BEN F. VICK, JR.
Peter stood in the portico of Solomon and said to those gathered, "For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you. And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people." (Acts 3:22-23.) Israel, having been under the law of Moses for 1500 years, still followed his teachings. They cited Moses on various occasions to Christ. Yet Jesus said to them: "For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me: for he wrote of me. But if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye believe my words?" (John 5:46-47.) Peter quoted Moses, who prophesied that "a prophet shall the Lord God raise up like unto your brethren, like unto me." Then, this sobering universal command with a universal warning is given: "Him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you. And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people."
After Jesus had announced his intent to build his church, he took Peter, James, and John to a high mountain to pray and was transfigured before them. But the three had fallen into a deep sleep. Jesus' face did shine as the sun; his raiment was white as the light (Matt. 17:1-5). Mark's account describes the transfiguration: "And his raiment became shining, exceeding white as snow; so as no fuller on earth can white them." (Mark 9:3.) Luke relates that the fashion of Jesus' countenance was altered, and his raiment was white and glistering. It must have been an awesome sight! There appeared unto them Moses and Elijah talking with Jesus about his decease (Luke 9:31). When the apostles awoke, Peter said to Jesus, "Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt let us make here three tabernacles, one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah. While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him." (Matt. 17:5.)
Moses, Elijah, and Christ, three great figures representing the entirety of the Bible, are on the mount. The first two represented the Old Testament: Moses stood for the law, and Elijah symbolized the prophets. Jesus Christ, the greatest figure of all, represented the New Testament. There was a time when Israel was to hear and heed the law and the prophets, but now all men everywhere are to hear the Lord Jesus.
To hear Jesus meant more than merely hearing his words. Lange's comment reads, "The divine attestation of Jesus which they had just witnessed implied the duty of perfect obedience, and complete self-surrender." Likewise, Peter's quote from Moses, "Him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you," carries the same thought, perfect obedience, complete surrender.
The apostle Paul wrote, "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 hearts to the Lord. And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him." (Col. 3:16-17.) To "do all in the name of the Lord Jesus" is to do all by his authority. He authorizes by generic and specific authority. When Jesus said to go into all the world and preach the gospel, that is both generic and specific authority. We are to "go." That is generic. We are to preach the gospel; that is specific. We can go in many ways: car, plane, train, radio, internet, television, phone, tract, etc. We are not limited in how we go. However, it would be wrong for someone to say, "Well, the only way one can go is on foot." He would be making a law that God did not make.
We are commanded to give on the first day of every week (1 Cor. 16:1-2). Giving is an act of worship. There was a time when saints would walk up and put their money on the table. Later, baskets were passed by the members. Now, as we are presently doing, people put their contributions in a basket when they walk into the building. Is one more scriptural than the other? I read that some brought their money and laid it at the apostles' feet (Acts 4:37). Is that a binding example? It is not. We are to give. That is a generic command. How we do it is in the realm of judgment.
Partaking of communion is a command of the Lord. He said, "This do in remembrance of me." We learn from Acts 20:7 that the early church partook of it on the first day of the week. Saints are to eat the bread and drink the cup of the Lord. How much of the bread has to be eaten? There was a time before Covid that the bread was passed on a plate. Each would break off a piece and eat. Just how much should one break off? Would anyone say, "Oh, you did not get enough, or you took too much"?
Some brethren bind one container on the church. They teach that using more than one container to partake is wrong. (I have always wondered why they bind one container but not the one loaf). For Paul wrote, "The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread (or loaf) which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?" (1 Cor. 10:16.) They teach one cup (they mean container) as a matter of faith. Jesus took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them saying, “Drink ye all of it.” He had said concerning the cup, "divide it among yourselves" (Luke 22:17.) The contents of the Passover cup had been divided; the Lord's supper followed the Passover meal. He gave thanks for the bread. They ate; he gave thanks for the cup; they drank. They did not drink the cup, but the contents of the cup. To teach that only one container is to be used in the Lord's supper is to bind where God has not bound (Matt. 16:19).
The statement to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction authorizes helping the widows and fatherless. It is generic authority. We are not told how to do it. It was written to the church (James 1:1,27). It can be done as individuals or as the body of Christ. However, when brethren take a generic statement and limit it to one way of carrying it out, they make a law that God did not make. Some brethren teach that the church cannot take a dime out of its treasury to help a non-saint. That would include supporting the fatherless who have not obeyed the gospel. Those who attend and give to churches who believe it is a sin to help the children’s home from the church treasury are supporting error. They may claim such is wrong; but by their support of these churches, their actions show otherwise. The legs of the lame are not equal.