Prayers of giving thanks to God will be uttered this week.  This is good; we do not want to be unthankful people who take God’s blessings for granted.  The United States is so blessed with material wealth that we should acknowledge the source of it all (Deut. 8:18).  Many fall into the same trap as the rich Israelites in the days of Amos who were “at ease in Zion” (Amos 6:1).  As long as they could enjoy themselves relaxing on their ivory couches, listening to music, eating the finest steak and drinking their wine, they could not have cared less for the affliction of God’s people (Amos 6:3-6).  Ingratitude leads to a whole host of other sins (Rom. 1:21ff).

This brings us to another component that should also be included in our prayers: confession of sin (Neh. 1:6; Jer. 14:20; Dan. 9:3-15).  Our founding fathers and some of our past presidents thought it necessary to set aside a day not merely for giving thanks, but for confessing the sins of the nation. While the threat of terrorist attacks and the mounting national debt are real concerns for the citizens of this nation, we must realize it is not the strength and cunning of our enemies nor the fiscal woes of our federal government that should be our chief concern. By far the sins of our nation pose the most serious threat to our peace and prosperity (Prov. 14:34).  The sins of murder and fornication are described in God’s word as defiling a land; when God dealt with the particular nation of Israel in the Old Testament, He gave these two sins as reasons for why that nations of Canaan were taken off the land and why Israel herself would lose the land if she allowed such (Lev. 18:24-28; Num. 35:31-34).  God hates the shedding of innocent blood (Prov. 6:17), and the 58 million children who have been slaughtered in their mothers’ wombs with the legal consent of our highest court since 1973 is a debt that is far more serious than the $20 trillion of national debt that has so many people talking.  Sooner or later the bill comes due.  When nations refuse to make murderers pay for their crimes, as our nation has since the legalization of abortion, God will require payment sooner or later (Gen. 9:6; 2 Kings 21:16; 24:2-4).  The cities of Sodom and Gomorrah stand as a testament to God’s judgment upon fornication and perversion (Jude 7; cf. Rom. 1:26-27; Heb. 13:4).  A land that is filled with fornication and remains impenitent should be most terrified by a coming judgment from God.

This brings us to a third component that should be in our prayers: requests for deliverance.  Faithful children of God who are troubled every day by the wickedness that surrounds them should pray to God for deliverance (Mt. 6:13; cf. 1 Cor. 10:13).  Just as God would have spared Sodom for the sake of ten righteous souls (Gen. 18:32), so He is mindful of the Christians who are living righteously in our nation.  We should recognize that God, “delivered just Lot, vexed with the filthy conversation of the wicked: (For that righteous man dwelling among them, in seeing and hearing, vexed his righteous soul from day to day with their unlawful deeds;) The Lord knoweth how to deliver the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished” (2 Pet. 2:7-9).  We should pray for our nation and its leaders so that we can lead a quiet and peaceable life of godliness and honesty (1 Tim. 2:2).

-Mark Day

The Bible, if false, is of very little importance, but if true, is of greatest importance.  Those who really recognize the veracity of the Scriptures stake their lives and eternal souls on the claims therein.  Obviously, not everyone believes the Bible, but what about those who claim to believe it is God’s word, yet do not give priority or effort to learning its contents?

The Bible claims to be the Word of God.  Over two thousand times in the Old Testament the Bible asserts that the Lord God is speaking (Ex. 24:4; Deut. 4:2; 2 Sam. 23:2; Jer. 26:2; et. al.).  The New Testament uses the phrase “the word of God” over forty times to speak of its contents.  The Bible claims that it was written by men who were inspired: under guidance of the Holy Spirit (2 Tim. 3:16-17; 2 Pet. 1:20-21).  These men who were guided by the Spirit acknowledged when the Holy Spirit guided the other writers and called their writings scripture (1 Tim. 5:18; 2 Pet. 3:15-16).  Further, the Bible claims that its message is true because its Author, God, cannot lie (Jn. 17:17; Titus 1:2; Heb. 6:18).

God’s word welcomes those who are spiritually thirsty to come and drink of these deep reservoirs of inspiration and be satisfied (Deut. 8:3; Mt. 5:6; Jn. 4:10-14; 6:35; 7:37).  If one will come to God’s word with a sincere heart, humbly desiring God’s will, they will not leave empty-handed (Isa. 55:6-11).

The word of God is able to save our souls if we will make it a part of us (Jas. 1:21).  When we teach it to others, it will save their souls as well (1 Tim. 4:16).  When we are born again by the Word of God, we must continue to return to it for spiritual nourishment (1 Pet. 1:23; 2:2-3). Those who imbibe of the teachings of the Bible find it sweet as honey, accomplishing what God intended (Psa. 19:7-11).

The Bible gives us the proper worldview.  It explains the order we see in the universe around us (Psa. 19:1-4; Rom. 1:20).  Our universe is not a “multiverse” created by several competing gods.  It displays unity and harmony of the one true, good God who has provided for us (Acts 14:15; Mt. 5:45).  Man is the crown of God’s creation, above the animals (Gen. 1:26).  God desires a personal relationship with each human, and places Himself at the right distance away that we can turn from Him or choose to seek Him and find Him (Acts 17:27).  God gives us a choice to serve Him or to be self-serving in this temporal physical world (Deut. 30:18; Josh. 24:15; Heb. 11:24-25).

One day the physical world will come to an end (2 Pet. 3:10-11).  The Bible will judge us on that final day (Jn. 12:48; Rev. 20:12).  Those who have not obeyed the Gospel will be punished with eternal fire, while those who have obeyed will be at rest and glorify the Lord (2 Thess. 1:6-11).  If we acknowledge these things as true, why in the world would we let studying the Bible take a back seat to so many other efforts?

– Mark Day

In a conversation with the chief priests and the elders, Jesus said:

But what think ye? A certain man had two sons; and he came to the first, and said, Son, go work today in my vineyard. He answered and said, I will not: but afterward he repented, and went. And he came to the second, and said likewise. And he answered and said, I go, sir: and went not. Whether of them twain did the will of his father? They say unto him, The first. Jesus saith unto them, Verily I say unto you, That the publicans and the harlots go into the kingdom of God before you. For John came unto you in the way of righteousness, and ye believed him not: but the publicans and the harlots believed him: and ye, when ye had seen it, repented not afterward, that ye might believe him (Mt. 21:28-32).

Repentance is not easy.  It begins with remorse over our sins.  We consider how good God is even though we sin against Him (Rom. 2:4).  This remorse is not just feeling sorry for ourselves or sorry we got caught, rather it is a “godly sorrow” that produces a change of our will (2 Cor. 7:8-11).   This change in the will is repentance.  It is turning to God and it results in a change of conduct.  John required the Pharisees and Sadducees to bear the fruit of repentance (Mt. 3:8).  The apostle Paul told those to whom he preached, “that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance” (Acts 26:20).  He wrote to the Ephesians, “Let him that stole steal no more: but rather let him labour, working with his hands the thing which is good, that he may have to give to him that needeth” (Eph. 4:28). Thus, a “repentance” that does not result in a forsaking of sin, a change in behavior, is not a genuine repentance.  The one who stole cannot keep on stealing, nor can he keep that which he has stolen if he is to genuinely repent.  As much as possible, he should attempt to make restitution.  Zacchaeus understood this principle of restitution in his repentance (Lk.19:8).

Because of the difficulty of repentance, many choose not to earnestly attempt it.  Some retreat to a cheapening of God’s grace wherein they assure themselves that they can willfully persist in sin and God will forgive them merely because they acknowledge Him, but God’s grace only goes with those who are willing to be taught and led out of ungodliness (Heb. 10:26-27; Titus 2:11-12).

In God’s eyes, repentance is a gift to us.  Peter and the apostles said to those Jewish leaders that were responsible for Christ’s death, “The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree.  Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins (Acts 5:30-31).  When the church at Jerusalem heard of the Gentiles’ obedience to the Gospel they said, “Then hath God also to the Gentiles granted repentance unto life” (Acts 11:17).  The proclaimer of God’s message must be one who is “in meekness instructing those that oppose themselves; if God peradventure will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth” (2 Tim. 2:25). In repentance God is giving us the opportunity to change our relationship with Him, and when we do so there is great rejoicing in heaven (Lk. 15:7).  Will you repent?

– Mark Day

The apostle John wrote, “I was in the Spirit on the Lord’s day…” (Revelation 1:10).  In the previous verse, he mentioned how he was a companion of the churches of Asia in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, but was presently on the island of Patmos.  He had been exiled to this rocky, barren, uninhabited island as part of persecution he had suffered for the word of God and the testimony of Jesus Christ.  The churches of Asia, to which he wrote (Revelation 1:4), were suffering persecution as well, and the apostle’s thoughts turned to them.  It was the Lord’s day after all, and John surely thought about what the Lord’s day meant.  He was all alone, separated from his brethren, and had time to reminisce on all those previous Lord’s days in which he had broken bread with fellow saints to remember Christ’s death as the church did regularly from its inception (Acts 2:42; 20:7; 1 Corinthians 11:26).  John, unlike many others who have become Christians since,  would eat the bread and drink the fruit of the vine not recalling something he had only read about, but rather remembering the body and blood of the Lord he had seen with his own eyes (1 John 1:1).

He called it the Lord’s day because it belonged to the Lord, just as the Lord’s supper is called such because it belongs to the Lord.  He would remember that the Lord’s day, the first day of the week, was the day that the Lord Jesus rose from the dead (Mark 16:9), the day that he himself outran Peter to the tomb to find it empty (John 20:1-10). It was that evening Christ first appeared to him and the other apostles when they were gathered together, with the exception of Thomas (John 20:19), and then again on the first day of the next week when the disciples were again gathered together, this time with Thomas (John 20:26).

He would remember the Lord’s day, that first Pentecost following the resurrection, where Jesus’ reign was declared by Peter, opening the doors of the kingdom (Acts 2:30; Matthew 16:19, 28).  He would remember the roughly 3,000 souls who were added to the church, the kingdom, that day because they responded to the Gospel through repentance and baptism (Acts 2:38; 41, 47).  Through the years, many more had been conveyed from the power of darkness to the kingdom of Jesus, the Son of God (Colossians 1:13).  And, now John was all alone on Patmos, but still a brother in the kingdom of Christ (Revelation 1:9).

What John must have been missing having to spend the Lord’s day all alone!  No brethren by his side to worship God, to hear their needs and tell them his and go to God in prayer; no assembly of saints to teach and admonish one another by singing and making melody in their hearts to the Lord (Ephesians 5:19; Colossians 3:16); no collection to give to Christ’s church and further His cause (1 Corinthians 16:1-2).  The Lord was with him, but he could only communicate with other saints by letters.  Where are we on the Lord’s day? Do we take for granted all the spiritual blessings that are available to us each Lord’s day through the worship assembly and the warm fellowship that surrounds it?  Or do we long for it like this exile would have when he received the revelation of Jesus Christ?

-Mark Day

by Andy Robison

In regard to congregational singing, oft is offered the quip, “Well, the words are all that matter, anyway.” This is a comfort to tone-deaf worshipers, but, the secular, well-intentioned proverb may be employed too far.

If the words were, indeed, all that mattered, perhaps God would have said something like, “Recite to one another in poems, rhymes and spiritual verse.” Could it be that the musical setting (a cappella) has more importance than often acknowledged?

Music is an emotional thing. Composers of purely instrumental music (from symphonies and operas to punk rock and country) work to construct the chord progression, melodies and harmonies to create a mood, often mirroring some occasion or historic event. A fanfare for Olympic Games is an upbeat call to competition and potential triumph – a memorable melodic line punctuated with quick punches of harmonic brass. A mournful dirge, by contrast, might employ low strings in slow, solemn movements.

In authorized a cappella singing for congregations, the music generally fits the words. “Nearer My God, to Thee” would never be set to a driving rhythm (as in “Ring Out the Message”). The thrill of “The New Song” is best with its buoyant beat and majestic chorus; it wouldn’t work with a contemplative chant-like, “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross” feel. The musical composers seek to amplify the impact of the wording.

Singing might be viewed as the divinely authorized outlet for human emotion. Many sectarian groups take emotionalism to unscriptural levels – mistaking shaking and rolling, hand-waving and moaning for being Spirit-filled. An orderly (1 Corinthians 14:40) God actually thought this through, and He gave an avenue for us to express how we feel toward Him (and even others) at particular moments. This is why some of the deepest emotions of grief, sorrow, bitterness, joy, victory and praise appealing to all generations are found in the book of… you guessed it… Psalms. They were originally sung. Further, perhaps this is one reason (it is certainly at least a result) that singing was chosen as the authorized use of music in worship. Instrumental music can make one feel a certain way without an intellectual reason as to why. With singing, the intellect is employed first and foremost. One knows he is surveying the scene of the wondrous cross. Then, the music helps amplify the thought.

It behooves brethren, then, to work on singing to the best of their abilities. God bless the monotone worshiper who “lets ‘er fly” upon the song leader’s cue. Yet, those who excuse themselves flippantly from ever trying to understand pitch, tone, phrasing, harmony and all the things that make singing more meaningful are missing a great opportunity in the service of God. In order to “consider one another” (Hebrews 10:24-25) in the worship setting, shouldn’t we all aim at improvement in every aspect of worship – from attention in study to expression in song?

Words matter. Without the words, there wouldn’t be any teaching or admonishing. However, remember that without the music (a cappella), there wouldn’t be any singing or song.

Andy Robison is the Director of the West Virginia School of Preaching (www.wvsop.com). He is a recipient of a B.A. from Harding (where he received the L.O. Sanderson scholarship for hymn-writers), with a double major in Bible and Vocal Music. He has written a number of songs and helped produce several CDs of a cappella singing to benefit West Virginia Christian Youth Camp, where he serves on the Board of Directors. He is the Editor of the songbooks Teaching & Admonishing and 100 Songs to the Glory of God. Many of his original songs can be accessed at www.churchofchristsongs.com. He and his wife Marsha have two children, Hannah and Andrew.