April 6, 2015

Samuel Robert Cassius: “I Had Rather Preach the Gospel for What I Can Eat”

"I had rather preach the gospel for what I can eat..."

Samuel Robert Cassius (1853-1931) was an African-American preacher and part of what is known as the Restoration Movement. He spent most of his years preaching in Oklahoma. During this time, he often struggled to support his family and, of necessity, engaged in other work than just preaching to provide for them. The following excerpt from the book, To Save My Race from Abuse, contains an appeal he made for others to support his work.

“In 1907, Cassius disclosed a plan to wipe out his monetary debts so that he could ‘devote all my time to the ministry’ the following year. ‘This is my earnest desire. Not that I am not willing to work, but because I love to preach.’ Giving his most articulate expression about his passion for preaching, he continued, ‘I had rather preach the gospel for what I can eat, than to live in plenty at anything else. God has raised me up for this very work, and I am not happy or contented at anything else’” (To Save My Race From Abuse, p. 86).

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January 21, 2015

Why Being Non-Denominational Is Not Good Enough

Church steeple

In the past, more emphasis was placed upon one’s denominational affiliation. But for many today, this is less important. This shift in mindset has given rise to the number of “non-denominational” churches we see in the religious world.

For years, faithful brethren have rightly condemned denominationalism. So is the trend toward non-denominationalism a good thing? Maybe not. Why not? Simply being non-denominational is not good enough.

The church in Sardis was a dead church, though they had a reputation that they were alive. Jesus said to them, “I know your deeds, that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead” (Revelation 3:1). This shows us that a church can seem to be good in the eyes of men, but in the eyes of the Lord, their status is completely different. In the eyes of many, “non-denominational” churches look appealing. But like the church in Sardis, many of these churches simply do not measure up to the Lord’s standard.
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October 22, 2014

Qualities of Good Leaders

Moses and Jethro

When Jethro came to visit Moses, he observed how his son-in-law judged the people “from the morning until the evening” with no one to assist him in this enormous task (Exodus 18:13-14). He warned Moses that this arrangement was not good: “You will surely wear out, both yourself and these people who are with you, for the task is too heavy for you; you cannot do it alone” (Exodus 18:18). So Jethro advised Moses to appoint leaders over the people who could help act as judges. But he did not tell Moses to select just anyone – they had to possess certain qualities in order to be good leaders.

“Furthermore, you shall select out of all the people able men who fear God, men of truth, those who hate dishonest gain; and you shall place these over them as leaders of thousands, of hundreds, of fifties and of tens” (Exodus 18:21).

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June 25, 2014

The Preaching Demanded by the Gospel

Preacher

God “desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:4). Salvation and knowledge of the truth are not two separate desires that God has for man, but are necessarily linked together. Knowledge of the truth is necessary for salvation because “the gospel…is the power of God for salvation” (Romans 1:16). When the Lord returns, judgment will come against “those who do not know God and to those who do not obey the gospel” (2 Thessalonians 1:8).

God calls us to Him through the gospel. Paul told the brethren in Thessalonica that they were “called…through our gospel” (2 Thessalonians 2:14). The call of the gospel is spread through preaching (Romans 10:14; Mark 16:15).

Understanding the importance of the gospel and the necessity of preaching to spread the gospel, what should characterize our preaching? Let us notice a few characteristics of sound gospel preaching.
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May 15, 2014

Pardee Butler: “You Can Not Teach an Old Dog New Tricks”

Pardee Butler: You Can Not Teach an Old Dog New Tricks

Pardee Butler (1816-1888) was an evangelist who spent much of his time preaching in Kansas. He first came to Kansas in 1855 prior to it entering the union. During this time, there was an intense – often violent – debate over whether Kansas would be a free state or a slave state. Butler, with his abolitionist views, suffered physical attacks from pro-slavery settlers. Below is his reaction to a warning about the threat of such violence for refusing to support the sinful practice of slavery that was common in those days.
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April 22, 2014

Do the Ends Justify the Means?

Young man thinking

You have likely heard the phrase, “the ends justify the means.” Most people believe this concept, at least in certain applications. The idea is that if the end result is good, then it does not matter if the means to that end are wrong – all that really matters is the end result.

Common examples of this mindset are to say that it is fine to lie as long as it is done for a good purpose (to spare someone’s feelings, prevent embarrassment, advance yourself, etc.), or that it is acceptable to steal in order to feed one’s family. However, the word of God – our standard for morality – clearly defines lying and stealing as being wrong (Ephesians 4:25, 28). A noble purpose does not justify sinful behavior.

There are many applications we can make regarding the false concept of the ends justifying the means. But in this brief article, I want to focus on the area of evangelism.
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April 3, 2014

How Did the Apostles Carry Out the Great Commission?

Paul preachingWhen Jesus gave His apostles the Great Commission, He said, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned” (Mark 16:15-16). Why were they told to do this?

  • They were to “preach the gospel” because the gospel is “the power of God for salvation” (Romans 1:16).
  • They were to preach “the power of God for salvation” because God “desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth” (1 Timothy 2:4).
  • They were to lead men to “the knowledge of the truth” because “faith comes from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ” (Romans 10:17), and “without faith it is impossible to please Him” (Hebrews 11:6).

Just from the passages above, we can see that the preaching of the gospel was (and is) very important. The apostles were told to “go into all the world,” which suggests that they were to try to reach as many people as possible with the soul-saving message of the gospel. But how did they carry out this commission?

Obviously, the apostles preached. But is preaching enough? Can preaching alone really be effective? Notice what is recorded in the book of Acts:
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