Harold S. Martin, longtime author for Bible Helps, passed away on January 5, 2024, at the age of 93. Harold was married to Priscilla (Miller). Together they had six children, with many grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Harold taught mathematics for many years in the Spring Grove Area School District.
My earliest memories of Harold are from our families visiting back and forth. My dad was a humble editor with a strong resolve to publish and distribute a small periodical with solid gospel messages. Harold had a way of explaining complicated theological issues so the average person could gain some understanding of them. He was especially good at condensing longer articles explaining complex thoughts into eight-page, double-spaced manuscripts that were of suitable length for the eight-page Bible Helps booklets.
Early in his career, Harold developed a passion for adhering to and promoting the fundamentals of the faith. These were expressed in a specially-issued little booklet entitled, “What Happened to the Church of the Brethren?” This booklet was published and distributed by Bible Helps in the early 1960s. Many of Harold’s sermons and articles were centered on the idea that the Bible is indeed the Word of God and other basic tenets of conservative, evangelical Christianity. He also expounded on the “distinctives” from the New Testament as held and practiced by the early Brethren. Through his easy-to-understand articles, the outreach of Bible Helps expanded throughout the United States and around the world.
In some ways, Harold was like a father to me. He was a mentor, a friend, and someone who served as a Godly example. Harold was a very disciplined person. He once told me the work he was able to accomplish wasn’t because he was any smarter than anybody else, but due to his disciplined life. He could sit in a busy airport terminal, read a book and get something out of it, and not miss his plane when the flight was called. I was more easily distracted by all the activity, and never did figure out how he was able to do that!
Harold taught at the annual Brethren Bible Institute (sponsored by Brethren Revival Fellowship) for more than 30 years. He was known for marking up manuscripts for sermons and lessons with lots of red marks. While I never attended BBI, I did submit a few manuscripts and numerous newsletters for checking. Quite a few of us have memories of submitting a potential message or article to Harold, and when it was returned, there were red marks on nearly every line of the manuscript! That could feel somewhat disheartening for a fledgling minister or author.
While Harold was a human being and was not perfect, he was a man with tremendous dedication, devotion, and discipline. His driving passion was to be faithful to the Word of God. He left behind a wealth of resources so many others can engage in serious study of the Bible. While sometimes it felt a bit intimidating, it was a privilege to serve under his tutelage.
In his message entitled, “Barnabas: A Generous Encourager” (Bible Helps booklet #416), Harold stated: “Acts 11:23-24 is a good pair of verses to commit to memory. If I knew when I would die and go to be with the Lord — and I had one last opportunity to preach a sermon, verse 23 is the text I would choose. These are tremendous words of exhortation for God’s people in every age.” These verses say, “Who, when he (Barnabas) came, and had seen the grace of God, was glad, and exhorted them all, that with purpose of heart they would cleave unto the Lord. For he was a good man, and full of the Holy Ghost and of faith: and much people was added unto the Lord.
The new Bible Helps booklet #472, “A Little Honey for the Journey,” was written by Harold S. Martin.
~Robert Lehigh, Administrator
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