The Italian Memorandum

“…I know that none of you will see my face again”

(Acts 20:26)

“Parting is such sweet sorrow…”

–Romeo and Juliet, Act II Scene ii

We are challenged by Newness! Paul told the Roman Christians: “…so we also might walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:4). But, in order for there to be such newness, there must be a saying goodbye to what has become so familiar to us. When Paul said goodbye in Acts 20, we are told how his friends reacted: “And when he had thus spoken, he kneeled down and prayed with them all. And they all wept sore, and fell on Paul’s neck and kissed him, sorrowing most of all for the word which he had spoken, that they should behold his face no more. And they brought him on his way unto the ship” (Acts 20:36-38). The ship of the New Year awaits even us. Of course Paul had to be on that ship. He could have stayed, we suppose, but that would have interfered with the master plan.

1. This Newness challenges us to dynamic, not static, living. The resurrection is the basis of such newness (Rom. 6:3-5)! It is “Westward leading / Still proceeding.” It is emergence from the deadness of the human condition. It is gospel defining and Christian aligning.
2. This Newness trades off instability for permanence and power (Rom. 6:9).
3. With this Newness, comes a life of grace (Rom. 6:13,14).

There’s a ship lies rigged and ready in the harbor. Your name is on the manifest.

-Robert M. Housby

(Matthew 28:16-20; Mark 16:15,16; Luke 24:44-49; Acts 1:3-9)

“Does the Great Commission, as found at the end of the gospels, have legitimate application to members of the Lord’s church today? We were asked this question most recently. What follows is an attempt to demonstrate why we think the Great Commission does have legitimate application to the church today, beyond “the eleven” of Matthew 28:16.

1. The Great Commission is different from the Limited Commission. The Limited Commission is not to “all nations” (Matthew 28:19), but only to “the lost sheep of the house of Israel” (Matthew 10:5). So, to begin with, any legitimate application of the Great Commission must concede this essential point of difference.

2. Second, biblical context and biblical content should harmonize. Does Matthew 28:16, with its reference to “the eleven,” negate any other applications beyond the eleven? While careful exegesis cannot allow all specifics to apply indiscriminately (for example, the miraculous element of the Great Commission, Mark 16:17-20, does not have continuity with the church in all ages), nevertheless, when the content of the message exceeds the immediate recipients of the message, there is then a warrant for a broader application [antecedent and application should agree]. Even the Limited Commission had extended applications beyond “the twelve” of Matthew 10:5 (See Luke 10:1 regarding the “seventy”). On harmonizing context and content, take the example of Genesis 12:1-3. Here, Abraham is the only proper grammatical recipient of the message. Nevertheless, it would be improper to suggest that Genesis 12 had no legitimate application to Israel. Why? Simply because the context and content of Genesis 12 extends beyond Abraham.
3. Third, Matthew 28:20 is a mandate to perpetuate apostolic doctrine; and, the most immediate application of 28:20 is 28:19. To say that 28:20 refers to most everything except 28:19 appears problematic. Matthias, for example, was not one of “the eleven” of Matthew 28:16; still, the Great Commission, as stated in Matthew
28:18-20 would compose the very substance of Matthias’ apostolic ministry. And, if we admit a twelfth, what of those whom Matthias taught (see 2 Tim. 2:2; 2 Thess. 2:15)?

We conclude that the Great Commission applies to the church today.

– Robert M. Housby

(As Taken from First John)

“These things I have written to you concerning those who try to deceive you”

(1 John 2:26)

In some theological circles, Satan is denied. But, the New Testament is explicit when it comes to warning Christians of a real threat coming from Satan, “the devil” (1 John 5:19). The fact is, even among God’s people there are those like: “Jezebel” and “Alexander the coppersmith.” These seem to have forgotten the adage, “Do all the good you can, and no harm at all,” if not the Golden Rule itself.

1. This Biblical information is not welcomed by the Devil, for in it, he, “Satan, the devil,” is exposed (Revelation 12:9,17). Not only does the truth of God’s word hurt the devil it also hinders his activity. Such information from the word can counter deception (1 John 2:26).
2. 1 John 3:4-15 indicates that Christians, by sinning, open the threshold for no good–even within the congregation of the Lord’s people. While all men are sinners (Romans 3:23), and that includes the baptized (see 1 John 1:8; 2:1), there is a particular sinfulness which rears its head within the congregation itself.

a. The devil operates through sin (1 John 3:8).
b. Sin sometimes occurs in the church, among brethren (1 John 3:10).
c. Such undesirable brethren are compared to Cain (1 John 3:12).
d. Hateful brethren are murderers, without eternal life (1 John 3:15).
e. Love is the answer (1 John 3:11).

Satan longs for human harbors. Some preaching and teaching is intervention, and some is prevention. May this data serve to identify and isolate the works of darkness within the growing congregation .

-Robert M. Housby

“Now there was in Joppa a disciple named
Tabitha, which translated, means Dorcas.
She was full of good works and acts of charity.”

(Acts 9:36)

Ken Jennings was finally defeated after winning over 70 rounds on the popular television game show, Jeopardy. Jennings won a whopping 2.5 million dollars in 2004. We mention Jenning’s recent celebrity status in conjunction with the life of the early Christian woman Dorcas to express a truth about notoriety.
In a footnote to the biblical text, we are told that “Tabitha” is the Aramaic form of the Greek name “Dorcas”. Tabitha is properly translated, gazelle. The gazelle is a small swift animal found in hot and arid wilderness areas. Arabs have been known to train falcons to swoop down on the gazelle, stunning them, so that hunters may overtake them more easily. There are over sixty different varieties of the gazelle. The Dorcas Gazelle is found in the regions of Syria and Palestine. They may reach speeds of forty-five miles per hour over a distance of six or seven miles (Steven Barabas, The Zondervan Pictorial Bible Dictionary (Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publishing House, 1967), p. 42).
The Bible says of this Dorcas, “…she became ill and died…” (Acts 9:37). We are still speaking of this woman hundreds of years after her presence. We wonder if the same may be said of Mr. Jennings five-hundred years from now? Often, those whose lives are dedicated to serving Christ and his church do not receive proper recognition. But, they shall one day be more than recompensed (1 Corinthians 15:58). We may never be of celebrity status with earnings exceeding into the millions; nor as endowed intellectually as Ken Jennings. Still,
we may with Tabitha-Gazelle be found on the mountain of eternity, in the service of the Lord our God.

-Robert M. Housby