The Ohio Independent Baptist, October 1971

L arn To Forget! by Warr n Wi rsbe " I , l'l!(-,tti11~ r/, .._,e tl1i11~., \\ /1icl1 arc be- ._ " l1i11d ..•... .• ( P/1il. J : 1 l) , )"i 11.l, l tiilt nc,, hl"ginn1ng~ int tl1c ,er\' 111,1ch1ncr C the t1n1 crsc. • Hlc.1t1"c tl1~ (artl1 r ,t,1tcs. and hccau ·c it 111.;1lc, ~\ll annt1al jl1t1rnt: arot1nd the "ltn nc,, hcginning on1c into our 1,,l~" (,n ·t,1ntl)' . ach n1 rning i a nt:\\ hcgtnn1ng. "Th n1erc1e are new c, er, n1orning ..." (Lan1 . 3:22-23). -, er\' tinda n1ark... a new beginning, "The lord' Da \" the day of re ur– re ta n. The coming of the season that G d allo, nature to ., tart all . " , er agai n. The fre h beginning of a new year ught to bring a new beginning to our o n Ii e per onall . God will never make it difficult for a man to start all o, 1 er again! Abraham, Jacob, Moses, Da id, Jonah, Peter, and a host of other Bible heroes knew what it was to fail and what it was to begin again. They were able, with Paul, to forget the past and walk into the future with new faith and courage. Forge t past failu res. Babe Ruth, the ··sultan of Swat," had a record of 851 home run . How many people remem– ber that he struck out a total of 1330 times? Abraham is known as a great man of faith, yet more than once his faith failed and he disobeyed God. Moses was "the meekest man on earth," yet he lost his temper! No apostle was more courageous than Peter, yet he denied the Lord three times . Each of these men confessed his in and started over again. Don't per- 1111 t 11 ,1 ~t fa ii tares to ct, 'it:ouragc you . R "'grcttang tl1c1n will never change tl1cn1. an i ren1c111hering thc111 will only da"courag' Oll. 0 f'4 .. orgetting l h O C tl1 tng.;; \\ 0 l11ch are b l1i nd . . . ." f .. or,:et pa t vi< tories. If we Jive on pa ·t gains, we n1ay top growing. Re. ting on our victories can make us carcle arad elf- ati fled. There is a 0 holy di ati faction" that must con– trol the life of the hri tian: there is alway more to learn, more to do, and more to accomplish for His glory. It i po sible to have a name that we are alive and yet be dead! Like Sam- on, we can face the enemy and feel trong for the battle, only to discover that our strength is gone! The past can be the enemy of the present, and the good can be the enemy of the better. "Forgetting those things which are behind . . ." Forge t what people have said and done to you. Give them a chance to start over again, too! Harboring re– sentment and nursing grudges only manufactures sour saints who cannot get along with themselves, or with any– body else. The best way to have a "happy new year" is to confess all ill will, experience a new filling of God's love, and forgive those who have sinned against us. Life is too short, and the days are too difficult, for us to have enemies. "Forgetting those things which are behind. . ." After all, why should we remember what God has already forgotten! "And their sins and iniquities will I remem– be no more" (Heb. 10:17). NOT TO BE REPRINTED WITHOUT PERMISSION New Evangelicalism Some of the symptoms of the "new evangelical' ' disease are: 1. Placing love above sound doctrine as a basis for Christian fellowship. (There can be no true love without sound doctrine) I John 5: 2, 3. 2. Re-thinking, re-i nvestigating and keeping an "open mind" regarding the fundamentals of the faith including the inerrancy and inspiration of the Scrip– tures. (Faith in the Word of God and the Son of God is a matter of revelation, not investigation ) II Tim. 2: 15. 3. Testing the Scriptures in an effort to accommodate so-called Scientific discovery and theory including evolution. ( If man knows more than his creator, God is indeed dead!) Gen. 1: 1. 4. Seeking to develop lines of thought and argument which would "Christian– ize" pagan ideas and systems founded on unbelief. (Glorification of psychology, psychiatry, geology, astronomy, etc.) There is nothing better for modern man than the Word of God. Col. 3: 16. 5. Preaching only a so-called "positive message" as often expressed by the statement, "God called me to win soul s to Christ, not to criticize others.' ' (God calls all believers to win souls but he also commands them to contend earnestly for the faith .) Jude 3, 4. 6. F inding more fellowship with apostates than with fundamentalists. (This suits the devil just fine for it confuses the battle lines.) Eph. 5: 11. 7. Making the church more and more an instrument of social change by programs of humanitarian concern rather than emphasizing our responsibility to the great commission and the eternal welfare of man. (God made only one set of rules regarding fellowship with fal se prophets.) II John 10. -SELECTED 16 OCTOBER, 1971 Witnessing At Ohio State Fair J tist before going to press we lea rn– ed thflt the l.. ord blessed the ministry of the Hehrcw an(I hri ·tian Society throt1gh their witnes5ing at the recent Ohio State 1=air. Two hundred thirty New Testament were given to Jewish people. Ninety per cent of these were teen-agers . Seventy- two Bibles wcrfr given to people who promi sed to read them and complete the correspond– ence course we placed in their hands. The Lord willing, we will have a more detailed report of this mini stry in a subsequent issue of THE OHIO IN– DEPENDENT BAPTIST. New Pastor At Homeworth i The Mt . Pleasant Baptist Church of Homeworth, Ohio has called Robert E. Marsh of Winona Lake, Indiana to be their new pastor. Brother Marsh and his wife Marlene are both gradu– ates of Bryan College. He is also a graduate of Grace Theological Semin– ary. They have two children - David who is three years old and Anne, age one. Brother Marsh's home church is Bethlehem Baptist Church of Cleve– land. They will be living in Minerva, Ohio. Rev. Dale Tilton, who pastored the Mt. Pleasant Church since it be-· gan from a Bible Study class four years ago, is retiring because of de– clining health. From Ohio To Michigan Rev. Bruce N. Stewart has resigned as pastor of the First Baptist Church in Bowling Green, Ohio. He is now serving at the West Chicago Blvd. Baptist Church in Detroit , Michigan. During his five years in Bowling Green there has been a considerable· growth in membership and attendance of the church. The budget more than tripled. He also led the church in a $300,000 relocation building pro– gram. His ministry was one of bless– ing. The folk at the Bowling Green church would appreciate the pray ers of our OIB readers as they seek the Lord's man to serve as their pastor. Dear Reader: Why not suggest to your pastor that y<,:.t have a "bundle lot" of THE OH10 INDEPENDENT BAPTIST sent to your church each month? 25 copies would cost but $25.00. SO copies - $50.00. Help us to get "bundle lots" into All of · our churches! Thanks • • • Your Editor THE OHIO INDEPENDENT BAPTIST