the pastor had no authority over the church. He was to moderate the "conference" and could not vote or take sides in any debate. Needless to say, many of those churches do not exist now, and those who do are weak in number. Those churches do not support missionaries, nor are they evangelistic.

My conviction as to the duty of churches who please Christ and the Holy Spirit is that they are "Gospel-preaching churches." Helping the needy, caring for the fatherless and widows, and praying for the sick are the duties of Christians, but the "main thing" for New Testament churches is the Gospel.

Do we believe that the Gospel according to Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John are just convenient titles that really don't mean anything? Did they write for benevolence work or did they write the truth that the world needs to hear and believe?

The fellowship of the church is around the cross of Jesus Christ. The Gospel is to the poor (in spirit) and the brokenhearted. It is deliverance to the captives, recovering of sight to the blind, and liberty for those who are bruised. See Luke chapter 4. Just in case you would like to become a Pharisee, I would remind you that the law came by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ, and our fellowship is with God the Father and His Son Jesus Christ. You may fellowship around a creed, a cult, a legal set of rules, but that is not New Testament fellowship. Gospel fellowship is in the cross of Jesus Christ.

Paul warns in Acts 20: 28-32: Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood. For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them. Therefore watch, and remember, that by the space of three years I ceased not to warn every one night and day with tears. And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified. (Perverse is distorted, misinterpreted.)

Recently, a brother called, and during our conversation he said, "A bro-ther said, 'Dr. Moore is becoming the leader of a certain group.'"

I said, "I do not have the desire to lead more than I desire to be right." I say this from my heart: if I can be right in the sight of God, I am satisfied.

I am a Baptist because, while studying for my ordination, I studied the Baptist Articles of Faith with scriptural references. They are what I believe the Bible teaches. Even then I did not see every interpretation that some Baptists teach, but I was then and am now Baptist by conviction. However, I meet many who are not Baptist by profession but believe the New Testament as I do.

In the community with which I was familiar there were only Baptists and Methodists. They made light of each other, and Baptist preachers preached that Methodists, as a rule, were not saved. The most hateful things to the Baptists about the Methodists were they did not believe in eternal security, they did not baptize (they sprinkled), and they did not have local church autonomy (the bishop appointed the pastors). As the Lord enlarged my opportunities, I became acquainted with some Methodists who believed the doctrine of Christ, the plan of salvation, and loved the Lord as well as I did. What a shock this was to a young pastor who was as prejudiced against Methodists as any of my old pastors. Then I heard a great preacher in a meeting say, "I was saved in a Methodist church and was sprinkled. Then I heard Brother Albert Smith preach baptism so very rich that I joined a Baptist church just to be baptized."

As the years have passed and my privilege has been to preach in many countries and many different kinds of churches, I am convinced that the Gospel is still the power of God unto salvation unto everyone who believes it. The church controls (and should) who teaches and preaches in their church, who sows the Gospel seed, but no church controls who sows the Gospel seed in all the world. Anyone, whether churched or not, can sow the Word outside the church. Many who have been rejected by the organized, instituted churches have sown the Gospel and won thousands. Dwight L. Moody was not ordained, neither was Billy Sunday.

Sometimes local churches miss the opportunity to be a part of someone's ministry that God uses in a great way. Many gifted and anointed men have been vilely mistreated by some church and have gone out and done a greater work for Christ than the church or churches who mistreated God's man.

Don't ever get it in your heart or head that the Word of God is bound by some church's vote. Lots of churches think that whatever their church votes is the will of God. Too many church leaders think that they can run God's business any way they wish. They may run their business their way, but God has the last say about His work.

I am a churchman by conviction. The church is not perfect, but if it is Christ's church, He will present it to Himself without spot or blemish. Thank God for the Church.

My salvation, my service, and my hope of the resurrection start and end with the cross of Jesus Christ.

Without the cross, the resurrection would have no meaning.
Without the cross, I would have no ministry.
Without the cross, I would have no Gospel to preach.
Without the cross, I would have no grace to preach.
Without the cross, I would have no future hope.
Without the cross, I would have no fellowship with Christ.
Without the cross, I would have no fellowship with the Church.
Without the cross, I would have no fellowship with Christians.
Without the cross, there is no shed blood, and without the blood, there is no remission for sin.

When preachers, teachers, and scribes put more emphasis on some other doctrine, even though biblical, I become careful in my association with them. What is their agenda?

All born again Christians are in the family of God; therefore, they are brothers and sisters in Christ. Many of the family of God, it seems, stray from the cross and pervert the Gospel of Christ.

The Gospel of Christ, the doctrine of Christ, His incarnation, His sinlessness, His mercy and grace are empty without the cross. His shed blood, His redeeming love, all emanate from the cross.

I believe all the Bible (all 66 books), every verse and every chapter. Some interpretations I may debate with you. Some doctrines I will contend for with you. You may enlighten me on some things and possibly cause me to change somewhat, but I will live and die by the cross! I will not move from the cross to fellowship with anyone. I will not yoke with anyone who denies any part of the doctrine of the cross.

I believe unbelievers who do not believe in the cross of Jesus are destined for Hell. I am convicted that the most critical decision one can ever make is about the cross.

Modernists who deny the Word of God are not saved. Liberals who want to change what the Word of God says are not saved. Christians who are weak on their stand for the cross are weak in the faith, and, if not hindrances to the preaching of the Cross, are, in the least, not helpful.

We are saved at the cross. We are kept by the power of the cross. We are made bold by the cross.

I am including a list of Scriptures about the cross. Please read them over and over. Tell them to your friends, to your family, and to strangers you meet on your journey home.

God bless you.

finished-
Strong's: 5055 teleo (tel-eh'-o): from 5056; to end, i.e. complete, execute, conclude, discharge (a debt).
KJV: accomplish, make an end, expire, fill up, finish, go over, pay, perform.
"I have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me to do" John 17:4.
"When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost" John 19:30.

cross-
"For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect" I Corinthians 1:17.
"For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us which are saved it is the power of God" I Corinthians 1:18.
"But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world" Galatians 6:14.
"And that he might reconcile both unto God in one body by the cross, having slain the enmity thereby. . . ." Ephesians 2:16.
"And, having made peace through the blood of his cross, by him to reconcile all things unto himself; by him, I say, whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven" Colossians 1:20.

blood-
"And he said unto them, This is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many" Mark 14:24.
"Saying, This is the blood of the testament which God hath enjoined unto you" Hebrews 9:20.
"But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot. . . ." I Peter 1:19.

shedding-
"And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission" Hebrews 9:22.

After ten years of pastoring and preaching in East Georgia, I was called to Sentell Baptist Church in North Atlanta. Sentell supported missionaries. The first missionary whom I met was Bessie Crowe. She was a "faith missionary" to the country of Jordan. She became a missionary after she became a grandmother. Her love and burden for the people of Jordan convinced her that missions was the main thrust of New Testament Christianity. I came to believe that local churches were and are begun by missionaries, who are the true evangelists, and that local churches are missions themselves for their area.

The word mission or missionary is not in the Scripture. The word evangelist is the New Testament word describing evangelism. Philip, the deacon, was called an evangelist. He went down to Samaria and preached the Gospel to them. He was also a soul winner, one on one, as we read in Acts 8:26-37.

And the angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, saying, Arise, and go toward the south unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert. And he arose and went: and, behold, a man of Ethiopia, an eunuch of great authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem for to worship, Was returning, and sitting in his chariot read Esaias the prophet. Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot. And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest? And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him. The place of the scripture which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth: In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth. And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? of himself, or of some other man? Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus. And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.

As the Lord directed my biblical education, I began to see that tithing is a Christian principle. Consider these Scriptures.

Malachi 3:8-9: Will a man rob God? Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee? In tithes and offerings. Ye are cursed with a curse: for ye have robbed me, even this whole nation.

Matthew 23:23: Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.

Luke 11:42: But woe unto you, Pharisees! for ye tithe mint and rue and all manner of herbs, and pass over judgment and the love of God: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone.

Malachi 3:10: Bring ye all the tithes into the storehouse, that there may be meat in mine house, and prove me now herewith, saith the LORD of hosts, if I will not open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing, that there shall not be room enough to receive it.

I Corinthians 16:2: Upon the first day of the week let every one of you lay by him in store, as God hath prospered him, that there be no gatherings when I come.

These Scriptures have convinced me that God has given us the way to worship Him with tithes and offerings in order to finance the Gospel message to all the world.

I believe when rewards are given at the judgement seat of Christ that missionaries and tithers will get a reward. For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad, 2 Corinthians 5:10.

God blessed my wife and me beyond anything I could have imagined when we began to tithe and give offerings above our tithe. I don't want you to think that I deserve any of God's rich blessings. I tithed when we were raising our children. We would borrow money in the fall to send our children to school clothed

I am convinced that God blesses those who are faithful to the Gospel, both in word and deed. Now some will say, "I know churches who have a lot of money hoarded up in banks and, yet, they do not support missions." That is true. God tests some who suffer for support and may even suffer poverty and yet continue in their mission work for Christ. God tests some who have abundance and yet hold on to their material things and have no generosity toward missions or missionaries.

Remember, we must all stand before the Judgement Seat of Christ, not to be judged for salvation, that is decided at the cross, but to be judged by our works of what sort they are.

I Corinthians 3:13: Every man's work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man's work of what sort it is.

Many saved people will suffer loss. I Corinthians 3:15: If any man's work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.

I am convinced that I should spend and be spent for Christ. I intend to continue tithing, supporting Gospel preaching missionaries and evangelists, and preaching the Gospel as long as He gives me strength. To me tithing, missions, and evangelism are Christianity in action.

All Baptists believe in baptism (immersion). All Baptists believe in the autonomy of the local church to choose whom they will support and with whom they will cooperate.

All Baptists are separatists. I was saved in a Baptist church and baptized by the pastor of that Baptist church. I was licensed to preach by a Baptist church and ordained by a Baptist presbytery to pastor a Baptist church. I have always been a Baptist since I was saved; however, I found out later that all Baptists are separatists.

The first churches I belonged to were cooperative members of a unique Baptist association. They all held to a particular style of religion and to the Articles of Faith as they saw it.

Later, I was called to pastor a Baptist church in a different association. Most of the pastors and churches in my first association stopped calling on me to preach in week-long meetings (called revivals) or any other meetings in that association. The association I moved to had the same Articles of Faith and were active in the Georgia Baptist Convention. I was called to speak in Sunday school clinics and evangelism clinics and was a delegate to the World Evangelism Congress held in Minneapolis, MN, with Billy Graham as moderator.

In 1970 I was founding pastor of Shiloh Hills Baptist Church in Kennesaw, GA, which voted to be Independent. I was never called by the Georgia Baptist Convention churches again nor was I asked to preach in the convention churches again. I am Independent Baptist and have the same Articles of Faith with one exception, I now believe the basic premillennial doctrine.

Now, I preach in some camp meetings and Bible conferences that are in Baptist associations listed in the state convention and the Southern Baptist Convention, and even though they do not support any of the convention causes, some of my Independent brethren criticize me and won't have me anymore because I preach in these meetings. So, by experience, I can say ALL Baptists are separatists even though the Articles of Faith or Baptist message is the same basically.

There are many different kinds of Baptists (some say over 100 different kinds). I think that "religion," "culture," and "style" have too much weight in most Baptist sects. I don't have any ill will toward any. I have preached to most of the different types of Baptists, who have basically the same Statement of Faith, and have found that most are earnest, God loving people.

My life's conviction of the Baptist faith and practice is that it is safe to fellowship with any Baptist who holds the solid, biblical doctrine of Christ, that is, His "virgin birth," "His sinless perfection," "His vicarious death," "His bodily resurrection," and "His coming again." They must believe that salvation is by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. I need a witness of the Holy Spirit to solidify any work for Christ and the Gospel.

Religionists, textualists, and legalists sometime "strain at a gnat and swallow a camel." The Apostle Paul wrote in 2 Cor. 3:6: Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.

It is easy to see that people of the same faith and members of sometimes the same church interpret the same Scripture differently. The Apostle Paul wrote in Ephesians 4:2-3: With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering, forbearing one another in love; Endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. Then in the same chapter of Ephesians verse 13 we read: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ. It is evident that we have not yet come in the unity of faith, that is, all articles and tenets of belief. There can be many interpretations of Scripture but only one Spirit of Christ. Every born again Christian has the Spirit of Christ, so we can have unity of Spirit. Romans 8:9: But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.

From that day until now I have confined my Christian fellowship with men whose Doctrinal Statement of Faith agrees with what I understand to be true to the Bible (the Word of God) and especially the doctrine of Christ: the virgin birth, His sinless life, the vicarious sufferings, the shed blood, the death, the burial, the bodily resurrection, the bodily ascension, and the bodily return of Jesus Christ. This doctrine is absolutely essential to the salvation of any and every person in the world. If anyone does not agree with this doctrine, I will not have Christian fellowship with that person.

We need a revival all across America including the Bible Belt. A real revival will come from a deep love for Christ, our Savior and Lord, and our Christian brethren. How can we say we love sinners, who are lost and on their way to Hell, when we do not love our brothers in Christ?

I am sad to say that many dear Baptist brethren have added many religious rules (not found in Scripture) to their demands for fellowship. Not only do they miss many blessings, they hinder the testimony of Christianity as a whole. When any teaching hinders the salvation of a soul, it is tragic!

It is ridiculous to say, "The cross of Jesus Christ is not enough for fellowship," and then say, "The Cross is enough to save the worst sinner who has ever lived or who lives today." How inconsistent that is!

I have heard that some say, "I fellowship with truth." Did they miss John 1:14: "And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth"? John 1: 17 says: "For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ." Jesus is FULL of grace and truth. How could they miss it? He said it twice in the same chapter.

Sunday school was mostly for the children, not many adults attended Sunday school. When Sunday school picnics came around, some older people said, "That has nothing to do with the Gospel, and it should not be done as a church meeting." Then "Training Union" began, and then horseshoe pitching, then ball games, and then other games were added.

My dad would say, "All these added things are like suckers on corn stalks that suck the sap from the ears of corn causing them to be small, and sometimes there would be just black ears called smut."

I don't completely agree with that. However, something has taken much of the power out of the church.

The Gospel is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believes. Jesus Christ is the Saviour, the only Saviour, among men. The most important thing in anyone's life is to be saved, to be born again by the Holy Spirit of God. Anything that takes from the strength and purity of the Gospel of Christ is a hindrance to the faith of anyone seeking salvation. The church can and should have social activities for the strengthening of the love and fellowship of the people of the church. The social activities must not substitute for or weaken the power of the Gospel.

Christ is the answer, the only answer, to the soul's need. He must be preached, sung about, and glorified so that the Christian can be strengthened, renewed, and inspired, and the unbeliever can be convicted of his need for a Saviour. The doctrine of Christ is the message, the theme, and the reason the church is here.

Christianity is the Kingdom of Christ carrying the Gospel of Christ at home and to the ends of the world. When Christianity begins to be diluted by greed and jealousy, the first thing men do is try to organize things so they can have a position, control things, and be in charge. The more men try to control Christianity, the weaker the power of God becomes. When manpower replaces or even coexists with the power of God, the strength and power of the church become weak.

When the ministry is organized by men for their own power over the followers, other men can see how it is done and begin an opposing organization to draw men after themselves.

Christianity has now been compared with other religions because all religions by men favor each other in structure and leadership as well as organization. When Christianity as a whole is compared with worldly religions, with superstitions, with cultism, then the local churches (assemblies) are weakened, unless the Gospel is held in such revered grace and unless they have the true anointing of the Holy Spirit.

The Church must have the power of the Holy Spirit to penetrate the will and heart of the sinner for Christ to be believed and loved bringing repentance and conversion. When Christ is the Head of the local church, that means He is glorified, He is the Voice, the Power above anyone or anything, and that church will be effective in the way God the Father wills it.

Christ was a social person. He ate with publicans and sinners and was criticized for it. He said in Luke 19:10: "For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost," and in Matthew 14:14: " and he healed their sick," and in Matthew 9:13: " for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance."

He was a social person, just as the church is a gathering of all peoples. His purpose was to save them, not to encourage them to continue as they were with His blessing.

Christianity and Churches are at their best when Christ is all and in all.

The things that a church uses to attract new members are what that church becomes.

Examples:
1) That church is a Gospel-preaching church for all peoples, changing lives and hearts, making a difference.
2) That church is a contemporary church, meaning modern, up to date, keeping up with the times.
3) That church is a charismatic church.
4) That church is a singing church.
5) That church is an old-fashioned church, meaning old style, old religion.

Some who recognize the potential danger of music stirring the emotions have reacted in such a way as to forget the potential good that the singing of praise to Jesus can have for the hearts of God's children. There is a balance for God's people. We do not have to be extreme in either direction. We can follow God's Word and have His best.

THE GOOD NEWS
The Apostle writes to the saints at Ephesus and the faithful in Christ Jesus, Ephesians 5:19: "Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ."

Here we have ample proof that all types of songs, not music, are good to praise Christ and make melody in your heart. Singing lips don't always make melodious hearts, but those who sing unto the Lord from the heart have melody in their spirits. The greatest battle for the Christian is to maintain a right spirit-not necessarily the greatest task, but the greatest battle. If Satan can sour your spirit, he can defeat your testimony. No one has ever accomplished great things for God with an evil or discouraged spirit. The Christian must have the true spirit of Christ in order to lift Him up. Christ-exalting Psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs will help to keep alive a spirit of love and witness to those who are in the good fight of faith. Many times a discouraged and wounded child of God has been comforted and lifted up spiritually by a good song to the glory of God. Those who are lifted up to the glory of God are the witnessing thrust of God's work on earth. The choir which is dedicated to Christ and loyal to their church and pastor does a ministry for Christ in helping to point a lost world away from destruction and the degradation of Hell's fire.

We should not leave Ephesians 5:19-20 until we look at verse 20. It says, "Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ." Verse 20 gives verse 19 depth. If there is singing without consideration of all things, good and bad, that we must face in life, then there will be no cross to bear. Without a cross, there is no resurrection, and if there be no resurrection, then ye are yet in your sins. I Corinthians 15:17: "And if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain; ye are yet in your sins." Vain faith is misplaced faith. Vain faith is no good with God.

Singing songs that exalt Christ, praise God, point the sinner to Christ, and encourage the saints to bear the cross of Christ will have a depth of comfort, healing, and edification which complements the Word of God and matures the Christian beyond anything the world has. The songs of the faith which have stood the test of time in the hearts of God's children are songs with a depth of love, compassion, and longing for the lost soul.

The church has never been able to do its work effectively without songs of the faith. Great preachers have had great singing to complement their messages. Great churches have had great singing and good music programs for young and old. Music is a potent force and should only be used of God to further His great cause.

LET'S TAKE A CLOSER LOOK
Anything that has great potential for good also has potential for evil. The world has proven music to be a powerful instrument to promote whatever is to be promoted. When Gospel music, Gospel singing, become their own master, they become enemies of God. The great crime against Gospel singing is the breaking away from the church. Not that Gospel singing has left the church platform, but that the church does not prevail in content, presentation, and motivation.

The local church is the agency that God uses to ordain and commission evangelists, pastors, missionaries, and teachers. Acts 13:1-4: "Now there were in the church that was at Antioch certain prophets and teachers; as Barnabas, and Simeon that was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen, which had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them. And when they had fasted and prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them away. So they, being sent forth by the Holy Ghost, departed unto Seleucia; and from thence they sailed to Cyprus." Ephesians 4:11-14: "And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive."

The local church is the pillar and ground of the truth. I Timothy 3:15: "But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth." Paul also cautions in the same verse that you should know how to behave yourself in the church of the living God.

If preachers, evangelists, pastors, and teachers should be commissioned and approved by their local church on doctrines (content), presentation, and motivation, something with the power to influence, such as music, should also come under the careful scrutiny of the church using the Bible as its guide.

The great error of charismatic teaching has been promoted, not by the Word of God, but by Gospel music. Many Baptists who are careful about their doctrine and angrily denounce charismatics and their practice of bypassing the local church have used the same music to promote their church and have become what is known as light charismatic. A light charismatic has the same approach as the tongue-speaking, message-giving charismatic only without "tongues and messages."

The fundamental, Bible-believing church will be as careful about their music as they are about their preaching and teaching. Music is a great teacher; in fact, most church people know more songs than they do Scripture.

It is inconsistent to denounce mission boards, publications, and evangelists who are not local church oriented and, on the other hand, to use Gospel groups which have no local church loyalty and may even have members in their group belonging to churches of different faiths and orders. Many churches which have great choirs and hot Gospel singing cannot understand why they are shallow, have constant splits, and are unable to hold converts. It is simple. The church has only one foundation, and that is Jesus Christ and His teaching (the Holy Word of God), not Gospel music with a rock or worldly beat.

Music is not the only problem, but it is a great problem not yet addressed in a biblical context. Sometimes it may be the church's fault. Sometimes it may be the singer's fault, but a better understanding of New Testament instruction on the local church and its duty to Christ in doctrinal matters will help in most cases. Every preacher who has any degree of success must learn the order of the church, the order of authority, that is, the place each office must fill and the service everyone must render in order to have the co-ordination to exercise and accomplish the goals set up for the church in the Bible.

THE PRINCIPLE FOUNDATION
The elders, bishops, pastors, evangelists, and missionaries must work within the New Testament framework of the local church. This being true, the music must also work and serve in its proper place within the church, or it will become a spiritual orphan and miss the strength and fulfillment that can only come in the order Christ has placed it.

Many great movements have accomplished a great amount of good, but deteriorate if not loyal to the principle of the local (New Testament) church. The Salvation Army, founded by William Booth, has done untold good reaching thousands with the message of Christ and aiding the helpless and sick, both on the battlefields and in the poverty-stricken areas around the world, but has declined in recent years because of no local church attachment. We could name others. The YMCA, Campus Crusade, etc. are not local church oriented. Gospel music will be no exception.

Christ gave Himself for the church (Eph. 5:25). Acts 2:47: " . . . the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved." The church is the place to sing praises. Hebrews 2:12: "Saying, I will declare thy name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto thee." Ephesians 4:13: "Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ." When there is unity of purpose, philosophy, and projection, there will be power and love in the church. As long as there are divisions, contentions, and bickering, there will be little power in the church.

I remember praying to God for discernment. At that time, I had not studied the gifts of the Spirit nor was I seeking a gift. I just wanted a strong enough witness of the Spirit of God, so I would not go after false teachers and preachers. I think, honestly, that I was more concerned then about being embarrassed than being a wise leader.

God gave me more discernment, and as I exercised what He gave me, it grew stronger. I do not profess a perfect record of discernment since that time, but I do know it is extremely important in these days (more than ever in my lifetime) to be able to trust the witness of the Holy Spirit to guide us in our fellowship with others who profess faith in Jesus Christ.

1. that the Bible is the inspired, inerrant, eternal Word of God,
2. in the virgin birth and deity of Jesus Christ,
3. in the vicarious death of Christ on the cross for sinners and His bodily resurrection from the dead,
4. in the visible, bodily return of Christ to this earth, the bodily resurrection of all the saved (asleep in Christ), the translation of the living saints,
5. that salvation is totally by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, not of yourself, it is a gift of God.

The Fundamentalists Movement, however, requires more than a testimony of salvation for fellowship in the various camps. They do not vary in their belief in the infallibility of the Scripture, but they vary greatly in their interpretation of Scripture, in their stand on standards of dress, grooming, and conduct for their workers, in their practice of ecclesiastical separation, and in their view of the Christian's civil duties in their community and country.

Religion is now a major concern of America, so there is much confusion. Because of the power of television, radio, the printed page, and the freedom all Americans prize, every religion is given a hearing regardless of its creed.

We have a definite need for discernment-a way to discern the true from the false, the real from the man-made.

I must point out some pitfalls into which we are prone to fall. The first is our culture and background. The church in which we grew up has many precious memories. Some of which have nothing to do with the Gospel message. The style of service, the building where we met, the culture and dress of the people, all became a part of us, but they did not determine the truth of what was preached nor the extent to which the service was anointed by the Holy Spirit. We must remember the admonition of the Lord Himself Who condemned the preaching of tradition (commandments of men) for doctrine (Matthew 15:1-6). We become comfortable with the familiar service and are skeptical of anything new and strange (Acts 17:20).

What is most confusing is when those of our faith, those we have come to know and love, begin to disagree on minor points of doctrine and devolve to name-calling and half-truths. When those of our own household of faith begin to accuse each other of various errors, false teachings, and practices, then we must have both discernment and maturity. We need discernment to know which is of God on a given point and maturity to love and pray for the one we find to be off course but still a true brother in Christ.

The Holy Spirit is our Guide and the Advocate of Jesus Christ to give light on all truth. The Holy Spirit is the author of all Holy Scripture (II Timothy 3:16), and, therefore, the only safe guide to the meaning and application of Scripture. Most of the time, when we earnestly seek God's will and purpose in any given matter, the Holy Spirit will show us through the written, revealed Word the clear answer.

Most of the time, when brethren disagree, one or both have taken liberties with a portion of Scripture and have gone too far or left off a portion in order to stress their point and position. Really, if our position is right, we do not need to alter any Scripture to prove it. I remember a dear friend, who did not believe in tithing, saying the Scripture says, "Hypocrites pay tithes." Now, if I had not read the context of that Scripture, I would have been stumped, but, thank the Lord, I had read it all and knew the Lord was not condemning tithing, but He was condemning the Pharisees for doing some of the right things like tithing, but leaving off the weightier matters of the law (Matthew 23:23). I am amazed at some of the things I am reading these days by fundamentalists who, on most matters of Scripture, are clear and thorough, but in the heat of an argument misapply Scripture. If they were completely objective or if it were someone else, they would be horrified.

Now, what are we to do?

First, I suggest we pray for the Holy Spirit to give us a clear witness of the truth (John 16:13). If the Holy Spirit does not give light on the Scripture, we are still in the dark. I know, some say, "The Scriptures are the revelation." But, the Scripture says, "Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth, comparing spiritual things with spiritual" I Corinthians 2:13. Some of the most confused folks I have encountered are those who try to understand the Scripture without the Holy Spirit's guidance.

Second, I suggest we read and accept the Scripture as is without adding to or taking from it. I suggest we make the Word our authority without favor to our friends or bias toward those with whom we disagree.

Third, may I suggest that schools, boards, telecasts, broadcasts, publications, and associations are secondary to the church. Too many are busy trying to be lords over God's heritage (popes over the churches). May I remind you that the church is "the pillar and ground of the truth" (I Timothy 3:15). The church is "the bride of Christ," and the local pastor is the highest office in the local assembly. God will not bless or give His approval to any organization that does not respect this biblical principal. Every pastor will answer to God for his stewardship of the ministry to which God has appointed him, and not a denominational boss or any other self-appointed watchdog.

Faith in God means to depend on God by entrusting our souls to Him for salvation. Faith does not save. God through Christ saves those who commit themselves to Him by faith for salvation.

Jesus taught that, ". . . Ye must be born again" (John 3:7). The new birth is being born of the Spirit of God (John 3:6). The Holy Spirit is Christ in us-the Hope of Glory. The Holy Spirit is a person. He can be resisted. He can be grieved. He can be known. He is the reality of God in the heart and life of every believer or born again Christian. Without the Holy Spirit, the believer is yet incomplete and does not know God-"But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition; but of them that believe to the saving of the soul" (Hebrews 10:39).

The word Spirit in the Old Testament (Hebrew) is ruwach meaning wind, breath, life. In the New Testament (Greek) the word Spirit is pneuma meaning a current of air, breath [Strongs]. However, that wind, spirit, is not a breeze men can know as a breeze that crosses their brow from the blowing of earth's natural wind. The Holy Spirit works in men's spirits, quickening them in the inner man (Ephesians 3:16).

Men can know God through the Spirit (I John 3:24), which is the only way men know God. The scriptures tell of God, how we can know God, and how we can have faith and obtain mercy; but the only way to know Him is to know Him in the person of the Holy Spirit.

The scriptures are inspired of God (II Timothy 3:16). The Word is God (John 1:1). To deny God's Word is to deny the truth of God. To deny the Holy Spirit is to deny God, Himself.

Many fundamentalists today deny the presence and power of God (II Timothy 3:5). They claim to love the scriptures enough to die and suffer the loss of all things or the friendship of all men to be true to Scripture, yet they deny the presence, power, and working of the Holy Spirit in the preaching or public service. The life of the service which they promote is laughter, excitement, and thrills like that of winning a ball game or watching some great drama on stage. It is sad that so many Bible-believing people don't know God any better than that.

The shock many have experienced in recent years of finding many professed Bible believers who claim biblical principles for their guide but proving to be dishonest, deceiving, and masquerading as great Christians while having little Christian distinctives, has caused such frustration that hundreds (maybe thousands) have turned against the Bible-believing churches and have either joined liberal churches or quit church altogether.

Remember, Satan is a deceiver and uses any disguise that will mislead. The reality of God is the greatest of victories over Satan, so he must corrupt the very truth of God to deceive men into turning away from that power.

To deny the power, presence, and working of the Holy Spirit in the congregation of Christian believers (the church) is just as liberal as denying Scripture and is more deceiving. God help us to know that designing Gospel services to appeal to the flesh, the culture, and the education of the present day is leaving God out!

Now, there are two extremes of present day forms of service. Each condemns the other, but neither has the very power and presence of God. One is to work up a service with musical choruses and emotional excitement in various carrying-ons, which mimic the stirring of old time revivals but bypass the agony, the hours of prayer, and repentance that marked the prelude of those revivals. Then there is the type of service that the only emotion is laughter. Any joke (not risque) is acceptable as long as great laughter and excitement of success (as men count success) encourage people to become a part of such beautiful and exciting activities.

The first preacher I ever heard say, "Being saved is fun!" is not a preacher now, because he found he could not have fun all the time and be a Gospel preacher in the New Testament sense. He quit the ministry (or maybe the ministry quit him-whichever, he is out now).

One thing that makes my heart glad is that those who know the reality of God won't settle for any make-believe church-no matter how beautiful, nor will they be satisfied with either extreme if God is not present.

It is amazing that no matter how well educated or uneducated, how prosperous or poor, those who know God know the same thing and have sweet fellowship with each other as well as with God in their lives.

This is written to strengthen those who are searching for truth with reality. Dead orthodoxy is just as dead, just as helpless, and more deceiving than dead liberalism. If you know the reality of God in a Gospel service, then you know the reality of God in private prayer. If you know when the Holy Spirit communicates to you while a man of God is preaching, while a singer is singing or a Christian is giving his or her testimony, then you have Him in you to direct you in your search for the right place for you.

I was ordained by pastors of an old-fashioned, Baptist association. They were the second generation of leaders in that association which was formed because of a move in the Georgia Baptist Convention at that time to only ordain men with a prescribed course of education. The founders of the association that I grew up in did not believe that. They believed that if a man was called of God then he could preach and be effective, and that has proved, through the years, to be true. They were firm in the fundamentals of the Christian faith. They were somewhat separatists in that they fellowshipped with other Baptist associations and even other Independent Baptists, but with a certain amount of reservation. As the third and fourth generation of leaders in that association have come along, they now will not fellowship with anyone not in that association.

Numerically, they are dying, and they now have a creed that is cultic in nature. They are amillennial-even more so than when I was coming along. When I was a very young preacher, there were amillennialists in the association, but there were also men that believed in the thousand years between the first and second resurrection. They still preach Christ, though they do not present a really clear presentation of the Gospel. I love them. They are good people, but, numerically, they are fading away. I give this personal experience to say that this is what is happening in fundamentalism across the American scene.

The first and great divide of the Baptist people in America was over prophesy concerning eschatology (which is the end time)-between post, pre, and amillennialism. As Christianity spread across the world in the first and mostly the second century, the Christian churches were premillennial. Then an influential theologian named Origin was a prime mover in making allegory the key method of interpreting the Bible. His history is listed in the Encyclopedia Britannica. He lived from 185 A.D. to 254 A.D. Origin understood that God's Word was inspired, but in places it appeared to be irrelevant to the human condition, unworthy of God, or simply commonplace; thus if no spiritual significance was apparent on the surface, it must be concluded this surface meaning was to be taken symbolically. Origin restated the conquest of Canaan as Christ's conquest of the fallen human soul and concerning the Lord's Prayer, the hallowing of God's Name, and the coming of God's Kingdom referred to the believer's gradual sanctification. His interpretation method paved the way for such misunderstanding of the millennial reign. All of these statements from the Britannica and from the dictionary state how the amillennial view came into vogue and how it is still in the church.

Now, much of that has been discounted by men who are premillennial, and they are really strong now in the Baptist movement. As far as I know, all, if not, then nearly all, of Independent Baptists are premillennial. Most Southern Baptists are premillennial. When I was in the Southern Baptist Convention back in the late 1940's and 1950's, they were amillennial, but they have changed views through Bible teaching, preaching, and much study.

The sad thing is the great division. I watched the division grow in the old association. I heard men preach against bodily resurrection. I heard men preach against even a "one day" let alone a "thousand year" reign of Christ on the earth. However, they were good men, and they loved God. Really, they loved each other. Their preaching was scriptural. It was evangelistic and pointed to salvation. Their main message was reaching lost people. If they went a year in their churches and people weren't saved, especially during the revival, they felt their work was done in that area, and they moved on to other churches. Later, many of them began to have lifelong ministries, which really is more effective over time. Many of the old Primitive Baptist preachers are wonderful preachers of the love, grace, and mercy of God. They preach covenants of grace and that the church is the elect of God, but the heavy teaching of predestination and election hinders them from preaching the Gospel to whosoever will.

The great divide among Baptists who have almost identical statements of faith has hindered evangelism and missions while the world goes to Hell. The divide has paralyzed the preaching of the cross. Without the cross, there is no preaching of the resurrection. Without the emphasis on the cross and the hope of the resurrection, there is no salvation.

Some ask, "Why don't you preach more on the second coming of Christ?"

My answer is, "I preach the first coming of Christ until men believe fully the first coming. The second coming has no real meaning without the first!" Why argue about the second coming while men die and go to Hell, because they have not heard of His first coming and what He provided for the world while He was here in the world? He was in the world. He created the world, but He was not of the world. He was of God the Father. He was from Heaven not from earth.

I am not condemning anybody. I am simply pointing out my life conviction that "the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness, but unto us that believe, it is the power of God." If we want to have the power of God in our church, we must preach Christ. We must preach the Gospel. If we do not preach and emphasize the Gospel, we are not being good ministers of and for Jesus Christ. When people are dying or a church is dying, and nobody in that church is in pain over it, nobody is burdened, it must be that they have fainted. The Bible says in Luke 18:1: ". . . men ought always to pray, and not to faint."

I am not lambasting. I am simply writing with a broken heart. I would like to see more evangelism. I would like to see more of the county in which I live won for Christ. Many of the churches could really be doing some work to reach the lost, but they are not. They are reaching in instead of out.

Now, let me make clear where I stand. My conviction is that what you believe about post, pre, or amillennialism does not control your salvation. Your salvation comes from your trust and faith in Jesus Christ. You trust what He did (the work that He did at the cross, His bodily resurrection, His ascension back to the Father, His intercession), but you trust Him for salvation. This is what I believe. This is my life's conviction.

May I say that I do not know everything about the second advent of Jesus Christ. If what I believe does not happen, I will not be disappointed. I have learned whatever Christ does is best regardless of my understanding. I believe the best I can understand; however, I don't know everything about the future. But I am sure I will not be disappointed because I do know that I have been changed by His grace and being justified by faith I have peace with God through Jesus Christ.

I trusted Christ as my Saviour on the last Sunday in May 1941 at the age of 12. I soon began to testify in the church and learned to quote Scripture. Then, when I was 14 years of age, the Bay Creek Baptist Church of Loganville, Georgia, licensed me to preach.

I began studying the Bible in earnest. I would read several chapters in Matthew and then several chapters in John. When I would read a word and did not know its meaning, I would look it up in the dictionary. I sometimes used an abridged dictionary, but when I got the big, English dictionary at the school library, I learned that an abridged dictionary did not give the extensive explanations and descriptions as the large unabridged dictionary did. Later, I learned that the English language is changing. Many new words are added each year, and the usage of some English words changes. This disturbed me. How can I understand the Bible if my native language (English) keeps changing?

Then somebody told me that the Bible was originally written in Hebrew, Greek, and Arabic, and my King James Bible was a translation from the original. I began to understand that real Bible study is time consuming and absorbs the mind almost to distraction, and I learned that prayer must accompany my Bible study.

So, as I learned how I must study words in Scripture, I then learned that context is important in understanding the words and theme of Scripture. When I read the passage that states, "that his (Paul's) conversation in times past," I thought, Paul must have cursed a lot before he was converted. I was surprised to learn that in the context it meant a course of life or mode of action.

As I have learned a little along my life's path, I have found that the Scriptures are sufficient to give me direction in my life and my work for our blessed Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, but I need the Holy Spirit to prompt me at the given time. To trust Christ is to trust His Person. If we trust Him for salvation, we surely should trust His teaching in everything in the Holy Scriptures.

In many cases, one could misunderstand the meaning of a passage of Scripture. I remember when I was studying the passage in I Thessalonians 4:13-18: "But I would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as others which have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him. For this we say unto you by the word of the Lord, that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words."

These are such wonderful, rich statements for comfort concerning those who have passed on. Yet, I would read verse 15, "that we which are alive and remain unto the coming of the Lord shall not prevent them which are asleep," and I would say, "If we are alive, we will not hinder those asleep from rising from the grave."

Many would say, "Amen."

Then, in studying Greek, I was surprised and embarrassed to learn that prevent means precede or go before, prevent. We will not precede or go before them. At the time of the translation of the King James Bible prevent meant precede as it was used then, but now it means to hinder. So, we need to go back and study the root word. The word hasn't changed, but the usage in the English language has changed.

We understand that many passages have a deeper meaning and sometimes a different meaning than we at first see during a hasty reading. I have found that in order to read the Scriptures correctly, we must have an objective mind. Never decide about a truth until you have studied and prayed over it. Having a religious or preconceived idea about a subject and then reading the Scripture to prove it will certainly give a wrong impression. We should read the Bible to learn the truth and believe the scriptural teaching. His Word is Truth. He says what He means and means what He says. We have to learn-somehow, someway, through prayer and study-what He said.

The more I study, the more I realize how finite minds are weak and easily confused and misled. Just as Mother Eve was deceived into a wrong interpretation of the Word of God, many of us can get deceived. Some things took years for me to understand. Maybe I am slower than most, but I'm still studying, I'm still reading, and I'm still learning.

I started wanting to be saved early, and I continued wanting to be saved, trying to be saved, but nobody would tell me how. Then, on the first Sunday in May in 1941, Reverend P. H. Swords (pastor at the Pleasant Grove Baptist Church, just out of Lawrenceville, Georgia) preached on Christ appearing to Thomas after His resurrection and saying in John 20:27: "Then saith he to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold my hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into my side: and be not faithless, but believing."

I bowed my head and asked the Lord to save me. I told Him I didn't want to go to Hell. As I prayed, something began to work in my heart telling me to step out on the promises of God, and that morning I did.

It was a shock to everybody when I united with the church on the first Sunday in May, because they always joined the church during revival for baptism, but I was saved and I was ready. Somehow, I knew there had been a fundamental change, a permanent change in my heart and life. I did not understand about "once saved, always saved." I would hear that, and then I would hear people say they did not believe it.

Over a period of time, I began to study the Word of God. I remember my mother pointing out John 3:16 to me: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life."

I felt like I had believed Him, and I'd been changed. I didn't believe that I could be unchanged.

I slipped a time or two, and it caused me to wonder, and I asked my mother about it. We began to study the Scriptures together more and more, and the Bible began to be clearer to me. I understood that I had everlasting life, and I understood that I might slip because I still had a sin nature, but I was still saved. I would not be an alien sinner, but an erring child.

Then, as the years went on, I read Paul's writing where he said in Romans 8:35-39: "Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; we are accounted as sheep for the slaughter. Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

I became quite convinced that the change in me was permanent and that I was eternally saved-not by my good works, and not because I deserved it, but by grace through faith in Jesus Christ and His finished work on Calvary.

Through the years, people would say, "Oh, I know better than that. I know people who were saved and walked with the Lord. They were happy in the Lord, but now they won't even go to church. They won't have anything to do with it, so they are lost now."

Well, I had to study that. I began to realize that what I mean when I say that I am saved, and what I believe the Bible means when it says that you are saved, is not the same as people who think that you are saved providing you continue and persevere. You are not kept by your perseverance, but you are kept by the power of God through faith. God does the keeping.

Now, I realize that some people get converted to Christianity, but they are not converted to Christ. They simply unite with a church and are baptized, and they believe that is all it takes. However, there has to be a fundamental change, a new birth. The Bible says in John 3:3: "Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God."

So, I rest assured in my heart concerning my eternal salvation. That is what the Bible calls it. The words of Jesus in John 10:27-29 say, "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: 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 all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand."

I don't believe that you can be lost after you are saved, if you are truly born again. Now, like I said, if you are converted to some kind of religion, then that is different. In fact, some religions don't even teach salvation, but the Gospel of Jesus Christ teaches salvation through faith in Jesus Christ.

Ephesians 2:8-9 says, "For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast."

Then, of course, the Scripture explains in Romans 5:1-2: "Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God."

I rejoice to know that I am His, and that I am His forever. Live or die, sink or swim, as one of my friends says, I am still His.

Later when we began to attend church regularly, we attended my father's home church, Bay Creek Baptist Church. As I heard different preachers preach, Brother Wayman Fields at Bay Creek, and others, I realized I was lost. I began trying to be saved by doing whatever I needed to do to get the favor of God, so that I could be saved. I did not understand that I just needed to trust Him. But, on the first Sunday in May, 1941, when Brother Swords was preaching on Doubting Thomas, and the Resurrection of the Lord Jesus, somehow it reached me. I cried out to God that morning, and a fundamental change came into my spirit, my heart, and my soul. I didn't really understand, even then, what had happened, and I can't really tell you all about it now, after these 67 years. But, I knew that something had changed and God had done it. I began to study the Scriptures, and, today, I can put it in a perspective that I could not have then.

My life conviction concerning the Holy Spirit is first that I really believe Romans 8:9: "But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his." I'm only His because He loves me and has mercy and grace toward me. He is full of grace and truth.

As I studied the Scriptures in the Old Testament, I studied Lamentations 1:16, "For these things I weep; mine eye, mine eye runneth down with water, because the comforter that should relieve my soul is far from me: my children are desolate, because the enemy prevailed."

Comforter in that passage comes from the Greek word nacham. The Lexicon says it is a primitive rule. It means by implication, to be sorry, which, in a favorable sense, He is sorry for us. He has pity on us, consoles us, and avenges us.

That same word, comforter, is in John 14:16, "And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever." Now that word is from the word parakletus which means, one along side, an intercessor, a consoler, an advocate, comforter.

A bit further down in John 14:17, I read: "Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you."

That's the way the Holy Spirit works. I've learned and I'm convinced that He is in me, but then He works with me as I respond to His leadership. When He anoints me to preach the Gospel, then the Holy Spirit works with Himself and with me in the hearts, minds, and lives of the hearers. Sometimes they reject it. Sometimes they accept it. But, it is still He who works with me.

Now, not only does the Holy Spirit guide me, abide with me, comfort me, inspire me, strengthen me, enlighten me, but the Holy Spirit also witnesses in my spirit, in the spirit that is within me. In other words, the Holy Spirit, who lives within me, witnesses with the Holy Spirit that is within other people. Thank God, I do not and never have had the idea that I am the only person who has the Holy Spirit or that I am the only preacher that is anointed. There are many anointed preachers.

The anointing guides us into all truth. He does not immediately give you all truth. Now, sometimes in our carnal mind, when the Spirit enlightens us, our carnal mind thinks, "I now know it all. I know more than anybody." But that is the flesh. The Holy Spirit enlightens us and guides us as we study the written Word.

I make this statement often, "If you had the original autographs, which we don't have in existence now, but if you had them, the Hebrew, Greek, and other languages that were mixed in sometimes, and you could read them fluently, and if you, like the Apostle Paul, knew seven different languages, but you did not have the Holy Spirit, you would not know God. You would not be able to get the real truth."

Now, of course, in our carnal mind, our fleshly mind, we can't really conceive or grasp all of the Bible. I read after about five different scholars who know Hebrew, Greek, and other languages, but none of them know it all. This is because the carnal mind is a finite mind, but the Holy Spirit is infinite. I used to hear Preacher John Fowler talk about the finite mind and the infinite mind. I didn't understand it then, and I don't fully understand it now, but at least I know what we are talking about.

Now, the Holy Spirit must convict. It must not simply be a convincing of the carnal mind, but the Holy Spirit must convict the soul, the very basis and foundation of our being. As we are convicted, He guides our repentance, the changing of our mind, or the enlightenment of our mind, or the adding to our knowledge and wisdom in our spiritual mind.

Sometimes, people ask me, "Do you know that you are going to Heaven when you die?"

They are shocked when I answer, "Not of my own knowledge."

They will respond in amazement, "What do you mean?"

Well, really what I mean is the carnal mind, mine as well as yours, is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. I only know because there is a witness in my soul, in my spirit, of the Holy Spirit that gives me the deep conviction that I belong to the Lord and that when I leave this body I will be with Him. He will give me that house which is from Heaven to abide in, in the Paradise of the third Heaven, until He brings me back and resurrects my body. I don't fully understand all of that, but I believe it, because the Bible teaches it.

Now, let me go one step further with this. The Bible tells us that one of the gifts is discernment of spirits, and the first thing that we must learn from the Holy Spirit and the Bible is to discern whether we are following our own spirit, or God's Spirit, or an evil spirit. The evil spirit does not appear as an ugly spirit. He appears as a beautiful spirit as he did when he tempted Eve. So, we have to learn first to discern our own spirit. Is it from God or evil? That does not give us the authority to judge others, but it does let us know how to respond if we hear someone in a bad spirit. All bad spirits, as I said, are not ugly. Sometimes they may sound very, very good.

So the Holy Spirit will convict, guide, and convince. Even as Christians we must be convicted and convinced. I'm convicted and convinced in my very soul that I would have never been allowed to work in the Kingdom of God, the Kingdom of Christ here on earth, in the churches that are part of the Kingdom of God, in my own ability-my own fleshly or mental capacity. I am convicted and convinced that where I am, where I've been, and whatever has been accomplished in my feeble efforts have been because of the guidance, the presence, and the work of the Holy Spirit of Almighty God in me.

I am convinced that the order of our preaching and singing service is not why God blesses. He blesses the right and humble spirit before Him. I've been in some services that were so undirected or unplanned that I would think, "Surely, the Holy Spirit will not honor this." Yet somehow the Holy Spirit would get control and blessings would flow. I am convinced that it is not our order, or style of service, that God blesses. He blesses because we draw nigh to Him, and then He draws nigh to us.

Let's read I John 5: 6-10, "This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus Christ; not by water only, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is truth. For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. And there are three that bear witness in earth, the spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one. If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for this is the witness of God which he hath testified of his Son. He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son."

Hebrews 9:22 says, ". . . without shedding of blood is no remission."

I am convinced of this: When we are born of the Spirit, the blood of Christ is applied by His Spirit into our soul and continually cleanses us from all sin.

I John 1:7 says, ". . . the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin."

The blood of Christ is the part of HIM that we must have for our salvation and for our cleansing for our service to HIM. Thank the blessed Lord, He did say ALL sin which includes the things He hates. (See Proverbs 6:16-19.) Sins must be confessed or there is no forgiveness. I wonder if sins unconfessed (hence unforgiven) explains why we have no power and no revival.

The cleansing work of the blood of Christ is an action done by the Holy Spirit in chastening. Hebrews 12:5-11 tell us that chastening is not joyous, but it yields the peaceable fruit of righteousness. Chastening is for sons. Those who are not chastened are not sons. I don't enjoy being chastened, but it assures me that I am a son.

The scriptures and my personal experience (as I have tried to remain subject to Him) convince me that the blood of my Saviour, Jesus Christ, is His life living in me-the hope of glory! (See Colossians 1:27.) Praise JESUS!

Hebrews 10:29 says: "Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?"

The Baptists were given their name because they refused to accept infant baptism as the new birth, as the Roman church was teaching. Baptists never taught that baptism is essential to salvation. Baptism is obedience to the command of the Lord Jesus Christ in Matthew 28:19: "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. . . ."-those who are believers. Baptists have always contended that believers are the only people who are legally authorized to be baptized, and that baptism is immersion. It is not just baptism by immersion. Baptism is immersion. Baptism is not part of salvation. It is part of the plan of God to set us apart from the world, to set us apart from the unbeliever, to make a public confession that we accept the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ as our means of salvation, and that Jesus Christ is Saviour and Lord. That is what baptism is.

From my earliest years of going to the Baptist church, I realized that if somebody from a non-baptizing denomination-Methodist, Presbyterian, or whoever else-came to join a Baptist church that, though their testimony of salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ might be very clear, they still had to be baptized. They were not in full fellowship until they were baptized. The morning I was saved (the first Sunday in May of 1941), I went forward to unite with the church. They took me under watchcare until I could be baptized, and then I would be in full fellowship of the church.

The Baptists will fellowship with you at the cross, but you cannot be a member of a Baptist church unless you have been immersed-at least, that is the old rule. Being baptized makes your fellowship full. You can fellowship with somebody on their testimony that they are saved, born again, but you do not have partnership with them in service for the Kingdom of God until they are baptized. That is the Baptist concept.

Once at a church I was pastoring, we had a girl about sixteen years old who was playing the piano. She was a good pianist, but she was not a member of the church. She had never professed a hope in Jesus Christ. Some of the church folks thought, "Well, that piano playing will not be anointed and it won't be good." However, she played just like somebody would who was saved and baptized. Then one night after the service, she came wanting to unite with the church. She had been saved sitting on the piano stool. We baptized her. Some said, "Boy, that piano sounds better now!" But that is like, beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and the sound was in the ear of the listener in that particular situation.

I want to make clear what I am saying here. Fellowship is around salvation by grace through Jesus Christ. We fellowship at the cross. We fellowship with Jesus Christ and His Father.

Some people say, "That is not enough."

I want to ask you, "Is that enough for salvation?" If it is enough for salvation, then it is enough for fellowship.

Somebody said, "When I was a kid in the old-time, country, Baptist churches, they preached against the Methodist. They would just about say that the Methodists weren't saved-none of them!"

After I was saved (though I was only 12 years old), I began to testify. One day a Methodist lady was in the audience. After I testified, she came to me with tears in her eyes and said, "Little Tolbert, you are such a blessing to me. I feel the sweet Spirit of the Lord when you testify."

My mother was very intellectual and very well read especially when it came to the Bible. On the way home, I told her what the Methodist lady had said to me. I said, "Mom, she sounds like she is saved like everybody else!"

My mother said, "If she's saved, she was saved like everybody else and is just as much a Christian as anybody else in the Baptist church!"

I thank God that, early in my Christian life, I began to learn that you fellowship, worship, team up, and partnership with brothers and sisters in Christ, not because they are all Baptist or Methodist or Pentecostal or Presbyterian. If they are born again children of God, we are to work together.

A man started coming to our church here, his wife was saved and was a Baptist, but he wasn't a Baptist. So, I questioned him one day.

He said, "Oh, I was a member of the Church of Christ. In fact, my brother is a Church of Christ preacher. I've been baptized three times, but I'm not satisfied. I've come to the conclusion that it is not baptism."

I told him, "The Church of Christ cannot save you and neither can the Baptist church. Jesus Christ is the Saviour, and He saves you. No performance you can make, or I can make with you, will save you. It is simply by trusting Jesus Christ. By His blood, He cleanses and saves you."

Later I learned that he told his brother what this Baptist preacher had told him. His brother said to him, "You know, that Baptist preacher is right. Our church can't save you. We've already tried that. Baptism can't save you. The Baptist church can't save you. You'll have to find Jesus Christ."

That is exactly what happened. They attended regularly, then one night during revival he came forward. He's a big man, about six foot four or five and weighs close to 300 pounds. He knelt at the altar, and wept, and asked the Lord to save him. He trusted Christ.

Now, if that Church of Christ preacher had said, "You can't get saved in that Baptist church," he would have hindered his brother. That is the attitude of a lot of Church of Christ members with whom I have dealt.

That Church of Christ preacher and this Baptist preacher were telling him to look to Jesus Christ. That is partnership, agreeing together and showing friendship together toward Jesus Christ.

It is sad today that there are "Baptists" who claim to be the authority and are separatists. Now, I want you to understand what a separatist is. The Pharisee was a separatist. If you don't believe it, look it up in the Greek. All of the Pharisee's accusations toward Jesus were about separatism, but Jesus was not a separatist. Some of His disciples came to Him once and said, "We ran into a fellow over there who is performing miracles in Your Name, and we forbade him because he wasn't in our crowd."

Jesus said, "Oh, no, you're not to forbid him. No man can do a miracle in My Name and speak lightly of Me." There is where we fellowship.

Now, if you want to make something else a condition for fellowship, that is your business, but I believe and contend that New Testament Christian fellowship is at the cross of Jesus Christ.

One group in answer to me said, "We fellowship in the truth."

Dear Brother, may I remind you that Jesus Christ is full of grace and truth. Now, it is true that the legalists of the Mosaic Law and the New Testament legalists are all separatists. They are separatists, and they narrow the Kingdom of Heaven. Jesus said that they hinder the Kingdom of Heaven. He said they are hypocritical. If there is no grace in your doctrine and your teaching, then it is not wholly New Testament. New Testament preaching is grace and truth.

When you come to Christ and fellowship with Him, you are acknowledging that you are saved by grace. Your faith, and motivation, and guidance is in the truth of the Gospel as retained in the New Testament Scriptures: the Gospel according to Matthew, the Gospel according to Mark, the Gospel according to Luke, the Gospel according to John, and, may I say, the Gospel according to Paul, the Gospel according to Peter, and the Gospel according to James. You look it up. There has to be a balance between grace and truth, or you will be one-sided.

An old preacher a long time ago said, "If you are in the middle of the road, they will throw rocks at you from both sides."

I believe you ought to be baptized as an act of obedience, but I do not believe it is salvation. I believe that baptism is the door to the visible Baptist church. I agree with that. I agree that full fellowship in a Baptist church is through baptism, but fellowship itself must be through Jesus Christ. I hope you understand.

The most ridiculous thing I am hearing today is that there are those who are sowing discord among born again brethren concerning minor things rather than the major thing of fellowship.

Our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son, Jesus Christ. Everybody who is in fellowship with the Father and the Son is in fellowship with us, whether they want to be or not. You may be hooked up with Christ from the opposite side, but you are still hooked up with the same Saviour.

God help us to come together as Christians. Christianity, as a whole, is a target of the terrorists who are having a worldwide, religious jihad. Listen, my dear brethren in Christ, we need each other to stand together against the attacks from Satan and his wiles.

After having been a Christian and a Baptist for 67 years, having had fellowship with many different Christians who were of different denominations-some Presbyterian, some Methodist, some Pentecostal, some Elim-I am still a Christian, and I am still a Baptist. I am a Baptist who believes the fundamentals of the faith and tries my best to live by them. I may not be a good Christian or a good Baptist, but I am still Christian and still Baptist.

The Bible tells us that God gave pastors. In the book of Jeremiah 3:15, "And I will give you pastors according to mine heart, which shall feed you with knowledge and understanding." In Jeremiah 12:10, "Many pastors have destroyed my vineyard, they have trodden my portion under foot, they have made my pleasant portion a desolate wilderness." Now Jesus said in John 10:11, "I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep." Jesus is the Good Shepherd.

The great psalmist in the 23rd Psalm, the shepherd-pastor Psalm, said, "The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters. He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me."

He is speaking of the work of the pastor when he says, "He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake." The pastor must love his sheep enough to give his life for them.

Christ gave His life on the cross. A pastor must give his life carrying the cross. The pastor is not actually the Good Shepherd, the Chief Shepherd, or the Great Shepherd. He's the under shepherd in the Christian faith.

I am convinced of some things, and I want to talk about them. Ephesians says he's the pastor and teacher. Dr. Winfrey pointed out that he's a pastor-teacher. Paul also writes that he's like a bishop. He's the overseer of the flock.

The under shepherd must love the Great Shepherd. He must love Jesus Christ, Who is the Shepherd of us all. Pastors are under shepherds to shepherd the sheep as Christ shepherds the sheep and as He teaches to shepherd the sheep.

He's there to care for the sheep. The Psalmist says, "He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake," but it also said, "He maketh me to lie down in green pastures." We are to feed the sheep, and we are to feed them on the Word. Many of them, in fact, most of them must be fed with the milk of the Word, because meat is for them who by exercising themselves are of full age (strength) according to Hebrews 5:14.

The shepherd is to protect the sheep. Christ said in John 10:13, "The hireling fleeth, because he is an hireling, and careth not for the sheep." The shepherd will stand between the wolf and the sheep. He is to protect them by using truth, as well as love and grace. A pastor who is a legalist will have little grace, if any. A true pastor must have grace like our great Chief Shepherd, Jesus Christ. He saves us by grace and that grace is that He died Himself to pay our sin debt, so that we could be free and enjoy grace not having to pay the penalty for our sins, failures, and weaknesses. He paid for them on the cross.

So, pastors are to feed the sheep with the Word of God teaching them the truth, and pastors are to protect them.

Some of the sheep will rebel, but the shepherd must work with them. If a sheep goes astray, he must look for him. I am amazed at how many pastors, with whom I come in contact, who never deal with the sheep on a one on one basis. Several of them have told me, "We have hundreds of people on our church roll, members of our church, but we don't know where they are."

Well, the shepherd is supposed to go find them and bring them back. Part of his work of grace and love is going after the wandering sheep.

He is to comfort the sheep when they have pain or problems, and he is to give aid especially when the sheep are bearing sheep, bringing forth lambs.

In the land of Israel and in the land of Wales (especially in the land of Wales where there are more sheep than people), the shepherd must be present, if at all possible, when the lambs are born. I learned that when I was in Wales. A man explained to me that the reason one of the men could simply call his sheep and they would come follow him was because he was there when that sheep was lambed, when it was born. The first voice the sheep heard was the voice of the shepherd. Jesus said in John 10:4, ". . . and the sheep follow him: for they know his voice." I will assure you that sheep, children of God, those who are born again, will know the voice of their pastor. He must have the voice of love, grace, and truth. Truth, sometimes, does not sound like grace, but truth must come forth before we can grasp or understand or ask for grace.

So, the pastor must feed the sheep. He must protect the sheep. He must care for the sheep. He must be patient with the sheep. He must go after the sheep.

One of the best pastors whom I ever knew was Brother Johnson, a pastor in Rossville, Georgia. We asked him in a preachers' meeting one day, "What does it take to be a good pastor?"

"Well," he said, "you must love them all. Some are hard to love, but the ones who are the hardest to love need it the most."

When trouble arises, a good pastor will not flee or back away. Sometimes he is put in a terrible position with opposing forces within his congregation. Some are vying for power wanting to be the voice, the boss, while others don't want them to be the boss. They, themselves, may not want to be boss, but they do not want the other fellow to be boss.

Some deacons don't understand the office of a deacon. The office of a deacon is a helper. The shepherd is the shepherd of the deacon. The pastor is the pastor of the deacon, just as he is of the others.

Sheep come in all sizes such as rams, lambs, ewes, and growing sheep.

Sometimes goats get among them, and the shepherd must know how to separate them. He really doesn't have to beat up the goat. The shepherd, in his own mind and heart, must know the difference between his sheep and a goat.

It is not easy to be a shepherd. There must be a calling. He must love and care for the whole flock, not for just a few. He must keep in mind what is best for the flock, what is best for the church, as he leads.

He must not be a pretender, and he must not be one who loves money. I learned this early in my ministry, and I thank God that I have no greed over money. I like to have money, because it provides avenues for ministry. You must have money to operate. I publish a magazine. I have to pray in that support. It comes in as the Lord orders and desires. I must have that support, or I can't pay the bills. The church has to pay their bills, and there must be teaching and leadership so people will give and support the church. (That's another sermon and another life conviction.) The pastor must lead and teach on giving, but he must not step over the line making that the main thing.

The main thing is getting out the Gospel and ministering to the children of God, so they can be a part of the team to reach other people for Christ. He must teach and love in that respect. He must not start loving the money first, wanting the money first, because then the ministry itself will suffer. It always does.

In John 15:9, He says: "As the Father hath loved me, so have I loved you: continue ye in my love."

In Acts 13:43, the Bible says: "Now when the congregation was broken up, many of the Jews and religious proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas: who, speaking to them, persuaded them to continue in the grace of God."

In 2 Timothy 3:14, he made the statement: "But continue thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of, knowing of whom thou hast learned them..."

Acts 2:42 says: "And they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers."

An accusation was made against Jesus in Acts 6:14: "For we have heard him say, that this Jesus of Nazareth shall destroy this place, and shall change the customs which Moses delivered us." (That really was true! He did change the customs that Moses delivered.) Hebrews 7:12 says: "For the priesthood being changed, there is made of necessity a change also of the law."

Some things we cannot change. We cannot change the Word of God. We cannot change the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. We cannot change the commands that Jesus delivered or the cautioning of the Apostles on continuing steadfast.

However, in my lifetime, I have seen many changes in churches. When I was a lad, the music was just beginning to change. My Granddaddy, Luther Grizzle, was a singing professor. He taught shaped notes, and they called him to do singing schools around the country. Back then the churches had old-fashioned pump organs, and my granddad would recommend that they get a piano. He explained that a piano would help their singing because church music was changing from psalms and old hymns, which were sung with an organ, to convention type music with more rhythm to it. These were songs about joy and Heaven. Many people got upset with my granddaddy. Some pastors said, "We will not have him back. That old man is trying to change our church!"

About that time, there was a big fight all around the country over taking out the old pump organs and putting in pianos. Twenty years later, when I was a pastor, they began to add the organs back into the church, which caused another uproar.

Later, some churches began having stringed instruments (guitars mostly or maybe a mandolin or violin). My mother would sometimes play an accordion. There was an uproar about that.

Then some churches began to form choirs, and they were preached against by a lot of preachers.

My daughter trains our choir at Galilean to sing without songbooks, to just memorize the words like quartets do. [In fact, she learned that from Mildred LeCroy, her first choir director, who was one of the top talents in Gospel music.]

Yet, some say, "I must have the music in front of me." It has always amazed me that some of those who complain have been singing those same songs for 20 to 25 years and still have to have songbooks in front of them, so they can read the music that they have never memorized. Yet, they expect the preacher to memorize most Scripture verses that he uses from the pulpit.

Through the years and even now, the uproar continues about music and musical instruments. In recent years, some churches have begun using computers to put the words to the songs on a screen or on a wall. I hear complaints about that.

I remember when preachers began preaching on the radio. Some preached against it. I was one of them, and then later, I was on the radio daily myself. It was the same with television.

When I was growing up, churches were mostly brick. They were out in the country with clear windows, no stained glass windows and no carpeted floors. One church that I pastored had carpet just in the pulpit area trying to quiet down the stomping and preaching!

Changes are going to happen, BUT THERE ARE CHANGES WHICH MUST NOT HAPPEN! Changes must be made without changing the message, the doctrine, the Word, or even the Bible. We cannot (must not) rewrite Scripture. We cannot rewrite history. We cannot rewrite the Gospel. We must stay with that message and doctrine.

Really, I think we should stay with the King James Version of the Bible. We don't have the 1611 edition. We have the 1611 translation in a 1769 to 1772 edition. That is the Bible I use, always have, always will. Actually, when most preachers expound the Scriptures they pick up a few different words. But, do not change the Gospel message! Some people within fundamental circles say you are not to quote the Greek or the Hebrew. They insist on English. They believe in double inspiration: the original autographs were inspired, and so was the English translation (the King James Bible). I cannot accept that. I believe in the original inspiration and the English preservation. Of course, we do not have the exact words, but we do have the translation.

Change must come. Nothing is wrong with having central heat and air in the church. Nothing is wrong with having padded pews, carpeted floors, stained glass windows, and brick walls. Likewise, nothing is wrong with having old-fashioned, clapboard, wooden buildings. There is nothing wrong with having instruments that aid and make good music in the song service. Yet, there is nothing wrong with singing without the instruments. I have heard some wonderful a cappella singing (without instruments). I have also heard criticism if a tuning fork was used to get the pitch right when they started!

You can be extreme or ridiculous about anything. Actually, it does not take a whole lot of effort to become an extremist like the legalists who develop a creed like the Pharisees did. We have modern Pharisees who develop a creed based upon Scripture taken out of context, and their creed becomes their religion. They are so legalistic that any violation of their creed is considered a compromise or a slap in God's face.

The church will continue to be on the cutting edge. We will continue to use methods that do not contradict Scripture. God help us. My conviction is that church should use whatever methods and whatever opportunities it has to get out the Gospel. Sometimes, we go out and knock on doors. Absolutely, we should do that. Sometimes we just send mail to those doors with the same message. We should do that also. You cannot change the message, but methods do change.

Some of the fellows who scream against changing methods are using a different method than their forefathers did. Like I said, it does not take a lot of effort to be ridiculous! Just be a Baptist. You can do it. God bless you.

Let's turn our Bibles to Proverbs 11:30: "The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that winneth souls is wise." Now, turn to Luke 19:10: "For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost." Look in Mark 16:15: "And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature." Then in John 20:21: "Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you." In Matthew 4:19 he said, "And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men." Also, see Luke 10:2: "Therefore said he unto them, The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest."

The General said to the President, "The war is hard. Send more soldiers. We need more boots on the ground." The Church needs more boots on the ground.

Christ said in Matthew 5:13: "Ye are the salt of the earth..." I say the salt must be out of the box or the food is tasteless.

Christ began the bud of the church. It bloomed at Pentecost. The Holy Spirit is the life and energy of the church. The church is the body of Christ to evangelize the world. Soul winning is the main work of the church.

I learned to lead souls to Christ soon after I was saved. Within a few weeks after I was saved, I was with a friend, and he asked me what happened to me at church. I was led by the Spirit, I believe, to tell him if he would ask the Lord to save him, the Lord would save him. We prayed in the garden or cornfield, and he grabbed me and said, "I am saved." He then told his mother. I received such a blessing then, that I began witnessing to all of my friends. Five more prayed and said they were saved within a little over one year from the time I was saved when I was twelve years old.

I am now eighty years old. I have been blessed to see many come to trust Christ for salvation. Most of them, of course, come down the aisle at the church, but many of them were led to the Lord one on one.

Everyone to whom I witness does not get saved, but some do, and Heaven rejoices over one sinner who repents. I have been blessed to share soul winning efforts with many preachers and teachers, as well as many laymen, who have gone on to win many to Christ. When we teach and demonstrate soul winning methods to the congregation, only a few will respond, but a few soul winners can keep a church baptizing often. It is a joy to the church to often see newborn babes coming forward with a testimony of salvation.

I believe that soul winning is a command that Christ gave to the church. Of course, some will say soul winning is too hard, but if it was easy, everyone would be doing it. The church that is growing has soul winners. They may be parents, family members, friends, teachers, or church members who witness and point lost souls to Christ.

One-on-one soul winners have a great joy in knowing that they are instrumental in someone's salvation. I have never known anyone who did not know people who were out of the family of God. Too many never speak a word to a lost person about their soul.

When revival comes to a church, it spreads into the community of unbelievers. It becomes easy to win people to Christ. Four times in my ministerial experience, revival came into the community. Families have contacted me to come to their homes to give them the Gospel. During one summer in the Shady Grove Church and community, at least six families called me to their homes. During the service in their homes, the entire family trusted the Lord for salvation, then came to the church and was baptized. In one family, when they had such a service in their home, all present were saved. However, one son was not there. When he came home, the mother told him the family was saved. He began to weep and accuse them of leaving him lost to go to Hell. They called me, and I went back to their home and he, too, was saved.

Such a revival is prone to make us lazy. When the revival is over or slows, soul winning becomes hard, and the effort soon stops. A young pastor in Wales said to me, "I most admire those who continue to fish when the tide is out." He made a great point that only those who enjoy fishing, keep fishing, even when the fish are hard to catch. It is not as easy now to win souls as it was in the 1970s and 1980s, but the command to win souls was not for just when it is easy. Dr. John R. Rice said, "If it was easy, everyone would be doing it."

We must fight the good fight of faith, but DON'T FORGET TO BUILD! Bus ministries nationwide have declined since the mid-eighties, and Sunday schools have declined as the bus ministry has lost momentum.

Sunday school is where beginners through adults learn and maintain basic Christian doctrines. Sunday school should be a long arm of the church to reach families of the community. When Sunday school (Bible study) weakens, the church is weakened. We must build and rebuild our Sunday schools.

How do we do it?,

Without buses, it is not easy. One of the main things in building a successful Bible study program is having knowledgeable, trained teachers and workers. Every church member will not be a teacher; however, every member can be a worker. Teachers must have a knowledge of the Bible and be able to teach (that is lead) the study of others. Most people who have a gift to teach will learn from the pastor or other teachers who can clearly present the biblical text. Some will require more training than others. Teachers are key to leading the classes to learn and grow.

Workers can be anyone who cares about people and wants to be a part of a growing, hence exciting, Sunday school and church. Workers (led by the teacher and pastor) visit, follow-up, witness, and welcome everyone to their church and Sunday school. Workers can help with socials and with sending cards to the sick, absent members, and visitors. They can be part of a telephone network and prayer chain. Without workers, teachers find it difficult to reach new people.

Sunday school promotions and programs help to reach out to the community. Consistent weekly follow-up is a must for building and rebuilding. Pastoral leadership is primary in growing Sunday school. Dr. Lee Roberson, one of the principal leaders in church growth, said, "Everything rises and falls on leadership!"

Pastors, we must dedicate ourselves to leading and training teachers and workers. God will help us to reach our communities for Christ during these turbulent times.

Most anyone who is familiar at all with New Testament scriptures will remember that Jesus said to Nicodemus, "Ye must be born again."

I am convinced (more strongly as the days go by) unless a person is born again, born of the Spirit, born from above, that person cannot understand, cannot see, and cannot enter the Kingdom of God just as Jesus said to Nicodemus.

In the first few verses of John, chapter 3, it says: "There was a man of the Pharisees, named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews: The same came to Jesus by night, and said unto him, Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him. Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother's womb, and be born? Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again. The wind bloweth where it listeth, and thou hearest the sound thereof, but canst not tell whence it cometh, and whither it goeth: so is every one that is born of the Spirit. Nicodemus answered and said unto him, How can these things be? Jesus answered and said unto him, Art thou a master of Israel, and knowest not these things? Verily, verily, I say unto thee, We speak that we do know, and testify that we have seen; and ye receive not our witness. If I have told you earthly things, and ye believe not, how shall ye believe, if I tell you of heavenly things?"

It is true that God is the Father of all humanity, but that doesn't mean all are sons of God. There is a difference. In the first chapter of the Gospel of John, the Bible says (concerning Jesus): "He came unto his own, and his own received him not. But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name." When Christ came, He divided the world into two different kinds of people: sons of God (children of God) and children of the devil. On one occasion, He said to a group, "Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do" (John 8:44a).

It is absolutely imperative, if you are going to be part of the Kingdom of God, the family of God, the sons (or children) of God, and go to heaven when you die, you must be born again!

The beauty of it all is that God has made it very simple. You don't have to go before the courts. You don't have to go before the High Priest. You don't have to be circumcised or perform certain works of the law. You simply believe in, receive Jesus Christ as Saviour and Lord, and you are a child of God. He authorizes you to become a child of God. When you really receive Him, a new birth takes place inside you, in your spirit, in your soul, and you become a new creature-different.

Bro. Joe Parsons used to say, "He is neither man, nor angel: he is a new creature!" There is a newness, a freshness about that person who is born again, whether a child or an aged person. We must look to God and depend on Him.

I heard a great preacher of a great, Baptist church say that he would be happy if, when he got to Heaven, he learned that 25% of his congregation were born again. Everybody who says he is born again is, evidently, not born again.

Everybody who says he is a child of God, or believes he is a child of God, is not necessarily a child of God. A child of God is one who has received Jesus Christ, the Word of God, into his heart. Jesus is the Word. John 1:1-3 says, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made."

Everybody who says he is a Christian is not a Christian. That comes about by the new birth. The new birth is like many things in the Christian realm. It is a simple procedure, but it is a profound action, because it completely changes a person inside. When you are born the first time, you are born without God (which means you are born incomplete). When you are born from above, born of the Spirit and the water, then you are made complete, so says the Word of God.

Colossians 2:9-10 say: "For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power."

Colossians 4:12 says: "Epaphras, who is one of you, a servant of Christ, saluteth you, always labouring fervently for you in prayers, that ye may stand perfect and complete in all the will of God."

When you are born again, you are complete in Christ, and you can be complete in the ministry of Christ as you live for Him and follow Him.

We have always had problems in churches (especially the Baptist churches), because the Baptists believe in the priesthood of the believer-that each individual can get answers from God and directions from the Holy Spirit. The problems arise because everybody who is a member of a Baptist church does not know the Holy Spirit. Everyone who is a member of a Baptist church is not born again! In the 63 years I was a pastor, I had many people come forward who had been baptized on a profession of their faith and say, "I'm really not saved. I am not born again." Then others would confess the same thing. No doubt, there are still plenty out there in Baptist churches who have not yet realized or confessed that they are not saved!

The problems come when unsaved, unregenerate people begin to have leadership and voice in the church. It must be allowed, because that's our doctrine, our teaching, and our philosophy, but it has to be combated with those who are led by the Holy Spirit to speak up, to speak out, and take a stand on the truth, because those who are deceived are not living in truth. They cannot know the truth nor see and enter the Kingdom of God unless they are saved.

That's my life's conviction. It is getting stronger all the time. I am burdened and concerned for our churches (especially the churches that have problems), because there are people in the churches who are members of the church and don't follow the leadership of the Spirit and are not directed by the Word of God.

But, it is a wonderful experience when they all come in one accord in the Spirit and love of Jesus Christ. Marvelous things happen. Wonderful, miraculous things happen.

God bless and help us, Lord!