"THE INCREASE OF THE VINEYARD WILL BECOME DEFILED"!

Moses instructed the physical descendants of Abraham in Deuteronomy 22:9, "You shall not sow your vineyard with two kinds of seed..."

The reason?

"...or all the produce of the seed which you have sown and the increase of the vineyard will become defiled."

Abraham's spiritual descendants (Romans 9:7-8), are those who have been born anew (John 3:3, 5); they make up Christ's church (Galatians 3:26-27).

Spiritual Israel was given the same advice as physical Israel in regard to sowing two kinds of seed. There is truth and there is error. If both are sown (mixed together), the increase of the vineyard will become defiled. The seed is the word of God (Luke 8:11). If it is mixed with "doctrines and commandments of men" (Matthew 15:8-9), the increase of the vineyard will become defiled. This points to teaching. There is truth from God (scripture); and then there are "interpretations" of what God "meant" by what HE said in HIS word (scripture).

If ONLY God's word had been taught as declared by Jesus to His apostles, there would be only the church that Jesus built, in existence (Matthew 16:18). All would be members of THAT church; we would all be preached the same thing on the subject of "WHAT MUST I DO TO BE SAVED". We would all be called by the same name ~ Christians, for only the church that is OF Christ would exist. Our worship would be alike; we would (and could) support one another in evangelistic efforts; in benevolence, and in edification, for we would all be walking "by the same rule" (Philippians 3:16).

This is the unity for which Jesus prayed among all who believe in Him. Please read John 27:20-21. Is this possible, you ask? Well it DID exist initially...for early Christians "continued stedfastly" in the same doctrine...the doctrine taught by the apostles (Acts 2:42) What happened? Please read the warning from the apostle Paul in Acts 20:28-30.

If you read this text, you will understand why there are the divisions in the religious realm today. So sad...Christ did NOT die for us to be segregated into separate bodies. He died to UNITE us into ONE body...HIS church. Ephesians 4:4 - speaks of ONE BODY, just as there is ONE GOD, ONE LORD, ONE FAITH, ONE SPIRIT...

ONE!
UNITY!
LOVING AS BRETHREN!

A FAMILY!

Never forget the warning from the apostle Paul to the pastors of the church of Christ in Ephesus: "Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood. I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them." ~ Acts 20:28-30

Christ's church has been severed by corrupt seed (false doctrine). The result is, "the increase of the vineyard" HAS "become defiled."

Is there a cure; a remedy to religious division? Certainly! Teach (speak) the same things as did the apostles. That was what they urged: 

"Now I beseech you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye all SPEAK THE SAME THING, and that there BE NO DIVISIONS AMONG YOU; but that ye be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment." ~ 1 Corinthians 1:10

"Nevertheless, whereto we have already attained, let us walk by the same rule, let us mind the same thing." ~ Philippians 3:16

Jesus prayed for this; shall we pursue His prayer?

7/22/2020
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IS CHRIST DIVIDED? THEN WHY ARE WE?

Look up the word “denomination” in a dictionary. What does it mean?

Now, read 1 Corinthians 1:10.

What word in this verse corresponds to denomination?

The word “denomination” in the Wikipedia encyclopedia entry begins with… “Christianity is composed of four major divisions of Churches: Roman Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox and Protestant. Denomination typically refers to one of the many Christian churches.”

Now compare “denomination” to the word “division” of the bible verse above [1 Cor. 1:10]. It comes from the word ‘SCHISMA’ in the Greek. Do you recognize it? We get our word “schism” from it. It means A TEAR OR A DIVISION. It shows up two more times in the Corinthian letter:

– 1 Corinthians 11:18 ~ “For, in the first place, when you come together as a church, I hear that DIVISIONS exist among you; and in part, I believe it.”

– 1 Corinthians 12:25 ~ “that there should be no DIVISION in the body, but that the members should have the same care for one another.”

The apostle Paul was addressing the DIVISION in the local church of Christ at Corinth in 1 Corinthians 1:12-13 ~ “Now I mean this, that each one of you is saying, “I am of Paul,” and “I of Apollos,” and “I of ,” and “I of Christ. Has Christ been DIVIDED? Paul was not crucified for you, was he? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?”

Many through history have recognized this very principle. None other than Martin Luther said, “I pray you leave my name alone, and call not yourselves Lutherans, but Christians. Cease, my dear friends, to cling to these party names and distinctions; away with all; and let us call ourselves Christians after Him from whom our doctrine comes.” (The Life of Luther, by Stork p.289)

Isn’t it interesting that in the 1500’s Martin Luther actually quoted the same passage, and used it to condemn denominational names? Then he begged his followers to call themselves Christians rather than Lutherans. They waited till he died, then did as they pleased… calling themselves Lutherans against Luther’s will!

Jesus prayed: “I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word; that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us, so that the world may believe that You sent Me.” – John 17:20-21

We should owe our allegiance to no man-made creed, no man-made denomination. Our loyalty must be to no one other than the Lord Jesus Christ. – Acts 4:12

7/22/2020

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WHAT IS WRITTEN IS NOT THE PROBLEM; THE PROBLEM IS WHAT IS BEING TAUGHT!

When the "toe is in the door", and man empowers himself with the right to legislate doctrine...creeds become the standard rather than the Inspired Word of GOD!

ORIGINAL LANGUAGE/QUOTES OF CREEDS/UNINSPIRED MEN

Martin Luther - "We must not explain the Scriptures by the Fathers, but explain and judge the Fathers by the Scriptures." [Schaff, History of the Christian Church, Vol. IV, pg. 204].

Lutheran Creed - "The only way to settle doctrinal questions is to show what the Bible teaches." [Our Creed: What Lutherans Believe and Teach, J. M. Weidenschilling, pg. 2.]

Methodist Creed (1948) - "The Holy Scriptures contain all things necessary to salvation; so that whatsoever is not read therein, nor may be proved thereby, is not to be required of any man that it should be believed as an article of faith, or be taught requisite or necessary to salvation." [Methodist Discipline (1948), pg. 25.]

Presbyterian Creed (1949) - "The whole counsel of God, concerning all things necessary for his own glory, man's salvation, faith and life, is either expressly set down in the scripture, or by good and necessary consequences may be deduced from scripture; unto which nothing at any time is to be added, whether by new revelation of the Spirit or traditions of men." [Confession of Faith of the Presbyterian Church (1949), pg. 6.]

Baptist Creed (1950) - "We believe that the Holy Bible was written by men divinely inspired, and is a perfect treasure of heavenly instructions; that it has God for its author, salvation for its end, and truth without any mixture of error for its content." [Church Manual, J. M. Pendleton, (1950), pg. 43].

Alexander Campbell (1839) - "We take the Bible, the whole Bible, and nothing but the Bible as the foundation of all Christian union and communion. Those who do not like this will please show us a more excellent way." [Introduction to Second Edition of The Christian System, June 13, 1839]

Church of God - "The Church of God accepts the whole Bible rightly divided and holds these sacred truths as they have been revealed in the Scriptures by the Holy Ghost." [https://www.thechurchofgod.org].

These quotations all agree that God's Word is all sufficient as the Bible so declares. From the website of the Church of God, under the heading  of 'WHO WE ARE—Basic Bible Beliefs', are listed 29 ‘points of doctrine’. What is disturbing, is this statement that precedes these ‘points”: "Not all Christian Church organizations teach these points of doctrine the same way." My question (and I hope yours) is this: WHY NOT? Is it ‘okay’ to teach these points of doctrine differently? If, as the Methodist Creed states, "The Holy Scriptures contain all things necessary to salvation", can we understand all these things necessary to salvation ALIKE? If not, why not? Does the Bible teach us differently when it comes to doctrine? ‘Doctrine’ is used interchangeably with 'teaching' and 'gospel'. Notice:

• There is truth (John 17:17), but there is error (1 John 4:6). 
• There is truth that can be changed into a lie (Romans 1:25). 
• There is truth or there is unrighteousness to obey (Romans 2:8).
• There is ‘the’ gospel and there is ‘another’ gospel (Galatians 1:6-9).
• There is 'sound' doctrine (1 Timothy 1:10; 2 Timothy 4:3; Titus 1:9; 2:1), and there 'doctrines and commandments of men (Matthew 15:8-9).
• There is a 'pattern of sound words' (2 Thessalonians 1:13), and there is vain talk; deception, and things which ought not to be taught (Titus 1:10-11). 

Is the problem really with a divinely inspired Bible, or with uninspired human creeds? Which one is actually being taught to people? Which one is taught in Theological Seminaries to those seeking a preaching profession? Will they not teach people what they themselves are taught? Would this be why the Church of God website has this troubling statement: "Not all Christian Church organizations teach these points of doctrine the same way."?

The gospel was purposed to unite, not divide people in Christ. Few today are troubled by the religious division that has resulted from not teaching these 'points of doctrine' alike. We need to address this matter of religious division by sitting down together and studying from the Bible. The Bible teaches the same on all these 'points of doctrine'. Let us teach the same on them and we will be 'one' in Christ. This was His prayer: “I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word; that they may all be one; even as You, Father, are in Me and I in You, that they also may be in Us…” (John 17:20-21). We can if our desire is, as Martin Luther stated, "...not explain the Scriptures by the Fathers, but explain and judge the Fathers by the Scriptures...". Discipleship is based upon continuance in what Jesus taught. “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine…” (John 8:31). Jesus said if we have the desire to obey the will of the Father, we would be able to discern truth from error and be made free from sin (John 7:17; 8:32).

Let us remember the inspired words of the apostle John: “Anyone who goes too far and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God; the one who abides in the teaching, he has both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house, and do not give him a greeting; for the one who gives him a greeting participates in his evil deeds.” (2 John 1:9-11).

7/19/2020
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DOCTRINE MATTERS: The FORESIGHT of scripture...

The scriptures declare that the physical creation and the spiritual creation share this: neither came about by chance or evolved from nothing, but were by the forethought and a pre-determined plan of God. The physical was made with a view to the spiritual. The phrase "in the image of God" implies this of necessity. God MADE him thus [Genesis 1:27; 9:6]. Christ was likewise purposed for this reason. He was involved in both creations. "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being." ~ John 1:1-3]

"Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature..." ~ 2 Corinthians 5:17.

Man was purposed to be an image of God by his life. God so ordained it. The apostles preached this fact: "But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory..." ~ 1 Corinthians 2:7.

Likewise, the physical nation of Israel was 'created' with a view to the 'creation' of the spiritual nation of Israel. [cf. Isaiah 43:1; 44:2, 21, 24 ~ Romans 4:16; 9:7; Galatians 3:7].

There are yet more similarities between physical Israel and spiritual Israel. Of physical Israel we find: "They have moved me to jealousy with that which is not God; they have provoked me to anger with their vanities: and I will move them to jealousy with those which are not a people; I will provoke them to anger with a foolish nation." ~ Deuteronomy 32:21.

The Jewish nation of Israel had abandoned obedience to the law (read this chapter in entirety); the 'foolish nation' was referencing the Gentiles. The Gentiles had likewise chosen to become depraved, contrary to God's purpose for their existence [Romans 1:21-32].

God purposed for these two nations were to become "one" through the gospel.

"The Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, “ALL THE NATIONS WILL BE BLESSED IN YOU. So then those who are of faith are blessed with Abraham, the believer." ~ Galatians 3:8-9.

"The Gentiles are fellow heirs and fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel..." ~ Ephesians 3:6.

"This was in accordance with the eternal purpose which He carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord..." ~ Ephesians 3:11.

"But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God." ~ 1 Corinthians 1:24.

"But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory..." ~ 1 Corinthians 2:7.

"To the intent that now unto the principalities and powers in heavenly places might be known by the church the manifold wisdom of God..." ~ Ephesians 3:10.

Thanks be to God for His eternal purpose.

7/16/2020

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"And they reasoned with themselves..." Matthew 21:25

Found—ancient document detailing the following exchange:

Joshua: "God requires holiness from His people. He requires us to offer sacrifices in the place He chose to put His name in order to atone for our sins."

Nameless Israelite: "SACRIFICES cannot be necessary. What if a man is on his way to offer a sacrifice and a tree falls on him and kills him?"

Joshua: "God requires holiness from His people. He requires us to offer sacrifices in the place He chose to put His name in order to atone for our sins."

Found—ancient document detailing the following exchange:

Peter: God requires repentance and baptism for remission of sins.

Nameless believer: “REPENTANCE cannot be necessary. What if a man is contemplating repentance and a tree falls on him and kills him?”

Peter: God requires repentance and baptism for remission of sins.

Nameless believer: “BAPTISM cannot be necessary. What if a man is on his way to be baptized and a tree falls on him and kills him?”

Peter: God requires repentance and baptism for remission of sins.

The Lord taught:

"Take heed WHAT ye hear" ~ Mark 4:24

"Take heed HOW ye hear" ~ Luke 8:18

Why? Because DOCTRINE MATTERS!

7/11/2020

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COMMON THREADS

I have found a very common thread that runs through every apostasy. Its beginning is associated with an innocent objective – to improve the present level of worship. Improvement is not necessarily wrong, for we should ever be seeking to improve and open to change.

Authority, however, must always be honored. As we go about our improvements, diligence should be taken to abide within the authority of God’s word as revealed in the Bible.

However, another common thread is present and behind each apostasy. Poor performance of that which IS authorized. Doing what is lawful, but without preparation and as a result poor deliverance. As this applies to our singing, I have discovered that the desire to introduce an instrument into the worship service came about from the desire to improve the singing. Why? Because the singing had deteriorated and gotten so ‘off-key’ that it was deplorable to listen to.

As with king Josiah, when the book of the law was discovered and he consequently found his own reforms still to be amiss [2 Kings 22], we may discover that our singing may not be what it should be, even though we sing without an instrument.

Teaching must be on-going in regard to our singing, just as with on-going bible studies, to "Give of our Best to the Master".

7/9/2020

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