Capitol Punishment

We at The STAND have been asked to discuss the topic of capitol punishment, and whether or not it is biblical. The answer is yes, it is. The bible makes it very clear that capitol punishment has always been God's will for mankind. In the old testament there were sixteen crimes which were punishable by death. Those crimes are as follow: 1. Murder (Exodus 21:12-14, 22-23) 2. Kidnapping (Exodus 21:16) 3. Striking or Cursing One's Parents (Exodus 21:15, 17) 4. Incorrigible Rebelliousness (Deuteronomy 17:12) 5. Sacrificing to False Gods (Exodus 22:20) 6. Violating the Sabbath (Exodus 35:2) 7. Blasphemy (Leviticus 24:10-16) 8. Being A False Prophet (Deuteronomy 13:1-11) 9. Human Sacrifice (Leviticus 20:2) 10. Divination (Exodus 22:18) 11. Adultery (Leviticus 20:10-21) 12. Bestiality (Exodus 22:19) 13. Incest (Leviticus 18:6-17) 14. Homosexuality (Leviticus 18:22) 15. Premarital Sex (Deuteronomy 22:20-21) 16. Rape (Deuteronomy 22:25-27)

Some may point out that those examples are under the old law, and want to know if the death penalty is reaffirmed in the New Testament. The answer is yes. In Romans 13:1-4, Paul says "Let every soul be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and the authorities that exist are appointed by God. Therefore whoever resists the authority resists the ordinance of God, and those who resist will bring judgment on themselves. For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to evil. Do you want to be unafraid of the authority? Do what is good, and you will have praise from the same. For he is God’s minister to you for good. But if you do evil, be afraid; for he does not bear the sword in vain; for he is God’s minister, an avenger to execute wrath on him who practices evil." Paul is telling us that we should respect our governing authorities, because they have been appointed by God. If we do evil, the government has the God given right to "bear the sword", which represents capitol punishment, and "execute wrath on him who practices evil." Paul believed this, even in reference to himself. In Acts 25:11, Paul tells Festus “If I am an offender, or have committed anything worthy of death, I do not object to dying”.

Well, what about the woman in John 8, who committed adultery? Wasn't she worthy of death? Why did Jesus defend her? There are a few possible answers to these questions.

First of all, the law stated that a person could only be executed if there were two or more witnesses (Deuteronomy 19:15). In the story, it is mentioned that the woman was caught in the act, but it never mentions how many witnesses there were. There very well may have only been one.

Second, the law makes it very clear that in matters of adultery, both the man and the woman are to be executed. Where is the man in this story? This was obviously a messed up situation. To correctly follow the law of Moses, the woman would have had to been let go.

Third, we really need to examine the statement made in John 8:7 , "He who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first." This is often misunderstood. Most people would say this statement means that anyone who had any sin at all would be unable to administer justice. This is not the case. If so, there would have never been an execution, because Romans 3:23 tells us that everyone has sinned. Instead, Jesus was saying the same thing that Paul was saying in Romans 2:1, which was "you who judge, practice the same things." Jesus knew that the men who were condemning this woman, were partaking in the same things of the woman in which they were accusing.

It is quite evident that capitol punishment has always been part of God's plan of justice for mankind, and with good reason. Over the years, the American justice system has failed to "bear the sword" as commanded in the bible, and we have seen the results. Our prison systems our overcrowded. Premature parole and early release has been commonplace in order to make room for lawbreakers. This has had disastrous effects on our society. For example, let's look at what happened in Kentucky with the Kentucky Early Release Program. In an effort to save 30,000,000 dollars over two years, Kentucky released 1,004 prisoners from prison. 146 of those prisoners were once again charged by a grand jury after their release. Sixteen of those were accused of committing violent crimes, including rape, robbery, and domestic violence. This is the case all over our country. We are going to continue to see this trend spread until we get back to our roots. It's a pretty simple concept: The easier we make it on criminals, the more criminals we're going to have.
-Colton Scott

Many of the facts in this article can be found at http://www.apologeticspress.org/articles/1974. Dave Miller.

Don't Be a Ship Left in the Harbor

I have often posted things on this blog about going to work for the Lord. We can clearly read in the bible that we are commanded to do this in James 2. James 2:17 "Even so faith, if it hath not works, is dead, being alone." One thing that I believe I often forget to mention is that showing these works, in a fleshly world, is much easier said then done. I have often found myself very apt and ready to talk about the word when I am around my Christian brothers and sisters, but that is not who we are necessarily suppose to be reaching out to. Granted, if a brother or sister in Christ has fallen away we must be there to help get them headed back in the right direction, but we need to be willing and ready to spread God's word to everyone. Mark 16:15 says, "And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature." We must have the courage to talk about God's word even when it may not be the popular thing to do. We must be bold and brave. "The wicked flee when no man pursueth: but the righteous are bold as a lion." Proverbs 28:1. The definition of Courage is the mental or moral strength to venture, persevere, and withstand danger, fear, or difficulty. If you read about the lives of characters of the bible you can easily tell that the danger, fear, and difficulty that they had to withstand is far greater than ours ever will be. We truly have no excuse for not gladly going out and spreading the gospel. After all "What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us?" Romans 8:31. We must be bold as a lion and STAND up against the views of the world and spread the good news of the gospel. Zig Ziglar, author of "God's Way Is Still the Best Way," once said, "The most practical, beautiful, workable philosophy in the world won't work - if you won't." Well I am here to tell you that God's word is exactly that. It is the only perfect thing ever written. However, it must be read and it must be shared with others in order to work. "Be strong and of good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the Lord thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee." Deuteronomy 31:6. I will end this post with a simple but powerful quote by William Shedd, "A ship is safe in harbor, but that's not what ships are for." Don't be a ship left in the harbor. Get out and use your talents to spread God's living word.

-Ben Stevenson

Evolutionary Hymn by C. S. Lewis

Lead us, Evolution, lead us
Up the future's endless stair;
Chop us, change us, prod us, weed us.
For stagnation is despair:
Groping, guessing, yet progressing,
Lead us nobody knows where.

Wrong or justice, joy or sorrow,
In the present what are they
while there's always jam-tomorrow,
While we tread the onward way?
Never knowing where we're going,
We can never go astray.

To whatever variation
Our posterity may turn
Hairy, squashy, or crustacean,
Bulbous-eyed or square of stern,
Tusked or toothless, mild or ruthless,
Towards that unknown god we yearn.

Ask not if it's god or devil,
Brethren, lest your words imply
Static norms of good and evil
(As in Plato) throned on high;
Such scholastic, inelastic,
Abstract yardsticks we deny.

Far too long have sages vainly
Glossed great Nature's simple text;
He who runs can read it plainly,
'Goodness = what comes next.'
By evolving, Life is solving
All the questions we perplexed.

Oh then! Value means survival-
Value. If our progeny
Spreads and spawns and licks each rival,
That will prove its deity
(Far from pleasant, by our present,
Standards, though it may well be).

A Man Named Polycarp

Today's post is something that my younger brother Luke sent me. It is a excerpt from Drew Kizer's book "Make Your Stand" and something that he wrote at the end. Enjoy.

Polycarp is a name most of you have never heard before. It is the name of a man who took a stand for his faith. The year was A.D. 156. The dominant empire at that time was Rome. The Caesars who ruled in those days considered themselves to be equal to divinity, and they wanted their citizenry to worship them. Almost everyone responded to these wishes, except for the Christians.

One Christian in particular who did not pay homage to early kings was an elder of the church at Smyrna in Asia Minor. At the age of 86, he was one of the wisest, most experienced members of the church. It is likely that he once sat at the feet of the apostle John when he was younger. Later, he became a great leader of the Christian people, and many looked to him for guidance. His name was Polycarp.

During those days, Rome was ruled by bloodthirsty men. If you did not follow Caesar, you were viciously executed for treason. Awful methods of capital punishment were employed in the coliseums. Many were thrown to wild beasts. Others were burned alive at the stake. Because Christians refused to worship Caesar, and because they claimed no king but Christ, they were often subjected to these cruel means of torture.

When Polycarp’s Christian influence was discovered in Asia Minor, he was arrested immediately and sentenced to death by being burned at the stake. Only one thing would save him. He could worship Caesar. Seeing his age, even the Roman authorities pitied him and plead with him to save his life by turning his back on Christ. However, Polycarp replied, “For eighty-six years I have been his servant, and he has done me no wrong. How can I blaspheme my King who saved me?” They continued to insist, but he persisted by replying,

Listen Carefully: I am a Christian. Now if you want to learn the doctrine of Christianity, name a day and give me a hearing… You threaten with a fire that burns only briefly and after just a little while is extinguished, for you are ignorant of the fire of the coming judgment and eternal punishment, which is reserved for the ungodly. But why do you delay? Come, do what you wish.

At that, his persecutors began preparing a fire. They tied this peaceful, aged Christian to a stake.

-Drew Kizers “Make Your Stand”

This day and age I am aware that there will be no executions like this for Christianity, but there are many simple persecutions that that test your faith. Will you take a STAND for the truth or will you give in?

Faith without works cannot be called faith. “Faith without works is dead” James 2:26, and a dead faith is worse than no faith at all. Faith must work, it must produce, it must be visible. Verbal faith is not enough, mental faith is insufficient. Faith must be their, but it must inspire action.

I think this example of Polycarp shows a little bit of what the book of James is talking about. Polycarp proves that faith with works is the only option, there is no other way.

-Written by Luke Stevenson and reposted by Ben Stevenson

Imagine There's No Heaven

Many people out in the world, such as members of the Freedom from Religion Organization, would love nothing more than to see a Godless society. They make the claim that "the history of Western civilization shows us that most social and moral progress has been brought about by persons free from religion." So what would happen if they got their way? What if we lived in a Godless world? John Lennon once told us to "Imagine there's no Heaven. It's easy if you try. No hell below us, above us only sky. Imagine all the people Living for today." Well, if John had done a little research, he would know that we don't have to imagine. We have a perfect example of what life would be like if we were all "free from religion."

In the summer of 1880, a man by the name of George H. Walser founded the town of Liberal, Missouri. His objective was “to found a town without a church, [w]here unbelievers could bring up their children without religious training,” and where Christians were not allowed. The people living in Liberal even made an advertisement which bragged that Liberal “is the only town of its size in the United States without a priest, preacher, church, saloon, God, Jesus, hell or devil”. They believed that their town of "freethinkers" would strive. But all of their optimism faded away pretty soon. One young resident wrote this about Liberal in 1895, “...like all other unworthy causes, it had its day and passed away.”

Clark Braden visited Liberal in 1885, and this is what he had to say in an article titled "An Infidel Experiment" which appeared in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch on May 2, 1885. "The boast about the sobriety of the town is false. But few of the infidels are total abstainers. Liquor can be obtained at three different places in this town of 300 inhabitants. More drunken infidels can be seen in a year in Liberal than drunken Christians among one hundred times as many church members during the same time. Swearing is the common form of speech in Liberal, and nearly every inhabitant, old and young, swears habitually. Girls and boys swear on the streets, playground, and at home. Fully half of the females will swear, and a large number swear habitually.... Lack of reverence for parents and of obedience to them is the rule. There are more grass widows, grass widowers and people living together, who have former companions living, than in any other town of ten times the population.... A good portion of the few books that are read are of the class that decency keeps under lock and key....These infidels...can spend for dances and shows ten times as much as they spend on their liberalism. These dances are corrupting the youth of the surrounding country with infidelity and immorality. There is no lack of loose women at these dances. Since Liberal was started there has not been an average of one birth per year of infidel parents. Feticide is universal. The physicians of the place say that a large portion of their practice has been trying to save females from consequences of feticide. In no town is slander more prevalent, or the charges more vile. If one were to accept what the inhabitants say of each other, he would conclude that there is a hell, including all Liberal, and that its inhabitants are the devils."

The town of Liberal was a complete failure. Braden went on to say that “[n]ine-tenths of those now in town would leave if they could sell their property. More property has been lost by locating in the town than has been made in it.... Hundreds have been deceived and injured and ruined financially” Even committed atheists found that living in Liberal was too much to bear.

The town of Liberal, Missouri still exists today. However, it is a quite bit different. There are at least seven different religious groups associated with Christianity in a town which once banned Christianity. And a recent poll showed that 50% of the people living in Liberal are actively involved in church.

So to all of those out there who would love to live in a world free from religion, we tried that once, and it simply doesn't work.
-Colton Scott

"The fool has said in his heart, 'There is no God.'"- Psalm 14:1

Almost

Almost, what is Almost?

Is Almost good enough for us in this earthly game?

If so then God looks upon us

with much hurt and shame.

Almost isn’t good enough

And this we know is true.

If God were to say we Almost made it

then what would we do?

"Almost thou persuadest me"

Is that what we will say,

When we stand before our Lord

on the judgment day?

Almost is not trying,

Not reaching for the goal.

Almost is just falling short,

And losing one’s soul.

So as we play this game of life

Will we Almost win,

Or will we be with our Lord in heaven

In the very end?

Don't be one of those people who almost makes the decision to follow Christ. Decide that today is going to be the day that you follow him. If you are already a Christian don't be one of those people who almost spread His word and His truth. Do it NOW. While you are still on times side of eternity.

-Ben Stevenson

Mike Huckabee Responds to Evolution Question

We may disagree on a few things, but nonetheless, Mike Huckabee provides us with a great example of taking a stand.

Why Christianity?

Why does religion exist? This is a questioned that has puzzled many evolutionist over the years. Not only its existence, but its survival. Here's the problem from the evolutionary point of view, if religion is completely false, then why did humans evolve in such a way that they would come to believe in things that don't exist? Here's another problem, as explained by Daniel Dennett, "The ultimate measure of evolutionary value is fitness-the capacity to replicate more successfully than the competition does." Therefore, Christianity would be useless. It costs time, money, it forces us to make sacrifices, and in some cases, even giving one's life for their beliefs. So why would this thing which, according to atheists, hinders our lives, become part of our evolutionary history? Now obviously, the best answer is because evolution never took place. But, the point we are going to make tonight is because Christianity works and atheism doesn't.

In his book, The Origin of Species, Charles Darwin said, "The vigorous, the healthy, and the happy survive and multiply." So let's take a look at two creation stories. In the secular account, "You are the descendant of a tiny cell of primordial protoplasm washed up on an empty beach three and a half billion years ago. You are the blind and arbitrary product of time, chance, and natural forces. You are a mere grab bag of atomic particles, a conglomeration of genetic substance. You exist on a tiny planet in a minute solar system in an empty corner of a meaningless universe. You are a purely biological entity, different only in degree but not in kind from a microbe, virus, or amoeba. You have no essence beyond your body, and at death you will cease to exist entirely. In short, you came from nothing and you are going nowhere." In the Christian view, "You are the special creation of a good and all-powerful God. You are created in His image, with capacities to think, feel, and worship that set you above all other life forms. You differ from the animals not simply in degree but in kind. Not only is your kind unique, but you are unique among your kind. Your creator loves you so much and so intensely desires your companionship and affection that He has a perfect plan for your life. In addition, God gave the life of His only Son that you might spend eternity with him. If you are willing to accept the gift of salvation, you can become a child of God."

Now let's imagine we have two groups of people. The first group subscribes to the atheist worldview, while the second group subscribes to the Christian worldview. Which of these groups is more likely to survive, prosper, and multiply? Obviously, it is the Christian group. The Christian group has a sense of purpose. They are composed of individuals who view their every thought and action as consequential. They are willing to work hard. They believe in treating everyone as they would like to be treated. They believe in taking care of those who can't take care of themselves, such as the elderly, widowed, or handicapped.

The bottom line is that Christianity works. Christianity has survived the test of time, and it always will, because it works. In my next couple of posts, I will give an example of these two groups that I mentioned earlier. I think you will find the results to be pretty interesting.
-Colton Scott

Striving for Perfection

Romans 3:23 is a verse that we have heard quoted many times. It says, "For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;" I think this is a verse that we, as Christians, can learn a lot from. It keeps us humble, reminds us that we are human, and reminds us that no matter how hard we try we will never deserve heaven. We are lucky enough to worship a God that is merciful and shows his mercy and his grace upon us daily. However, I do think that sometimes we use this verse as a crutch. Whenever we fail or mess up we fall back on this verse and justify our mistakes. I have heard people say, "well no one is perfect." or "it's no big deal everyone messes up." Both of these sayings are true but I don't believe that we then are justified when we make mistakes. This reminds me of Romans 6:1-2. It states, "What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound? God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?" Just because we know that we will make mistakes doesn't give us an excuse for making them. Let's look at an example. Me being a sports guy of course I am going to relate this to some form of athletics so just bare with me.

Baseball is a crazy game. If you have ever been involved with the game of baseball you know that it is by far the most unpredictable game out there. Baseball is a game where a player can be so hot he looks as if he will have the best season of his career and then fall so far into a slump that he finishes as one of the worst players in the league. Baseball is a game where the best hitters in the world still fail 7 out of 10 times. Baseball is a game where NO TEAM (in Major League Baseball) has ever gone undefeated. In the Major Leagues a baseball team plays 162 regular season games. That is a whole lot of games and there is a whole lot that can go wrong during that time period; therefore, no team has ever managed to finish the regular season 162-0. However, I all but guarantee that if you were to ask any player from any team before the season, "Do you want to win every game you play?" I think they would without a doubt say yes. After all the point of playing the game is to win. So why would a player that knows that there is no chance of winning every game, say such a thing? Because he is striving for perfection. He knows that it is a far stretch for that to happen, but he doesn't allow that to let him become complacent with how he approaches the game. We have to do the same thing as we travel through life. Just because we know that we are not perfect and cannot be perfect doesn't mean that we can't strive for perfection. Just because Romans tells us that all will sin doesn't mean that we should be okay with our sin. We have to strive to be like the only perfect man to ever walk this earth, Jesus Christ. We read in 1 John 1:7 "But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin." We see in John 13:15 Christ says, "For I have given you an example, that ye should do as I have done to you." We also read in 1 Peter 2:21, "For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving an example, that ye should follow his steps:" This passage has always reminded me of footsteps in the sand on the beach. I remember when I was young I would walk down the beach and walk in other peoples footprints. Well, Christ has left his footprints in the sand and we are suppose to do our best to walk along that same path. We can never fully fill his footsteps but why don't we strive to get as close as we can. Why don't we quit making the excuse that we aren't perfect and see how closely we can mirror Christ's life.

-Ben Stevenson

"Ah, but a man's reach should exceed his grasp, or what's heaven for?" -Robert Browning

"Hast Thou Considered my Servant..."

The book of Job has always been a book that I have loved to read through. If you have never read all the way through Job I highly recommend it. There are many different character traits that Job possess that all Christians should have. Tonight I want to just look at one simple verse from the book of Job, Job 1:8. It states, "And the Lord said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and escheweth evil?" What an amazing compliment to be given to a Christian by our God. I believe that we all as Christians should strive to live a life that our God could brag about. We should all be excited to go out and do his work. Evangelizing and working to bring others to His word and His truth. We should work to have a faith so strong that God can say "Hast thou considered my servant [insert your name here]." Let's not just talk about our Savior and our faith but let's show it in our everyday walk. So today's post is simply a challenge. A challenge to start living a life that God can brag. God Bless

-Ben Stevenson

The Public School System

Most of us know that atheism is spreading like wild fire here in America. As a matter of fact, statistics show that atheism is the fasting growing religion in our country. More and more Christians are losing their faith every day. Why? I believe there are many factors to consider here, but the one I want to talk about in this article is the public school system.

The public school system has been doing its best to promote atheism for years, and it has been very effective. It has forbidden prayer in school. In Maryland, children aren't even allowed to bring their bibles to school. If you search the word "Bible" or "God" or anything that deals with Christianity on the school's computers, you will be denied access. It preaches to us the theory of evolution, but refuses to teach Intelligent Design, because it is based upon religion. Not only Intelligent Design, but anything that goes against the theory of evolution is considered to be religious. In Cobb County, GA this note was placed inside the cover of their science books, "This textbook contains material on evolution. Evolution is a theory, not a fact, regarding the origin of living things. This material should be approached with an open mind, studied carefully, and critically considered." This note was removed because it was said to be full of religion. Seriously?

The school system is promoting religion through evolution, and that religion is atheism. Many will claim that evolution does not promote atheism. However, militant atheists such as Richard Dawkins and William Provine both state that evolution was the leading factor in them becoming atheists.

I feel that the public school system makes many attempts to destroy the idea of religion in the minds of our children. That may sound a bit extreme, but I honestly believe it's the truth. Daniel Dennett once said this concerning parents who teach their kids anything other than evolution, "Those of us who have freedom of speech will feel free to describe your teachings as falsehoods, and will attempt to demonstrate this to your children at our earliest opportunity." Dennett is saying that if you teach your children the bible, which leaves no room for evolution, is the true word of God, he will tell them that you are a liar. And when does our school system start telling our children the bible is wrong? In kindergarten, when they tell your children that dinosaurs lived millions of years before humans did. Our children are being taught ideas that go against the bible by the time they are five years old.

So is there really any question why atheism is growing? Why God is becoming less prevalent in the minds of Americans? Why many Christians are losing their faith? Why so many claim there is no evidence for God? Why people claim that those who believe in the bible are ignorant? Just look at what we are teaching ourselves. I mean, with an educational system like the one we have, what else would you expect?
-Colton Scott

Instruments in Worship: Scriptural or Not

Today's post was requested by a follower of the blog. I will go ahead an say in advance that it may be somewhat of a lengthy post but I do believe it will be well worth your time to read.

The issue of instrumental music in worship is something that has been a talked about issue my entire life. There is always the question whether instruments in worship are scriptural or not. I hope that through with post you will be able to see that the bible does give a definitive answer to this question. First, I want to start off by saying that we, as Christians, live under the new law. This law came into effect when Christ rose from the dead. The passage about David playing the harp in his worship to God has been used to say that instrumental music in the church today is permitted. The problem is David lived under the old law and some things were different then (for example animal sacrifices) so this scripture cannot be used to determine how we are to worship today. So, since we know that we live under the new law we must know how we are commanded to worship under this new law. This can be found throughout the New Testament. Let's look at a few of these scriptures. We see in Mark 16:15 and Acts 5:42 that we are to preach and teach the gospel. In Acts 2:42 and Luke 11:1-4 we see that we are to pray. We are commanded to give as we have been prospered in 1 Corinthians 16:1-2. We are commanded to partake of the Lord's Supper in 1 Corinthians 11:23-34 and in Acts 20:7. The last article of worship is singing. We see this in Ephesians 5:19 and in Colossians 3:16. Let's look at both of these scriptures: Ephesians 5:19 says, "Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord." Colossians 3:16 says, "Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your heart to the Lord." If you read through those two verses (or any other scripture in the New Testament about singing as a part of worship) no where will you find any authorization for instrumental music as part of your worship to the Lord. Now the question is often raised, "But it does not necessarily say that you can't use instruments so; therefore, there is nothing wrong with it." However, this is not the case. God gives us authority for everything we do when it comes to worshiping him. Without the authority to use instruments we simply can not do so. Let's look at the story of Noah for example:

[This example is taken from a excerpt from Dave Miller's book "Richard Hills & Instrumental Music: A Plea to Reconsider] "Noah was instructed by God to construct a large wooden boat. That meant he was not authorized to build some other type of vessel. God's instructions included such details as dimensions, type of wood, a door and window, and decks (Genesis 6:14-16). He was authorized to build a boat, but not authorized to build an alternative mode of transportation (e.g., car, plane, or balloon). He was authorized to make a boat out of wood, but not authorized to make it out of some other material (e.g., plastic, steel, or fiberglass). He was authorized to use "gopherwood," but not authorized to use some other kind of wood (e.g., oak, poplar, or pine.) Noah has authority from God to build a gopherwood boat. He would have been guilty of sin if he has built a pinewood boat or a Plexiglas airplane- not because God forbade him to do it, and not because God said, "Build a gopherwood boat only"- but because he would have lacked God's permission/authority to do so."

The same thing goes for instrumental music in worship. God does not forbid us from using instruments in worship in the scripture and he does not say "sing A Capella only" but he does not give permission/authorize us to use instruments in worship; therefore, we cannot do so. We read in Revelation 22:18-19 "For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If and man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part our of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book." We can see from this scripture that by using instruments in worship, with no authorization from God to do so, we are adding to his book and therefore are sinning against him. The scripture really does lay out for us how we are suppose to worship and the use of instrumental music is simply not found in His word. I hope that this post has been informative and easy to understand. If there are any further questions please feel free to comment on here or if you would rather you can post on The STAND's facebook page in the discussion board. Thank you.

-Ben Stevenson

Change

No matter what we do, there is one thing that we cannot change. And that is change itself. Everything in this world is constantly changing. That's just the way it is, and that's the way it will always be. No matter how bad we want some things to remain the same, they never do. You can fight it if you want, but you would just be fighting a battle that you cannot win. The only power we do have, is the way that we react to those changes. The bible tells us to remain positive, no matter what happens. 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 "Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."
It seems that most of the time when something doesn't go our way, we want to soil up and find somebody to blame. We have to realize that when things go wrong, that leaves new opportunities for us to step up. We find a perfect example of this in the story of Job. Job was an upright man, who feared God and shunned evil, yet his entire world was changed for the worst. He lost everything that he had. His whole world had fallen apart. And what did he do? He got angry and blamed God. Little did he know what was really going on. God allowed him to be tested by Satan, because he held him in such high esteem.
As we go through changes and trials, we must realize the need to stay positive. James 1:2-4 says "My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing." There is a reason for these changes that we face. It is so that we can become perfect.
Satan told God that if he would change Job's world, Job would curse him. (Job 1:11). So let us ask ourselves, "If my world was changed for the worst, how would I respond?"
-Colton Scott

"God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference." -Reinhold Niebuhr

The "Bible Gym"

We live in a era today that stresses being healthy, fit, and in-shape. Everyone is looking for a new and improved way to get physically healthy. However, one thing that we don't strive to do daily is be spiritually healthy. Just as we go to a gym or fitness center to get physically fit we need to being going to the "Bible Gym" as well. For Example:

Running and Lifting weights are good ways to exercise the body. Exercise is a key component to staying in shape. So, how can we exercise the spirit? Reading your bible is a good way to do this. We are commanded to do this in 2 Timothy 2:15 "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." Without exercising the spirit it is impossible to strengthen the soul.

Another thing we do to get and stay in shape physically is eat healthy. Eating healthy will help keep your body healthy. So to keep our souls healthy we must be around the right people and things. 1 Corinthians 15:33 says, "Be not deceived: evil communications corrupt good manners." Being around the wrong people and things can decay and destroy our souls as Christians.

Another key to staying fit physically is to stay away from temptations (like bad food). So of course a key to staying spiritually healthy is too stay away from those sinful temptations. Matthew 26:41 says, "Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak."

As I mentioned before we live in a era that is all about trying to be healthy. There are many different advertisements and shows about how to get healthy. Everyone is trying to get the word out on how much better you will feel and how much more enjoyable life will be if you are physically healthy. We then, as Christians, should be working to get the word out about God, his grace, and his love. We should be excited to tell people how much better they will feel and how great their reward will be if they make the decision to follow him. We should be excited to "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit." Matthew 28:19

We have to be able to do these things if we want to keep a strong spiritual body. We have to exercise our spirit by reading and studying our bible, stay around the right people, stay away from sinful temptations, and get the word out about God, his grace, and his love. If we will daily go to the "Bible Gym" then our spirit and faith will stay strong and we will be able to STAND up for God and his truth.

Inspiration

Everyone who attended CYC this weekend saw a man speak by the name of Robert Reed. Robert is a huge inspiration to me, as I'm sure he is to everyone who has ever heard him speak. If you have never had the opportunity to hear Robert, I think you will be truly inspired by his story...

His hands are twisted and his feet are useless. He can’t bathe himself. He can’t
feed himself. He can’t brush his teeth, comb his hair, or put on his underwear. His shirts are held together by strips of Velcro®. His speech drags like a worn-out audio cassette. Robert has Cerebral Palsy.
The disease keeps him from driving a car, riding a bike, and going for a walk. But
it didn’t keep him from graduating from high school or attending Abilene Christian
University, from which he graduated with a degree in Latin. Having cerebral palsy didn’t
keep him from teaching at a St. Louis junior college or from venturing overseas on five
mission trips.
And Robert’s disease didn’t prevent him from becoming a missionary in Portugal.
He moved to Lisbon, alone, in 1972. There he rented a hotel room and began studying
Portuguese. He found a restaurant owner who would feed him after the rush hour and a
tutor who would instruct him in the language.
Then he stationed himself daily in a park, where he distributed brochures about
Christ. Within six years he led seventy people to the Lord, one of whom became his wife,
Rosa.
I heard Robert speak recently. I watched other men carry him in his wheelchair
onto the platform. I watched them lay a Bible in his lap. I watched his stiff fingers force
open the pages. And I watched people in the audience wipe away tears of admiration
from their faces. Robert could have asked for sympathy or pity, but he did just the
opposite. He held his bent hand up in the air and boasted, "I have everything I need for
joy."
His shirts are held together by Velcro®, but his life is held together by joy.(Peace That Defies Pain, Max Lucado)
-Colton Scott

2 Thessalonians 5:16-18 "Rejoice always. Pray without ceasing. In everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."