Numidia Mennonite Bible School - Reflector Yearbook (Numidia, PA)

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PERSON AND WORK OF THE HOLY SPIRIT Is the Holy Spirit among us today? How can we know? The Spirit was at work throughout the Old Testament. We notice He had a part in the creation, and also worked through men like Joseph, David, Daniel, and Ezekiel. In his day Joel prophesied the pouring out of the Spirit upon all people. Centuries later, John the Baptist foretold of Christ baptizing with the Holy Ghost. Jesus prom- ised to send the Comforter when He returned to the Father. On the day of Pentecost the Holy Spirit came upon the disciples, and thus the church was born. Jews, Samaritans, and Gentiles received the Holy Spirit. No race is ex- cluded. Signs accompanied the coming of the Spir- it, namely, sound like a rushing mighty wind, cloven tongues as of fire, and speaking in other tongues or languages. These were signs to confirm the Word of God. But these signs are not necessary today since the Word is confirmed and superior to signs. The Spirit's work today is to comfort and teach the believer, and reprove or convict the world of sin, righteousness and judgment. He testifies of Jesus and not of himself. He has part in our New Birth experience and lives in the body of the believer. Today God is dwelling in the hearts of men through the Holy Spirit. What a bless- ing to the child of God. --MARVIN HERSHBERGER ORDINANCES Thinking of ordinances our mind focuses on the seven which are brought out clearly in the Scripture. We likened the ordinances to a tree. The outward ceremony or act was referred to as the bark, and the real signif- icance of it as the inner life of the tree. The point was brought out that if some bark is missing the tree will suffer, and if there is no life in the tree the outer shell is worth- less. As an example, the form of baptism without a new birth experience will profit Us nothing. On the other hand, if we have been born again and do not observe baptism, we are not obeying Christ's command. brotherle OIO atonement, feet washing - divine yd 3SS1St211tCe, devotional covering - lov OT -Sr, Christian .salutation - brotherly e, anointing with oil - spiritual healing and marriage - union with Christ. The out: Ward ceremony or act is to express the inner experience. I am sure each one in this class established a reater a reciation and realiz ed g pp ' more fully the necessity of all seven ordi- nances. -ANNA MARY BAUMAN Where Will You Spend Eternity? THE DOCTRINE OF HEAVEN AND HELL If a man die, shall he live again? Job 14: l4a. Death is inevitable, you cannot by- pass it. Death is basically separation, but for the Christian, death is also the gateway to a fuller life. In this study we were reminded of the reality of the unseen, intangible and the here- after, involving scriptures from Genesis to Revelation. In the day which we are living, we realize the much deception concerning the place of Hell. After discussing the various erroneous ideas of hell, we were made aware of the fact, according to Revelation 20:14, that the ultimate destiny of the wicked is the Lake of Fire, where they will be punished ac- cording to their works forever. Truly this gives us a renewed desire to help others Hee from the wrath to come. We, also, considered the place of eternal bliss for the righteous, heaven, a prepared place for a prepared people. A place where the wicked cease from troubling and where the weary be at rest. This place of rest, Of purity and of glory will be attained to only by the strait and narrow way whlch 15 the way of the cross. 'gRejo1ce, and 'be exceed,- ing glad: for great is your reward in heaven. Matthew 5 : l2a. -ROY ZIMMERMAN 28

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SECTIGN II - BIBLE DocrRlNE PER! SEPARATION -- A SATISFYING WAY OF LIFE And be not conformed to this World, but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, . . . Romans l2:2. After transfor- mation we no longer desire the things of this World. We take a different path in life, one of Nonconfomiity or Separation. In Creation God used the Principle of Separation. Light was divided from darkness as were the waters above from those beneath the firmament, and the land from the sea. Some Old Testament characters who prac- ticed separation were Noah - Genesis 7:7, Abraham - Genesis 12: l-4 and the Child- ren of Israel-Exodus 8:23. God is still calling us to Separation. II Corinthians 6:17. Wherefore, come out from among them, and be ye separate . . . Our practice of Separation reaches into all areas of life. Our homes, cars, attire and speech must show that We are pilgrims and strangers here. With this concept fixed in our minds, we do not desire to be unequally yoked in worldly organizations. Social life and marriage are also very im- portant areas of separation. Choosing our associates and companions, we must be sure they are the kind that will help us to a closer relation with the Lord. Separation is God,s way for us in life. Living therein we have God's blessing, and having the blessing, we are truly satisfied. --MABEL WISE NONRESISTANCE To the average worldly minded man, non- resistance is a vague fantasy. To some, the mention of it would stir up resentment, im- mediately thinking of the cowards who are just too scared to fight. To other people it's an idealistic term. They admire those who live this type of life, but are not willing to apply the power of Christ to their own lives. For the Christian, not resisting evil is a way of life. It affects our whole walk from the proper use of our tongue to not partici- pating in carnal warfare. A firm stand on this doctrine often meant death to Christians of bygone years. A new birth experience is essential to live a truly nonresistant life. 27 While nonresistance was not God's plan for the Old Testament, we find many inter- esting types there to apply to our lives today. The error of Pacifism is a counterfeit of Biblical nonresistance, and is very prevalent in our day. The theory is to oppose war as a means to make peace. This view is erron- eous, and God's blessing is not on it. We are encouraged to follow Jesus, the one who exemplified nonresistance perfectly, and live that kind of life ourselves. -GLENN ZIMMERMAN G0d's Way Is Best SATAN AND HIS FORCES Be sober, be vigilant, because your ad- versary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: whom resist steadfast in the faith. I Pet. 5:8,9a. The Christian needs to understand his enemies in order to be victorious in spiritual warfare. Satan and his forces must be considered and faced realistically today. The wholesale apostasy, moral degeneracy, and political- religious ecuminicity are stark reminders of his present accomplishments. Another evi- dence of his existence is the tremendous occult revival in our land. A good warning for all of us in connection with this is to never seek knowledge or display interest in the realms of darkness and the future be- yond what the Bible tells us. Prayer is our only link to the supernatural. Satan is the most depraved being that exists. In his fall he took with him many angels who now work for him as demons. His tactics are many, old and new, but all bear the trademark of deception. However there is a very positive and joy- ous note to this study for we see that Satan has his limitations. He isn't omnipresent, omnipotent, or onmiscient and he cannot see our link of faith to God. His certain final doom is to be cast into the lake of fire and brimstone. Finally, the measure of power that he has over us is the measure in which we neglect truth and sound doctrine, for, greater is he that is in you than he that is in the world. -MARK TORKELSON Is th can WG The Ter tam creatiol Joseph, In h out of I later, J baptizil ised to to the On t came uj was bo receiver cluded. Sign: it, nam cloven other 1 signs tc signs ai is conf The teach ti world He test has pa lives ir Tod: men th ing to 1 Thir on the in the to 21 tra referre icance point missin no life less. witho us not been we ar-

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ETERNAL ABSOLUTES Something Eternal is everlasting and not subject to time. That which is Absolute IS established as truth and is unquestionable and immovable. The Father, Son and Spirit are Eternal Absolutes. Four of their absolute attributes are: omnipotence, omniscience, omnipres- ence and immutability. Man is a finite image of the Infinite God. He was created threefold, spirit, soul and body. Manis spiritual condition has an ef- fect on the soul and body. His soul will live forever whether lost or saved. Angels are eternal, spiritual beings vastly inferior to God but superior to natural man. Satan is the god of this world but he is limit- ed. He is not omnipotent, omnipresent, or omniscient. Satan's eternal destiny is fixed. The Bible is the complete and final revel- ation of God's will for man today. Since it is divinely inspired, it is absolutely reliable and infallible and it will never change nor pass away. Holiness is required of man by God. It involves our actions which spring from our thinking and motives and is related to our eternal destiny. Judgment and rewards are shown in the Old and New Testaments. We are judged according to our works and privileges. Re- wards are based on faith and obedience. May we seek to live holy lives and obey the great and mighty God that we may re- ceive the gift of eternal life. -VERNON L. KURTZ DOCTRINE OF THE CHURCH . . . Upon this Rock I will build my Church' and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. Matthew 16:18. We might ask the question, What rock? or What church? Jesus Christ is the rock foundation on which the church, a born again body of be- lievers, is built. We have types of the church in the Old Testament, but the beginning of the Chris- tian Church was on the day of Pentecost when the Holy Spirit was poured out upon the believers. The purpose of the church is to bring honor and glory to God and to prepare her- self Cthe brldeb for the great day when she wlllcbe united more completely with Jesus Christ fthe bridegrooml. 29 In waiting for this blessed experience, there is much work to be done. Saints need to be encouraged, sinners need to be warned, and new leaders need to be called. Apart from being a member of the true church, we cannot live a full Christian life. Neither can we practice the ordinances which we are commanded to keep. We need fellow- ship and encouragement from others of like precious faith. The Church must be kept pure andfree from sin and all worldly and political in- volvement. Therefore, discipline is neces- sary at times. As we, the bride of Christ await His re- turn, may we continue to present Him by word and life. -MARILYN KRAYBILL BIBLE AND SCIENCE At the beginning of Bible and Science class, we established five goals that we, as a class, would like to work toward. They were set forth as follows: That this study may, 1. Enhance our faith and confidence in God. 2. Establish and strengthen our confi- dence in the Bible as the Word of God. 3. Make us aware of the fact that a com- prehensive knowledge of the scrip- ture supersedes any other form of knowledge. 4. Convince us that Christ came in the flesh is the prime expression of the wisdom of God. 5. Fortify us against the influence of unbelieving scientists such as the theory that nothing is absolute, leaving God out of origin of life re- iqlting in irresponsible approach to 1 e. ' One thought that was brought out early in this study was that we do not study the Bible from a scientific viewpoint but the sciences from a scriptural viewpoint. Some of the sciences we discussed were as follows. Science of theology the stud . . , , Y Oi reflglon, science of astronomy, the study o ' r ' ce estlal bodles, biology s study of l1fe, and geology which treats the history of the earth and its life. We endeavored to discover what the scrip- tures teach on these sciences . This study was challenging, again remind- ing us God's Wo d ' ' u ' r IS the final and absolute authority 1n every area and aspect of life. -WILMER ESHBACH FORD In a unsoun in our Word I meant The the H114 Althou found, have a authori part. Mod the Bil the tin Bible X old art have 1 could W The ique. Bible 2 them, s and Rc Word i specific figures antityp found t Books TH. As c plan oi Christ, the dec 1 1 :33. the wi: unsear. past fii Fou: cerning virgin reason lars ot to see sion of