THE HUMAN BODY

1. Quite often in the Bible we find God using the human body to demonstrate divine truths.

2. We read about hands, feet, the nose, arms, legs, bones, the belly, the back, thighs, and the skin.

BEGINNING TODAY WE WANT TO LOOK AT SOME PASSAGES THAT DIRECT OUR ATTENTION TO VARIOUS PARTS OF THE BODY AND THEN DRAW SPIRITUAL LESSONS FROM THESE PARTS.

a) We begin with an easy part – the hands.

b) Almost 300 times in the New Testament do we have the word “hand” or “hands.”

c) Matthew pays attention to this part of the body in Mt. 15.

d) Twice in the 15^th chapter he refers to the “hands,” and his point involves “washing hands.”

2) As an industrialized and informed nation, we know the value in washing hands.

3) Such a practice (which seems to be more prone among women) is a means of stopping infection.

4) In Mt. 15, people were not concerned about germs; Jews were concerned about a religious tradition.

5) People felt “defiled” (sullied, tarnished) if they didn’t have their little washing ceremony.

6) In Mt. 15:20 Jesus said people are not “defiled” if they eat without the special hand washing.

7) The ceremonial washing of the Jews does not have a lot of reference to us.

8) We, of course live under a different religious law.

9) Though we are under a different law, we can use a principle from this event in Jesus’ life.

10) Let’s go back to Mt. 15:2 - READ.

a) Jews knew of a well-established tradition that Jesus and His disciples did not observe.

b) These Jews wanted to know why Jesus and His disciples were not like everyone else.

c) If Jesus wanted to be religious, why not have the same faith and practices as others in His day?

11) What the Jews asked Jesus is a lot like the questions people ask us today.

12) There is a sense in which people today say, “Why don’t you wash your hands”?

13) “Why doesn’t your church engage in the same religious practices our church uses?”

14) Let’s look at some of the items people sometimes ask us about as we speak with them.

15) A common religious practice with many groups is listening to a choir.

16) It is so common frequent literature from choir robe manufactures is sent to us.

17) Why don’t we “wash our hands” (figuratively speaking) and have a choir like most other groups?

18) People want to know, and this is a valid question.

19) Another typical religious practice is looking for innovative ways to make money.

20) Going back to the church mail, I have seen money making schemes of almost every stripe.

a) Churches sell license plates, pens, pencils, daily planners, cookbooks, coupon books, etc.

b) If we think school fund raising projects can be intrusive, church fund raising puts them all to shame.

c) Why don’t we “wash our hands” and seek out the money making schemes used by others?

d) It is not uncommon for non-members of the church to talk about tithing.

e) Why don’t we “get with the program” and tell people to tithe like everyone else?

21) In the churches of Christ we have no “clergy laity” system.

22) There is an emphasis on unity, oneness—different roles but all brethren in Christ.

23) Those who see that ask why we are not like everyone else.

24) Why don’t we “license” preachers or dress them up in fancy robes?

25) I have had people ask me about church conferences.

26) Delegates from various areas come together and decide on key issues.

27) Because of what people are accustomed to, they ask about “our conferences.”

28) We can be asked about “our districts.” We have to shake our heads and say we don’t have them.

29) Some have reacted in a way that almost seemed suspicious – why don’t we “wash our hands”?

30) We are now coming into a time of year with several holidays.

a) Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Years are all looming ahead of us.

b) I have had people say to me, “You must be really be busy this time of year.”

c) Others are earnestly preparing special religious holiday services.

d) We do not have that, so we are essentially asked, “Why don’t we wash our hands” (Mt. 15:2)?

31) We sometimes see special efforts to fill church buildings.

32) Strategies from begging to bribing have been used.

33) Since other groups have tried to bring in people in way they could, why don’t we do the same?

WE HAVE RAISED SOME QUESTIONS THAT ARE ACTUALLY ASKED, SO LET’S TURN AND PROVIDE SOME ANSWERS.

a) There are reasons why we do not follow suit with many common religious practices.

b) Our reasoning starts in the Old Testament.

c) Deut. 4:2 contained an important truth for the Hebrews - READ.

d) Jews were supp9osed to look at various matters and see if they permitted by the Word of God.

e) People who ask “Why doesn’t your church do……” are asking the wrong question.

f) The Biblical question is, “What does the Bible tell us to do?”

g) If we are doing what the Scriptures say, we are doing right and had better not change.

h) If we are not doing what the Scriptures teach, we have no right to continue doing what we are doing.

2) There is another passage in the Old Testament I wish to read.

3) This one is buried in the book of 2 Chron. – 2 Chron 17.

4) Jehoshaphat was king of Judah and he was doing a good job.

5) In verse 7 we find what might be called a national education program for religion.

6) Verse 9 tells us certain men went throughout the cities of Judah doing some teaching - READ.

7) Instead of focusing on what religious groups do or do not do, we go by the Scriptures.

8) These men didn’t go around the nation and see what everyone else was doing.

9) They took out the book of God and said, “This is what we need to follow.”

10) It is the Bible and not the religious majority that determines religious practices.

11) If we do not follow this course, the consequence is stated in Mal. 2:8.

a) God’s prophet (Mal. 2:1) issued a warning to the priests; he said “listen.”

b) There was an indictment against priests in the land of Israel.

c) These men had failed to carry out their responsibilities and they were in trouble – verse 8 – READ.

d) It is possible to “corrupt” God’s covenant.

12) For a lot of the people living in our day and time, this concept goes right over their heads.

13) This past week at H2 I and another man were sitting at a table and listening to someone talk.

14) The man was talking about the “tree ology” of some movies – he should have trilogy.

15) The other fellow who caught the error said, “What’s tree ology—a study of trees?”

16) The fellow doing the talking didn’t understand the comment—it went right past him.

17) In a similar way, the concept of corrupting God’s agreement with man is foreign to lots of people.

18) Many have no clue about damaging God’s agreement with man.

a) This is precisely what occurs when we our religious practices do not match the Scriptures.

b) In our lives we are upset when someone corrupts an agreement.

c) Suppose we buy a car with a warranty; the agreement says all problems will be fixed for 90 days.

d) We pay for the car, and as we put the key into the ignition, off comes the steering column.

e) We open the door to go back into the dealership and the door handle breaks off.

f) We shut the door and the sun visors fall off.

g) When we go back into the dealership, we are told, “tough luck—it is not our problem.”

h) We bought the car and the dealership is refusing to stand by the warranty.

i) When it comes to agreements, we expect people to keep their word and their promises.

j) God has a similar expectation from us when it comes to His word.

19) When groups ask why we do not do what they do our first response can be what was just said: obedience.

20)If we are not authorized by the Word of God to do things, we will not them.

21) A second reason for following suit is based upon an Old Testament principle.

22) Many remember that under the Old Testament era God was king of the Hebrews.

23) As time passed, God’s people had a chance to see how others lived and what others had.

24) One of the things other nations possessed was an earthly king.

25) God’s people reached the point where they said, “give us a king too” (1 Sam. 8:5).

a) God’s people were distinct in many ways, but they wanted to “blend in” with those around them.

b) God said this was “rejecting him” (1 Sam. 8:7).

26) Obedience is a sufficient reason for avoiding the religious traditions and errors of others.

27) We can, however, offer a second basis for avoiding the practices of others: to remain distinct.

28) In both testaments this is a principle of high importance.

a) Christians are to be distinct; such has always been true of the saved.

b) Judg. 5:31 compares the righteous to the “sun.”

c) In Dan. 12:3, the comparison is the stars.

d) Job 23:10 likens the saved to “gold.”

e) Zech. 9:16 takes a slightly different twists – “stones in a crown.”

f) God views the saved as being like jewels in a crown.

29) We have lots of rocks and even gems on the earth.

30) If a crown is being prepared for royalty, the stones are distinct—set apart—unique from the rest.

31) High price stones are separate from river rock.

32) God’s people must also be distinct from not only the world, but from the religious world.

33) In 2 Tim. 2:3 the saved are said to be in an army; we are soldiers.

a) On this earth there are all kinds of armies. We have an army for this country.

b) Most every other nation has some type of army.

c) We also recognize the existence of spiritual armies.

d) One organization calls itself the “Salvation Army.

e) “Salvation” means this group of people is a religious organization.

f) They believe they are an organization that is on the march for God.

g) The church Christ built is also an army.

h) Jesus’ army is different from the other religious groups claiming to be working for the Lord.

i) We cannot be distinct if we embrace the practices of others.

j) Not only do we lose our distinctiveness, we lack God’s approval for what much of what others do.

34) To enlist in an army there are conditions that must be met.

a) Christ’s conditions are quite specific: faith, repentance, confession and baptism.

b) These conditions make us unique.

c) What the Lord’s army does is also unique.

d) The churches of Christ may never be the majority in the world.

e) If we are on the side of God, we are the majority.

f) Better to be a single congregation of 10 and be with Christ than with a large congregation or many
congregations on the other side of the battlefield.

35) Are we willing to stand out and up for the cause of Christ?

Holidays

Creed begin of church

Foot washing

Get people any way they can