FISH Ministry

09/19/2026

PEACE BEYOND UNDERSTANDING

There is a promise of peace to the people of God in the New Testament. Truly, the need for real, lasting peace is evident on the world scene as never before. Is genuine peace so elusive? Well, it is not passed out like ice cream cones from inflated politicians. The simple answer to the seemingly elusive state is readily found in Holy Writ, and it is not only promised, but sure enough stipulations are requisite for it.

Peace! It is an enduring status to some, and so elusive to others. Still others throw it away before they realize they have it. Some folks want domestic peace. What can be more troubling than a home where there is no peace? Others want inner peace, a reprieve from a troubled conscience, or the filling of an inner void. Still others may be as the Hatfields and the McCoys; desperately needing peace in their relationships with others. Nations cry peace, and go to extremes to avoid war and its terrible effects for generations, but these things alone do not bring peace.

The promise is made in Philippians 4:7: “And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding shall keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus.” But, wait! This verse is the promised state only when other requisites are in place that are named in the previous verses. These include readiness to stand fast in the Lord; to be unified in the body mentally in spiritual matters; when help is extended to others laboring in the Lord; when rejoicing in the Lord is genuine; when one’s moderation (conversation) of faith is known to all men; when one is not anxious, but delivers all things to God in prayer. Then the promise of such peace is sure. However, the mentioned requisites should be the possession of every believer in the Lord’s churches.

Those who look elsewhere for peace than to the Lord Jesus Christ may find a temporary topical cream for a present troubled situation, but no lasting peace. The scriptures warned that this would be the mindset of men in the last days: “For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.” I Thess. 5:3.

Thus did Jesus say to His disciples, “Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” John 14:27. One may wonder if there is an alternative to the peace that Jesus alone gives. In such case, most serious consideration should be given to the forceful and simple statement of Isa 48:22, “There is no peace, saith the LORD, unto the wicked.”

09/05/2026

IN THE MOUNT OF THE LORD IT (HE) SHALL BE SEEN!

Jehovah-jireh is one of many Hebrew names given to God as He moved to fulfill the needs of His people. This name arises out of a most unusual incident recorded in Genesis Chapter Twenty-Two. God told our father, Abraham to take Isaac and go to mountain that He would be shown and there to offer his son, Isaac, as a sacrifice unto God.

The mountain turned out to be Mt. Moriah. As most casual Bible readers know, after God tested the patriarch, He provided Himself an offering as a substitute for Isaac. It was a dramatic, traumatic test of the validity of genuine faith. It must be noted that faith, far different to a fanciful wish, is believing and depending on the word of God. Abraham knew that God had already promised that Isaac would have a son. So Abraham believed God in full assurance that if he offered up Isaac at God’s direction then God would raise him to life and give him a son (that is faith). Moreover, it was a lesson for ensuing generations of what God would do to redeem His people. At the conclusion of this great epic of faith, Abraham called the name of the place Jehovah-jireh (God provides) as it is said to this day, “In the mount of the Lord it (He) shall be seen (Provided).”

In the land of Israel there is a certain mountain. At its crest is a very large stone of considerable tonnage. In ancient centuries, it was used as a place of sacrificial offerings. Around it grew a village that became a town, that town became a city. The name of the city is Jerusalem. Within Jerusalem, Solomon built the Temple of the Lord. Much later, Muslims built the Dome of the Rock mosque on the site enclosing in its center that very rock from which (they say) Mohammed ascended unto heaven.

It is believed that this is the very stone upon which Abraham erected an alter of sacrifice for Isaac, but was given a substitute: a ram caught by its horns in a thicket nearby. Regardless, for centuries men spoke of the offering of Isaac and looked forward to the magnificent event of God’s providing Himself an acceptable offering for the sins of mankind.

Thus, in the mount of the Lord it (He) has been seen. God’s Lamb was offered in fulfillment of the type set in Abraham’s day, and that very possibly within sight of the very place of Isaac’s alter of sacrifice. How marvelous are the lessons of prophecy so clearly portrayed and preserved for all in the blessed Word. Today, that ancient prophecy and event has powerful meaning. It is on a nearby peak of this mountain that the Lamb of God will once again appear. God’s people are so ready for that event to occur.

However, the question continues to arise today: In the eye of faith, have you seen this? Have you received what God did for you as your personal gift? If each person does not receive Jesus, God’s Ram of sacrifice, then that person will not be retrieved, but sacrificed upon the altar of damnation whose end is never.

08/29/2026

PATIENCE’S HAS IT’S PRIZE

Patience! Patience! What is it anyway? Someone once said it is the ability to idle your motor when everyone else is stripping their gears. A motel office sign defined it this way: “For night service, ring this bell, then keep your shirt on while I get my pants on.” The ancient Bible word from which it is translated is “hupomeno” meaning to “stay or abide under.” It is to keep on keeping on: in calm assurance the desired result will happen.

Near fifty years ago, Laura and I found ourselves in Australia and we were more than a little amused at the many different species there. One catching my attention was the Kookaburra. It is a parrot-sized bird that makes a chilling, chattering, jungle sound; a sound that is used in most all jungle movies even though the bird cannot be found outside Australia. It is a carnivore predator, quite wild, and many people in Australia have not had nor wanted one extremely close to them.

A strong male Kookaburra could be heard each evening in the green belt next to the house where we were staying, and I really wanted to see it up close. So, I sat alone on the patio with a ball of fresh meat in my hand, not moving or making a sound. The bird came closer, but soon flew away. This was repeated several days until finally, with much caution, the bird came to me and snatched the meat from my hand. I was elated. From inside the house, a picture was made of the event, and much conversation ensued over the rare moment. But the joy of this unique experience depended upon the exercise of patience. So many good things come in the exercise of patience.

King David said, “I waited patiently for the Lord; and he inclined unto me, and heard my cry.” Psalm 40:1. Centuries before him another great patriarch, Abraham reaped the reward of patience. God made great and exceedingly precious promises to him, and the scriptures affirm for all time that “. . . after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise. Hebrews 6:15.

A lot of good things are associated with Abraham. His name is used often in modern religious conversations, but the reward of his patience is seldom mentioned. This example of the patriarch should mean much to every Christian. Like Abraham, modern day Christians must exercise patience to win the reward. The author of Hebrews included this very prescription, saying, “For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise. Heb. 10:36.

Finally, we hear King David again from his vast experience, “Rest in the Lord, and wait patiently for him . . . Psalm 37:7.

08/22/2026

HISTORY REPEATS ITSELF SPIRITUALLY

Students of Hebrew grammar soon discover a number of joyous gems of truth in the scriptures that otherwise lie mostly hidden. No, these discoveries are not earth shattering, certainly not contradictory to the JKV English edition, but enlightening.

Consider the incidents in Egypt as Moses repeatedly asked Pharaoh to let the Hebrews go. In Exodus 5:1, 7:16, 8:1, 8:20, 21; 9:1,13; 10:3, 4 the request or demand is repeatedly made, “Let my people go.” In those instances, in which Pharaoh initially agreed, he changed his mind when the plague was removed, one wonders why he was so adamant in his refusal. The answer, of course, lies in Exodus 10:1. God told Moses, “For I have hardened his heart, and the heart of his servants, that I might shew these my signs before him.” So, God hardened his heart.

Now, enter information from Hebrew grammar. In parsing the stems of a Hebrew verb varying degrees of intensity are conveyed: simple, intensive, causative, reflexive. Take a verb as “Kill” This would be read: “He killed” (simple); “He killed, poisoned, shot, and crushed” (intensive); “He caused to kill” (causative). “He killed himself” (reflexive). Since most folks have forgotten their exposure to grammar, the point will be no longer labored, but concluded. The verb “hardened” referencing the heart of Pharaoh is in the intensive degree in Hebrew, and may be understood to mean God made adamant, turned to stone reinforced with steel, so that no other option was then exercisable. God would get glory from Pharaoh and His servants in this manner.
A similar matter is related in Deuteronomy 2:30 as Moses spoke of “Sihon, king of Heshbon would not let us pass by him: for the LORD thy God hardened his spirit, and made his heart obstinate, that He might deliver him into thy hand, as appeareth this day.”

Understanding how God dealt with the forces of evil in men in history gives one insight as to how he may deal with them again in the future, pointedly as they more adamantly reject truth in the end of this age.
It is to this that the Apostle Paul pens the sobering information about those who receives not the love of the truth as recorded in 2 Thessalonians 2:11-12, “And for this cause. God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: that they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. . .”

When God sends obstinacy or delusion, there is no turning from it. With exception of tiny pockets of New Covenant believers here and there, the world does not hear, nor does it want to hear the truth of God’s Word. Could it be that we are seeing people under that strong delusion already? If so, the time of great revivals is over, and God’s people need to intensify their study of the Word, and their fellowship with one another. God’s people have been here before as exemplified in the antediluvian world and in the chronicles of Israel under the Judges. History repeats itself spiritually.

07/20/2026

NEVER ALONE OR SEPARATED BY SELF-WILL

A lot of people in this world are extroverts and so gregarious! The rest of us are introverts. Extrovert personalities like company, lots of people, lots of talk, etc. Introverts on the other hand prefer a quiet corner to read a book and can be quite happy being mostly alone.

But there are times when both extroverts and introverts may share a feeling of solitude in matters of faith. While seeking to focus life on the things of the Lord, it is easy to think no one else cares. It seems the whole world is laughing its way to a devil’s hell, and where are those who will share rejoicing in the Word? It is especially discouraging when folk who should be striving to follow God’s path appear to walk everywhere but there. Truly, in those times one might feel that he is alone in striving to honor God in his living. Perhaps Noah had a right to feel that way. Elijah definitely felt that way as he fled from Jezebel’s threat of his life. But even then there were more than 7,000 who had not bent their knee to Baal.

It is no longer arguable that churches are shrinking and true Christians are becoming fewer. But should that not encourage us to let our light shine even brighter? When one is bold enough to stand up for God and His Word and Way, it is amazing how many people are found who are keenly interested in learning of God’s ways and power, especially if they think it can truly transform their lives.

This then is the power of God working through His people. He is able to make us to be the salt of the earth and the light of the world. Undeniably, the time any of us have to let God work in us in this way is extremely short. So, urgency intensifies.

The lesson has to be relearned. When we are weak then are we strong in God’s might. God is pleased to repel the wise and reveal himself to the simple. He is pleased to dwell not in the big things, but in the small things of seemingly little consequence to men whose mind is firmly fixed on worldly things. In identifying with Him, the believer knows that He is the head of the corner, but it must be remembered that first He is the stone the builders rejected.

Happy indeed are those who come to know Him and walk in His ways. They learn what the great characters of the Bible learned, causing them to rejoice. They were never alone! Neither are his dear children today. He promises, “I will never leave thee nor forsake thee.”

One does not have to look very far to find dedicated disciples. They are not in the hoopla of the world around us, but in the quiet out-of-the-way places where love grows and heavenly company remains. Where this is not true, it could be that self-will has taken the ascendency.

06/13/2026

ETERNAL SECURITY IN THE OLD TESTAMENT

God’s people rejoice over the many New Testament scriptures that teach eternal security for the believer, and rightly so. It is not that several references of the same are absent from the Old Testament, rather they are often not so readily apparent to the English reader. One such reference is especially enriched by the way translation puts it in various contexts. That term is the Hebrew “Chashaq.” As this story unfolds, what may appear to be odd coalesces into a common idea producing a tremendous blessing to those who know the Lord.

Various usages of the Hebrew term appear in several different English terms. Some of these are:
1. In I Kings 7:33 the translation is “Spokes” as part of a wheel.
2. The “fillets” connecting the vertical boards of the tabernacle is translated from “Chashaq.” Exo. 38:28.
3. Emotional “Desire” as in a man desiring a woman is often translated from “Chashaq.”
4. This term is translated “longeth,” as an action applied to what a caananite prince did to Dinah, the only daughter of Jacob. This caused the sons of Jacob to slay an entire village. Gen 34:8
5. The term is also translated “Love” in Isaiah 38:17.

There are other similar usages, but one can easily see that the idea however used Is “Attachment,” whether emotional or physical.
Underscoring the meaning of the title of this article is that of Isaiah 38:17, “Behold for peace, I had great bitterness: but thou hast in love (Chashaq)to my soul delivered it from the pit of corruption: for thou hast cast all my sins behind thy back.” This is not something the believer did or merited, but action initiated by God extended to the soul. It is therefore not the option of the believer to undo what God has done, and the power of preservation is only as strong as God Himself.

Readers should now coordinate John 10:29 and Romans 8:38-39 with “Chashaq” and rejoice!

06/03/2026

BAPTISM DOOR AND GUARD OF THE SPIRIT ENDOWED CHURCH
(Requested by several)

Baptism in water of a professed believer in Christ Jesus as it was practiced in New Testament times and continues to today, began with one man: John the Baptist. He was sent from God to prepare a people for His only begotten Son. He baptized such as brought forth life-fruit appropriate to repentance. He knew no other method or practice than immersion or burial of a candidate in water. Consequently, the scriptures state that John was baptizing in Aenon near Salim because there was much water there. John 3:23.

John was austere, but most faithful to his calling. He refused to baptize the unrepentant. Realizing he alone had heaven’s authority to baptize, he must not violate its divine constraints. So it remained until the initiation of the public ministry of Jesus whom John baptized and announced to Israel. Upon the assimilation of the apostolic church, Jesus placed the authority for water baptism in the New Testament church. Presently, it alone has heaven’s authority to administer the ordinance as specifically stated in Matthew 28:18-30. Like John the Baptist, true churches must not violate its heaven-given restraints.

The importance of baptism is underscored in Luke 7:29-30, “And all the people that heard him, and the publicans, justified God, being baptized with the baptism of John. But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the counsel of God against themselves, being not baptized of him.” Through the centuries, the Lord’s true churches though known by various names in sundry countries, one name identified them all: Anabaptist. They were, as true churches of their descendants are, adamant about the authority that makes a baptism valid.

Following the Divine order, disciples are made through repentance from sin and belief in Jesus as the only Savior. Baptism is then administered upon the authority of a New Testament church and by which the new convert is entered into the Holy Spirit endowed body, the baptizing church.

In recent times much has been done to erode faith in the Bible and in the work of the Lord’s churches, not the least of which is about baptism. False churches may sprinkle or pour and even admit infants to what they call baptism, but it is iniquity plain and simple. Still others, claiming to be scriptural and more conservative will not question a proposed member’s baptism as to method or administration. They may claim that so long as it is “Believers Baptism,” all is well. (Believer’s baptism is an idea that it does not matter who administers baptism on a believer). All is never well when man’s ideas supplant the Word of God. There is a bible word for that, too. It is called “Iniquity.”

The plain truth is folks who may be admitted to a scriptural church with invalid baptism are denied an understanding of the faith once delivered to the saints, and the unity of Jesus prayer in John 17. They will not stand in troublesome times. They cannot stand because they are in opposition to the counsel of God as much as the Pharisees were in Luke 7:30.

Let Satan’s counterfeits do as they may. It remains that heaven recognizes only the directions it has given. Far be it from any of us to assume editorial changes to the Holy Word.

05/16/2026

WHO PREPARES YOUR SPIRITUAL TABLE

Elisha was a mighty prophet of God in ancient Israel; the successor of Elijah, and a worker of miracles among the people of his time. Some of his mighty works are recorded in 2 Kings 4. A dearth prevailed in Gilgal (rolling hill country) when Elijah visited the sons of the prophets there. At his command a huge pot was prepared for pottage sufficient to feed all the people. One of the food preparation workers went into the field to gather herbs, and found a wild vine from which he gathered many gourds and shredded them into the pot. When served, the people could not eat. The gourds were poisonous and doubtless very bitter. They cried out that there was death in the pot. Elisha commanded that meal be cast into the pot then the pottage served. And so it was that the food was good and all the people ate with no harm.

What a wonderful story! But why is it in the Bible, and does it have meaning for this generation? In a world of sin and degradation, there is almost always a spiritual dearth. Too many times, what is gathered to satisfy spiritual hunger is nothing more than certain religious garbage (Iniquity) that can only produce eternal harm because it is not of God, but of man, or worse, from Satan’s recipe book. It may look good, sound good, and offered as good, but in spiritual affairs nothing is good but that which comes from God. That which is unknown and wild is not to be trusted as a remedy and guide to satisfy spiritual hunger, and to direct the lives of men toward eternal reward.

So, Elijah ordered that meal (flour) be added to the pot, and the people served. It was then that they found no harm at all in the pottage. Now flour is the substance of bread. Jesus said “I am that bread of life,” John 6:48. One may eat of the bread that Jesus gives, and find his hunger satisfied. In fact, He stated that those who do not eat of that bread of life have no part with Him. Truly, there is death in the pottage of this world, but Jesus, the bread of life negates the effects of sin and of death by His own eternal righteousness which is imparted to all those who hear Him and follow His directions.

Surely, the tables of life are laden for many banquets, but what is being served? On the other hand, there is a banquet provided by the Lord Jesus that a man may eat thereof and live forever. Whose table are you feeding from? Are you confident that yours’ is a banquet of life, or is it a banquet of death from the delicacies of the devil?

Jesus said, “Blessed are they who hunger and thirst after righteousness for they shall be filled.” Matt. 5:6. David said, “O taste and see that the LORD is good: Blessed is the man that trusteth in him.” Psalm 34:8. At the Lord’s banquet there is no death in the pot, only life, and that everlasting!

05/06/2026

UNDERSTANDING ANTICHRIST

The apostle John uses the term “Antichrist” four different times in his epistles; three times in I John 2, and one time in 2 John 1. He affirms that in his day, there were many already by which the last time is made known. In the other references, he describes the spirit, attitude, and nature of antichrist, identifying Characteristics instead of outright personages. Such are appropriate and in total harmony with other bible references. Of course, over the passage of time and through national crises, many actions have been referred to as antichrist. Some of these include Social Security numbers; rationing stamps for sugar, gasoline, and auto supplies during WWII etc.

Perhaps a more concentrated focus on the subject will be helpful. The term “Anti” is a prefix to many words. It means “Against” or the opposite to the meaning of the word to which it is attached. “Christ” to the dismay of some, is not the sir name of Jesus, rather it is His title. He is Jesus the Christ. The meaning of this Greek term which is transliterated into English is “Anointed.”

Anointing has its roots in the heart of Hebrew history. Kings and high priests were anointed with oil, symbolic of the Holy Spirit which did indeed accompany the official anointing with oil. It was the enabling power for the anointed person to fulfill the duties of his office. Only two entities have been anointed in the New Testament. The first was Jesus at His baptism as He embarked upon His ministry of ultimate High Priest, Prophet, King, and Head of the spiritual body. The second was the anointing of the spiritual body at Pentecost. Hence, the Head and the body are Holy Spirit anointed as one as Jesus emphatically prayed in His recorded prayer in John 17. Additionally, John wrote in his epistle, I John 4:17, “Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.”

So, to be antichrist is to be anti-Jesus, in the form of being “Anti” the teachings of Jesus; hence, “Anti” the Holy Spirit empowered body of the Anointed One, even the church which is the house of God, the pillar and ground of the truth. And who is more “Anti” the true church of our Lord, and its teachings than the bulk of what is called “Christianity?” It is a chilling thought that some of the Lord’s churches that are allowing themselves to be aligned with “Christianity” as defined by the Catholic and Protestant theologies may unwittingly find themselves in the camp of Antichrist, whose lamps are extinguished at the midnight cry!

Is the church of your membership swallowing the antichrist theology of universal church and believer’s baptism?

04/30/2026

ANNOUNCING A PERU PROJECT FOR IMMEDIATE ACTION.

Missionary Doug Clements is starting a work in a needful area in Peru. He has asked FISH Ministry if we could supply 50 additional solar-powered audio Bibles in Spanish for advancing this work. I told him we would be thrilled to help. If you or your church would like to get in on this opportunity, we will receive offerings for the Peru Project until the 15th of June to allow time for procurement of the units and shipping.

Clements will be in Peru in July to personally place the units in the most effective areas. We are excited to help get this one done. Designated offerings will be the main source of funding the project, and Undesignated offerings to FISH Ministry will be used to help underwrite the project. Funds should be sent to FISH Ministry, P. O. Box 1023, Bryant, AR 72089 no later than June 10th. Funds may also be received on our website,

FellowHelper is the first part of our corporate name of FellowHelpers To The Truth, Inc. Shortly after the start of this ministry a hard copy newspaper named “The FellowHelper” was sent out four times a year to over 8,000 recipients. It contained information on all the works and ministry being d...