All Articles For Lubbers, George C

In our former essay on John 10 we have noticed that Jesus is indeed the good shepherd, who lays down His life for the sheep. He is not an hireling, whose own the sheep are not and who careth not for the sheep, but He is the Shepherd who has received these sheep from the hand of His Father in electing love and tender mercy; God gave Him these Sheep, in order that He might save them to the uttermost, and raise them up in the last day!

“Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus according to the commandment of God our Savior, and Christ Jesus our hope; unto Timothy my true child in the faith: Grace, mercy, peace, from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord.”

We will now begin our expository observations on the next section of the first Chapter of Paul’s Epistle to the Corinthians, which we have been considering. We call attention to the verses 18-25.  Before we quote this passage in part we feel we ought to make a few introductory observations concerning this part of Chapter 1, the verses 18-25. We shall attend to the following: 

It should be remembered, that, in the matter of seeking to restore the lost sheep that strays from the fold, we are not simply trying to win a brother to ourselves, but that we are seeking to restore him into the favor of God; it is a matter which is very “serious,” a matter of what is “bound in heaven” and what is “bound on earth.” It is a matter of discipline. The German language calls this “Busszucht.” It is a chastisement to bring to confession of sin and guilt and to true sorrow of having sinned against God.

The year of our Lord, 1960, has come to a close. For the undersigned it was definitely a different year from the previous five that he might labor as the Lord’s servant as Home Missionary. During the first five years the lion’s share of the time was spent in Loveland and in Isabel and Forbes. How; ever, this year, although largely spent in and around Pella, was definitely quite different.

Missionary Notes  It is interesting and sometimes saddening to note that in those church circles where the teaching of the Heidelberg Catechism is clung to, although they are not of the Reformed churches as they descend from Netherlands, that controversies arise over the question of the relationship of salvation by grace alone and the good works of thankfulness.

How strongly Paul feels about this schism and party strife in the congregation of Corinth, and with what righteous and holy concern it fills his apostolic heart may be gathered from what he writes in the verses 13b through verse 17 of this first chapter of this epistle. 

It has been correctly observed by expositors of Holy Writ that the Gospel of Matthew is written for the believers who were once under the law of the Old Testament, in the days of the types and shadows, but who are now believers in Christ Jesus; that Matthew consequently is writing in this entire Gospel from the viewpoint that in Christ the entire Old Testament promises, covenants, types and shadows are fulfilled. 

This essay will be the last that we write on this section from the pen of the apostle John. 

Twice it has been our privilege to call attention to the meaning of the concept “last hour” in Scripture in general, both the Old and. the New Testaments, and might come to some rather definite conclusions.  We need not repeat these conclusions here at great length. It is sufficient to our purpose to remind the reader of the following salient points.  1. That the term “latter” times in the Old Testament Scriptures refers to the future time when God will fulfill His promise(s) to Israel in the sending of His only begotten Son.