Is Faith a Gift from God? by Eric Lyons, M.Min.

http://apologeticspress.org/AllegedDiscrepancies.aspx?article=1246&b=Ephesians

Is Faith a Gift from God?

by Eric Lyons, M.Min.

“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9, emp. added).

For centuries, Bible commentators have differed on the precise reference of the pronoun “that” in Ephesians 2:8. Does “that” (touto) refer to faith, as many have stated (e.g., Augustine, Chrysostom, Westcott, Lenski, etc.), or, does “that” refer to salvation from sin? Is faith “the gift of God,” or is this gift salvation by grace through faith?
Admittedly, from a cursory reading of Ephesians 2:8, it may appear that the relative pronoun that has faith as its grammatical antecedent. Those who believe that faith is a gift (i.e., miraculous imposition) from God, often point out that in this verse “faith” is the nearest antecedent of “that” (“For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God”). However, when one examines Ephesians 2:8 in the language in which it was written originally (Greek), he finds that the pronoun that (touto) is neuter in gender, while the word faith (pistis) is feminine. Since the general rule in Greek grammar is for the gender and number of a relative pronoun to be the same as its antecedent (Mounce, 1993, p. 111), then some extenuating linguistic circumstance, special idiomatic use, or other mitigating factor would need to be demonstrated to justify linking “that” to “faith.” If such reasonable justification cannot be made, then one is compelled to continue studying the passage in order to know assuredly what “that” gift of God is.
When no clear antecedent is found within a text, Greek scholar William Mounce wisely recommends that the Bible student study the context of the passage in question in order to help determine to what a relative pronoun (like “that”) is referring (1993, p. 111). The overall context of the first three chapters of Ephesians is man’s salvation found in Christ.

• “In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace” (1:7).
• The heavenly “inheritance” is found in Christ (1:11).
• After believing in the good news of salvation through Christ, the Ephesians were “sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise” (1:13).
• Sinners are made “alive with Christ” and saved “by grace” (2:5).
• Sinners are brought near to God “by the blood of Christ” (2:13).
• Paul became a servant of Christ “according to the gift of the grace of God…by the effective working of His power” (3:7).

Not only is the theme of salvation the overall context of the first three chapters of Ephesians, but the immediate context of Ephesians 2:8-9 is of salvation, not of faith. These two verses thoroughly document how a person is saved, not how a person believes.

• Salvation is by grace.
• Salvation is through faith.
• Salvation is not of yourselves.
• Salvation is the gift of God.
• Salvation is not of works.

Paul was not giving an exposition on faith in his letter to the Ephesians. Salvation was his focus. Faith is mentioned as the mode by which salvation is accepted. Salvation is through faith. Just as water is received into a house in twenty-first-century America through a pipeline, a sinner receives salvation through obedient faith. The main focus of Paul’s message in Ephesians 2:8-9 was salvation (the living “water that springs up into everlasting life”—cf. John 4:14), not the mode of salvation.
Faith is not a direct gift from God given to some but not others. Rather, as Paul wrote to the church at Rome, “faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God” (Romans 10:17). Faith in Christ as the Son of God is only found in those who have first heard the Word of God, and then believed (cf. John 20:31).

REFERENCES

Mounce, William D. (1993), Basics of Biblical Greek (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan).

Can we be the church of the New Testament? Yes, if we live according to the New Testament by Roy Davison

http://www.oldpaths.com/Archive/Davison/Roy/Allen/1940/Canwebe/ntliving.html

Can we be the church of the New Testament?

Yes, if we live according to the New Testament

In this series of lessons we have seen that the New Testament itself teaches that we can be the church of the New Testament:

• if we hold fast the New-Testament pattern of sound words.
• Paul told Timothy: “Hold fast the pattern of sound words which you have heard from me, in faith and love which are in Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 1:13).
• if we obey the gospel of the New Testament.
• Paul commended the Romans: “You obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered” (Romans 6:17).
• if we worship according to the New Testament.
• Jesus told the woman at the well that the true worshipers, “worship the Father in spirit and truth” (John 4:23).
• if church leadership complies with the New Testament.
• The Lord gave elders, deacons, evangelists and teachers “for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ” (Ephesians 4:11, 12).
• if we live according to the New Testament.
• In addition to following the New-Testament pattern as we obey the gospel, worship God and organize congregations, we must also do so in our daily lives.

Jesus said: “I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly” (John 10:10). The life of a Christian is the greatest life in the world! By the grace of God we have been cleansed and sanctified to serve God and man.
God’s covenant governs not only congregational activities but also our personal lives. As we start reading through the New Testament, Jesus tells us to repent, to bear fruit, to be meek, to hunger for righteousness, to be merciful, to be pure in heart, to be peacemakers, to do good, not to call anyone a fool, not to commit adultery, not to look at a woman lustfully, not to divorce our spouses, not to swear, to turn the other cheek, to go the second mile, to love our enemies, to be perfect like our Father, not to be religious for show, to forgive, not to lay up treasures on earth but in heaven, not to worship money, not to be anxious about physical needs, to seek God’s kingdom and righteousness first, not to judge, to do to others as we want them to do to us, to do what He says, to be wise as serpents and harmless as doves, to endure to the end, to be like Him, to preach the gospel ... just to mention a few items selected from the first ten chapters of Matthew!
To be the church of the New Testament we must live according to the New Testament. God not only tells us how to be saved, how to worship and how to organize our congregations, He also tells us how to live our lives.
“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God” (Romans 12:1,2). In our actions, our bodies must be living sacrifices. In our attitudes, our minds must be renewed, “bringing every thought into captivity to the obedience of Christ” (2 Corinthians 10:5).
We have an awesome calling: “You are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light” (1 Peter 2:9). We “press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14). “As He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, because it is written, ‘Be holy, for I am holy’” (1 Peter 1:15, 16).
To be the church of the New Testament we must be holy. We must avoid evil and do good.
To be the church of the New Testament we must avoid evil.
In the New Covenant the way we live is referred to as our walk. We may not walk in darkness. “This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth” (1 John 1:5, 6).
This means that we may not continue in a life of sin. After emphasizing the grace of God, Paul says: “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:1-4). When we become Christians, we rise from baptism to walk in newness of life, not to stumble on in darkness.
“But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as is fitting for saints; neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks. For this you know, that no fornicator, unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.
“Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Therefore do not be partakers with them. For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), finding out what is acceptable to the Lord.
“And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of those things which are done by them in secret. But all things that are exposed are made manifest by the light, for whatever makes manifest is light. Therefore He says: ‘Awake, you who sleep, Arise from the dead, And Christ will give you light.’ See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil” (Ephesians 5:3-16).
The days are still evil. We live in a heathen, hedonistic society. Moral values have been jettisoned. Sexual relationships outside of marriage and same-sex relationships are viewed as ‘normal’. It is politically incorrect -- even an alleged violation of human rights -- to expose these works of darkness. This ‘anything-goes’ mentality can infiltrate the church. Like a boat in water, the church can safely sail in a sea of immorality. God designed it to thrive in a hostile world. But if we bore a hole in the boat and allow immorality to flood into the church, it will not be the church of the New Testament.
Paul reprimanded the church at Corinth for tolerating immorality: “It is actually reported that there is sexual immorality among you, and such sexual immorality as is not even named among the Gentiles -- that a man has his father’s wife! And you are puffed up, and have not rather mourned, that he who has done this deed might be taken away from among you” (1 Corinthians 5:1, 2).
The church must be pure: “Your glorying is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? Therefore purge out the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, since you truly are unleavened” (1 Corinthians 5:6, 7).
To be the church of the New Testament we must do good.
Jesus tells us: “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you” (Luke 6:27). “Therefore, as we have opportunity, let us do good to all, especially to those who are of the household of faith” (Galatians 6:10).
We must walk in the light. “If we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin. If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say that we have not sinned, we make Him a liar, and His word is not in us” (1 John 1:7-10).
Notice that we have fellowship only if we walk in the light. Light and darkness cannot coexist. Someone walking in darkness cannot have fellowship with someone walking in light, nor with God.
Notice also that we receive forgiveness of sins only if we walk in the light: “If we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1:7).
Therefore, walking in the light does not mean that we are completely without sin. Although we “hunger and thirst for righteousness” (Matthew 5:6), although we “desire to live godly in Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 3:12) we still sin “for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23).
We need God’s mercy: “For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men, teaching us that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age, looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us, that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself His own special people, zealous for good works” (Titus 2:11-14).
John goes on to explain: “My little children, these things I write to you, so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous. And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world. Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments.
“He who says, ‘I know Him,’ and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked” (1 John 2:1-6).
Although we sin and need God’s grace, this does not mean that gross sin may be tolerated in the church. People who continue in sin are not walking in the light. To be the church of the New Testament we must uphold the moral standards of the New Testament.
To be the church of the New Testament we must walk as Christ walked. “Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, ‘I am the light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life’” (John 8:12). “As you therefore have received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in Him” (Colossians 2:6).
Our walk must be in truth, in love and according to God’s commandments. In his second letter John wrote: “I rejoiced greatly that I have found some of your children walking in truth, as we received commandment from the Father. And now I plead with you, lady, not as though I wrote a new commandment to you, but that which we have had from the beginning: that we love one another. This is love, that we walk according to His commandments. This is the commandment, that as you have heard from the beginning, you should walk in it” (2 John 4-6).
We must walk according to the Spirit, not according to the flesh: “For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit” (Romans 8:3-5).
To be the church of the New Testament we must bear the fruit of the Spirit. “Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
“Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revelries, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
“But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law. And those who are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit” (Galatians 5:16-25).
Can we be the church of the New Testament?
Yes, if we live according to the New Testament, if we avoid evil and do good, if we walk in the light, in newness of life. Although we are not without sin, we set our minds on things of the Spirit. We live soberly, righteously, and godly in the present age. Walking in the light, we have fellowship with one another and the blood of Christ cleanses us from sin. To be the church of the New Testament we must live according to the New Testament.
Yes, if our leadership complies with the New Testament: if we are guided by Christ through the Scriptures, if our congregations are led and served by qualified elders and deacons, and if our preachers and teachers faithfully proclaim and teach the New Testament of Christ.
Yes, if we worship according to the New Testament. Christians come together on the first day of the week to eat the Lord’s supper and to give of their means. They sing and pray. They listen reverently to the word of God.
Yes, if we obey the gospel of the New Testament.
Yes, certainly. If we follow the pattern of the New Testament, if we comply with the conditions and provisions of the new covenant, if we abide in the word of Christ, if we continue steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine, if we hold fast the pattern of sound words, if we use the Scriptures for doctrine, reproof, correction and instruction, if we obey from the heart that form of doctrine to which we have been delivered, if we do not go beyond what is written, if we hold fast the faithful word, if we have the same faith and obey the same gospel, if we abide in the doctrine of Christ... we can be the church of the New Testament.
Roy Davison

The Scripture quotations in this article are from
The New King James Version. ©1979,1980,1982, Thomas Nelson Inc., Publishers.
Permission for reference use has been granted.

Published in The Old Paths Archive
(http://www.oldpaths.com)

Can we be the church of the New Testament? Yes, if church leadership complies with the New Testament by Roy Davison

http://www.oldpaths.com/Archive/Davison/Roy/Allen/1940/Canwebe/ntleadership.html

Can we be the church of the New Testament?

Yes, if church leadership complies with the New Testament

“Christ is head of the church” (Ephesians 5:23). To be the church of the New Testament, we must be led by Christ.
“Speaking the truth in love,” we must “grow up in all things into Him who is the head -- Christ -- from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love” (Ephesians 4:15, 16).
The head directs the body. It is not enough to have Christ as figurehead, He must be our real Head, He must be the captain. We must submit to His authority. We can be the church of the New Testament if our congregation is directed by Christ.
We must be led by the one Shepherd. Jesus said, referring to Gentiles, “Other sheep I have which are not of this fold; them also I must bring, and they will hear My voice; and there will be one flock and one shepherd” (John 10:16). “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me” (John 10:27).
To be the church of the New Testament we must follow Christ and obey His voice. “He who enters by the door is the shepherd of the sheep. To him the doorkeeper opens, and the sheep hear his voice; and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. And when he brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers” (John 10:2-5).
Can we be the church of the New Testament? Yes, if Christ is our Head, if He is the Shepherd we follow, if we refuse to follow ‘strangers’.
Christ leads us via His apostles and prophets who were inspired by the Holy Spirit in the first century to put the new covenant into written form. Paul explains this at the end of his letter to the Romans. “Now to Him who is able to establish you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery kept secret since the world began -- but now made manifest, and by the prophetic Scriptures made known to all nations, according to the commandment of the everlasting God, for obedience to the faith” (Romans 16:25, 26). Thus, God commanded the apostles to make the gospel known to all nations through prophetic Scriptures.
Before He died, Jesus told His apostles: “He who hears you hears Me, he who rejects you rejects Me, and he who rejects Me rejects Him who sent Me” (Luke 10:16).
The first-century apostles and prophets, together with Christ, are the foundation of the new-covenant church, “having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone” (Ephesians 2:20). A foundation is laid only once.
Our apostles and prophets today are the apostles and prophets of the first-century church (Revelation 21:14). Now we “contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 3), we continue “steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine” (Acts 2:42).
We can be the church of the New Testament if we are led by Christ. He leads through His apostles and prophets who were inspired to put the new covenant in writing.
For edification Christ has also given evangelists, elders, teachers and deacons to build up and serve the church. “He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ” (Ephesians 4:11, 12). The Philippian letter is addressed, “To all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, with the bishops and deacons” (Philippians 1:1).
Unscriptural leadership is one of the most distinguishing marks of counterfeit churches. They have offices and leadership positions which are not found in the New Testament. To be the church of the New Testament, we may only have leaders who are designated in the New Testament and who meet the New-Testament qualifications.
Executive leadership under the new covenant resides in the local congregation. Central leadership is supplied by Christ from heaven. The next level of leadership is the local congregation. Regional, national or international forms of leadership are foreign to the New Testament. All congregations that participate in such forms of leadership are not new-covenant churches, but are in rebellion to the leadership of Christ.
Elders provide leadership.
According to the New Testament, local congregations are led by a group of older men called ‘elders’ [Greek: πρεσβύτερος]. They are also called ‘shepherds’ (Greek: ποιμήν - the word ‘pastor’ also comes from this) and ‘overseers’ (Greek: ἐπίσκοπος - The word ‘bishop’ also comes from this).
A careful comparison of the various passages shows that these are all names for the same group of leaders in the local congregation. In Titus 1:5 we find elders and in verse 7, bishops. In Acts 20:17 we find elders and in verse 28, overseers and shepherds. In 1 Peter 5:1 we find elders and in verse 2, shepherds and overseers.
These men must meet strict qualifications. Paul wrote to Titus: “For this reason I left you in Crete, that you should set in order the things that are lacking, and appoint elders in every city as I commanded you -- if a man is blameless, the husband of one wife, having faithful children not accused of dissipation or insubordination.
For a bishop must be blameless, as a steward of God, not self-willed, not quick-tempered, not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money, but hospitable, a lover of what is good, sober-minded, just, holy, self-controlled, holding fast the faithful word as he has been taught, that he may be able, by sound doctrine, both to exhort and convict those who contradict” (Titus 1:5-9; see also 1 Timothy 3:2-7).
The task of the elders is to “take care of the church of God” (1 Timothy 3:5); “to shepherd the church of God” (Acts 20:28); to “shepherd the flock of God which is among you, serving as overseers” (1 Peter 5:2).
New and small congregations, without men who are qualified to be elders, are led by the men of the congregation. At Antioch, where no mention is made of elders, we read “the brethren ... determined” (Acts 15:1-3). Women are excluded from leadership since they are not permitted to have authority over men in the church (1 Timothy 2:12).
In most false churches, one person functions as head of the local congregation, or the group is led in some other unscriptural way.
We can be the church of the New Testament if our elders are appointed and provide leadership in compliance with the New Testament.
Deacons serve.
The word ‘deacon’ is a transliteration of the Greek word διάκονος which means ‘servant’. The context indicates whether it refers to a servant in general or to a servant appointed by the church.
Deacons serve in the local congregation under the oversight of the elders. In the church at Jerusalem, seven men were appointed to take care of the daily assistance given to needy widows (Acts 6:1-4).
Appointed servants must meet specific qualifications: “Likewise deacons must be reverent, not double-tongued, not given to much wine, not greedy for money, holding the mystery of the faith with a pure conscience. But let these also first be tested; then let them serve as deacons, being found blameless. ...”
“Let deacons be the husbands of one wife, ruling their children and their own houses well. For those who have served well as deacons obtain for themselves a good standing and great boldness in the faith which is in Christ Jesus” (1 Timothy 3:8-10, 12, 13).
The wives of elders and deacons must also meet qualifications: “Likewise, their wives must be reverent, not slanderers, temperate, faithful in all things” (1 Timothy 3:11).
To be the church of the New Testament, the servants in the local congregation must be appointed and must serve according to the New Testament.
Evangelists (also called preachers) proclaim the gospel.
The task of an evangelist is to “Preach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching” (2 Timothy 4:2), to “give attention to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine” (1 Timothy 4:13).
In the New Testament, the words ‘evangelist’ and ‘preacher’ refer to the same task. An ‘evangelist’ is one who preaches good news. A ‘preacher’ is one who proclaims a message in public.
In the New Testament, a preacher is not the leader of a local congregation. The common practice of calling a preacher a ‘pastor’ is contrary to the New Testament. Only elders are ‘pastors’ (shepherds) in the New Testament. Churches which are led by the “pastor system” where a preacher is the head of a congregation, are not New Testament churches. This also applies to churches that are led by a priest, since the new covenant does not have a separate priest class; all Christians are priests (1 Peter 2:9). The use of distinctive clothing and religious titles, such as reverend and father, is specifically forbidden by Jesus (Luke 20:46; Matthew 23:8-11).
We can be the church of the New Testament if our evangelists preach and serve in compliance with the New Testament.
Teachers give instruction in the word.
For edification, Christ also gave teachers to His church (Ephesians 4:11). Whereas ‘to preach’ is to proclaim in public, the word ‘teach’ refers to the transfer of knowledge. Both elders and preachers must be able to teach. But a teacher does not have to be an elder or a preacher. Teachers are important in the church. To be the church of the New Testament, we need teachers who give instruction in the doctrine of Christ.
Women give instruction to women (Titus 2:3-5) and to children (2 Timothy 1:5; 3:14, 15) but do not teach or lead men in the church (1 Timothy 2:12).
Can we be the church of the New Testament? Certainly, if our leadership complies with the New Testament: if we are guided by Christ through the Scriptures, if our congregations are led and served by qualified elders and deacons, and if our preachers and teachers faithfully proclaim and teach the New Testament of Christ.
We can be the church of the New Testament.
Roy Davison

The Scripture quotations in this article are from
The New King James Version. ©1979,1980,1982, Thomas Nelson Inc., Publishers.
Permission for reference use has been granted.

Published in The Old Paths Archive
(http://www.oldpaths.com)

Can we be the church of the New Testament? Yes, if we worship according to the New Testament by Roy Davison

http://www.oldpaths.com/Archive/Davison/Roy/Allen/1940/Canwebe/ntworship.html

Can we be the church of the New Testament?

Yes, if we worship according to the New Testament

First, we must understand that the forms of worship in the New Testament are completely different from those in the Old Testament.
When the Samaritan women asked Jesus whether one should worship at Jerusalem or Samaria, He replied: “Woman, believe Me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor in Jerusalem, worship the Father. You worship what you do not know; we know what we worship, for salvation is of the Jews. But the hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship Him. God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth” (John 4:21-24).
Many false forms of worship result from the introduction of Old-Testament practices in a Christian context. Even heathen forms of worship are found in some denominations, such as the worship of images.
To be the church of the New Testament we must worship according to the New Testament.
Christians come together to break bread on the first day of the week. “Now on the first day of the week, when the disciples came together to break bread, Paul, ready to depart the next day, spoke to them” (Acts 20:7). ‘Breaking bread’ refers to the Lord’s supper.
The church at Jerusalem “continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers” (Acts 2:42).
Paul describes the Lord’s supper as follows: “For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, ‘Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.’ In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.’ For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes” (1 Corinthians 11:23-26).
Christians also give of their means on the first day of the week: “Now concerning the collection for the saints, as I have given orders to the churches of Galatia, so you must do also: On the first day of the week let each one of you lay something aside, storing up as he may prosper, that there be no collections when I come” (1 Corinthians 16:1, 2).
The first day of the week (Sunday) is a special day for Christians. On that day Jesus rose from the grave (Mark 16:9). That same day, He revealed Himself to two disciples when “He took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to them” (Luke 24:30, 31).
“Then, the same day at evening, being the first day of the week, when the doors were shut where the disciples were assembled, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in the midst, and said to them, ‘Peace be with you’” (John 20:19). A week later He appeared to them again, while they were assembled (John 20:26).
Although the first day of the week has special meaning for Christians, and they assemble to break bread on that day, it is not a ‘holy day’ or a ‘Sabbath’ (Romans 14:5, 6; Colossians 2:16, 17). Christians serve God every day.
When the church comes together, all activities should be up-building. Paul told the Corinthians, “Let all things be done for edification” (1 Corinthians 14:26).
Christians pray and sing in their worship. Paul said: “I will pray with the spirit, and I will also pray with the understanding. I will sing with the spirit, and I will sing with the understanding” (1 Corinthians 14:15).
Although music instruments were used in Old Testament worship, they are contrary to the spiritual nature of the worship of the new covenant. Paul calls them “lifeless things” (1 Corinthians 14:7). A mechanical instrument cannot worship in spirit and truth. It cannot sing with spirit and understanding. It cannot teach and admonish.
“Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord” (Colossians 3:16).
“Speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ” (Ephesians 5:19, 20).
Worship [προσκυνέω] is a specific, conscious glorification of God flowing from an inner attitude of lowly submission to His authority and awe at His majesty. Worship is expressed through actions such as praying, singing or fasting. But it is also possible to pray, sing or fast without worshipping, if the inner worshipful attitude is lacking.
Christian worship is not limited to the assemblies. Prayer can be in private (Matthew 6:6) or in the assembly (Matthew 18:19, 20). Songs of praise can be in private (James 5:13) or in the assembly (1 Corinthians 14:15). Fasting can be in private (Matthew 6:16) or in the assembly (Acts 13:2, 3; 14:23).
We may not go beyond what is written (1 Corinthians 4:6). To worship according to the New Testament, we may not use forms of worship that are not prescribed by the New Testament. God’s instructions are prescriptive. When a pharmacist fills a prescription he may not add or omit any ingredients. Neither may we change the forms of worship prescribed by God under the new covenant.
Although Old Testament forms of worship were different, the Old Testament teaches us important principles about worship.
The death penalty of Nadab and Abihu shows that we are not free to worship God any way we please.
“Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer and put fire in it, put incense on it, and offered profane fire before the LORD, which He had not commanded them. So fire went out from the LORD and devoured them, and they died before the LORD” (Leviticus 10:1, 2).
The literal meaning of the Hebrew word translated ‘profane’ is ‘strange’. It was strange because it was not a part of the worship God had prescribed. Notice the words: “which He had not commanded them.” Anything foreign to the worship that God has commanded, is ‘profane’. It is unholy.
We worship God when we read and listen to God’s word. We are reverent and bow our heads when we talk to God in prayer. Should we be any less reverent when we listen to God talking to us through His word? In Revelation 1:3 a blessing is pronounced on Bible readers: “Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy.”
A beautiful example of this is found in the Old Testament after the Babylonian captivity, when they read the law to the people. “Now all the people gathered together as one man in the open square that was in front of the Water Gate; and they told Ezra the scribe to bring the Book of the Law of Moses, which the Lord had commanded Israel. So Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly of men and women and all who could hear with understanding on the first day of the seventh month.”
“Then he read from it in the open square that was in front of the Water Gate from morning until midday, before the men and women and those who could understand; and the ears of all the people were attentive to the Book of the Law. So Ezra the scribe stood on a platform of wood which they had made for the purpose.”
“And Ezra opened the book in the sight of all the people, for he was standing above all the people; and when he opened it, all the people stood up. And Ezra blessed the Lord, the great God. Then all the people answered, ‘Amen, Amen!’ while lifting up their hands. And they bowed their heads and worshipped the Lord with their faces to the ground.”
“So they read distinctly from the book, in the Law of God; and they gave the sense, and helped them to understand the reading. ... And all the people went their way to eat and drink, to send portions and rejoice greatly, because they understood the words that were declared to them” (Nehemiah 8:1-4a, 5, 6, 8, 12).
They worshipped when they listened to the word of God. Let us also be worshipful when we listen to the word.
“Fear God and give glory to Him, for the hour of His judgment has come; and worship Him who made heaven and earth, the sea and springs of water” (Revelation 14:7).
Can we be the church of the New Testament? Yes, if we worship according to the New Testament. Christians come together on the first day of the week to eat the Lord’s supper and to give of their means. They sing and pray. They listen reverently to the word of God.
Roy Davison

The Scripture quotations in this article are from
The New King James Version. ©1979,1980,1982, Thomas Nelson Inc., Publishers.
Permission for reference use has been granted.

Published in The Old Paths Archive
(http://www.oldpaths.com)

Can we be the church of the New Testament? Yes, if we obey the gospel of the New Testament by Roy Davison

http://www.oldpaths.com/Archive/Davison/Roy/Allen/1940/Canwebe/ntgospel.html

Can we be the church of the New Testament?

Yes, if we obey the gospel of the New Testament

On January 25, 2005 Elaine Solowey, a botanist at Ketura, Israel, planted three date seeds. The seeds were carefully prepared. After being soaked in warm water containing fertilizer to facilitate germination they were planted in three pots.
There was something remarkable about those date seeds. They were two thousand years old. They had been found thirty years earlier by archaeologist Ehud Netzer during excavations at Masada, a mountain-top fortress on the shore of the Dead Sea. Carbon dating revealed them to be 2000 years old, plus or minus fifty years.
No one expected them to grow. But in one of the pots, after five weeks, the ground was broken by the new sprout of a date tree. The first year, the tree grew to a height of 30 cm. A date tree in Israel produced a seed that was preserved for 2000 years. When given the right environment, it sprouted, and grew into a tree like the parent plant.
The gospel went forth from Jerusalem some 2000 years ago (Isaiah 2:3; Luke 24:47). It was proclaimed first by Jesus Christ, the Son of God. After His death and resurrection, it was proclaimed by His apostles and preserved in the New Testament.
This gospel seed has life-giving power. It sprouts and bears fruit when planted in good and noble hearts (Luke 8:15).
Yes, we can be the church of the New Testament if we obey the gospel of the New Testament.
The word ‘gospel’ means ‘good news’. What is the good news of the new covenant, and what does it mean to obey it?
God sent His Son to become “the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him” (Hebrews 5:9). Thus, to obey the gospel is to obey Christ, to heed His message of salvation.
After Jesus was crucified and rose from the dead He told His followers: “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned” (Mark 16:15, 16).
You might be thinking, “Well, do not all churches preach the gospel?” Unfortunately, No! One of the most common departures from the new covenant among denominations is that they have changed the gospel.
This is nothing new. Even in the first century false teachers changed the gospel. Paul wrote to the churches of Galatia: “I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel, which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed” (Galatians 1:6-8).
The gospel may not be changed because it is from God. Paul continues: “But I make known to you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man. For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but it came through the revelation of Jesus Christ” (Galatians 1:11, 12).
Thus, to be the church of the New Testament we must obey the gospel of the New Testament.
The gospel is based on historical facts, things God has done for us in history.
“God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16).
To obey the gospel we must believe in Christ.
When Jesus asked His disciples, “Who do you say that I am?,” Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:15, 16). John the Baptist testified about Jesus: “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29).
“The wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23). “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). Thus, all of us stand condemned and are worthy of death. That is the bad news.
What is the good news? Jesus, as the Lamb of God, suffered the penalty for our sins in our stead so we can be forgiven: “Who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness -- by whose stripes you were healed” (1 Peter 2:24).
“For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Corinthians 5:21).
“God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life” (Romans 5:8-10).
“And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world” (1 John 2:2). “In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins” (1 John 4:10).
“Being justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith” (Romans 3:4). Propitiation is ‘appeasement’, that which makes peace.
The Son of Man came “to give His life a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:28). A ransom is the price of a life, a payment made to free someone. “For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself a ransom for all” (1 Timothy 2:5, 6).
Christ’s death for us and His resurrection are the foundation facts of the gospel. Paul wrote to the Corinthians: “Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received and in which you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast that word which I preached to you -- unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you first of all that which I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures” (1 Corinthians 15:1-4).
The gospel “is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes” (Romans 1:16). To obey the gospel we must believe in Christ.
To obey the gospel we must repent.
“Jesus came to Galilee, preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel’” (Mark 1:14, 15).
To repent is to be sorry for our sins and to determine to turn away from sin and dedicate our lives to God. Shortly before His ascension Jesus told His apostles: “Thus it is written, and thus it was necessary for the Christ to suffer and to rise from the dead the third day, and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem” (Luke 24:46, 47).
To obey the gospel we must confess our faith in Christ.
“But what does it say? ‘The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart’ (that is, the word of faith which we preach): that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation” (Romans 10:8-10). Of unbelievers, Paul goes on to say: “But they have not all obeyed the gospel” (Romans 10:16).
Thus, to obey the gospel we must repent and believe in our heart that Jesus is the Christ and that God raised Him from the dead. We must confess this faith with our mouth. This may seem to be a small thing, but many Christians through the ages have been killed because they confessed their faith in Christ. Paul wrote to Timothy: “Fight the good fight of faith, lay hold on eternal life, to which you were also called and have confessed the good confession in the presence of many witnesses” (1 Timothy 6:12).
To obey the gospel we must be baptized.
Jesus commanded: “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned” (Mark 16:15, 16).
Few denominations obey this simple command. Jesus places faith and baptism before salvation. Churches that practice infant baptism place baptism before faith. They do not obey the gospel. Churches that teach salvation by ‘faith only’ place salvation before baptism. They do not obey the gospel. Jesus said, “He who believes and is baptized will be saved.”
Baptism in the New Testament is by immersion. John baptized in Enon “because there was much water there” (John 3:23). “Both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him,” they then “came up out of the water” (Acts 8:38, 39). These two passages demonstrate that baptism is by immersion. The Greek word translated ‘baptize’ [βαπτίζω] means ‘to immerse’. Churches that baptize some other way, are not obeying the gospel.
When Peter was asked on Pentecost, “What shall we do?” he replied: “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins” (Acts 2:38). To obey the gospel we must be baptized for the remission of sins. Churches that do not baptize for the remission of sins are not obeying the gospel.
When we obey this gospel-command and are baptized on the basis of faith and repentance, we are born again spiritually. Paul explained to the Christians at Rome: “Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life” (Romans 6:3, 4).
Jesus told Nicodemus: “Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God” (John 3:5).
Peter explains the rebirth thus: “Since you have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit in sincere love of the brethren, love one another fervently with a pure heart, having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever. ... Now this is the word which by the gospel was preached to you” (1 Peter 1:22, 23, 25).
When Jesus comes again He will punish the disobedient: “When the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 Thessalonians 1:7, 8).
“For the time has come for judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God?” (1 Peter 4:17).
We can be the church of the New Testament if we obey the gospel of the New Testament. Jesus died for our sins and rose the third day. He is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. He bore our sins in His own body on the cross. We sin and deserve to die. But God loved us so much that He sent His Son to die for us and make amends for our sins. We obey this good news by believing in Christ, repenting of our sins, confessing Christ and being baptized for the remission of our sins to be born again of water and the Spirit, that we might rise to walk in newness of life.
Can we be the church of the New Testament? Certainly, if we keep the covenant, and obey the gospel of the New Testament.
Roy Davison

The Scripture quotations in this article are from
The New King James Version. ©1979,1980,1982, Thomas Nelson Inc., Publishers.
Permission for reference use has been granted.

Published in The Old Paths Archive
(http://www.oldpaths.com)

Can we be the church of the New Testament? Yes, if we hold fast the New-Testament pattern of sound words by Roy Davison

http://www.oldpaths.com/Archive/Davison/Roy/Allen/1940/Canwebe/ntpattern.html

Can we be the church of the New Testament?

Yes, if we hold fast the New-Testament pattern of sound words

Continual shelling during the First World War reduced the countryside in West Flanders, Belgium to a sea of mud. More than a million men died.
The beautiful Weaver’s Guild-Hall at Ieper, built in the 12th century, was reduced to rubble. After the war, the British wanted to leave the whole city of Ieper in ruins as a memorial to the war! Understandably, the people of Ieper thought otherwise! Some wanted to replace the Guild Hall with a modern structure. But city architect Jules Coomans insisted that the Weaver’s Hall be rebuilt.
And with the help of fellow architect, P.A. Pauwels, the building was restored to its original grandeur. When the restoration was complete in 1959, the building looked exactly as it did before. This was possible because they used the original building plans and the same type of stones.
Jesus built His church in the first century (Matthew 16:18). Two millennia later the world is full of denominations that are very different from the church Jesus built. People have used their own plans and their own stones to establish thousands of denominations according to their own liking and for their own glory.
Churches of Christ exist in all parts of the world because certain people want to be nothing more and nothing less than the church of the New Testament. They must endure much criticism, however, from those who call this an impossible dream, an unattainable objective, an impracticable ideal.
Can we be the church of the New Testament? Why not, if we use the original building plans and the same stones, if we follow the pattern of the New Testament?
The question is: Do we really want to be the church of the New Testament? Or do we prefer something else, something modern or something medieval? Do we want to serve God His way or our way?
Many, if not most people in Christendom do not even try to be the church of the New Testament. Is that acceptable to God?
Jesus said about religious groups in His time: “Every plant which My heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted. Let them alone. They are blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch” (Matthew 15:13, 14).
If we belong to some religious group other than the church Jesus built, we will be uprooted. If we blindly follow blind guides, we will fall into a pit. We must be the church of the New Testament if we want to be saved.
People in denominations -- which are conspicuously different from the New Testament church -- often try to justify the difference by claiming that it is not possible to be the church of the New Testament.
Can we be the church of the New Testament? Can we be the same church we read about in the Scriptures? Certainly, if we use the original plans, if we follow the original pattern.
Is the New Testament a pattern for the church?
People who want to do their own thing, do not like patterns. Thus, they simply declare that the New Testament does not provide a pattern for the church. What does the New Testament itself say?
Does the New Testament claim to be a pattern?
Paul told Timothy: “Hold fast the pattern of sound words which you have heard from me, in faith and love which are in Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 1:13). Paul told Titus to “speak the things which are proper for sound doctrine” (Titus 2:1).
An elder must hold “fast the faithful word as he has been taught, that he may be able, by sound doctrine, both to exhort and convict those who contradict” (Titus 1:9). The law is for anything “contrary to sound doctrine” (1 Timothy 1:8-11). Apostate Christians “will not endure sound doctrine” (2 Timothy 4:3, 4). Thus, these ‘sound words,’ this ‘sound doctrine’ is a pattern that is to be held fast by preachers and elders, and this pattern will be rejected by people with itching ears who want to please themselves rather than God.
Paul wrote to the Romans: “But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine to which you were delivered” (Romans 6:17). ‘Form of doctrine’ can be translated ‘pattern of doctrine’. Notice that it does not say that this pattern of doctrine has been delivered to us, but that we have been delivered to a pattern of doctrine! Rather than being subservient to sin, we are now subservient to a pattern of doctrine that we must obey from the heart!
The New Testament is our pattern. Only false teachers claim otherwise.
We certainly can be the church of the New Testament if we hold fast the New-Testament pattern of sound words.
To follow the New-Testament pattern, our speech must be pure. We must avoid theological formulations, and use Scriptural words to express our faith.
These words are not accidental. They are from God. Paul wrote: “These things we also speak, not in words which man’s wisdom teaches but which the Holy Spirit teaches” (1 Corinthians 2:13). Peter wrote: “If anyone speaks, let him speak as the oracles of God” (1 Peter 4:11). “To the law and to the testimony! If they do not speak according to this word, it is because there is no light in them” (Isaiah 8:20). To be the church of the New Testament we must use the language of the New Testament in our teaching and preaching.
Human interpretation of these Spirit-taught words is not allowed. We must observe their true meaning. “And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts; knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:19-21).
These Spirit-taught words come from Christ. We can be the church of the New Testament if we abide in the word of Christ. Jesus tells His followers: “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:31, 32). His word will judge us: “He who rejects Me, and does not receive My words, has that which judges him -- the word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day” (John 12:48).
Jesus has given us His word through the apostles and the Scriptures.
The first church “continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine” (Acts 2:42). The church is “built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ Himself being the chief cornerstone” (Ephesians 2:20). If we continue steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine, we will be the same church.
The holy Scriptures, inspired by God, provide all the information we need to be the church of the New Testament. In his first letter to Timothy, Paul said: “These things I write to you, though I hope to come to you shortly; but if I am delayed, I write so that you may know how you ought to conduct yourself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth” (1 Timothy 3:14, 15).
In his second letter Paul admonishes Timothy further: “But as for you, continue in the things which you have learned and been assured of, knowing from whom you have learned them, and that from childhood you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus. 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 complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:14-17).
This pattern is normative and must be followed accurately. Paul told the Corinthians not to go beyond what is written (1 Corinthians 4:6). John warned: “Whoever transgresses and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have God. He who abides in the doctrine of Christ has both the Father and the Son” (2 John 9).
Yes, we can be the church of the New Testament, but only if we have the same faith and obey the same gospel contained in the New Testament. Jude wrote: “Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 3). Paul wrote to the Galatians: “But even if we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel to you than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed” (Galatians 1:8).

The New Covenant must be kept.
In Greek, the word for testament and for covenant is the same [διαθήκη]. A covenant is a formal, solemn and binding agreement relative to the performance of certain actions. A confirmed covenant cannot be annulled or changed (Galatians 3:15).
The New Testament is a God-given covenant! It was ratified when Jesus died on the cross (Hebrews 9:16, 17). Through this covenant God grants blessings on specified conditions. This new covenant lays down the requirements for being a Christian and a church of Christ. These specifications cannot be changed. God, as sovereign Lord, has defined the conditions. We can be the church of the New Testament, but only if we comply with the provisions of the covenant God has given us.
Under the old covenant, God told Moses exactly how the tabernacle was to be made: “According to all that I show you, that is, the pattern of the tabernacle and the pattern of all its furnishings, just so you shall make it” (Exodus 25:9). “And you shall raise up the tabernacle according to its pattern which you were shown on the mountain” (Exodus 26:30).
The necessity of following this pattern is mentioned twice in the New Testament. Stephen said: “Our fathers had the tabernacle of witness in the wilderness, as He appointed, instructing Moses to make it according to the pattern that he had seen” (Acts 7:44). In Hebrews it is explained that the tabernacle was a “copy and shadow of the heavenly things, as Moses was divinely instructed when he was about to make the tabernacle. For He said, ‘See that you make all things according to the pattern shown you on the mountain’” (Hebrews 8:5).
God foretold that the old covenant would be replaced: “Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah -- not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke” (Jeremiah 31:31, 32).
Can we be the church of the New Testament?
Yes, certainly. If we follow the pattern of the New Testament, if we comply with the conditions and provisions of the new covenant, if we abide in the word of Christ, if we continue steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine, if we hold fast the pattern of sound words, if we use the Scriptures for doctrine, reproof, correction and instruction, if we obey from the heart that form of doctrine to which we have been delivered, if we do not go beyond what is written, if we hold fast the faithful word, if we have the same faith and obey the same gospel, if we abide in the doctrine of Christ... we can be the church of the New Testament.
Roy Davison

The Scripture quotations in this article are from
The New King James Version. ©1979,1980,1982, Thomas Nelson Inc., Publishers.
Permission for reference use has been granted.

Published in The Old Paths Archive
(http://www.oldpaths.com)

CHRISTIAN by Gary Rose

Warning label about what? Some character defect? Not good looking? Conservative political views? Poor job? Warning:__________ you fill in the blank.

Now, whatever you fill in the blank with is what is really important to you.

So, WHAT IS REALLY IMPORTANT TO YOU....................

Acts, Chapter 11 (World English Bible)

 ¹⁸ When they heard these things, they held their peace, and glorified God, saying, “Then God has also granted to the Gentiles repentance to life!” 

  ¹⁹ They therefore who were scattered abroad by the oppression that arose about Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch, speaking the word to no one except to Jews only.  ²⁰ But there were some of them, men of Cyprus and Cyrene, who, when they had come to Antioch, spoke to the Hellenists, preaching the Lord Jesus.  ²¹ The hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number believed and turned to the Lord.  ²² The report concerning them came to the ears of the assembly which was in Jerusalem. They sent out Barnabas to go as far as Antioch,  ²³ who, when he had come, and had seen the grace of God, was glad. He exhorted them all, that with purpose of heart they should remain near to the Lord.  ²⁴ For he was a good man, and full of the Holy Spirit and of faith, and many people were added to the Lord. 

  ²⁵ Barnabas went out to Tarsus to look for Saul.  ²⁶ When he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they were gathered together with the assembly, and taught many people. The disciples were first called Christians in Antioch. (emp. added vs. 26c, GDR)

WHY?

 Acts, Chapter 4 (World English Bible)

 ¹² There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven that is given among men, by which we must be saved!” 

What is most important to you? Answer: that which is the most valuable? Now, you probably are asking "and, how do I determine that...?

My answer is this this: That which provides the best return on investment for the longest time.  And the final answer is.... eternity in heaven with my fellow Christians and God!!!

In short, a CHRISTIAN!!!

BE ONE!!!