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 The Cornerstone 

This is the Stone which was rejected by you builders, which has become the Chief Conerstone." Acts 4:11

Pulbished to Support the Work of the West End Church of Christ, Richmond, Virginia

Volume 6 *   Number 17*   April 23,  2006

Cleansed

When your hands are dirty, you wash them. When your heart has sin, you do the same. You flush it out so it can be cleansed. David said, "Wash me thoroughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin." Psalms 51:2 David needed a cleansing, and he sought the Lord’s help and forgiveness. Today we must do the same. "Draw nigh to God, and He will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded." James 4:8

Jesus spoke to the Pharisees about their need for a good cleaning when He said "cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also." Matthew 23:26. The Pharisees needed to flush out their hearts so that they would be right on the inside and not just ‘looking good’ on the outside. Their hearts needed to be cleansed and they needed to clean them up. The Apostle Paul says "Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God." II Corinthians 7:1

To be clean again the child of God must acknowledge his sin and rid himself of all the filth that is making him unclean. God has promised His children, "If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness." I John 1:9 The blood of Jesus makes us clean once again and God forgives. Those who are outside of Christ must be cleansed as well. Sin must be turned from. (Acts 2:38) and one must be washed in baptism to remove the sin away. "Arise and be baptized and wash away thy sins…" Acts 22:16 "The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ." I Peter 3:21 Baptism washes the filth away so that one is cleansed from their sins. In these passages you will notice God’s part and our part in being cleansed.

Stacy Crim

A Question About Our Authority for a Church Building

Greg Gwin

Question: When there is an approved example, is it possible to use an inference? Hebrews 10:25, in particular is what I am getting at. We have approved examples of meeting in houses to assemble and yet we infer the right to build a building to assemble. It appears that some violate their own principles when they build the building. They have approved examples of assembling in houses, river banks, etc., (but not building a church building).

Answer: You asked a great question. Here's how I would answer it:

1) As you correctly noted, Hebrews 10:25 commands us to assemble and thereby necessarily implies the authority for a place to worship.

2) You are also correct to observe that we have approved examples of 1st Century Christians meeting in private homes, open-air settings, and even in public facilities (a school – Acts 19:9, the temple in Jerusalem – Acts 2:46, etc.)

3) Now, why do we use the 'necessary inference' approach (as in #1 above) to justify building/owning a church building rather than the 'approved example' approach (as in #2 above) and thus meet in homes, outdoors, public facilities, etc.?

The answer to this requires us to ask the question: When is an example binding? That's a very important question, because we have all kinds of examples in the New Testament that we don't follow. For instance, the disciples in Troas (Acts 20) met in an "upper chamber" when they took the Lord's Supper on the first day of the week (remember that Eutychus fell out of the window). Why do we select the first day of the week from that example as being binding, but the upper room from that same incident is not binding? We have to use some hermeneutical rules to decide which examples are binding and which are not. There are at least four rules we need to apply:

a) The actions of any example must be consistent with other undoubted Scriptural teaching in order to be regarded as binding. An example would never be considered binding when the example or action is in conflict with statements of direct command, necessary inference, or other approved examples. Peter, in Galatians 2, set an example of hypocrisy when he showed favoritism to Jewish Christians over Gentile Christians. Are we authorized to do the same because of this example. Obviously not (James 2:1,9). This is why we usually specify that we are to follow only "approved" examples.

b) Uniformity in essential details must be present in any example for the action involved to be considered binding. If, in the same situation, different actions are taken, neither can be considered as binding. As an example, cases of baptism in the New Testament were always total immersion. The fact that all the examples are the same sets up a "pattern" for us to follow. But, since Christians met to worship in different types of facilities (homes, open-air, public buildings) there is no uniform pattern for us to follow.

c) No example of action could be regarded as binding when it is not such as can be universally applied. For instance, Paul traveled by ship to certain preaching destinations. Must we follow his example? Clearly no, because there are lots of places that you can't go via ship. Likewise, if someone were to insist that we meet in an upper room for worship (as they did in Troas – Acts 20) it would make it impossible for some people in some places to conduct worship services.

d) No New Testament example should be considered as binding in situations other than those set forth in the actual record of the action. The Jerusalem saints had "all things in common" (Acts 2:44,45). Must we sell all of our private property and live in a communal arrangement? No, because those were unique circumstances that we do not presently experience. But if we hit extreme hard times, we should be ready to imitate their example.

Thanks for your good question. I hope these points will help you as you continue your studies.

The Electronic Beacon

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Consider Him

Jamey Hinds

Consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, lest you become weary and discouraged in your souls. You have not yet resisted to bloodshed, striving against sin" (Hebrews 12:3-4).

We cannot being to comprehend the hardship which faced our Lord — the pain of losing the support of friends and family, the betrayal from Judas Iscariot, the six "trials" during the course of the night and early morning of the day He would later be scourged ( John 19:1) and crucified. The denials even now.

Most of us, at one time or another, will be disappointed by our brethren by something done or said (or something left undone or unsaid). Maybe we don’t get our way, or maybe we see our brethren do things that bring reproach to Christ’s name in constant

hypocrisy. But consider Him who endured hostility from sinners.

Don’t give up, and don’t give in. Remain "steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your labor is not in vain in the Lord" (1 Corinthians 15:58).

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