Eli Stutzman

Your Church has no Rules!

This is what some local Amish have observed with regard to non-Amish churches in this area. Why, they exclaim, with no fences the sheep will all disappear! Funny they should say that, since sheep are such a good example of the difference between the Old Testament and New Testament system of governing. Also I appreciate the honest comment that permits a conversation. And my thanks to Andy who told me of this.
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My Vows to the Amish Church: Are They Binding?

As a young Amish boy, I was taught that when I reached a certain age, I would be expected to join the church. In doing so, I would be declaring Jesus Christ as the Son of God, and also my personal vows to our church. And like most other young people my age, I did this without a full knowledge of how salvation works. As I got older, I realized that what I’d been taught did not satisfy my spiritual need for knowing exactly what salvation is. And in time, a very strong sense of not belonging, finally led me to leave the Amish. But what about those vows I made to the church?
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What is This Thing Called Repentance?

Matthew 3:1-3: In those days came John the Baptist, preaching in the wilderness of Judea, and saying, Repent ye: for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. For this is he that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make his paths straight.
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Maps Inside

Many years ago if you wanted to get somewhere, you would ask directions from someone who knew the way. They might tell you to turn at a certain landmark, which could be a large rock, a tree, or a big red barn. All was well if you had good directions and followed them carefully. Since then, maps and compasses and GPS (global positional system) have guided us. Knowing the old way of getting directions did not necessarily help in using a new method of navigation. With a map, you need to know where you are at any time. You have to learn to read a map in order for it to be useful. It is a whole new method of finding your way. The difficulty we have in changing from a system of law to a life of grace as expressed in the New Testament is like learning a new type of navigation. Living under the law was a lot like getting directions. If you followed them carefully, all was well. If you listened carefully, memorized them exactly, and if the instructor was accurate and clear, it could be simple. Any glitch and you could easily be lost, but with practice you might get good at it. With the advent of maps, your previous understanding does not help.
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It's His Nature

The Bible says that we are sinners by nature. What does that mean? Could we stop sinning if we tried hard enough? Make the penalty very severe and people will not dare to break the law. Is that even possible?
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Parachutes and Safety Lines

In October 2013, we decided to fly to Minneapolis-St Paul and then drive to Wisconsin to visit. As we sat in the boarding area waiting for our plane, the pilot and crew walked by. I wondered what the crew would have thought if we had strapped parachutes to our backs as we boarded the plane. Wouldn’t their first reaction be: these people don’t trust our flying? Yet that is exactly what I see some who call themselves believers do! We know salvation is by grace, but to be safe, we add a lot of works that are designed (in our own minds) to please God. Now good works are not a bad thing, but we cannot base our trust in God on two different systems. Either Jesus is sufficient or He is not. The function of safety lines and life preservers is to help when other means fail. Things that fail need the extra backup device.
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Missionaries

"The Kingdom of God is come nigh unto you. This was Jesus' message in Luke 10 to the seventy disciples as He sent them out: heal the sick and preach the good news. Those few words were not hard to remember. Nothing about repentance or salvation was said at this time. Thus began the sending of groups of people to speak the gospel to those outside of their community.
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Pride and It's Consequences

Jonathan Edwards wrote this about pride over 250 years ago: Pride is much more difficult to discern than any other corruption because, by nature, pride is a person having too high a thought of himself. Is it any surprise, then, that a person who has too high a thought of himself is unaware of it? He thinks the opinion he has of himself has just grounds and therefore is not too high. As a result, there is no other matter in which the heart is more deceitful and unsearchable. The very nature of it is to work self-confidence and drive away any suspicion of evil respecting itself.
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Bodily Resurrection: Can It Possibly Be Real?

Throughout Christian history, no event stands out as sharply as the resurrection of Jesus Christ. Many in that day could not believe that such an event really took place. In all the funerals you and I have witnessed, death has always been final. Simple reasoning tells us that the resurrection is impossible. But God had a plan. Death would lose its sting, and the grave would lose its victory.
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Rekindle The Fire

The book of Galatians is one of those books of the Bible that has been of tremendous influence in my life. In the other letters to the churches, specifically 1 and 2 Corinthians and Colossians, Paul wrote concerning immoral practices that needed to be purged from the church. The church at Galatia had a different problem. It was the same thing that so often happens when churches lose their spiritual zeal: they default to legalism. Martin Luther said, "Religion is the default mode of the human heart." Religion enslaves, and the pure gospel of Jesus Christ sets us free. Anyone, regardless of birth or creed, can be set free.
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The Value Of Building On A Rock

Matthew 7:24-27 says: Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.
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The Two Covenants

As Israel stood around the foot of Mount Sinai and waited for the law to be given, they experienced sights and sounds that were very frightening to a group of slaves that had just been freed. What a trip! Just a few days ago they had been serving Pharaoh and his slave masters. Now they were in the presence of the God of all creation!
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Get Into The Wheelbarrow!

Years ago when I was young in the faith, I became enthused about the gospel message as I understood it more and more. A young man in my Sunday school class came to me expressing how he thought I perhaps had found the key to faith. I pondered that because I had never thought of faith having or needing a key. The Bible says; Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. (Hebrews 11: 1)
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The Titanic

Few shipwrecks have held our attention as long as the story of the Titanic. On April 15, 2012, it will be 100 years ago since the tragedy of that fateful night occurred. Our ancestors came across the Atlantic Ocean on wooden sailing ships that were small and weak compared to the Titanic.
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How Shall We Ever Please God?

One of the most interesting and inspiring explanations anywhere with regard to our new relationship in Christ is in Romans chapter 7 where Paul likens the walk of grace to a marriage scenario. But first we will visit briefly what law is like.
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The Power of The Blood

All over the world the value of blood transfusions is well known and accepted. After an accident, the victim is often rushed to a hospital where one of the most common treatments is a blood transfusion. Blood donor clinics proclaim that the gift of blood is the gift of life. Many of us have in fact donated blood to help those in need. Having a transfusion at the right time can make the difference between life and death. It is indeed a precious gift to a person in need of it.
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Telescopes And Microscopes

Back in the years when I was growing up, dad bought a telescope. We would go on top of the hill and look around. Off in the distance was a barn with writing that we could ordinarily not read from the distance which was about 1½ miles away. With the telescope, we could read the writing which was an ad for a drug store in Millersburg. That was impressive to me. It made things look so much closer.
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Of Garments and Bad Apples

If we had a few barrels of apples and put them into cold storage at perfect temperature and humidity, sooner or later one apple would rot. Then another and another until they are all affected. As you have heard said, one bad apple will rot the whole barrel.
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Are You Dead?

When you get born again by surrendering your life and asking Jesus to live in your heart, can you now go and live any way you want to?
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Why Is It So Important To Believe Jesus Is The Son Of God?

The church was just in its very early stages of growth. Peter and John had been imprisoned overnight for preaching Jesus as the most important person ever in God's dealing with men. If you read Acts 4, you will realize that the above statement was part of a very short statement as to who Jesus Christ is and was.
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Is Jesus Really God?

In these days the question arises more frequently than ever before. Recently when the "World's Squarest Teenagers' was shown on British TV, their visit to a mosque had the statement from a Mosque leader to the Amish teenagers that they didn't believe Jesus was the son of God, but a prophet.
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The Most Important Thing

Over the years, we have seen many instances of people vying over who is right or who is wrong. Now of course we all want to be right and win the argument. To prove our ‘rightness' we can quote the people of old, wise people of today and scripture to no end.
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Hearing And Seeing But Not Hearing Or Seeing

During a recent conversation with a person seeking to be baptized, I sensed the lack of assurance of her salvation. She was struggling with God's forgiveness and deliverance. So I asked her, do you remember the story of the one thief on the cross when he looked over and said, "Lord, remember me when thou comest into thy kingdom" and Jesus responded, by saying, "verily I say unto thee, today shalt thou be with me in paradise?"
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Good Deeds From The Heart

Following the recent earthquake in Haiti, agencies from all over the world swooped into the country and set up rescue efforts as well as feeding and tending to the health needs of those caught in the disaster. Some of these aid workers were Christian, many were not. Canada and The USA had their armed forces involved.
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What Is A Redeemer?

The function of a redeemer is hard to describe without going to the situation a slave would have encountered. In this age, we are not exposed to the harshness of slavery every day. But if you will, let's imagine being a slave 200 years ago.
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Is Being Tempted Sin?

After God had created the heavens and earth, he gave the man only one commandment and that was soon broken. It would seem so easy to avoid the tree in the center of the garden, but temptation was there long before the transgression. The serpent had Eve consider all the good reasons to eat of the fruit.
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A Brief Look At Peter's Life

Few people in the Bible have caught the attention of many of us, as does the apostle Peter. There were twelve apostles, yet none dominate the New Testament as much as Peter. Matthew chapter four tells us of Peter and Andrew's call from Jesus as they were fishing. They were all simple people who made a living working with their hands.
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Some Thoughts On Faith And Trust

Too often we hear the expression "We must go out in blind faith." Is faith really blind? Is faith limited to those who are physically blind? Do we have to be totally blind to reality to have it? What do people mean when they use the term "blind faith" and is that what the Bible teaches?
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The Bottom Line

WHAT DOES GOD SAY I HAVE TO DO TO ENTER HEAVEN?
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The Greatest Commandment

I knew a lady several years ago that, when raising her children, would withdraw love from them as punishment. When they displeased her, she would say, "I don't love you." This was how she controlled them. This is called conditional love. I love you only if you obey me. Those children eventually grew up and the emotional problems they had made their life almost impossible.
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Who Is My Neighbor?

The following parable is probably the most well known of all parables. To many it is known as the parable of the Good Samaritan. In order to fully understand the impact on the listeners, we shall look in depth a little more.
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A New Beginning

People of every kindred and nationality need to have hope set before them at all times, or else they can become despondent. A new president takes office and many people hope that will set our nation on a course to better times. We move to a new location and hope to open a new page on the way our neighbors relate to us.
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The Day The Church's Borders Fell

One of the most fascinating stories I cherish begins in Acts 10. The apostle Peter was in Joppa visiting and ministering in the churches. Joppa is today a part of Tel Aviv, the capitol of Israel. Jerusalem lies southeast about forty miles and Caesarea is about thirty-five miles north from Joppa. Travel was mostly on foot and people often traveled in small groups for safety.
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What Is A Believer?

In the book of Acts 16:31 it tells us of a sermon by Paul and Silas to the jailer; And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house. It seemed too easy to preach such a short sermon and have such a large impact on the life of their jailer. Surely many of these Roman rulers had personally met and heard Jesus in their earlier years. How could anyone not believe what they had seen with their own eyes? But there is more to it! Lets examine what the difference is between believing about and believing on.
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Still The Manna Fell

One of the more familiar stories from the Old Testament is about the time when the children of Israel needed food and God gave them manna. Exodus 16:35 And the children of Israel did eat the manna forty years, until they came to a land inhabited; they did eat the manna, until they came unto the borders of the land of Canaan. This fills me with wonder at the size of God's grace.
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It Is Written

When we make a major purchase or wish to have something understood properly, we put the words in writing. The spoken word has weight also, but time has a way of causing us to forget exactly what was said. When God created heaven and earth, he simply spoke all things into existence.
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To Forgive And Forget

When the Nickel Mines schoolhouse shooting occurred last year, there was a lot of talk about the quickness of the Lancaster Amish to forgive. Forgiving quickly is much better than taking a lot of time.
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Hay-Ropes, Ice, and Faith

When I was young and growing up, we had one of those large old barns, with four haymows. When we put loose hay in the back mows, we children often had the job of pulling back the carriage to the center for the next load. My older cousins who happened to be helping with hay showed us that you could ride the rope down from the crosstie. That looked risky, so we would climb halfway up and try that first. When we came to the point where we believed that was safe, we would climb higher and grab the rope for a ride down. I began to have faith in that rope. And to gain faith, I had to become familiar with the object-in this case the rope.
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Gifts and Rewards

When I was a youngster, one of the Christmas gifts I remember most is when Dad gave me a BB gun for Christmas. You may say that was a risky thing to give a fourteen-year-old. Yes, there are gifts that carry risk because of the potential to do harm. What do you suppose would have happened if I had chosen to shoot BB's at a barn window or any of the farm animals? I am certain Dad would have quickly separated the gun from me. However, fear is not what kept me from misusing the BB gun. It was love and respect for the family.
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Slave or Free?

After the end of the civil war, all the slaves in the United States were set free by the thirteenth amendment. The ability to read was not as widespread as it is now and slaves in particular weren't able to pick up a newspaper and see that indeed they were no longer slaves. The news was spread mostly by word of mouth and the slave owners were not likely to try to convince their slaves that they were free. It was in their interest to try to convince them that they were still bound to their old owners so as to get as much free labor as possible. If a slave believed in his heart that he was still a slave, he would remain in bondage.
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