Charity in All Three

 

 

In essentials: unity

In non-essentials: liberty

In all things: charity

 

Two cannot walk together

Except they be agreed,

Neither should we yoke a mule

With a fast running steed.

 

Two at different speeds

Cannot walk together,

Neither will keep the other’s company

In any kind of weather.

 

The foregoing scenarios

Speak to the fundamental,

Hence the strength of our unity

Must hang on the essential.

 

What are the essentials?

On what must we agree?

The undiluted Gospel of salvation

That in God’s Word we see.

 

 

Summed up in John 3:16

For God so loved He gave…

Thus, redeeming the repentant sinner

From the clutches of the Knave.

 

That Jesus came and died

Must indeed be an essential,

And that he rose up from the dead

Is an indisputable fundamental.

 

That there is only one God

And only one path that leads to Him:

Meaning there is absolutely one way

That we can be saved from sin.

 

Jesus is that way,

He is also the truth and life

And unless a man believes in him,

He is forever in sin’s strife.

 

The Word of God is our manual,

No other book even comes near

And whenever we peruse its pages,

We must do so with godly fear.

 

Reverencing the Holy Spirit

That brings enlightenment

To the born-again believer

And to the genuinely repentant.

 

Yes, in essentials: unity

Absolutely no compromise

And be aware of the counterfeiter

That comes in alluring disguise.

 

In non-essentials: liberty-

Judge not another on these,

However, cause not a brother to stumble

Is top of the charitable pleas.

 

Focus not on the “do-nots”

Rather, focus on the “do’s”

And be patient with one another

As God has been with you.

 

The “do-nots” are alluring,

Like Eve, we wonder, “Why not?”

Like Eve, we fall headlong

And trouble becomes our lot.

 

Quite enough non-essentials:

Discuss but don’t quarrel,

The enemy loves divisiveness

And in disunity he revels.

 

 

 

In all things: charity

Yes, charity in all three:

In essentials, non-essentials and all things

There must be charity.

 

Charity conquers all,

It is the evidence to the world

Of every born-again believer

That walks in God’s Holy Word.

  

It’s the hallmark of the faith-

The unifying trend

That says to all and sundry,

We will be faithful to the end.

 

In essentials: unity

In non-essentials: liberty

In all things: charity

Yes, charity in all three.

 

Stewart Russell © September 27, 2020

 

Is It Possible?

 

 

Is it possible

I sincerely ask,

To read and understand the word

When so tasked?

 

Can it be done

Without added help

Of theological interpretations

Based on what is felt?

 

And Holy Spirit,

Tell me, what is his role?

Can he truly lead us into all truth

As we’ve been told?

 

 

 

Is it possible

I sincerely ask,

To read and understand the word

When so tasked?

 

How do I know

Who’s right or wrong

Especially as a young born-again

When not yet strong?

 

Can I trust the Word

As it is plainly put

Or do I have to faithfully lock into

A denominational rut?

 

Is a world view key

In understanding

And is it absolutely necessary

To stop me falling?

 

How do I know

Which is right or wrong

Especially as a young believer

And not strong?

 

 

 

I have a Bible

Which I read daily,

Can I truly, definitively depend

On its accuracy?

 

What’s fundamental

That I need to know

And please tell me, if you can,

Does it show?

 

Do I need to know

Hebrew and Greek

To be able to understand concepts

Considered deep?

 

 

 

Is it possible

I sincerely ask,

To read and understand the Word

When so tasked?

 

Third iteration

If you are following,

Can you tell me if there is a way

Of knowing?

 

 

 

I’d like to know

Given what I’ve heard

If I need some specialized input

To grasp the Word.

 

For whom, I ask

Was it actually written?

Must I read it from cover to cover

To be forgiven?

 

 

 

And the doctrines?

Must I know them fully:

Like covenants and dispensations

Assuredly?

 

 

 

It seems like a lot

To keep in one’s mind

And there’s a lot of minors’ emphasis

Recently, I find.

 

Major on minors

At the majors’ expense

And the critical Gospel message

Is lacking defense.

 

Is it possible

I sincerely ask,

To read and understand the Word

When so tasked?

 

Stewart Russell © December 28, 2025

 

Let Scripture Interpret Scripture

 

 

We take the Bible literally

Whenever it suits our cause

But when it goes against the grain

We have reason to pause.

 

Suddenly, we say it is figurative

Even though it makes literal sense

And we switch between these two

Inconsistently now and then against.

 

We seldom have an open mind

Because we already know

And to change from that position

It would be a disconcerting blow.

 

Even when we are enlightened

We still stick to what we knew,

You see it is not about wrong and right

It is about the popular view.

 

Yet, we talk about revelation

The kind we have personally received,

For the most part, it’s extra-biblical

 But it is what we believe.

 

We would rather believe a vision

Or some personal prophecy

Than accept the literal sense of the Word

“Oh, that is not for me!”

 

We must read the word for ourselves

And let it show us the way,

It cannot mean something different

From what it actually says.

 

We are prone to great annoyance

When our positions are debunked,

It is like when our favorite boxer falls

And stays down for the count.

 

Here of lately I have struggled

With beliefs that I held dare,

Thank God, they were nothing fundamental

So I did not have to fear.

 

But they were important to me

 A part of my knowledge base,

So, when at first I had to question them,

It was not a pleasant taste.

 

At first, I vehemently resisted

Since they did not fit in with my sect

But I let scripture explain scripture

And could no longer reject.

 

When we study secular books

We understand by what the author say

But when we study the word of God

We switch to another way.

 

We jump straight to the figurative

And ignore the literal sense

And if we are apprised of our error

We indignantly take offense.

 

Let scripture interpret scripture

And always stick to the context,

Be careful not to yank out verses-

A text out of a context is a pretext.

 

Heed the Word before any other

Be tuned to the Spirit in the Word,

Consider the person and work of Jesus:

This is the purpose of God’s Word.

 

Stewart Russell © October 2019