There is no question that our Lord does not want anyone to perish (II Pet. 3:9). Even so, if you read that passage in Peter, you will note that it ended by saying “…but that all should come to repentance.” Was this talking about those who are not Christians?  No, he is talking about all people.

There is not enough space in this bulletin to list all the Biblical references that deal with the need for Christians to repent, but here are a few to read carefully: Rev. 2:5, II Cor. 7:9, Acts 8:22. Seeing that the Bible obviously requires Christians to repent, we can logically conclude that it would be wrong to say that a group of religious people are okay with God just because they call themselves a church.

We cannot consider all religious groups faithful because there is a God-given standard. Without a standard, churches would never need to be rebuked. Everybody can recognize that there are differences between today’s sects. Therefore, these differences mean that someone is wrong or all are wrong. They logically cannot mean that all are right. Because of the God-given standard, we must agree (Gal. 1:6-9; I Cor. 1:10).

As an example of how we must agree, notice what Paul told the church at Corinth. Paul spoke on the subject of giving and mentioned that he was telling them the same thing he taught the other churches of Galatia (I Cor. 16:1). An inspired apostle was not to instruct one church to do something the others were not also expected to do.

If we are adamant about our faith and yet refuse to say that others are wrong, we could be implying that our own group is actually wrong. If we insist that our religious group has the truth and yet still refuse to say others are wrong, we are indicating that we have misunderstood the nature of God’s word.

Nobody can be considered faithful that is not abiding in the doctrine of Christ (II John 9). It may be common to hear the idea, “Let’s agree to disagree” but that is not sanctioned by the Lord. As the head of His church, Jesus demands the church to be the pillar and ground of truth (I Tim. 3:15). Folks might gather to worship God, but their gathering must be right in His sight or else they are gathering for the worse, not the better (I Cor. 11:17-19).

Personally, I have more respect for the denominational church that claims they have the truth and others are wrong than I do for a group that says everyone is okay. To be clear, I am saying that I respect their position – I am not saying they are right with the Lord simply because they took a stand. My point is that we all must be willing to claim we have the truth and be willing to study with those who oppose. However, most groups shy away from controversy by not taking a stand and instead choose to be “politically correct.” Remember, Jesus was crucified because he exposed false teaching (Luke 22:1-2).

This article is not to be construed as permission to hate people or religious groups. There is no room for self-righteous attitudes. We are to love all people just as the Father and the Son did (John 3:16). Exposing error is NOT the same as constructing walls. We are ty identify the walls that already exist whether or not people want to acknowledge them. There is a big difference between having unlawful hate in one’s heart and hating every false way (Psa. 119:104).

It would be wonderful if one church was as good as another. If that were really true though, none of the epistles in the New Testament would have been written. Both warnings and rebukes are necessary to stay true to God’s standard (II Tim. 4:2).

Chuck

We are told that there is a “common salvation” (Jude 3). This means that if you are a Christian, then anyone familiar with the Bible should know exactly what you did to be saved. Does that describe you? If not, something is amiss.

Anyone who was born again did so after receiving the word of God, which is what is able to save our souls (I Pet. 1:23; James 1:21).  The gospel of Jesus Christ needs to be heard in order to produce faith (Rom. 10:17; Acts 11:14). There is no way anyone can be saved without first hearing the message about Christ (Acts 8:35).

Not everyone who hears the gospel message believes it.Only those who believe the message can be saved (John 8:24; John 20:31: I Cor. 1:21). Keep in mind that faith makes it possible to be saved, but faith alone does not save (James 2:26). Those who believe the gospel message are those that gladly receive the word (Acts 2:41).

Those who truly believe in Jesus must be willing to confess their faith in Him (Rom. 10:9-10; Acts 8:37). It is possible to believe in Jesus but not be saved if we are unwilling to confess Him before men (John 12:42-43). Again, confessing Christ only makes it possible to be saved, but just confessing faith in Christ does not save you (Matt. 8:28-29).

When someone is willing to confess their faith in Jesus, he or she must make up their mind to change their ways, turn to Christ and repent of their sins (Acts 3:19; II Cor. 7:10; Acts 2:38). There must be a desire to turn away from walking in sin (Col. 3:5). But again, just stopping sinful activity does not save you. It just makes it possible to be saved.

To be born again, one must be born of water and the spirit (John 3:5). This is where one puts off the old man AND puts on the new man by being baptized into Christ (Rom. 6:3-7; Acts 22:16; Col. 2:12). Like the previous point, baptism does not save unless the other steps were also done. If not, one just gets wet (Acts 19:1-5). Does this describe perfectly what you did to be saved? If not, then something is wrong. Please contact us if you want to discuss further.

Chuck 

As a teacher of the word of God, I love a good illustration. Still, I have to remind myself that there is an order to be respected.  For example, I could tell you that I shed blood when I cut myself while rushing through a shave. I could explain that this blood was shed without purpose. It was not planned, and if I was told ahead of time, I would have done all I could to avoid having my blood shed.

I could have then contrasted this illustration with the blood that Jesus shed, how it was done with purpose, etc. Everything in this hypothetical scenario is true, but the order is backwards. Rather than telling a story and bringing Biblical applications to it, I should use God’s word as my starting point.

Notice how this example keeps the emphasis on God’s word. “Let’s open our Bibles and read the following text: John 19:13-30.” From there I could speak about what happened prior to Christ going to Calvary and the people crying out “Crucify Him!.” Then I would speak about the blood that was poured out from His wounds (Head, hands, feet and side). I could focus on the power and purpose of His blood. I might then contrast that with the uselessness of my own blood via the shaving illustration mentioned above (lack of power, lack of purpose, lack of planning).

As a teacher, I need to remind myself that a Bible lesson must focus on what was revealed in the scriptures, not focused on me trying to be creative. Years ago, it was instilled in me that the best way to interpret scripture is with scripture. We know that in Acts 17:11 those who went home after hearing Paul speak did not go and ponder the illustrations he spoke that made an impact on them. No, they searched the scriptures for answers. We want people to remember the word of God – that needs to be our focus.

There is nothing wrong with a good illustration, but it is to come from a great Bible text! Remember, the word of God is what produces genuine faith (Rom. 10:17). May we all seek to build this lasting faith as we teach those around us.

                                                                                            Chuck 

If you read last week’s bulletin, we dealt with the text of I Corinthians 5. The church at Corinth was rebuked for not exercising church discipline. The church is to be pure and kept unspotted from the world (Eph. 5:25-27). Therefore, when a member of the church is walking in sin (unwilling to repent), that local body of saints must deal with it the Lord’s way.

Without repeating the whole article, Christians need to deal with these situations. It might seem cut and dry as to what should be done with a wayward member who acts like all is fine because Christians know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump (I Cor. 5:6). However, brethren are often tempted to neglect their duties. This is especially true when a member just walks away and leaves. If they are no longer around to leaven the whole lump, is the church still expected to exercise discipline?  Absolutely. Let’s take a closer look at this.

It may be technically true that you cannot really “withdraw” yourself from one who is no longer around, but discipline still needs to be taken. Consider Galatians 6:1. Paul wrote, “Brethren, if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual restore such a one in the spirit of gentleness, considering yourself lest you also be tempted.”  James pretty much said the same thing when he spoke of brethren that wander away and how faithful brethren should try to bring them back (James 5:19-20).

We need to see that fallen brethren need to be dealt with whether they act as if nothing is wrong or if they walk away and stop assembling. A member who walks away is sinning, and it would be wrong for a local church to ignore. But what is a church to do? They should do the very same thing as when someone sinfully walks among them.

If a person leaves a church, they have “withdrawn” themselves. However, the Bible speaks about “marking” or “noting those” who are walking disorderly. The Thessalonians were told, “And if anyone does not obey our word in this epistle, note that person and do not keep company with him, that he may be ashamed. Yet do not count him as an enemy, but admonish him as a brother,” (II Thess. 3:14-15). This is the same idea presented in Romans 16:17-18.

Our goal is to help the fallen return. This is true whether they recognize that they have fallen or not. If a brother walks away and calls me up and acts as if nothing has changed, he would be wrong. If I act as if nothing has changed other than not seeing him at church services, I am not fulfilling my duty of marking him to inspire the godly shame necessary for repentance.

Today’s Christians need to be particularly careful about making the wayward comfortable in their sin. Social media is called “social” for a reason. Still, we should never stop loving our fallen brethren. We should continue to pray for them and, as the II Thessalonian text above mentions, we should never treat them as an enemy. The wayward should be greeted cheerfully rather than being ignored. However, we need to be careful that we do not use social media to accidentally praise those walking in rebellion against God. 

A member of the church who no longer accepts what we teach might say, “You can’t withdraw from me, I withdraw from you.” Fine. But Christians still have the duty to try and bring them back. If they refuse to repent, we must note them and not keep company with them. This is true for all who go back into the pollutions of the world (II Pet. 2:20-22). As children of God, we must remember that sin is sin!

                                                                                                Chuck

In a recent Bible class, we studied the subject of church discipline. In I Corinthians 5, Paul rebuked the church at Corinth for not dealing with a brother who was caught up in sin. They were told to deliver such a one to Satan in order to hopefully save him if he repented (verse 5). The faithful brethren were told not to even eat (socialize) with him (verse 11).

To help illustrate this, let me present a scenario. A husband and wife have a young son who is eight years old. One day, the son and his mother get into an argument and the boy slaps his mom in the face. Later that day the husband (dad) comes home from work and hears what the son does. Aside from being punished, the father says to his son, “I want you to go to your mother and apologize to her.”

What if the boy does not apologize but wants to go fishing with his dad as planned – should the dad take him fishing? I know we would all say no! What if the son still refused to apologize to his mom the next day but wanted to go play ball with his dad as planned – should the dad take him and play ball? Again, I know we would all say no!

Why are we consistently saying no? Why should the father not take the son and do those fun things? The answer is obvious. If the father did that, he would be minimizing the severity of what the son did to his mother. It might even communicate approval. This is the lesson we need to learn concerning Christ and His church.

When someone sins, it can affect the rest of the members of the local church. As Paul said, “A little leaven leavens the whole lump,” (verse 8). Let us not forget that it is also a sin against the Lord and brings reproach upon His church (Eph. 5:27). When a Christian sins and does not repent, they are to be loved and admonished as a brother, not as an enemy (II Thess. 3:14-15). Although the father wants his son to apologize to his wife, it does not mean that the father hates his son until the apology is given. The father should not hate the son, but there must still be consequences for both the error and refusing to apologize. As Christians, we must all recognize this valuable lesson.

Chuck