Vernon J. Martin

Understanding the three days and three nights of Matthew 12:40
We know He rose on Sunday, the first day of the week. Glorious resurrection! What a manifestation of God’s power! All the hopes of mankind were dependent on that victory. Jesus offered Himself to be crucified so I could attain to immortality. I will give Him my worship forever!

This phrase is found three times in the Scriptures (ITi 3:2,12, Tit 1:6) and each time it is a qualification for an ordained man. What does this phrase mean? Does it mean ordained men could not practice polygamy but others could? Or does it mean a brother can’t be ordained if his first wife has died and he has remarried? Or perhaps it means that someone who is divorced and remarried cannot be ordained.

What is God so jealous about? Moses had looked toward God quizzically. God had been so patient and gentle for the last 40 days as He had explained the law and the tabernacle. And then, God’s countenance had changed so much! He had become grieved and pained. Then angry words spilled out of God’s mouth and His wrath waxed hot (Ex 32:10, 11)! God was slow, very slow to anger. But now God was angry; very angry! “Let me consume the whole nation in my hot wrath and start over with you!”

“Oh, for some good church life!”

I suppose the restlessness we see in church members today as they seek better church life elsewhere is not a new thing. The grass on the other side of the fence has always been appealing. Restlessness because we want better church life has some good aspects to it. Vision and purpose in church life are good. But church hopping that is born out of that quest to find the ideal church—is that restlessness good?