True Bible Teaching Archives - True Bible Teaching

A Religion that makes sense

1. WHERE MODERN CHRISTIANITY FAILS

Starting right – A Religion that Makes Sense

Somebody once said that you will never find atheists on a life raft. This is another way of saying that when people are in desperate situations, they cannot afford to leave God out of their reckoning.

The stark fact is that we are all in a desperate situation, always. When people swagger and snap their fingers in God’s face, they are living in a dream world. They are not awake to the fact that life, at its best, is brief and precarious.

That is at its best!

And in these days of world wars and hydrogen bombs, life is more uncertain than ever. There is but a step between us and death.

Let us then begin by acknowledging that we need God. We are all on the same life raft; the sea is rough, and the sky is dark and threatening. We dare not pretend that we don’t believe in Him.

As believers in God, we ask the question: can we find a sensible and satisfying way of worshipping this God in whom we believe?

Would I be right in assuming that we believe in Jesus Christ too? Good! So it looks as if we ought to be enthusiastic members of the community that Christ founded.

What’s missing?

But someone may protest; it’s not so easy as that. Much as we respect and admire Jesus Christ, we don’t feel too happy about modern Christianity. It’s difficult to explain, but there seems to be something missing.

Yes, there is something inadequate about modern Christianity, Many Christians are agreed about this, and fervently wish it were otherwise. Although the sects of Christendom are many and varied, there is a basic sameness about most of them and there is something missing.

Out of touch …

Where does modern Christianity fail? To begin with, it isn’t modern enough in the things that matter. Don’t misunderstand me! Many Christian communities are trying desperately hard trying too hard to be “with it”, but they are quite out of touch with the real issues of our day. The world is bristling with problems that modern Christians cannot answer.

Here are some of the problems that are too big for the Christians of today:

Will there be another world war?

Will civilization be destroyed?

What is God’s answer to the bomb?

Can we look forward, confidently, to a time when there will be “glory to God in the highest, and on earth, peace, goodwill toward men”?

Ought Christians to take part in war?

Can we expect God to intervene in human affairs?

Do world politics fit into a programme, or are they a matter of chance?

What is really happening in the Middle East?

If God is a God of love, why does He permit suffering?

There must be something wrong with a Christianity that cannot tackle such vital questions as these.

To pursue the matter just a little further: suppose we were to put the first question. Will there be another world war? To people qualified to speak for some of the larger and more respected Christian denominations. There would be no re-assuring uniformity about the answers, and they would not really tell us anything at all. The answers would probably be of two types. One type could be expressed something like this: “It is impossible to predict precisely what the future holds for us, but it is clear that unless men learn to live at peace with each other, war is inevitable.” A pious truism that helps nobody. The other type of answer would be a dogmatic assertion that, to a true Christian, a third world war would be unthinkable; but not a shred of evidence would be offered to support this pleasing sentiment.

… with Christ

Modern Christianity isn’t modern enough. It cannot grapple with the problems of our day. But, paradoxically, it isn’t ancient enough either. The sober truth is that the Christianity of most Christians today is not the Christianity of Christ. If it were, it would be as relevant now as it was when Christ was on earth. The Christianity of our day is out of touch with this modern world because it is not the Christianity of the first century.

Let us come back to an earlier comment. I said that many Christian communities are trying desperately hard to be “with it”. That’s just the trouble. They are too concerned about keeping up to date. They feel that they have lost their grip, and are afraid that their stock will go down still further if they appear old-fashioned. Accordingly, they have “trimmed” their Christianity, and in their attempts to bring it in line with modern thinking, have robbed it of the very things that have made it unique. See the irony: modern Christians cannot deal with modern problems because they are trying too hard to be modern!

If only the Christians of our day knew the authority and power of the religion that Christ founded, they would lose all their inhibitions and hold their heads high. They would also be able to give a good account of themselves. God knows the answers to the problems that perplex men today: and His servants are invited to learn the answers too.

I have spoken about modern Christians trimming their Christianity to try to bring it into line with modern thinking. Let me be more explicit. In their anxiety to keep in step, many Christians have denied, or played down, two distinctive and essential features of the Christianity of Christ:

1. The authority of Scripture.

2. The miraculous element.

There is a striking similarity between the attitude of modern Christians and that of the Sadducees of our Lord’s day. Of the Sadducees, the Lord Jesus said:

“You are wrong, because you know neither the scriptures nor the power of God” (Matt 22:29)

Only a Christianity that accepts the absolute authority of Scripture, and believes that God performs miracles, will make sense.

2. A MESSAGE FROM THE CREATOR

God Gives the Instructions

Let us get down to basic things. We believe in God, and we want to worship Him acceptably. How do we set about it?

We can do one of two things. Either we can make our own decisions about how to worship God, and hope that they will be acceptable to Him; or we can follow God’s instructions.

Obviously, the second way is the right one. We are being foolish and arrogant if we try to work out our own system of worship, when God has issued His instructions. We are asking for trouble.

Did you say that you are not sure what God’s instructions are? So you find it hard to make up your mind how you should regard the Bible? Of course you admit that the Bible is an exceptional book; you are very impressed by some parts, especially those about the Lord Jesus Christ; indeed, you have no doubts in your mind that some parts of the Bible are divine; but you would say that other parts so clearly bear the marks of human imperfection that you have no confidence in them.

Drawing the Line – Somewhere

A bit of hard thinking will help here. You say that you believe that some parts of the Bible are divine, but that other parts are human and imperfect. So somewhere in the Bible you have to draw the line between what is human and what is divine. You must agree that the divine parts, because they are divine, are as valuable as anything could be, whereas the human parts are of little worth in comparison. So this business of drawing the line is just about the most important job you will ever be called upon to do. Have you treated it seriously, and really got down to it?

And how has it worked out? What did you make of the letters of Paul: human or divine? Don’t forget that Paul was the one who gave us that beautiful chapter about love 1 Corinthians 13. Would you say that he was moved by God to write this? I wonder whether you were thinking that some of Paul’s utterances don’t measure up to this “love” chapter.

So you have to distinguish between the divine and the human parts of Paul’s writings. It’s getting a bit complicated, isn’t it?

How do you regard the book of Proverbs? Some people think that the advice that Proverbs gives us is marvelous and divine, in fact. Others have their doubts. When people start drawing lines between some scriptures and others, different people draw their lines in different places. What it amounts to is that different people have different Bibles.

And how about the Psalms? A bit grim in places, did you say? Strange then, that Jesus himself got so much out of them!

You see the point? If you believe in a Bible that is partly human and partly divine, you will never know where to draw the line; and even if you think you know, other people will disagree with you. The result is bound to be confusion and uncertainty. Being human, people will tend to accept those parts of the Bible that they like, and reject the parts that they don’t like. Inevitably, the authority of the whole book, including its best parts (if we must distinguish) will be diminished. Which brings us back to where we started. When we regard the Bible as a mixture of divine wisdom and human folly, we can never be sure what God’s instructions are.

Is it seriously thought that the Creator of the universe, having prepared a vitally important message for us human-beings, would let it get so mixed up with human writings that no one could say with certainty which parts were human and which divine? Would we act so unintelligently ourselves?

The Link between the Testaments

Some people think that the line must be drawn between the Old and New Testaments. They regard the Old Testament as human, and the New Testament as divine.

This proves that they have very little knowledge of the New Testament, although they claim to regard it as divine. One important feature of the New Testament scriptures is that they repeatedly recommend the Old Testament as divine, authoritative and infallible.

Thus, speaking of the Old Testament, Paul says:

“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works” (2 Timothy 3:16, 17).

And Peter:

“The prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:21).

And the Lord Jesus:

“The scripture cannot be broken” (John 10:35).

These are three amongst many New Testament passages that instruct us to think of the Old Testament as divine, authoritative and infallible. If we believe the New Testament, we must believe these passages, as parts of the New Testament; and if we accept these passages, we must likewise accept the Old Testament that they recommend. There is no escape from it. Old and New Testaments must both be regarded as divine. Or, if you prefer it that way, both must be rejected.

The Power of Bible Prophecy

Perhaps you would like some positive evidence that the Scriptures are a message from God. Consider the following passages concerning the people of Israel:

“I will make your cities waste, and bring your sanctuaries unto desolation … And I will bring the land into desolation: and your enemies which dwell therein shall be astonished at it. And I will scatter you among the heathen, and will draw out a sword after you: and your land shall be desolate, and your cities waste” (Leviticus 26: 31 33).

“And thou shall become an astonishment, a proverb, and a byword, among all nations whither the Lord shall lead thee” (Deuteronomy 28:37).

“And the Lord shall scatter thee among all people, from the one end of the earth even unto the other: and there thou shall serve other gods … And among these nations shall thou find no ease, neither shall the sole of thy foot have rest: but the Lord shall give thee there a trembling heart, and failing of eyes, and sorrow of mind: and thy life shall hang in doubt before thee; and thou shall fear day and night . . .” (Deut 28:64-66).

“Though I make a full end of all nations whither I have scattered thee, yet will I not make a full end of thee: but I will correct thee in measure, and will not leave thee altogether unpunished” (Jeremiah 30:11).

“Hear the word of the Lord, O ye nations, and declare it in the isles afar off, and say, He that scattered Israel will gather him, and keep him, as a shepherd doth his flock” (Jeremiah 31:10).

Here we have clear predictions that if the people of Israel were disobedient:

1 They would be scattered all over the world.

2 They would be a proverb and a byword.

3 They would suffer terrible persecutions.

4 Their land would be desolate.

5 They would survive as a race, despite scattering and persecution.

6 They would ultimately be gathered to their own land again.

Nobody can deny that this chain of unlikely prophecies has been fulfilled. The fact that the Scriptures have foreseen the whole course of Jewish history demands an explanation. The explanation submitted here is that the Bible is able to make these, and many other, unlikely predictions because it is a message from God. Do you know a better explanation?

Prophecies of the Messiah

I have referred to other unlikely predictions. Consider, for example, that chain of prophecies concerning the life and mission of the Lord Jesus. It is not an exaggeration to say that the life of Jesus is written in advance upon the pages of the Old Testament. His birthplace, his preaching, his friends, his enemies, the conspiracy, the treachery of a friend, the thirty pieces of silver, the mocking, the sharing of garments, the casting of lots for his “vesture”, the piercing of hands and feet, the vinegar drink, the cry from the cross, the rich man’s grave, the resurrection, the ascension: these and other daring predictions were written hundreds of years before Jesus came on the scene. There can only be one explanation for this amazing feature. The Bible is divine.

The Bible provides the answers

Remember those questions that modern Christians cannot answer? Readers of the Bible can take them in their stride. Already, in our quick look at prophecies about Israel, we have picked up some clues about what is happening in the Middle East. Jeremiah’s prophecy about the gathering of Israel is being fulfilled. We have discovered some indications, too, that there could well be a prophetic programme of world events, after all. And a climax to the programme?

But it is not my purpose to pursue these matters further just now. My immediate purpose is to show that it makes sense to regard the Bible, the whole Bible, as the Word of God. It does not make sense to do otherwise.

3. MIRACLES MAKE SENSE

Many years ago, Moses, the prophet, said to Pharaoh, king of Egypt,

“Thus saith the Lord God of Israel, Let my people go” (Exodus 5:1).

Pharaoh asked Moses for a sign. Although Pharaoh was an unreasonable man, he was not being unreasonable on this occasion. Moses had claimed to be speaking for God: how was Pharaoh to know that the claim was valid? A sign, or a miracle, would settle the matter quickly and effectively. Accordingly, Moses matched his wonderful claim with a wonderful act. He threw down his rod, and it became a serpent.

Whether you believe this story or not, you must agree that, in the circumstances, the miracle would have fulfilled a real purpose. If it is reasonable to believe that God has spoken to men, it is also reasonable to believe that His communications have been supported by miracles. Divine revelation and miracle belong to each other. Without miracle, divine revelation would never get off the ground. How could reasonable people be expected to believe that messages had come from God without supporting signs?

It’s stupid to say loftily, “Miracles don’t happen”, as though that settles the matter once and for all. Certainly miracles don’t happen every day. If they were so commonplace, they would not be miracles. The Scriptures represent miracles as exceptional signs designed to support exceptional claims. Is the claim that the Creator of heaven and earth has sent a message to man an exceptional one? Then it must be supported by exceptional signs.

There is an appropriateness about the miracles of Scripture. The Creator of the universe is obviously in control of the universe He has created. He is the God of nature. What more effective method could the Creator employ to demonstrate that He was directly involved in some situation than that of performing an act that interrupted the normal course of nature? Only God could perform such a wonder, so here would be convincing evidence that the communication had indeed come from Him.

Miracle and Prophecy

Someone might protest that miracles, if they ever happened, would only have carried conviction as far as eye-witnesses were concerned. They might have been signs to those who saw them that God had spoken, but all that we have is the accounts of the alleged miracles. We can hardly be expected TO feel convinced by this sort of evidence. This is reasonable as far as it goes; but whereas we suffer the disadvantages of not having witnessed the signs, we have the advantage of having seen prophecies fulfilled. So God has provided both for the people of the prophets’ days, and for us. To the contemporaries of the prophets, who were not able to witness the fulfillment of long-term prophecies, God gave miracles. To us, who have not seen the miracles, God has given the evidence of fulfilled prophecy. Those who witnessed the miracles would have good reason to believe that the prophecies would be fulfilled, although they would not be there to witness them. And we, who have seen the wonders of fulfilled prophecy, have good reason to believe that the miracles happened, although we were not there at the time.

Can’t Win !

But some people are as stubborn and intractable as Pharaoh of old. If they had been living in Bible days, they would have demanded bigger and more spectacular miracles before believing God’s messengers. When, however, they read the accounts of these dramatic signs in Scripture (such signs as they would have clamoured for), they say, “How can we believe a book that tells us such unlikely stories?”

4. THE MIRACLE OF MIRACLES

The Credulity of Unbelief

Here we shall begin with a little discussion.

You believe in Jesus Christ: tell me, do you think he is alive today?

Careful! If the answer is, “Yes”, you are a believer in miracles. If Jesus is alive today, he must have been raised from the dead; and he must also have been made immortal. Two mightier miracles it would be difficult to imagine.

Miracle is an essential part of the life of Christ. Cut out the miracles and you are left with a dead man, and a few unreliable stories about him.

Why unreliable stories? Because Matthew, Mark, Luke and John all speak of the miracles that Jesus performed. If miracles never happen, these stories are untrue, and all the rest of the gospel narrative must be suspect too.

Be clear about this: if you do not believe in miracles, then you have to believe in a completely different Christ. All the uniqueness is gone. He has been dead for nearly two thousand years. Yet, somehow, this ordinary person gave multitudes the impression that he had raised the dead, healed lepers and given sight to the blind. Somehow people imagined that they were eye-witnesses of these wonderful events.

Does it ring true? Frankly, I find it much more reasonable to believe in miracles. The alternative imposes too great a strain on one’s credulity.

Lives Transformed

Let us come back to the resurrection of Christ. This tremendous miracle made an immense impression on those who witnessed it. It completely transformed many lives.

It didn’t stop there. By their lives and their words these changed men affected others. Others felt the impact of the miracle, just as if they had witnessed it themselves. They in turn impressed others: and so it went on. It was much more than a sign for that generation. Men are still being shaken by the reverberations of the resurrection earthquake. Lives are still being transformed.

Vindication

Why did the resurrection of Christ make such a difference to men’s lives? Why did those who were impressed by this great miracle feel a compelling urge to develop such noble, unselfish characters? Why were they willing to lose status, possessions, homes, and even life itself, rather than abandon their faith? Obviously, they had an unshakable conviction that their religion made sense. But why?

It is this matter of miracle and revelation again. The resurrection of Jesus Christ was an exceptional sign that supported exceptional claims. Or, to put it more strongly, it was a unique sign that supported unique claims.

Jesus of Nazareth (as they called him) had made some amazing claims. He had claimed that he was bringing blessings to mankind from the Creator Himself. Indeed, he had said that he was God’s own Son, and that he was able to bring men to his Father. This could have been dismissed as absurd, if it had not been supported by a really spectacular miracle. Only an amazing demonstration of divine power could establish such amazing claims. And so it happened. The resurrection settled the issue decisively. The claims of Jesus were true. He was God’s Son, and God had vindicated him.

Of course the resurrection was more than a sign. It was an act of God that meant the difference between a living Christ and a dead Christ. But as a sign alone its importance was immense. Jesus had made some other impressive claims too and his resurrection demonstrated the truth of these claims. He had said that he had been appointed to save men from sin and its consequence, death. He had said that he would come again to raise the dead, and to be a judge and a king. The resurrection of Jesus Christ was God’s way of demonstrating to humanity that he was the man appointed to fulfill these purposes.

Peter spoke of the resurrection of Jesus Christ in this way, on the Day of Pentecost:

“This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses … Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ” (Acts 2:32, 36).

And Paul declares:

“The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all men everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed, and of this he has given assurance … by raising him from the dead” (Acts 17:30-31).

All this is wonderful news for those who treat it with the respect that it deserves.

And it provides the answer to another of those questions that modern Christians are unable to answer.

And it makes sense.

5. COMMON SENSE AND BIBLE READING

The Bible is a message from God. If this proposition is true, or rather, because this proposition is true, it is obvious that we all ought to be diligent readers of the Bible.

It is astonishing how many people one meets who profess to believe that the Bible is divine, but yet cannot find time to read it. This just doesn’t make sense. One would have thought that it would be impossible to stop people from reading a message from the Creator of the universe.

Some people excuse themselves by saying that the Bible is an unattractive sort of book. It is so big, and so difficult to understand, they say, that one needs to be an intellectual to get down to it.

True, the Bible is a big book. Parts of it are difficult too; but other parts make very interesting reading, without much effort. Remember the story of Joseph? And have you tried the Acts of the Apostles? And for a thriller, the book of Esther will take some beating.

But what is the point? Is it seriously suggested that God could have made a much better job of His message, and that a shorter, simpler book would have been far more practicable?

How naive can people get? Need it be emphasized that God is the Creator, and that He knew exactly what He was doing when He gave us the Scriptures? The Bible comes to us in the form that it does because this is the best way. We may be assured that a shorter, simpler message would not have been adequate, for the simple reason that God has not given us a shorter, simpler message. If we do not like the Bible, the fault lies with us, and not with God. If we do not feel attracted to the Bible, it is time for us to start taking stock of ourselves.

Self Selection

A moment’s reflection will enable us to see why God has communicated to us in the way that He has done. The gift that God offers us is nothing less than eternal life. Our minds are not big enough to understand the greatness of this offer: but at least we know that it is an amazing gift.

Yes, eternal life is a gift. God does not expect us to earn it, nor indeed could we if we wanted to. One thing, however, God does require of us. That is, that we should appreciate His gift, and desire it intensely. The Scriptures are admirably designed to test and to develop our desire for God’s blessings.

If we say, “The Bible is too big and difficult”, and make no effort to read and understand it, we show that we are not particularly interested in God’s gift. It is not so much that God eliminates us from His scheme of salvation, as that we eliminate ourselves by not even attempting to get over the first hurdle.

If, later, we come to see that a little effort on our part would have been well worth it, we have no one to blame but ourselves. There is evidence that people will reproach themselves bitterly when they catch a glimpse of the blessings that might have been theirs. “There shall be weeping, and gnashing of teeth.”

If, on the other-hand, we say, “The Bible is big, and parts of it are difficult, so I must really get down to studying it”, we demonstrate our desire to receive of God’s wisdom, and to have a part in His eternal purpose.

Persistency

The Bible is a book to be studied, not dabbled with. Expressed in another way, God’s wisdom is given to those who seek it with all their hearts. See how this thought is brought out in Proverbs:

“My son, if thou wilt receive my words, and hide my commandments with thee; so that thou incline thine ear unto wisdom, and apply thine heart to understanding; yea, if thou criest after knowledge, and liftest up thy voice for understanding; if thou seekest her as silver, and searchest for her as for hid treasures; then shalt thou understand the fear of the Lord, and find the knowledge of God. For the Lord giveth wisdom: out of his mouth cometh knowledge and understanding.” (Proverbs 2:1-6).

There is a persistency, and an intensity of desire here: and there is a fulfillment of that desire.

Developing a Taste

A man may begin reading the Scriptures out of a sense of duty, but as he continues reading, his taste for Scripture will develop. Ultimately, he will find Bible study a sheer delight. Like the Psalmist, he will say:

“O how love I thy law! It is my meditation all the day … How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth!” (Psalm 119:97,103).

Not only does the Bible student develop a taste for more Bible study: he develops a taste for spiritual things generally. The laws of God become the principles that direct his life. Like the Lord Jesus, he learns to love righteousness and hate iniquity; and in accordance with the Lord’s instructions, he seeks first the Kingdom of God. And thus that desire for divine blessing that leads him to the Bible in the first place is nurtured by Bible reading, and becomes so intense that it becomes the mainspring of his life. He completely changes his life’s priorities. He becomes more and more like the Christians of the first century, and more and more like the man whom he strives to follow.

One need not be an intellectual to study the Bible. It is true that some intellectual people have approached the Scriptures with a wise humility, and have received richly from God’s treasury. But many clever people get nothing from the Bible because they approach the book as people who already know all the answers. Humility and a desire to learn are basic qualifications.

“He gives wisdom unto the wise.” (Daniel 2:21)

6. MAKING A START

Suppose we decide to make a start with our Bible reading: how do we set about it? Where do we begin?

Well, we know that the New Testament is concerned with the Lord Jesus Christ, so why not start with the beginning of the New Testament, and see how we get along? We turn to Matthew 1:1, and read:

“The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.”

What a strange beginning for a biography of Jesus Christ! Why does Matthew begin by telling us about two of Jesus’ ancestors, who lived so many years before him?

Just a Jewish custom, perhaps. Surely, we need not concern ourselves unduly about this. Let us move on to the real stuff. How does the next verse go?

“Abraham begat Isaac; and Isaac begat Jacob; and Jacob begat Judas and his brethren …”

And so it goes on, name after name, to verse 16 where we read:

“And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ.”

By this time it should have dawned on us that Matthew would not have troubled to link up Abraham and David with Jesus, generation by generation, if it were not very important. Here, right at the beginning of the story of Jesus, is probably a key to his mission. We must keep this thought in mind: Jesus is the son of David and the son of Abraham.

Starting in the Right Place

But something else ought to have occurred to us by this time too. The opening words of Matthew are telling us that before we can understand the mission of Jesus Christ, we have to know something about the Old Testament. That is where we should begin our reading. We started in the wrong place!

Rather obvious, isn’t it? The only sensible place to start reading any book is at the beginning. It is extraordinary how many people start reading the Bible in the wrong place. Little wonder that they find it a difficult book to understand. They are depriving themselves of essential facts.

Little wonder that there are so many questions that modern Christians cannot answer.

Fact Number One

We take the point, and go right back to the first verse in the Bible:

“In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.” (Genesis 1:1)

There follows a summary of God’s creative activity connected with the earth. We read of the creation of plant and animal life, and finally there is a brief statement concerning the creation of man.

Creation is, logically, the beginning of the whole story. Fact number one is: God is Creator. A world of consequences flows from this fact. Because God is the Creator, everything belongs to Him. God is in command. God makes the decisions. God’s standards are the right standards. The great question, “To be, or not to be”, rests ultimately with God.

All this finds expression in Psalms:

“The earth is the Lord’s, and the fullness thereof; the world, and they that dwell therein. For he hath founded it upon the seas, and established it upon the floods” (Psalm 24:1-2).

Verse 3 follows logically:

“Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord? or who shall stand in his holy place?”

(24:3) And so God proceeds to lay down the conditions. Human Rebellion This is the principle that operated in Eden. God created a man, and prepared a garden. He put the man in the garden, and told him that he could remain in the garden and enjoy its benefits if he were obedient to God’s law. If he disobeyed, he would die.

By an act of disobedience, Adam became a sinner, and was sentenced to death. This is the beginning of the human tragedy, and the background to the whole Bible story. Paul puts it like this:

“As by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for all have sinned …” (Romans 5:12)

The history of Adam’s descendants, as told in the Bible, is a fascinating story of human sin and divine grace. Ultimately divine grace triumphs through the Lord Jesus Christ.

7. PROMISES OF BLESSING

Trouble and More Trouble

A fascinating story of human sin and divine grace: this is a fair summary of the theme of the Bible.

Calamity follows calamity in the early chapters of Genesis. First there is the curse of Eden, next the flood, then the curse upon the Canaanites, and then the curse at Babel.

Breakthrough!

Then comes the breakthrough. To Abraham God said:

“I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed” (Gen. 12:2, 3).

Blessing and more blessing! Seven times God made gracious promises to Abraham. He was to be the channel of God’s blessing to humanity: Abraham and his seed.

Concerning Abraham’s seed God said:

“ … Thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies: and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice” (Gen. 22:17, 18).

Who was the seed of Abraham, and what was the blessing?

Let Peter supply the answer. Speaking to the Jews in Jerusalem, he refers to the promise to Abraham, “In thy seed shall all nations of the earth be blessed”, and adds:

“Unto you first God, having raised up his Son Jesus, sent him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities” (Acts 3:26) .

The promised seed of Abraham, who should bring a blessing to mankind, was Jesus; and the blessing was righteousness. So this great son of Abraham was appointed to reverse the effects of Adam’s disobedience.

This is a great theme, upon which the very issues of life depend. Although this is not the place to develop the theme, a reminder of the first verse of the New Testament may be appropriate:

“The book of the generation of Jesus Christ, the son of … Abraham.”

Jesus had come to fulfill the promise to Abraham, and bring righteousness to a world troubled by sin. Paul explains that by baptism into Christ a man joins the family of Abraham, and shares the blessing:

“As many of you as have been baptised into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek; there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus. And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise” (Gal 3:27-29).

The Covenant with David

We are making progress. Because the opening verse of the New Testament describes Jesus Christ as the son of David, the son of Abraham, and because a substantial part of the first chapter of Matthew is concerned with proving this relationship, we inferred that this was probably a key to the mission of Christ. Now we have discovered that this was true, at least as far as Abraham was concerned. Against a background of sin and trouble, God promised Abraham that a way of reconciliation and blessing would be provided to humanity through his son. Jesus Christ, the son of Abraham, came to fulfill this promise.

But Jesus Christ is also described as the son of David, in the first chapter of Matthew. We could almost expect to find in the Old Testament some comparable promises to David, which find their fulfillment in Christ.

And we can find such promises. God said to David:

“And it shall come to pass, when thy days be expired that thou must go to be with thy fathers, that I will raise up thy seed after thee, which shall be of thy sons; and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build me an house, and I will establish his throne for ever. I will be his father, and he shall be my son … I will settle him in mine house and in my kingdom for ever: and his throne shall be established for evermore” (1 Chronicles 17:11-14).

A great king should come whose kingdom should be established forever. He was to be a son of David and son of God. Do we recognise him? Lest there should be any doubts, hear the words of the angel Gabriel, to a woman named Mary:

“Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. And behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shall call his name Jesus. He shall be great and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: and he shah reign over the house of Jacob forever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end” (Luke 1:30-33).

Yes, Jesus, son of David and son of God, was born to be a king.

Yet he never reigned! Has God’s purpose failed? Indeed not! Jesus is coming again “with power and great glory”, as he himself announced. (Luke 21:27)

There are about three hundred references to the second coming of Christ in the New Testament. One must suffice here: the words that the angels spoke to the eyewitnesses of the Lord’s ascension, immediately after his departure:

“Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? This same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven” (Acts 1:11).

Signs of the Second Coming

Just one further matter here, to complete this line of thought. The question follows naturally: when will Christ, the king, return to the earth? The Scriptures tell us that certain signs will be fulfilled immediately before the second corning. There are three important signs:

1 War, trouble and fear, on an unprecedented scale.

2 Wickedness, comparable to that in the days of Noah.

3 The revival of Jewish life in Palestine.

Many supporting scriptures could be quoted, but all three points are briefly covered by the two following quotations:

“They (the Jews) shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken. And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory” (Luke 21:24-27).

“But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. For as in the days that were before the flood they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, and knew not until the flood came, and took them all away; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be” (Matt 24:37-39).

Judge for yourself. Some of us are convinced that the Lord’s return will happen soon.

A concluding thought: the prayer, “Thy kingdom come” (Matthew 6:10), means, ‘Send Christ the king soon’. Is this really our desire? Are we preparing for this great event?

8. FITTING THE PIECES TOGETHER

A brief summary of our conclusions may be helpful here. We have seen:

1. That modern Christianity is out of touch with the real issues of the day.

2. The reason for this is because there has been a departure from the Christianity of Christ. Modern Christianity loses its relevance and its vitality by playing down (1) the authority of Scripture; and (2) the miraculous element.

3. A Bible that is a mixture of divine wisdom and human folly would be useless. The book must be taken as a whole for acceptance or rejection. The fulfillment of Bible prophecy is one good reason for believing that the Bible is the Word of God.

4. The unlikely history of the Jewish Nation, and the unique life of the Lord Jesus Christ have been written in advance in the Old Testament.

5. If it is reasonable to believe that God has spoken to men, it is also reasonable to believe that His messages would be supported by miracles, Revelation and miracle belong to each other.

6. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is a miracle that made an immense impact on humanity. It transformed lives in the first century, and it has been doing so ever since.

7. The Lord Jesus had made some amazing claims. He had claimed to be: the son of God and the saviour of the world; the man who would raise the dead, and be a judge and a king. The resurrection proved that all these claims were valid.

8. Because the Bible is a message from God, the sensible thing to do is to read it diligently. It is so valuable that we must persist, despite initial difficulties. Ultimately, we shall develop a taste for Bible study, and for God’s standards.

9. Obviously we should start reading the Bible at the beginning. Many people are confused and discouraged because they do not begin at the beginning.

10. The first chapters of Genesis are, logically, the beginning of God’s revelation. The first fact is that God is the Creator. Because of this, He is in charge. The human tragedy began because man rebelled against God’s authority.

11. Nevertheless, God provided a way of escape. His plan or salvation is based upon promises made to Abraham and David, and fulfilled in Christ. This explains why the first verse of the New Testament describes Jesus Christ as the son of David, the son of Abraham.

12. To Abraham God promised a son who should provide a way of reconciliation for sinners. To David God promised a son who should be a great king.

13. Jesus is coming again to fulfill God’s promises, and set up the kingdom of God on earth. When this happens, there will be “glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will towards men”.

14. The signs of world trouble, wickedness, and the restoration of Israel are being fulfilled today. The second coming must be near.

15. We must prepare for that great event.

9. IN CONCLUSION

Many people are dissatisfied with the Christianity of today and with good reason. It doesn’t make sense. It doesn’t bring peace to their minds, or joy to their hearts.

But what most people do not realise is that the Christianity of today is far removed from the religion that Christ founded. If they had been diligent readers of the Bible, they would have discovered this for themselves.

My purpose has been to show that Bible Christianity, or the Christianity of Christ, does make sense. It is now for you to decide whether or not a fair case has been presented.

First, ask yourself whether it is reasonable to believe in an authoritative Bible. And if the answer is yes, check up and see whether the beliefs set out briefly in this little booklet are in accordance with the Bible or not. This will take a little time, of course. You have a double check here. If these beliefs are scriptural, they ought also to make sense. In other words, they ought to appeal to reason, and they ought to hang together. Do they?

Appeal to the Heart

The God who gave us reasoning powers has also equipped us with emotions. A God-given religion should satisfy the heart as well as the head.

Of necessity, the emphasis has been on reason, in this booklet. But the Christianity of the Bible makes a powerful emotional appeal too. The Scriptures tell us what we already know, deep in our hearts: we are fighting a losing battle against sin. How moving then is a contemplation of the Lord Jesus Christ, the Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world! With awe and gratitude we follow him to the cross. We suffer with him; by baptism we die with him. We are raised with him to “newness of life” (Romans 6:4). Eagerly we await his second coming and the glorious prospect of a world at peace with God. This is something to live for, and to die for. And it carries with it a promise of resurrection from the dead.

Questions

You remember that list of questions that modem Christians cannot answer? In the course of our discussion, answers have been suggested, directly or indirectly, to most of these questions. But not all.

May I suggest that you do some Bible study on your own account and see whether the answers are scripturally based or not. And perhaps you can find the answers to the other questions too.

If you should decide that this is worth following up, may I recommend that you get in touch with the Christadelphians. Because they are a community of Bible reading Christians,

It is not surprising that their beliefs are in accordance with Scripture, and that they make sense. But there, that is for you to judge! Please do so! You will be well qualified to judge if you start regular Bible reading now.

By PETER WATKINS

Learn here how you too can be a part of this great HOPE

YES IT DOES MATTER!!!

To believe otherwise, would be to suggest that any number of different beliefs, ideas and worship is acceptable to God and rewarded by Him.

Or to put it another way God’s not fussed about what you think or do, He’ll give Life Eternal to anyone on any basis.

I’m sure the reality of such a suggestion is not believed by the average thinking person.

I mean could such a suggestion really be true? Surely God has a line so to speak somewhere on what is Right vs Wrong when it comes to a true belief in GOD and upon which the ONE TRUE GOD will reward those who believe in Him as promised?

The Apostle Paul writes:

“Now faith is the substance (AV marg. ground or confidence) of things hoped for, the evidence (RV proving) of things not seen…” Hebrews 11:6

“…And without faith [belief] it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.“

We learn from this that having Faith or more particularly ‘The Faith’, as it is referred to by the Apostles, is critical in our “seeking” and our acceptance and “reward” with God. Immediately we note that God did not say “any faith”, but He said “The Faith”.

This Faith or Belief is the Truth that was preached by the Apostles, concerning the Lord Jesus Christ and the Kingdom of God.

Some examples of New Testament usage of the term “the faith” – occurs 42 times

1 Corinthians 16:13

“Watch ye, stand fast in the faith, quit you like men, be strong.”

2 Corinthians 13:5

“Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves.”

Philippians 1:27

“…that ye stand fast in one spirit, with one mind striving together for the faith of the gospel.”

Colossians 2:7

“Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught…”

1 Timothy 4:1

“Now the spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith…”

Jude vs3

“Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.”

Since it is God’s prerogative alone to set the terms on which He is worshipped we need to examine His word to find the answer.

And God says that our “FAITH”(belief) is very important!

Hebrews 11:6

“But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.”

Why is Faith so Important?

Because prior to Paul preaching the Gospel message to them they were;

“…without Christ, being aliens from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers from the covenants of promise, having no hope, and without God in the world” (Eph 2:12)

So important was this new knowledge called “truth” or “the faith” that they were told by Paul to believe no other;

“But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.” (Gal 1:8)

So we learn from this that IT DOES MATTER WHAT WE BELIEVE. That God has made this very clear through is word, and as we will now find out, very clear through examples that God has given to us in His relationship with man.

Let us now have a look at the HISTORICAL importance of belief and doing what is Right vs Wrong before God and as a result how God accepts or rejects us based on what we do or belief. We’ll look at a couple of actual examples to learn this.

Cain and Abel – Genesis 4

Cain and Abel

“And in the process of time it came to pass, that Cain brought of the fruit of the ground an offering unto the LORD. And Abel, he also brought of the firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof. And the LORD had respect unto Abel and to his offering: but unto Cain and to his offering he had not respect. And Cain was very wroth, and his countenance fell. And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? If thou doest well, should thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door. And unto thee shall be his desire, and thou shalt rule over him…Cain rose up against Abel his brother and slew him” (Genesis 4:3-8)


Cain and Abel – When they come of Age make an offering to God	Abel makes the right offering for sin to God and is Accepted by God	Cain makes a wrong offering and is rejected by God and takes his anger out on Abel

Now let’s examine what happened here.

It’s important to note first and foremostly that Cain and Abel were both raised by the same parents, Adam and Eve, they were both taught what was right (truth) and wrong by the same parents.

And yet they both did different things when they were called on (come of age) to worship God by themselves.

Cain was “a tiller” ie a tiller of the ground and from so doing he brought forth fruit from it.	Abel was “a shepherd” he looked after a flock of sheep
When asked to bring an offering to God, Cain brought of the “fruit of the ground”	When asked to bring an offering to God, Abel brought a “firstling of his flock”
In Genesis 3:21 God had already taught Adam and Eve that a slain lamb was a suitable offering for sin. In Hebrews 9:22 the Apostle Paul shows us that “…without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sin” And later in Revelation we learn that the Lamb slain by God in the Garden of Eden pointed forward to the work of our Lord Jesus Christ Revelation 13:8 “And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.”
For Cain’s offering “the LORD had not respect”	For Abel’s offering “the LORD had respect”
As a result Cain became angry (“was wrath”)
Yet in Genesis 4:6-7 we see that God tried to lead Cain carefully to see his wrong doing ⁶And the LORD said unto Cain, Why art thou wroth? and why is thy countenance fallen? ⁷ If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? (ie. If you don’t sin all is okay and you will be accepted by God) and if thou doest not well (ie. If you sin as we all do), sin lieth at the door (ie. The acceptable sin offering lies at the door so to speak, ie. The firstling of lambs is right outside and easy for you to lay old of). And unto theeshall be his desire (ie. It will let you take it), and thou shalt rule over him. (ie. You can offer this lamb as a sin offering)
Cain did not worship God correctly as they had been taught, and even though God showed him his mistake, Cain was consumed with pride and anger at being rejected and carried on doing things his own way, eventually taking his anger out on Abel.	Abel had worshipped God the way God had required and taught them, he did it God’s way.
The result was that Cain was REJECTED by God	The result was that Abel was ACCEPTED by God

Cain blinded by pride!!

From the very beginning God put a difference between True and False worship. ie. true and false belief.

We all have the same opportunity to read, study and come to understand the Bible, but not all will do this in the correct or accepted way.

For this reason Paul said to Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:15 “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

False teaching and intellectual pride, that we are right, along with human emotions attached to both, will and does blind millions of sincere believers to the truth of God’s word and to acceptable worship – as it did Cain.

This will result in their rejection by God as it did with Cain.

The Nation of Israel is another great example of what is acceptable to God.

The nation of Israel were a special people called out of the nations through Abraham and given a great Hope of an everlasting life and possession of the land of Israel. But for this to happen they were clearly told that they must obey God’s voice and follow His commandments (truth).

“And Moses came and told the people all the words of the LORD, and all the judgements: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which the LORD hath said will we do” (Exodus 24:3)

“…if thou shalt hearken diligently unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe and to do all his commandments…and all these blessings shall come on thee…” (Deut 28:1-2)

“But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not hearken unto the voice of the LORD thy God, to observe to do all his commandments…that all these curses shall come upon thee, and overtake thee” (Deut 28:15)

The Nation of Israel was punished for failing to follow the word of God

“…ye children of Israel…the LORD hath a controversy with the inhabitants of the land, because there is no truth, nor mercy, nor knowledge of God in the land” (Hos 4:1)

“My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee…seeing thou hast forgotten the Law of thy God…” (Hos 4:6)

“Therefore my people are gone into captivity for lack of knowledge…” (Isaiah 5:13)

From this we learn that the Nation of Israel were punished for their lack of “truth” and “knowledge” by which they could remain in God’s favour and acceptance.

Another individual example is Nadab and Abihu – Leviticus 10:1-3

Nadab and Abihu during a time of worship they took it upon themselves to do something the LORD had not instructed them to do

“And Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, took each of them his censer, and put fire therein, and laid incense thereon, and offered strange fire before the LORD, which he had not commanded them. And there went out fire from the LORD, and devoured them, and they died…Moses said unto Aaron, This is it that the LORD spake, saying, I will be sanctified in them that come nigh me…” (Leviticus 10:1-3)

From this we learn that, it is not the prerogative of any to decide for themselves how they will serve or worship God.

God requires all to serve and worship in exactly the manner as He has revealed in His Word.

The New Testament reveals the same.

In John 17:1-3 we read these words:

^“1These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy Son also may glorify thee: ² As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him. ³ And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.”

In this passage Jesus lays out the criteria for “life eternal” to be given to his true followers.

In John 17:3 the word “know” is a key word! In the Greek it is the word ‘ginosko’ and this signifies ‘to perceive, to fully understand what something is all about, to understand something until it has a practical out working in one’s life’.

So we need to have the Knowledge revealed in God’s word that ultimately manifests itself in one’s conduct.

So how do we reconcile todays One Bible yet many churches and teachings?

The Bible predicted it would be so, and gives us the reason why.

We saw in the example of Cain, that it was his own pride that caused him to be blinded to the true and acceptable way to worship God.

God says that Man’s heart is “desperately wicked”.

We suggest to you that this is still the cause behind the diversity of beliefs that remains today.

The Pharisees and the Scribes rejected and crucified Christ because in their pride they could not believe that “any good thing could come out of Nazareth.”

“heap to themselves teachers” men who in their own pride were eager to put forth some new doctrine they could name their own.

“itching ears” to hear some new thing like the people of Athens.

The “heap” of “teachers” and “itching ears” resulted in “a working of error or a delusion” amongst the believers “that they should believe a lie”.

Several of the Apostles when writing to the first century believers warned them to guard against false teaching.

There was ample evidence of it in their day. A good number of false beliefs were brought into the community of the believers by those who were converts from Greek and Roman paganism, under which all manner of superstitious beliefs had been accumulated from ancient times.

Later the introduction of the Clergy into Christendom under Roman Catholicism gave a select few the opportunity to influence, control and even dictate the beliefs of the laity/congregation.

Not surprisingly this encouraged and permitted all manner of devious motives to be exercised by members of the clergy. [most motives were political as the church and state had become one]

This we believe is the principle reason why Christendom today is Astray from the Bible.

From these examples we learn:

That if we want to be accepted by God, then we must worship Him in the way He has prescribed.
That even if sincere in our worship we must ensure that we follow God’s word or instructions very carefully.
That we must have a true knowledge of God’s word if we are to be blessed by Him according to all His promises.
That to do otherwise will lead us to stray from God’s word and lose our hope of salvation.

Let us compare what the Churches teach verses what the Bible, the word of God teaches.

CONSIDER THESE FACTS:

The Churches Teach	The Bible Teaches
*There is a mysterious Trinity, “One God yet Three”*	*“To us there is but one God the Father…and one Lord Jesus Christ” (1Cor 8:6)*
*Purgatory is a place of temporary punishment for departed souls*	*“For the living know that they shall die, but the dead know not anything…their love, hatred, envy is perished” (Ecc. 9;5-6)*
*The soul is immortal and cannot be destroyed*	*“The soul that sinneth, it shall die” (Ez 18:4) “All have sinned” (Rom 6:4)*
The Churches Teach	The Bible Teaches
*Sprinkling of infants constitutes baptism* *Heaven is a place of reward and hell is a place of torment*	*“If thou believest with all thine heart thou mayest be baptised” (Acts 8:37)* *“No man hath ascended into heaven: (Jn 3:13) “In death there is no remembrance of Thee” and “the meek shall inherit the earth” (Psa 6:5, Matt 5:5)*
*Satan is a supernatural evil being causing men to sin*	*“Whatsoever thing from without entereth into a man cannot defile him…from within out of the heart of man proceed evil thoughts etc…” (Mk 7:18-22)*

God is THREE verses God is ONE?

Two such conflicting beliefs can’t both be right, let alone acceptable to God.

Mary worship is the result of this?

The Bible clearly warns us about the development of “false teaching”.

A warning to US from the Bible!

“O LORD, I know that the way of man is not in himself: it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps” (Jere 10:23)
“For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but having itching ears, will heap to themselves teachers after their own lusts, and will turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables” (things that aren’t true) (2Tim 4:3-4)
“For the mystery of lawlessness doth already work…” (2Thess 2:7)
“…with lying wonders, and with all deceit of unrighteousness for them that are perishing because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved” (2Thess 2:10)

The Bible predicted a Great “falling away” from the truth as taught by the Apostles.

Paul predicted that believers would be led away from the faith by men who would teach lies…

“Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits (false teachers) and doctrines of devils (teaching of liars); Speaking lies in hypocrisy…” (1Tim 4:1-2)

That a religious system whilst initially holding the truth would “fall away” and follow the lies of men who used followers for personal gain

“Let no man deceive you by any means; for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed…who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God…” (2Thess 2:3)

That only when Christ returns will this system of “lawlessness” be fully exposed and destroyed.

“…the Lord Jesus shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming” (2Thess 2:8)

If we look back at the history of religion we can see the origins and progress of false teaching over time.

GROWTH OF FALSE TEACHING and the year in which it came to prominence…

Immortality of the soul………………………………………………………………………..124 AD
Pre-human existence of Christ………………………………………………………………124 AD
Sprinkling instead of immersion……………………………………………………………..150 AD
Infant baptism…………………………………………………………………………………180 AD
Constantine triumphs the Christian cause and makes apostate Christianity the state religion and forms what has become known as The Roman Catholic Church …………………………………………………………………………………………………312 AD
Jesus a person within the Godhead..…………………………………………………..…..325 AD
“Holy Ghost” a person within the Godhead…………………………………………………381 AD
Doctrine of purgatory………………………………………………………………………….431 AD
Exaltation of Mary “the Mother of God”………………………………………………………431 AD

Much of the development of false teaching can be blamed on the rise to power of Constantine and his self proclaimed championing of the Christian cause.

Yet people like Hendrik Van Loon, in summarising the life of Constantine wrote:

(Constantine revered as a saint by the Catholic Church.)

“This wild Serbian who had wielded a spear on every battlefield of Europe, from York in England to Byzantium on the shores of the Bosphorus, was among other things the murderer of his wife, the murderer of his brother-in-law, the murderer of his nephew [a boy of 7], and the executioner of several other relatives of minor degree and importance.”

“That he lived and died a barbarian who had outwardly accepted Christianity, yet until the end of his days tried to read the riddle of the future from the steaming entrails of sacrificial sheep, was most considerately overlooked in view of the famous Edict of Tolerance by which the Emperor guaranteed unto his beloved Christian subjects the right to freely profess their private opinions and to assemble in their meeting-place without fear of molestation.”

“For the leaders of the Church in the first half of the fourth century were practical politicians, and when they had finally forced the Emperor to sign this ever-memorable decree, they elevated Christianity from the rank of a minor sect to the dignity of the official Church of the State. But they knew how and in what manner this had been accomplished and the successors of Constantine knew it, and although they tried to cover it up by a display of oratorical fireworks the arrangement never quite lost its original character…. There have been other bargains during the history of the last twenty centuries; but few have been so brazen as the compromise by which Christianity came to power” [from The Liberation Of Mankind p.80]

In order to retain and widen their position of power these same practical politicians who became the clergy, commenced to merge Christianity with paganism which resulted in this apostate religion that continues unto the present day.

In the year 1521 A.D. The Reformation commenced when the Protestants rebelled against the Roman Catholic Church, and its doctrines.

With the advent of printing and the first copies of the Bible freely available, the Protestants as a result of their reading and study of the Bible identified the Catholic Church as the great apostate system spoken of by Paul the Apostle.

It was a system evident in Paul’s day and would continue until the return of the Lord Jesus Christ.

This along with other passages in the Bible clearly identifies The Roman Catholic Church to whose beliefs nearly all Protestant churches have since returned under what has been known as the Ecumenical movement ie. a movement that proposes ‘let us come together as friends despite our differences in what we believe’.

During the early days of the Period of Reformation a group of French Cardinals give this advice to the Pope in AD 1550

“Of all the advice reserved for your Holiness, we have kept the most essential until the last moment. Concerning the reading of the Bible, we must keep our eyes wide open and intervene with all our power. It is necessary to authorise as little as possible the reading of the Gospels, particularly in modern languages and in countries under our jurisdiction. That which is generally read during Mass must suffice, and nobody must be authorised to read any other.
Your interests will prosper so long as the people are contented with the little which is offered them, but as soon as the public asks for more, your interests are in danger. The Bible is the book which, more than any other, can stir up against us revolt and storms which might well nigh destroy us. Certainly, if somebody studies the Bible seriously, and compares it with what is happening in our churches, he will soon find the contradictions, and will see that our doctrines are far astray from the truth, and are even more often completely opposed to the Bible.
And if the people come to recognise all these things, they will be constantly defying us, until everything is brought to light: there upon we shall become the object of ridicule and hate. It is vital to keep the Bible away from the attention of the people, but with much caution so as to avoid uproar.’

As the Catholic Church tried to stem the tide of protesting against it’s beliefs by the reformers, numerous debates and trials were conducted by the church.

Just one such example of the Debates and Trials during the Reformation AD 1500 – 1800 is listed below…

Huldrich Zwingli: a Swiss evangelical who in 1523 advocated splitting with Rome and the Catholic church on the grounds that the church was astray from the Word of God. He argued that “the word of God would be his sole arbiter” In reality Zwingli was mostly interested in exalting himself as he staunchly held to Catholic teaching, notable infant baptism.
Dr. Balthasar Hubmaier: an evangelical preacher, who had formerly been a university vice-rector having graduated as Master, plunged into assiduous study of the Scriptures which led to revolutionary thinking. Based on his studies, Hubmaier insisted that no trace could be found of infant christening in the Scriptures.

An excerpt from their debate follows:

Zwingli: You reject infant baptism that you may set up rebaptism.
Hubmaier: You have not produced a single passage to prove infant baptism is baptism. You should remember what you once said, that truth is clearly revealed in the word of God. If now infant baptism is a truth, show us the Scripture in which it is found.
Zwingli: If everone adopts such views as he pleases, and does not ask the church concerning them, error will increase.
Hubmaier: We should consult the Scriptures, not the church. The church is built upon the word, not the word upon the church.
Zwingli: The thief on the cross believed, and on the same day was with Christ in paradise; yet he was not baptised with outward baptism.
Hubmaier: A man who has the excuse of the thief on the cross will have the favour of God. But when this excuse is lacking the word of Christ holds true that “he that believes and is baptised shall be saved”.
Zwingli: Matthew 3 says that “all Judaea” went out to John and were baptised. Here one may say that if the whole multitude went out, we should expect that there were children who went out also.
Hubmaier: Might not one also say that we should expect that Annas, Caiaphas, Pilate and Herod went out and were baptised? It matters not what we think or expect. We must be governed by the Scriptures. I appeal to the Scriptures. Let them decide.

The reformers consistently made their stand on the basis of what the Bible taught and not on what the church taught. Eventually many new protestant churches were formed as a result listing their beliefs based on the Bible.

Sadly however over the passage of time, many of these new churches have lost their way, many now include amongst their beliefs teachings that their early founding fathers would not have believed.

So today we end up in a situation where there is One Bible yet Many Churches.

So what does this mean for the FUTURE – What is to become of this situation?

God tolerates this now so that the True Believers can prepare themselves for Christ’s coming. But a day of judgement for all people is coming when those who perpetuate this apostasy will be destroyed.

Acts 17:31 Paul in addressing the false beliefs of the people of Athens said that God had;

“appointed a day, in the which he will judge the world in righteousness by the man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all men, in that he hath raised him from the dead.” ie. the Lord Jesus Christ. (Isaiah 11:1-5)

Concerning his return Christ said;

“…Nevertheless when the son of man cometh, shall he find the faith on the earth?”

Jeremiah 16:19-20 At that time…

“…the Gentiles shall come unto three from the ends of the earth, and shall say, Surely our fathers have inherited lies, vanity, and things wherein there is no profit. Shall a man make gods unto himself, and they are no gods?”

Clearly it does matter what we believe, as this will be the end of all those who don’t believe the Truth of God’s Word, but rather have “turned unto fables” and have chosen to believe “lies, vanity, and things wherein there is no profit.”

And so what must we OURSELVES DO ABOUT THIS – What must we do now to be saved?

This is what the Bible tells US! “…work out your own salvation with fear and trembling.” [Phil 2:12]

“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of Truth.” [2 Tim 2::15]

We have to be “obedient as children, not fashioning ourselves according to our former lusts in the time of our ignorance: but as he which called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of living: because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.” [1Pet 1:14-16]

The first act of obedience once we have come to a knowledge of the Truth of God’s Word and His purpose with mankind, is to be baptised.

“He that believeth and is baptised shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be condemned.” [Mark 16:16]

If we do this and continue to walk faithfully with our God until the return of Christ, God will reward us with eternal life in His Kingdom.

A Kingdom of everlasting joy, peace and righteousness.

A Kingdom that will be established on this earth under the righteous reign of the Lord Jesus Christ with whom we will reign as kings and priests.

During this Kingdom all people will be made to learn the Truth of God’s Word and to walk in His Ways.

Micah 4:1-4

^“1But in the last days it shall come to pass, that the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established in the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills; and people shall flow unto it. ² And many nations shall come, and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for the law shall go forth of Zion, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem. ³ And he shall judge among many people, and rebuke strong nations afar off; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more. ⁴ But they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree; and none shall make them afraid: for the mouth of the LORD of hosts hath spoken it.”

Such a great HOPE demands that we each search out the scriptures to find the truth and having so done…

…in God’s Grace we shall all be there to enjoy this great day.

How to identify wrong teaching

Like those who have gone before us, we must make the WORD of GOD our basis of belief and not what the churches teach.

“Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth” (2Tim 2:15)
“Examine yourselves whether ye be in the faith” (2Cor 13:5)
“…work out your own salvation with fear and trembling” ( Phil 2:12)

An Important Issue in our Day!

In this age of democracy and “political correctness” with all its pressures on tolerance and accommodation with others, we face the risk of becoming complacent in our understanding and appreciation of the dangers of the influence of the WRONG TEACHING of the Churches.
Our eternal well being is at stake…
“And this is life eternal, that they should know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.” (John 17:3)

“Blessed is he that keepeth the words of the prophecy of this book…Behold I (the Lord Jesus) come quickly and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be” (Rev 22:7, 12)

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US-Saudi talks reports of far-reaching plan for Middle East

Climate Records Tumble Leaving Earth in Uncharted Territory

Britain signs deal to join Indo-Pacific trade bloc

Putin ‘already lost’ war in Ukraine, says Biden

US and Britain forge pact to counter new threats

Biden Administration Engages in Long Shot Attempt for Saudi Israel Deal

Beware of What Comes After Putin’s Rule in Russia

Deal between Israel and Saudi Arabia is absolutely possible

Erdogan in special relationship with Putin

NEW GAS DEAL WITH EUROPE TURNS ISRAEL INTO A SUPER POWER

How Turkey is ruining NATOs moment of Unity

Europe Doesn’t Need the United States Anymore

Pages

A Religion that MAKES SENSE

Bible Prophecy and World Events

What will God’s Kingdom be like?

The latest world news in Bible Prophecy

A Religion that MAKES SENSE

Bible Prophecy and World Events

What will God’s Kingdom be like?

The latest world news in Bible Prophecy

All People Everywhere Are Without Excuse

We all tend to make excuses for ourselves…

YES IT DOES MATTER!!!