God paints sin just as it is, in all of its horribleness.

     The famous illustrator, Pace, who did illustrations for the Sunday School Times, once drew a cartoon showing the devil, as a painter, painting a picture.   There sat his model, sin, a toothless old hag, dressed in rags and clutching a bottle of whiskey in her claw like hands.

     But in the picture the devil was painting, sin was made to look like a beautiful, bright-eyed, young lady, all dressed in fine clothes, with smiling, happy face, raising to her lips a goblet of wine.

     Almost every day, I see pictures painted by the devil--on billboards, in the magazines and newspapers, and I remember that drawing by Pace.

     God paints sin just as it is, and He says, "For the wages of sin is death." Romans 6:23.   He says, "the soul that sinneth, it shall die." Ezekiel 18:4.   This is the inevitable law of God.

     God warned Adam that if he disobeyed Him, and partook of the forbidden fruit,he would die.   "But of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt not eat of it: for in the day that thou eatest thereof thou shalt surely die." Genesis 2:17.

     A strange thing happened to Adam and Eve after they disobeyed God.   They were afraid of God, and hid from Him.   They knew they were not fit to appear in His presence.   They were Alienated from God, and separation from God is spiritual death.

     No doubt they still did not quite understand the evil that had come upon them until a number of years later, when, with broken hearts, they looked down on the dead body of their son, Abel, slain by the hand of his brother, Cain.   The horribleness of the effects of sin was now being revealed to them.

     How did the devil paint sin, when he pictured it to Eve, in the Garden of Eden?   He said, "Ye shall not surely die."   Is this true?   The many billions who have died from that day down to this, all shout, "You're a liar, devil! You're a liar!"   The thousands of graves upon thousands of hillsides, all cry out, "You're a liar, devil!   You're a liar!."

     The devil also told Eve, "Ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil."   This age old lie of the devil is still being promoted today by thousands of cults and religions, including so-called Christian ones.   Every religious teaching that includes works as a means of salvation, is based on that lie of the devil.

     The devil continues to declare to men everywhere today, "Ye are gods.   Just look at yourself and see how great you are.   Have faith in yourself!   Self confidence, that is the way to success, fame, and wealth."   In Scientology, Transcendental Meditation and scores of other philosophies and teachings, the devil is still propagating his lie., "Ye shall be as gods."   "You are the master of your fate," he says.   "You are the captain of your soul."

     But look all around you.   Look at the highways, where thousands are maimed, wounded, killed or made worse than dead, every day.   Visit the hospitals, and see where disease takes old and young alike, without consideration.   Hear their dying agonies.   Behold the heaps and heaps of dead babies, discarded unwanted, even before they come into the world.   Visit the places of pleasure and note those with wealth and success, yet miserable in the bonds of sin; many taking to mind-bending drugs and to suicide.   Where are the gods, promised by the devil?

     "Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap." Galatians 6:7.   Sow the devil's seed, and you will surely reap his punishment, which is damnation and hell.   Hell was prepared for the devil and his angels, but all those who follow him and his teachings will wind up in the same place.

     But God, when He said, "The wages of sin is death," did not stop there.   He also gave a way of escape from that awful end.   He continued, "But the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." Romans 6:23.   Here is salvation.   Here is the way of escape.

     It is A FREE GIFT OF GOD.   IT IS ETERNAL LIFE.   IT IS THROUGH JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD.

     Because I have on the rear of my Falcon van, the words, "Try Jesus, He never fails," sometimes people passing by, will wave to me, and perhaps point to the sky.   What do they mean when they do that?   I understand that they know THE WAY, and that way is just ONE WAY.

     There is ONLY ONE WAY of salvation.   There is ONLY ONE WAY to eternal life.

     There is ONLY ONE WAY to the Father in heaven, and that is through Jesus Christ our Lord.   Jesus said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." John 14:6.

     There is ONLY ONE NAME that is worthy of trust.   Acts 4:12 says of Jesus, "Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved."

     There is also ONLY ONE MEDIATOR, or middle-man between God and men.   It says in I Timothy 2:5, " For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus."

     Yes, there is a way of escape from the penalty of sin, but in Hebrews 2:3 we read this solemn and important warning, "How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation?"   To know the way, will not do you any good, if you neglect it; if you put off trusting in Jesus Christ as your own Savior.

     Some great results have been obtained by missionaries in Japan, through visiting in hospitals.   Many have been saved.

     One man, who was saved in a hospital, said, "I thank God that I am dying of cancer, for it is a slow death, and because of that, I have had the opportunity to hear about Jesus Christ, and be saved."

     There are many others who are not as fortunate as that man.   In fact, heart disease is the number one killer both in Japan and the United States, and usually, that death is immediate, and without warning.   So, do not neglect this great salvation, not for one day.

     John Bunyan tells, in Pilgrims Progress, of the man with the muck rake.   There he is, bending over, eyes fixed on the ground, raking through the muck, the filth and the garbage, while above him, One from heaven, is bending down, holding out to him, a golden crown.   But, he will not look up.

     Does the devil have you so deceived, deluded into digging through the garbage and filth of this world?   Consider well, what God is offering, "The gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."

     Just look up to Jesus by faith and receive this glorious gift.

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     News Release:   The Heritage Boys Academy of Panama City, Florida was raided by the Florida Department of Children and Families and the Bay County Sheriff’s Department on Friday, June 4th.   The academy was temporarily shut down and the 17 boys sent home.   The Director, Brother Buddy Maynard, Asst. Director Robert Unger, and Brother Maynard’s oldest son were arrested and charged with one count of aggravated child abuse and five counts of child abuse without harm.   They were released without bond this morning (Saturday, June 5) and their first court appearance has been set for July 1 at 8:30 AM.   Brother Maynard said "Of course these allegations are ridiculous, but the 3 of us were arrested and spent the night in jail on Friday night.   Our first request is that you pray for us. Also, we have had to secure legal counsel to try to vindicate our innocence in court...We must secure 3 lawyers for each person. Our fight looks to be long and hard, but we are confident that our Lord is in control even while Satan's forces are raging against us and this work."   To pledge your support, either prayerfully or financially, you may contact Brother Maynard at:
4014 Maynard Dr.
Panama City, FL 32404
Cell: (850) 774-0300
[26]truth4youth@bellsouth.net

Link

     We are all looking forward to the fellowship meeting at Cloverdale Baptist Church in Cloverdale, Oregon.   They hold this two day fellowship meeting every year in June.   The editor of this paper looks forward to this meeting every year.   For him, it is like going home.   Pastor Randy Winesbourgh tells us, this year, the days are Thursday June 24th, and Friday June 25th.   The fellowship starts with lunch at noon on Thursday and ends with lunch at noon on Friday.   In between, there will be preaching, special music, sleep Thursday night, breakfast Friday morning and even some testimonies.

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     We have designated the week of June 14-18 as a church work week at Crystal Springs Camp.   If you are interested in volunteering your time and skills please call the church for specifics and instructions.

Letters To The Editor

     Thou shalt be missed, because thy seat will be empty. I Samuel 20:18

     The empty pew has an eloquent tongue.   Though its message is unpleasant, it is one that all may hear.

     To the preacher, the empty pew says, "Your sermon is not worth while."

     To the visitor, it whispers, "You see, we are not quite holding our own."

     To the treasurer, it shouts, "Look out for a deficit!"

     To the stranger, who is looking for a church home, it suggests, "You had better wait awhile."

     To the members who are present it asks, "Why don't you go visiting next Sunday, too?"

     The empty pew speaks against the service.

     It kills inspiration and smothers hope.
     It dulls the fine edge of zeal.
     The empty pew is a weight.
     The occupied pew is a wing.

~Copied from the "Pacific Coast Baptist"

     Folks if you want to respond to something you have read in "Baptist Landmarks" please E-Mail your response to edit@BaptistLandmarks.org   Your response will be printed here.

THE prattling chitter chatter yackity yackity yammer
or
the gossip bird.

     Known for its unceasing chatter, it has wings, but they are too small for it to fly, so it just talks about it.   It has multiple tales which it loves to display at every opportunity.   Its tiny ears allow it to hear just enough of what goes on around it to get it all wrong, but to retell it in a garbled version with great authority.   There has never been an occasion it considers to be serious enough that it is silenced.   Church services are its favorite time for visiting with those it is with every day.   It is easily recognized by its extremely long-forked tongue, and its loud whisper which is projected to everyone in the vicinity.

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