Capital Punishment: A Perspective
by Bill Haynes
“Anyone who strikes a man and
kills him shall surely be put to
death.” (Exod. 21:12.) To some
Christians, the debate on capital
punishment is settled in this verse.
On further examination of the
biblical perspective though, ques
tions arise immediately.
Perhaps instead of being a pro
perly sanctioned penalty by God
for certain offenses, it is now an
act of revenge by society. The
Christian community should be
concerned with this, for as the
message of the Bible shifts from
the Old Testament legalism to the
New Testament message of mer
cy, the stance on capital punish
ment shifts also.
After a thorough study of the Old
and New Testaments, the Chris
tian stand must be against capital
punishment.
Throughout the Old and New
ELECTION ’84
by George Stewart
November 6th has come and
gone. As the saying goes the best
man did win. He won with a land
slide victory; not only was it a vic
tory for President Reagan, it was a
triumph for the American people.
The reason for the great majority
voting the way they did may easily
be traced to what the losing can
didate eepitomized.
He represented to many
Americans the way in which the
Federal Government can and will
act if given the chance to mess
things up for the locals. Namely,
busing, affirmative action (a
euphemism for reverse discrimina
tion), abortion; are all vast social
programs that do nothing but take
away the incentive to support
oneself. These are all factors that
led to the welcome demise of a
candidate who represented them.
The list goes on, but enough is
derived from the above to help one
realize the frightening thought of
having a socialistic monster such
as Walter Mondale inhabit the
White House. What America can
expect from the next four years is a
return of the moral fibre, a stronger
national defense - thereby
creating a stronger global respect
for our nation, a stronger economy
meaning more employment, cuts
in government programs that are
being abused or are unnecessary
meaning control and decrease of
taxes. The list goes on and we
hope so.
Testaments, there are examples of
God’s desire of mercy rather than
death. In response to the first
murder, God put certain restric
tions on Cain but did not kill him.
God instead protected Cain.
Joseph’s brothers who kidnap
ped him and sold him into slavery
committed offenses punishable by
death but the brothers were for
given. When King David repented
over the killing of Bathsheba’s hus
band, the prophet.Nathan told him
that he would not have to suffer
death and that the Lord had put
away the sin.
In the New Testament, one of
the most striking examples of
God’s mercy is in the story of Paul,
who helped to murder Stephen.
God was not interested in the
death of Paul, but Instead was in
terested in the development of a
new creature who would be his
“chosen instrument to carry my
name before the Gentiles and their
kings and before the people of
Israel.” (Acts 9:15.) It is sad that a
Christian community could
possibly support the death penal
ty.
In Matthew, Jesus said, “Do not
think that I have come to abolish
the Law or the Prophets; I have not
come to abolish them but to fulfill
them.” (5:17.) Many supporters of
the death penalty believe that this
verse confirms their stand thqt the
Old Testament legalism is sfill in
effect.
The point to be made is that
Christ fulfilled the law and that “by
dying to what once bound us, we
have been released from the law
so that we serve in the new way of
the Spirit, and not in the old way of
the written code.” (Romans 7:6.)
An example of this “new way of
the Spirit” occurs when Jesus fac
ed a decision about a woman who
was caught in the act of adultery.
Though the woman had commit
ted a sin for which the penalty was
death, Christ had mercy on her and
did not condemn her.” (John
8:1-11.) James 2:13 states that
“mercy rejoiceth against judge
ment” and Christ states that, “1
desire mercy, not sacrifice.” (Matt.
9:13.)
Christ states why we should
have mercy. He said, “If any one of
you is without sin, let him be the
first to throw a stone at her.” (Johri
8:7.) The Bible states that “The
wages of sin is death.” (Romans
6:23.) Life is granted by the grace
of God, not because any of us
deserve it.
As God has given us mercy, and
forgiven us, so we should also
have mercy on those who have sin
ned against us, our society, and
God.
Why Should We Christians Go
To The Mission Field?
by James Cline
Why should we Christians go to
the mission field? There are nearly
five billion people in the world to
day. More people are alive right
now than the total number who
have ever lived on the face of the
earth in all human history. This
simply means that we can
populate either Heaven or Hell.
There are approximately eighty-
five thousand missionaries world
wide. There is definately a need for
more missionaries.
One of the biggest arguments
for not going into the field is, “I’m
not called to be a missionary.”
Well, the truth of the matter is that
we have all been called according
to the Holy Bible. In Mark 16:15,
Jesus says, “Go into ail the world
and preach the Gospel to all crea
tion.” If you consider yourself a
“believer”, then you must consider
yourself a disciple of Christ, no
less called and chosen than the
very first twelve. As Keith Green
once said, “There are no such
things as “first class” and “se
cond class” Christians.
Another argument used quite
frequently for not going is, “My
family would frown upon me for
leaving home.” The Lord said, “He
who loves father or mother more
than he loves Me is not worthy of
Me.” (Matt. 10:37) We should be
ready to leave “houses or brothers
or sisters or father or mother or
children or farms” for His sake and
“for the Gospel’s sake.” (Mark
10:29) Jesus wants us today, not
tomorrow. We must be willing to
go anywhere and give up anything
for His sake.
What happens to our lives if we
listen to this call? Let’s take a look
at Abram in Genesis, chapter
twelve. The Lord said to Abram,
“Go forth from your country, your
father’s house and your relatives,
to the land I will show you.” (Gen.
12:1), Abram listened to the Lord
and left his homeland. He was
seventy-five years old at the time
of departure. His age is an exam
ple to us that we are never too old
or useless in God’s hands. The
Lord made seven wonderful pro
mises to Abram. They were as
follows: “And I will make you a
great nation, and I will bless you,
and make your name great; And so
you shall be a blessing, and I will
bless those who bless you, and the
one who curses you, I will curse.
And in you, all the families of the
earth shall be blessed.” (Gen.
12:2-3). Each and every one of
these promises have been fulfilled.
The Lord took care of Abram in a
strange land as He will all of us.
Many of us might say, “But we
are needed to be missionaries
right here in our own countries.”
This is so for some, but as Oswald
J. Smith once said, “No one has
the right to hear the Gospel twice
while there remains someone who
hasn’t heard it once.” One of the
worst arguments, or should I say
excuses for not going is, “But I
can’t afford training nor can I get
support to go to the field.” If the
Lord wants you in the field. He’ll
supply financial support, even if it
means helping you get a job. Most
of the time, all of these excuses
are just cop-outs because we are
not willing to give our life to Jesus
as He gave His life for us.
In a recent survey done by World
Christian Encyclopedia, statistics
show that over eighty thousand un
saved people die every day. That’s
three thousand, three hundred and
thirty-three every hour. Nearly fifty-
five every minute die and face the
Judgement Seat of Christ. There
are an estimated two billion, seven
see “Mission Fieid” p 7.
Exams Will Test Our Priorities
by Jay Guffey
Along with the semester draw
ing to a close comes those dread
ed final exams. We will all be under
a lot of pressure to do our best. In
order to study, some of us will
miss an entire night of sleep and
many others will be up until the
early morning hours. We will have
to cut several of our normal daily
activities so that there wili be time
to prepare for our exams.
Unfortunately, our walk with
Christ is one of the first things to
be cut out of the day. It’s very easy
to put off God when ourstudies are
so demanding. However, we must
remember our priorities. God is the
one who gave us this schooi. He is
the one who gives us the oppor
tunity to learn and along with
learning comes exams. God does
not want to be put second in our
lives, with our exams first. In the
Gospel of Matthew, Christ says,
“But seek ye first the kingdom of
God and His righteousness; and ail
these things shall be added to
you.” (Matt. 6:33).
Exams are just a small part of
the difficult times. Throughout our
lives we will encounter many trials;
therefore. He has given a promise
to those who overcome the dif
ficult times. We are told in the
book of James, “Blessed is a man
wno perseveres under trial; for
once he has been approved, he will
receive the crown of life, which the
Lord has promised to those who
love Him.” (James 1:12). During the
difficult times of exams, let’s try to
put God first, remembering His
promise for our perseverence.