• Terrible Times In The Last Days
• Jesus’ Ear Was Pierced
• Hook's Points
• New Price List
• Ananias and Paul on Conversion
• Polygamy

Although I try to keep records of all donations and payments, I do not have time to check for delinquent payments and to send out bills. However, it is not unusual for me to run across a file card that has a record of books purchased but no indication that they were ever paid for.

This mailout is free for the asking. If you receive it but do no read it for any cause, please let us know and we will remove your name. Send e-mail subscriptions or cancellations to freedom@freedomsring.org.

Eat your heart out, Rodney Dangerfield. I get respect – in India. Dr. Prasad, who has distributed so many of my books in India, recently sent me pictures of his grandson who is about three years old. He is a cute little fellow of whom any Grandpa would be proud. His name: Cecil Prasad (or in their custom, Prasad Cecil), a namesake! I am honored.

Many of the books have been given to university professors. The vice-chancellor of Andhra University sent me invitation through one of the disciples there to come to receive recognition by the university. And this brother urges me to come to India as a participating speaker for a great gathering of Christians possibly numbering 50,000 people. How about that for respect!

Can we hope for what is past, as in "I hope you had a great vacation"?

Totally by grace: In discussing the futility of efforts of justification by works of law, I wrote, "So it is all by grace! If one is to be saved, it must be totally by grace." (Free In Christ, p. 24). A few eager critics at various times have jumped on that and exulted, "See, he doesn’t think we have to do anything to be saved!" What is grace? A gift, an unmerited favor. How much do you pay for the gift of salvation? What do you pay? If Jesus gives you salvation but you still have to pay a part, then his atonement is insufficient. If you teach that, I don’t want to stand close to you in a thunderstorm! God has a part and man has a part, but God’s part is to provide the free gift and man’s part is to accept it. "For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not your own doing, it is the gift of God…" (Eph. 2:8).

Cat lovers should find it easy to love all fellow humans. You have to love a cat for its own sake rather than for how it treats you! So it is with many people.

My mental disorder: It must be some sort of mental disorder that induces me to ask so many maddening questions! May a non-believer, Buddhist, or Muslim exhibit love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness (reliability), gentleness, and self-control – fruit of the Spirit? (Gal. 5:22). If so, do they have the Spirit, or do they accomplish it without the Spirit? If we say they can have no goodness of character, don’t we show a wee bit of arrogance – which is not a fruit of the Spirit?

ONE BODY: The Winter issue of ONE BODY edited by Victor Knowles is devoted entirely to the subject of unity. Actually, that is the purpose of the fine publication. He favored me by giving a nice review of Our Heritage of Unity and Fellowship , my book of selected writings of Carl Ketcherside and Leroy Garrett. Thank you, Victor.

A Web Page by Ron McRay offering his writings on fulfilled prophecies: http://www.tyler.net/adifferentview.

Church bulletins always report when someone is added by baptism. At the end of the year you might have seen reports of the total baptized during the last year. But how often do you read a report like this: Eleven persons were added by baptism in the last year, but thirteen were dropped from the roll because of their unfaithfulness? What! Tear off our facade of growth and success?

Return to the Table of Contents