Miracles

Miracles

By George Feldman

From time to time someone invariably asks, "Do you believe God heals people today?" Our reply is: Yes, of course, but in this day and age in which we live the healing always come in answer to prayer, and prayer alone! Contrast this with the time when men were gifted by God with the power to lay hands on people and heal them in His name during the apostolic age. And in this lies an all-important principle: these powers and gifts are no longer given to men. They were terminated when Israel, because of unbelief, were set aside at the close of the Acts period. Any person who claims to have such powers today is deceived, and may be engaged in a counterfeit ministry.

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I Therefore...Beseech You #11

By Oscar M. Baker

"And, ye masters, do the same things unto them, forbearing threatening:  knowing that your Master is in heaven; neither is there respect of persons with him" (Eph. 6:9). Note that the masters are to do the same things to the servants that the servants do are to do to the masters. Their work is not to be of eye service, as men pleasers. They are to do the will of God from the heart, doing service as unto the Lord, and not as unto man. For whatsoever good thing any man doeth, the same shall he receive of the Lord, whether bond or free.

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I Therefore...Beseech You #10

By Oscar M. Baker

"Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God" (Eph. 5:20,21). Too many think that prayer is begging for something from God. But thanksgiving should preface all prayer. And be thankful for everything. Can you do that? And how about this submission one to another? Our slogan is all too often, "Me first." We can and should consider our neighbor Christians better than ourselves. How easy, then, to get along.

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I Therefore...Beseech You #9

By Oscar M. Baker

"Let no man deceive you with vain words: for because of these things cometh the wrath of God upon the children of disobedience.  Be not ye therefore partakers with them" (Eph. 5:6,7). Vain words are like bubbles, they may have all the colors of the rainbow and are very attractive, but it takes little to burst them. All too many are fed on such food. Nothing to it. The children of disobedience follow after such things. We are not to be of them. It is deceit.

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I Therefore...Beseech You #8

By Oscar M. Baker

"Let all bitterness and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice" (Eph. 4:31). Note what is to be put away. And at the bottom of all this trouble is the little word malice. You just do not like someone. And that is the start of all the other evils. The basic cause of malice is selfishness, the flesh taking over.

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I Therefore...Beseech You #7

By Oscar M. Baker

"Wherefore putting away lying, speak every mantruth with his neighbor; for we are member one of another" (Eph. 4:25). The margin tells us; that having put away the lie, speak every man truth with his neighbor. The latter part is quoted from Zech. 8:16, where lying is one of the things that God hates. The lie has to do with anything Satan teaches, most of which is based on the lie, the immortality of the soul ("Thou shall not surely die").

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I Therefore...Beseech You #6

By Oscar M. Baker

"That ye henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk" (Eph. 4:17). And how do these other Gentiles walk? In vanity of mind; darkened understanding; alienated from the life of God; in ignorance; blinded hearts. They have become past feeling, and so have given themselves over to lasciviousness: they work uncleanness with greediness. They did not learn this from Christ.

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I Therefore...Beseech You #5

By Oscar M. Baker

"That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive"(Eph. 4:14). The composition and the goal of the church of the dispensation of the mystery is such that there can be no place for children, that is, the immature folks.

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I Therefore...Beseech You #4

By Oscar M. Baker

"That ye walk...Till we all come in the unity of the faith" (Eph. 4:13). In our last article we spoke of the unity of the Spirit. This is something that has been made and we are to keep it. But here we have the unity of the faith, and that is something to be obtained. There is an effort put forth by the members to have a unity of the faith.

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I Therefore...Beseech You #3

By Oscar M. Baker

"That ye walk ... Endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit" (Eph. 4:3).

This bit of advice is widely ignored today. This is accomplished by taking out the word keep, and substituting the word make. But we are not to make a unity, but to keep the unity which is already made. It is the unity of the Spirit. Therefore it is not made with hands. But the world is full of man-made unities today, and fall apart as fast as they are made.

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