P age B 6
j A
J une 1, 1994 • T he P ortland O bserver
l +
e r n
n
The Open
by
M. I saacs
mphasis is being placed on
“The Open Bible,” for its
b enefits, altern ativ es to
things seen and unseen, drawing
power, wisdom and doctrines are of
no effect until this book is opened and
read. This book, which has survived
through the ages, contains the MIND
OF GOD, THE WAY OF SALVA­
TION, THE HAPPINESS OF BE­
LIEVERS AND THE STATE OF
MAN. Read it to be wise, believe it to
be safe, practice it to be holy. Many of
us own a Bible, but, judging by the
characterof our society, few open and
read it on a regular basis.
Bible doctrines are holy, its pre­
cepts are binding, its histories are
true. It is the pilot’s canpass, the
soldier’s sword, life traveler’s map.
In the Bible paradise is restored,
heaven is opened, and the gates of hell
revealed. The object of the Bible is
Christ Jesus; the design of the Bible is
the good of mankind; and the Glory of
God, its end. With that, in America
and indeed throughout the world, it
should fill our memory, rule our hearts
and guide our feet. It has been given
to us in this life, and will be fulfilled
in judgment and will be remembered
forever, even by those who have not
read and understood. The Bible is the
Guide of Life to all Christians who
seek to KNOW the Ways of God.
Jesus, The Christ is given several
names in the Bible that explain and
give significance to past, present and
future phases and events and histories
t i v
e s
ible
of mankind. Jesus is called “The
Word", “The W ay”, “The Light”,
“The Lily of the Valley”, “The Sun of
Righteousness”, The Lamb Slain for
the Sins of the W orld”, “The Rose of
Sharon”, The Bright and Morning
Star”, and John 3:16 states: “For God
so loved the world, he gave his ONLY
BEGOTTEN SON that whosoever
believeth should not perish, but have
eternal life.” Wise Men came from
the world’send, bringing to the Christ
Child, their gifts o f gold, frankin­
cense and myrrh - Gold for the King,
Frankincense for the High Priest, and
Myrrh for the Great Physician.
The Bible explains and elabo­
rates on the five stages of man - birth,
life, death, resurrection and ascen­
sion; and God, The Trinity -- G od’s
M. I saacs
n unhealthy, unholy de­
velopment in our soci­
ety, which has become
m ore ap p aren t since the ending
o f W orld W ar II, is the offering o f
ex cuses for life failures am ong
m en. W e live in the gray area
b etw een right and w rong, good
and ev il, m oral and im m oral b e ­
h av io r, self-in d u lg en ce and the
giving o f self for the benefit o f
o th ers; and we tend to cloak all
these gray areas in in tellectu al
ex ercises w hich deny the s p iri­
tual m an the ab ility to live above
the in ju stices and w rongs done to
him by n atural or carnel m en.
M any m e n /w o m en , in the
tim e fram e m entioned, see a d ­
verse circum stances as inflicted
on them by o th er m en/w om en.
T h eir won failure to endure the
trials o f life re su lt in depression
and our “enlightened” society uses
these circum stances and failures
as excuses, reasons, to accept and
sustain this inadequate behavior.
R ath er than u n d ersta n d G o d ’s
te s tin g - b le s s in g p a tte r n as a
m eans o f m olding and purifying
m an k in d into b e tte r and m ore
honorable people, society perpetu­
ates m ankind w allow ing in self-
pity and bittern ess. W e, th e re ­
fore, face several generations o f
people, void o f conscious, com ­
passion and hope.
P ublic com passion is now e x ­
p ected for serial k ille rs, because
(ex cu se) they had a lousy ch ild ­
hood or they cam e from a broken
hom e or they w ere victim s o f in ­
cest and/or rape. W hy is society
so focused on reasons why these
th in g s happen and speculate c o n ­
tin u a lly (in new s m ed ia, talk
show s and m agazines, etc.) on
excuses for the atro c ities com ­
m ix ed by these sick , hopeless
people? It w ould seem m ore co m ­
p assio n ate and honorable to fo ­
cus on the victim s o f these am oral
people, victim s fam ilies, the liv ­
ing people w ho have su ffe red
greatly at the hands o f these weak,
b itter, vio len t children our so ci­
ety has spaw ned.
Scripture (B ible) says: “There
is a way w hich seem eth right unto
a man, but the ends th ere o f are
the ways o f d ea th ” . O ur children,
young adults have been taught to
cover faults, and blam e others,
rather than face and overcom e
shortcom ings; and being good stu­
dents, they do this even to the extent
of murder of friend and foe alike.
Status in this society, m ate­
rial w ealth m eans m ore to these
generations than hum an lives and
we excuse this behavior by law, in
some instances; andconsciousless
people acquire m ore w ealth by
using these excuses supplied by
our “en lig h ten ed ” society. Hate
groups are allow ed to thrive and
attack d efen seless citizen s b e ­
cause o f som e “q u irk ” in so ciety ’s
thinking th at d ecid es “rig h ts” are
entitled, even when a group, or
persons breaks the law , injuring
or killing o th er people. Juries are
expected to exam ine “m ind-sets” ,
reasons fo r actio n s, instead of
determ ining g u ilt or innocence
based on fact and evidence. R ap ­
ists are released early from p ris­
ons b ecause th ey , th em selv es,
w ere rap ed w hen y o u n g ...th u s
m ore victim s are at th eir m ercy.
We excuse everything from o b e­
sity to hom osexuality; from school
bully to rape by P riests; from drug
abuser to abortionist; from m ercy
killings to ritu al sacrifice o f c h il­
dren.
Society, as we now perceive
it, is/has becom e spiritually dry
and death seem s to be the end
results o f everything man touches.
We are a carnal-m inded society,
seemly bent on self-destruction;
all the w hile proclaim ing loudly
our “rig h ts”; our god-like m en­
tality and our control over our
M allo ry Avenue
Christian Church
m inds, souls and sp irits.
The S criptures (B ible) gives
us an a n t i d o t e fo r c a r n a l
m indedness. The A postle Paul
w rote, “ Be renew ed in the spirit
o f your m ind’” and “ We have the
m ind o f C h rist” ; and also, “ Let
this m ind be in you which was
also in C h rist J e s u s ”. O ur nation
m ust return to the L ord; we m ust
have our m inds reprogram m ed.
G od Said, “ My thoughts are not
your thoughts; n e ith e r are my
ways your w ays” . If we allow God,
He w ill teach us to think His
T houghts. “L et no co rru p t co m ­
m unication proceed out o f your
m outh, but that w hich is good to
the use o f edifying, that it may
m inister G R A C E unto the h ear­
ers”. Eph. 4:29. E cclesiastes 10:20
says, “curse no t the king, no not
in they thoughts; and curse not
the rich in thy bed cham ber: for a
bird o f the a ir shall carry the
voice, and th at w hich hath w ings
shall tell the m a tte r”. We m ust
cease our discussions about other
p e o p le , c o n t r o l o u r fo rk e d -
to n g u e.” W e debate and reason,
“W hat we say about others is truth,
therefore perm issible to say or
discuss. W e state, “W e d o n ’t gos­
sip or spread lies o r excuse re p re­
hensible behavior; we are sim ply
re la tin g the tru th ” , th e re fo re ,
“W hy c a n ’t we discuss it?” The
S crip tu res re p e a te d ly tells us.
IBafitiit
103 NE Morris St., Portland, OR 97212
Almighty Power,God’s All Knowing
Wisdom, and God’s All Embracing
Love. From the Bible, spiritual strength
is given to withstand the many tempta­
tions and trials of the times.
Those who open and read and
believe the Bible are able to stand
against the “Winter of Life,” to re­
joice in the “fruitful Part of Life," to
mature spiritually in the “Summer of
Life,” to be sanctified and justified in
“Our Souls or Immortal Part of Life,”
and to watch, work and maintain
soberness in the “Creative Part of
Life.” The Bible, with these lessons,
portray human life with its promises,
its disappointments, its expectations,
its pains and its glory - all so depen­
dent upon the source of LIGHT -
THE GOD OF ALL.
A Society Of Excuses
by
cSt.
h o w e v e r, th a t C h ris t-m in d e d
p eo p le m ust not p articip ate in
ch a rac te r evaluations or assassi­
nations o f others. This nation m ust
retu rn to the God o f our fathers
and the g reatn ess w hich we once
enjoyed.
G od d o es n o t fix us w ith
patches and splin ts, but w ith His
ow n parts in w hich there is no
sham e, no blam e and no excuses.
He rep laces o u r lives and nature
w ith His ow n life and nature. This
w ork is accom plished on the IN ­
NER PER SO N . “ If any man be in
C h rist, he is a new creature; old
things are passed aw ay; behold,
all things are becom e new. 2nd.
C or. 5:17. th is nation m ust renew
its sp iritu al foundation, shun the
appearan ce o f evil, and take hold
o f th e “ fre e d o m ” e s ta b lis h e d
through C h ristian virtues. It is
o nly through victory in C h rist
Jesus is righteousness established
in all peo p le.
• Sunday School -9:30am
• Sunday Morning Wor­
ship Service -1 1 :00am
• Sunday School Teacher's
Meeting Tues - 6:30pm
• Bible Study Wednesday -
6:00pm
• Prayer Meeting
Wednesday - 7:00pm
Church Phone Number
287-7457
Dr. Joe S. Hardie, Pastor
\Ne Invite You 7 o Come And Worship With Us.
The Church Where Everybody is Somebody And Christ
Is All.
New & used books
on Business, Music,
& African-American
Studies
POWELL’S
CITY OF BOOKS
9 am - ii
pm
Monday though Saturday
9 a m - 9 pm Sundays
Used books bought every day till 8:30 PM
On the #20 Bus line • One hour free parking
1005 West Burnside Street
228-4651
Advertize In
he ^ a r tla n h
(©bgerver
call:
(503) 288-0033
Mt Olivet
Baptist Church
H a s m o v e d S u n d a y se rv ic es to
Family Life Center,
8725 N. Chautauqua Blvd.,
at Willis Blvd.
Worship Services 8:00am & 11:00am,
Church School 9:30 to 10:30 am,
Bible Study, Wednesdays, 116 NE Schuyler, 10:30cm & 7:00pm
Radio Ministry each Sunday, 8:00am on KBMS
A Teaching Church With A Reaching Ministry
Dr. James E. Martin, Senior Pastor
C hurch O ffice 116 N E S c h ly le r St. • (503) 2 84-1954
Sad’s Oil Service
heating oils
Best Cash Prices
104 NE Russell
Portland. OR 97212
282-5111
J s H , J J jJ itttl
^ M
^ B a p t is t
Speedy
Service
Friendly
Call for Quctel
is s t o t t a r o
d j w
r r lj
8101 N. Fiske Avenue • Portland Oregon 97203
Church Phone: 289-D147
Study Phone: 2L 9-1911
Sunday Service
10:45
Sunday School
9:30
Bible Study
6:00
Evening Service
7:00pm
“Come to me all you who are
weary and heavy laden and I
will give you rest.”
Pastor. Rc. JamcsC F Faulkner
iß if Pitie
9.45am Sunday School
11:00am Morning Worship
7:50pm Tuesday Bible Study
and Prayer
//Cals ( n e o f a (K ind K 'deoobùodeb
.dfto-»dmofiefnf c((afdi K (Aoo/tä
In te r-ra c ia l C o n g re g a tio n
126 NC Alberto Portland. OR 97211 (503) 288 -5 1 73
■ The ( riginnl Mfucan
.fttnUage i/tudy 3tM«
(Often
A.
Ve W elcome You to The
( S t e a l e r J S a m t J S te p lje n
¡Sfltsstrmary ^Baptist (!ll}utcl|
Serving The Lord
With Gladness”
n ,..,1. .
a
ltv v O
.t i r m t i a y - C fa id a y
ItO O -Z tO f/tm
- 'dienm uai Wa/wlen
Lombard Chapel
3018 N. Lombard
Portland, Oregon 97217
503-283-0525
I
Killingsworth Chapel
430 N. Killingsworth
Portland, Oregon 97217
503-283-1976
W i/a / n triai/ /O: 0 Cani - fi: OPfwn
2808 M o A la d in c£ M e l M in y d d v d .
Pitie V ttiia ïie y fa d tà o n (5 0 3 ) 2 8 8 -5 2 4 6
Sunday School 10am
Morning Worship 11:05
Wednesday
Prayer & Bible Study 7pm
Rev. G.L. Black I Pastor
3605 N.E. Mallory Ave.
(503) 281-8117 Portland,
OR 97212
Rev. and Mrs- GO-- Black I
--------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------- , —