4/18/22

“One Lord, one faith, one baptism” (Ephesians 4:5) by Roy Davison

http://www.oldpaths.com/Archive/Davison/Roy/Allen/1940/068-OneLord.html

“One Lord, one faith, one baptism”
(Ephesians 4:5).

“There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all” (Ephesians 4:4-6).

There is one Lord.

A lord is someone who has authority over others. Who is the one Lord? Jesus Christ “is Lord of all” (Acts 10:36). He once asked His hearers: “Why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say?” (Luke 6:46). After His resurrection Jesus said, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth” (Matthew 28:18). The Father is also Lord: “The Lord God Omnipotent reigns!” (Revelation 19:6). And “The Lord is the Spirit” (2 Corinthians 3:17). Since there is one Lord and all three are called “Lord”, the one Lord with authority over all men is the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

To be the one body, the church of Christ, and to have the one faith, we must submit to the authority of the one Lord who through the Scriptures has made the gospel known to all nations: “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 16:26).

There is one faith.

The one faith is “the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory” (James 2:1), “the faith of the gospel” (Philippians 1:27), “the faith of God’s elect” (Titus 1:1), the faith we obey (Acts 6:7¹), the faith in which we remain “grounded and steadfast” (Colossians 1:23²), the faith in which we are “strengthened” (Acts 16:5), the faith in which we are “rooted and built up in Him and established” (Colossians 2:7), the faith in which we “stand fast” (1 Corinthians 16:13), the faith in which we have unity (Ephesians 4:13), “the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints” and for which we “contend earnestly”! (Jude 1:3).

Sadly, there are thousands of false faiths in this world, fake faiths of human origin.

But there is only one genuine faith, the faith of the church of Christ, also called the doctrine of Christ. “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). Paul warned: “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). We may not deviate from the one faith.

There is one baptism.

The one baptism (and the only valid baptism), is the baptism of the one faith, the baptism authorized by the one Lord and practiced by the one body, the church of Christ. “For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body” (1 Corinthians 12:13).

Sadly, there are many false forms of baptism practiced by false faiths. Any form of baptism that is different from the one baptism of the one faith is not valid because it is not performed by the authority of the one Lord.

Millions think they have been baptized when they have not been baptized. They have been deceived by Satan. He wants people to think they are saved when they have not been saved because their baptism was not the one baptism authorized by the one Lord.

Infant baptism, for example, is not the one baptism because it is not based on the faith of the one being baptized. Jesus said, “He who believes and is baptized will be saved” (Mark 16:16).

The one baptism is a burial, an immersion in water. The Ethiopian eunuch confessed his faith and was baptized in water: “Now as they went down the road, they came to some water. And the eunuch said, ‘See, here is water. What hinders me from being baptized?’ Then Philip said, ‘If you believe with all your heart, you may.’ And he answered and said, ‘I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.’ So he commanded the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him. Now when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip away, so that the eunuch saw him no more; and he went on his way rejoicing” (Acts 8:36-39).

The one baptism is a burial in water that unites us with the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus: “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. For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin” (Romans 6:3-6).

The one baptism is an immersion in water, but not every immersion is the one baptism. Immersion as practiced by Baptists, Evangelicals and Pentecostals, for example, is not the one baptism because they do not baptize “for the remission of sins” and they do not believe that the “gift of the Holy Spirit” is received at baptism. Their form of baptism conflicts with the command of Peter: “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins; and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit” (Acts 2:38). They reject baptism as the washing of regeneration (Titus 3:4-7) and deny that one must be born of both water and Spirit to enter the kingdom of God (John 3:5). They also do not baptize into the one body, the church of Christ, as designated by Paul: “For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body” (1 Corinthians 12:13).

All forms of baptism that differ from the one baptism, are not valid because they are not part of the one faith and do not occur in submission to the one Lord.

Let us be certain that we submit to the one Lord, that our faith is the one faith, and that our baptism is the one baptism. Amen.
Roy Davison

Endnotes:

¹ See also Romans 1:5; 16:26

² See also Acts 14:22

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

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

"CHALLENGES CONFRONTING THE CHURCH" Traditionalism by Mark Copeland

https://executableoutlines.com/topical_series/challenges-confronting-the-church/ccc_06.html

"CHALLENGES CONFRONTING THE CHURCH"

Traditionalism

INTRODUCTION

In previous lessons, we examined the challenges of...

Denominationalism
Sectarianism
Factionalism

Another challenge that has a long history is traditionalism...

Jesus often conflicted with traditions in His day
Traditions have often been a major factor in causing division among churches

[What are traditions? Are traditions always wrong? If not, when does a tradition become wrong? How can we be guilty of traditionalism? Let's begin with...]

THE MEANING OF TRADITION

TRADITION...

The Greek word is paradosis, which means "giving over" or "handing down"
It refers to teaching that is handed down either by word (orally) or in writing

AS UNDERSTOOD BY THE JEWS...

It applied to the oral teachings of the elders (distinguished elders from Moses on down)
These traditions were often divided into three classes...

Oral laws supposedly given by Moses in addition to the written laws
Decisions of various judges which became precedents in judicial matters
Interpretations of highly respected rabbis held in reverence along with the OT scriptures

-- Article on "Tradition", ISBE

Prior to his conversion, Paul was a staunch supporter of Jewish tradition - Ga 1:13-14

AS UNDERSTOOD BY ROMAN AND GREEK CATHOLICS...

Their views appear to be parallel to that of the Jews
What they consider "Tradition" is what they believe to be the teachings:

Of Jesus or His apostles, persevered orally rather than through writing
Of various church councils which have left various decrees
Of various church leaders (such as the pope) considered to be inspired with later revelations from God

One is expected to take their word for it that these "traditions" were truly from God and have been faithfully transmitted

AS FOUND IN THE SCRIPTURES...

The word "tradition" as such is not found in the Old Testament
It is found thirteen (13) times in New Testament

Three times referring to "apostolic teaching" - 1Co 11:2; 2Th 2:15; 3:6
Ten times referring to "the tradition of the elders" or "the traditions of men" in a dangerous way - Mk 7:3-13; Mt 15:2-6; Col 2:8; 1Pe 1:18; Ga 1:14

Jesus did not feel bound to abide by "the traditions of the elders"

Some traditions He had no problem with keeping

Such as going to a wedding feast - Jn 2:1-2
Or attending the Feast Of Dedication - Jn 10:22-23

He just as easily had no problem with violating other traditions

Plucking grain on the Sabbath - Mk 2:23-28
Eating with unwashed hands - Mk 7:1-5

Jesus evidently did not subscribe to the view of "traditions" handed down orally

He never appealed to the traditions of the elders
He either appealed to the authority of the written Word (the Law of Moses), or to His own authority as the Son of God

Note well: We have seen that not all "traditions" are wrong

If they are "handed down" by inspired men, they are to be heeded - 2Th 2:15
If they are doctrines or interpretations handed down by uninspired men (like the traditions of the Jews) they are suspect
But in some cases uninspired "traditions of men" might be observed

[So traditions of men can be dangerous, or they can be harmless. How can we distinguish between those that are dangerous and those that are harmless? In Mk 7:1-13, Jesus provides the answer...]

THE DANGER OF TRADITIONS OF MEN

THEY CAN LEAD TO HYPOCRITICAL WORSHIP...

Traditions of men tend toward ritualism (just look at the rituals found in many religions that have no scriptural basis)
Such ritualism is often done repeatedly, with little thought as to its origin and purpose
It is easy to go through such rituals, with the heart and mind on other things
Worship without the heart (or mind) of man is hypocritical worship! - Mk 7:6

THEY CAN LEAD TO VAIN WORSHIP...

When traditions of men are taught on the same level as the commands of God, it leads to vain worship - Mk 7:7
Such worship may appear to be impressive, but it in actually "empty, worthless"

First, because God did not command it
Second, because it does not accomplish the good we really need - cf. Col 2:18-23

THEY CAN MAKE THE WORD OF GOD VOID...

Jesus gave the example of honoring one's parents - Mk 7:10-12

The elders' tradition taught giving to the temple freed one from giving to one's parents
Thus rendering the command of God of no effect

There are traditions of men today with similar affect

Such as the practice of sprinkling for baptism, a tradition of man
When one keeps the tradition of sprinkling, they make the command of God to be baptized (immersed) of no effect!

Through such traditions, one is actually rejecting the command of God! - Mk 7:8-9,13

[With this understanding of traditions and their dangers, let's now summarize...]

TRADITIONS AND TRADITIONALISM: A SUMMARY

TRADITIONS...

Traditions of God, handed down by Christ and His apostles through the Written Word, are necessary for our salvation!
Traditions of men, handed down by uninspired men, are dangerous and sinful, when they:

Lead to hypocritical worship
Lead to vain worship
Make the Word of God void

Traditions of men can be harmless, but they become sinful if they:

Are taught as doctrines (i.e., equivalent to the Word of God) - Mk 7:7
Make the commandments of God of no effect (by their observance) - Mk 7:9,13

TRADITIONALISM...

Defined: the systematic emphasis on the value of tradition - Wikipedia
Exemplified by Jewish, Roman Catholic, Greek Orthodox, and Protestant religions
But can also be manifested in churches of Christ

Doing things a certain way, just because that is how it has always been done
Binding practices without scriptural basis, because we've always done it that way

CONCLUSION

Traditionalism can be viewed as the abuse of tradition...

Where traditions of men are bound, made equivalent to the traditions of God
Where traditions of men are kept, even if it makes the commands of God of no effect

To avoid traditionalism, we need to be well grounded in the Word of God...

By which we can examine any tradition being proposed as necessary
Asking as Jesus did, "From heaven, or from men?" - cf. Mt 21:25
Careful not to bind where God has not bound

So many of the differences and divisions between churches today are due to traditionalism with its abuse of traditions. Let's be careful not to allow traditionalism to keep us from working together in love and unity...

Upcoming by Gary Rose

This picture says to me: Something IS COMING. I am unsure as to what it is, but it IS SIGNIFICANT. And it evokes more of a feeling than anything else. There is a great deal going on in the world today and very little of it is good. We live in very dangerous times, with evil progressing from bad to worse and recently morphing into the realm of unbelievable. For only the second time in my life, I can realistically envision the possibility of thermonuclear war. I was about twelve during the Cuban missile crisis and I still remember the reaction of my fellow passengers on the school bus when the transistor radio announcement was made that there might be a nuclear exchange. And the word for that was… PANIC. Now, all the kids on the bus knew that there could be a war because we had been practiced protecting ourselves from a nuclear blast by hiding underneath our school desks, but when that announcement came, some kids screamed and kept on screaming. Like I said… PANIC.

Sixty some years later, here we go again, with a mad-man governing Russia and committing atrocities in Ukraine that rival Adolph Hitler’s inhumanity during the second world war. Putin may really be considering the use of nuclear weapons in Ukraine, or it may just be political drama, misinformation or something else, but something dramatic is going to happen there and soon. How do I know? Instinct, that gut feeling you get when you just know something and you really don’t know how or why.

Having said all this, I feel that before ( or perhaps during ) a nuclear holocaust, Christ will come and make his power and glory manifest to the world. Again, how do I know? Same answer as before- a gut feeling.

The Bible says…

1 Thessalonians 4 ( World English Bible )

¹³But we don’t want you to be ignorant, brothers, concerning those who have fallen asleep, so that you don’t grieve like the rest, who have no hope.

¹⁴For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus.

¹⁵For this we tell you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left to the coming of the Lord, will in no way precede those who have fallen asleep.

¹⁶For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with God’s trumpet. The dead in Christ will rise first,

¹⁷then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air. So we will be with the Lord forever.

¹⁸Therefore comfort one another with these words.

If you are a Christian, you have hope and the comfort that whatever happens, Jesus will be there for you. So, let come what may, Jesus of Nazareth, the KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS will overcome all evil and rule forever! BELIEVE THIS, FOR IT IS TRUE!!

Maranatha

( come, O LORD ) used in 1 Corinthians 16:22

4/11/22

Is Peter the Rock/Foundation of the Church? by Dave Miller, Ph.D.

https://apologeticspress.org/is-peter-the-rockfoundation-of-the-church-5971/

Is Peter the Rock/Foundation of the Church?

Dave Miller, Ph.D.

Catholicism Christian Origins Christian Origins Christian Origins Doctrinal Matters

From Issue: R&R – June 2021

Some have suggested that Jesus established the Catholic notion of the papacy and that He declared that Peter would be the first pope, since He referred to Peter as the “rock.” Read carefully the context:

When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, “Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?” So they said, “Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter answered and said, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus answered and said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven” (Matthew 16:13-20).

Did Jesus intend to convey the idea that the church is built on Peter or that Peter was the head of the church?

The word for “Peter” in Greek is petros (masculine gender) and means a “stone.”¹ In contrast, the word for “rock” is petra (feminine gender) and refers to “bedrock or massive rock formations, rock as distinguished from stones.”² It is true that, assuming Jesus spoke Aramaic, the Aramaic word for both Peter and rock (kepha) are the same.³ However, God did not inspire the writers of the New Testament to write His Word in Aramaic.⁴ Rather, He inspired them to write in Greek—and the Greek text makes a clear distinction between petra and petros. Interestingly, so does the Latin Vulgate. Anticipating confusion, the Holy Spirit could have easily caused the same word to be used twice, or He could have had Matthew simply state that the Church would be built “on you.”

Contextually, the “rock” upon which Jesus built His Church was the truth that Peter had just articulated: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matthew 16:16). This truth is, indeed, the great ledge-rock foundation of the Church. Both Christ’s headship over the Church and His undergirding foundation are stated emphatically in the New Testament:

And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all (Ephesians 1:22-23).

And He is the head of the body, the church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the preeminence (Colossians 1:18).

For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 3:11; cf. Ephesians 2:20).

In fact, Peter Himself forthrightly declared Jesus to be the “living stone” (lithos—1 Peter 2:4). He then applied Isaiah 28:16 and Psalm 118:22 to Jesus as the “chief cornerstone”⁵ (1 Peter 2:6-7). And he also quoted Isaiah 8:14 and applied it to Jesus as well, indicating Him to be “A stone of stumbling and a rock of offense” (vs. 8). The Hebrew synonymous parallelism makes “stone” (from lithos) and “rock” (from petra) the same. Peter is clearly not the petra of Matthew 16:18. Rather, Jesus is—specifically, that He is the Christ, the Son of God.

Endnotes

¹ Frederick Danker, et al. (2000), Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament (Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press), second edition, p. 809.

² Ibid., emp. and italics in orig. See the use of petra to refer to such formations (as opposed to stones) in Matthew 27:60; Mark 15:46; Luke 8:6,13 (on the rock—ESV, NKJV, RSV, NIV, etc.). Also Exodus 17:6 and Numbers 20:7-8,10-11 and Paul’s typological comparison to Christ as “that spiritual Rock” (1 Corinthians 10:4)—hardly a small stone. See also the use of petra in parallelism with lithos in Romans 9:32-33, as opposed to the use of petros.

³ In fact, Jesus bestowed the name “Cephas” on Peter (John 1:42) and Paul so referred to Peter in 1 Corinthians (1:12; 3:22; 9:5; 15:5; Galatians 1:18; 2:9,11,14). However, Jesus specifically alluded to petra as the foundation on which His church would be built.

⁴ The New Testament includes a few Aramaic words found in the following verses: Matthew 5:22; 6:24; 27:46; Mark 5:41; 7:34; 10:51; 11:9; 14:36; 15:34; Luke 16:9,11,13; John 1:42; 20:16; Acts 9:36,40; Romans 8:15; 1 Corinthians 16:22; Galatians 4:6.

⁵ The Greek has “head of the corner,” with “head” being the Greek term kephale. Jesus is the “head”—not Peter.

Published June 13, 2021

What is the truth about God? by Roy Davison

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

What is the truth about God?

With regard to non-believers, Paul said: “They exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator” (Romans 1:25 RSV).

The truth about God remains true, whether it is accepted or not. Nor can the consequences of truth simply be wished away.

What is the truth about God?

God is.

The existence of God is evident from His works:
“The heavens declare the glory of God;
And the firmament shows His handiwork.
Day unto day utters speech,
And night unto night reveals knowledge.
There is no speech nor language
Where their voice is not heard.
Their line has gone out through all the earth,
And their words to the end of the world”
(Psalm 19:1-4).

“For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse, because, although they knew God, they did not glorify Him as God, nor were thankful, but became futile in their thoughts, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools” (Romans 1:20-22).

God’s eternal power and Godhead are evident “being understood by the things that are made.”

Yet many have rejected the one true God and have become adherents of some fake, materialistic religion. Or they resort to atheism that involves the deification of nature by ascribing godlike creative power to unintelligent, dead matter.

Who says there is no God?

“The fool has said in his heart, ‘There is no God’” (Psalm 14:1).

The philosopher, Friedrich Nietzsche, in writings between 1882 and 1889 declared: ‘God is dead’. His writings have been influential in philosophical and atheistic circles since then.

Nietzsche admitted that the loss of belief in God would cause a breakdown of traditional moral values, but he believed that without faith in God a new Übermensch would arise, a higher form of man.

He criticized Christians for taking care of the weak, which according to him interfered with the progress of evolution through natural selection by enabling inferior people to reproduce.

Hitler used ideas of Nietzsche as the basis for his extermination of the physically handicapped and certain races that he considered inferior, in order to advance Darwin’s ‘survival of the fittest’.¹

Nietzsche at the age of 44 became completely insane in 1889. The doctors thought he had acquired syphilis from prostitutes but perhaps he had a brain tumor.

A year earlier Nietzsche had written a book in opposition to Christianity and Christian morality entitled ‘The Antichrist’. In its conclusion he says: “I call Christianity the one great curse, the one great intrinsic depravity.” He suggested that instead of dating time from the birth of Christ, it should be dated from the last day of Christianity, namely from the year his book appeared!²

In 1889 he wrote to a friend: “The world will be turned on its head for the next few years: since the old God has abdicated, I will be ruling the world from now on.”³

Nietzsche was insane for eleven years until his death in 1900.

Nietzsche is dead. God lives, unhindered by people, über or not, who say that there is no God.

The truth about God is found in the Bible where the attributes of God are described.

God is holy.

“Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, Who was and is and is to come!” (Revelation 4:8).

God is one.

“The Lord our God, the Lord is one” (Mark 12:29).

“For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as there are many gods and many lords), yet for us there is only one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we for Him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and through whom we live” (1 Corinthians 8:5, 6).

In Scripture the one true God is revealed as Father, Son and Holy Spirit [see for example John 4:24; 20:28; Colossians 3:17]. Thus Christians are baptized “in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19).

God is Creator.

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. Then God said, ‘Let there be light’; and there was light” (Genesis 1:1-3). Notice that the Spirit and the Word of God were active in creation. God spoke the universe into being by the power of His Spirit.

Later the creative Word of God came as Savior in the person of Jesus Christ: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made” (John 1:1-3).

God reigns.

God is sovereign. “The LORD shall reign forever and ever” (Exodus 15:18). “God reigns over the nations; God sits on His holy throne” (Psalm 47:8). “The Lord God Omnipotent reigns!” (Revelation 19:6).

God has spoken.

God has made His will known to man.

“He has shown you, O man, what is good” (Mica 6:8).

“The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul” (Psalm 19:7).⁴

“God who at various times and in different ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds” (Hebrews 1:1, 2).⁵ The teachings of Christ have been passed on to us by His apostles in the Bible (Romans 16:25-27).

“God is love” (1 John 4:8) .

“God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).

God saves.

“But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit” (Titus 3:4, 5).⁶

God gave His Son.

“For 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).

“In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. 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 4:9, 10).

“And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son as Savior of the world” (1 John 4:14).

“And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent” (John 17:3).

God sent His Spirit.

“But when the Helper comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify of Me” (Jesus promised in John 15:26).

“But when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, ‘Abba, Father!’” (Galatians 4:4-6).

The Holy Spirit came on the day of Pentecost and inspired the apostles to preach the message of Christ and record it in sacred writings that come down to us in the Bible.⁷

God calls us.

“God is faithful, by whom you were called into the fellowship of His Son, Jesus Christ our Lord” (1 Corinthians 1:9). God “has saved us and called us with a holy calling” (2 Timothy 1:9).⁸

God is worthy to be praised.

“Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised in the city of our God” (Psalm 48:1).
“I will extol You, my God, O King; And I will bless Your name forever and ever. Every day I will bless You, And I will praise Your name forever and ever. Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised; And His greatness is unsearchable” (Psalm 145:1- 3).

“I will call upon the LORD, who is worthy to be praised” (Psalm 18:3).⁹

God will judge us.

“God shall judge the righteous and the wicked” (Ecclesiastes 3:17).

“He shall judge the world in righteousness, and He shall administer judgment for the peoples in uprightness” (Psalm 9:8).

“So then each of us shall give account of himself to God” (Romans 14:12).

“Therefore, since we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, something shaped by art and man’s devising. Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent, because He has appointed a day on which He will judge the world in righteousness by the Man whom He has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all by raising Him from the dead” (Acts 17:29-31).

What is the truth about God?

God is. God is holy. God is one. God is Creator. God reigns. God has spoken. God is love. God saves. God gave His Son. God sent His Spirit. God calls us. God is worthy to be praised. God will judge us.

Do you want to serve God?

Believe what God has revealed about Himself in the Bible. Believe the saving message of His Son, Jesus Christ. Confess your faith in Him. Repent of your sins. Be baptized in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit for the forgiveness of your sins. Rise from the water of baptism, born anew, to serve the one true God in spirit and truth. Serve Him faithfully until death and He will give you the crown of life.¹⁰ Amen.

Endnotes:

¹ Nietzsche himself was opposed to antisemitism, however.
² Downloaded from the full text of “The Antichrist” on Nov. 6, 2018 from
https://archive.org/stream/theantichrist19322gut/19322.txt
³ Downloaded on Nov. 6, 2018 from http://www.leonardsax.com/Nietzsche.pdf
⁴ See verses 7-11.
⁵ See also Hebrews 4:12, 13.
⁶ See also 2 Samuel 22:47 & Psalm 62:1, 2.
⁷ See Acts chapter 2 & Romans 16:25-27.
⁸ See also 2 Peter 1:2-4 & 1 Peter 5:10, 11.
⁹ See also Psalm 113:1-3, Psalm 96:1-13 & Psalm 145:1-3.
¹⁰ See James 1:12 & Revelation 2:10.

Roy Davison

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

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

"CHALLENGES CONFRONTING THE CHURCH" Factionalism by Mark Copeland

"CHALLENGES CONFRONTING THE CHURCH"

Factionalism

INTRODUCTION

In previous lessons, we examined the challenges of...

Denominationalism
Sectarianism

Both of these challenges have often by exacerbated by factionalism...

Leading to the rise of new denominations (38,000 and rising!)
Contributing to many sectarian views of the church

[What is factionalism? How is it often manifested? How can it be avoided? Let's begin with...]

THE DEFINITION OF FACTION AND FACTIONALISM

FACTION...

A group of persons forming a cohesive, usually contentious minority within a larger group
Conflict within an organization or nation; internal dissension

-- American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language

FACTIONALISM...

The splitting of a group into factions - Wiktionary
Factional: self-interested; partisan - Dictionary.com

IN THE GREEK NEW TESTAMENT...

The word translated "factions" is hairesis - cf. 1Co 11:19

A division of people into different and opposing sets - 'division, separate group.' 'for it is necessary that divisions exist among you' or 'the existence of divisions among you is inevitable' 1Co 11:19 - Louw-Nida
This Greek word is also translated as "heresies" - 2Pe 2:1
Which is included among the works of the flesh - Ga 5:20
Together with "dissensions" (dichostasia) - those who cause divisions - cf. Ro 16:17

A derivative is hairetikon - cf. Tit 3:10

Pertaining to causing divisions - 'divisive, one who causes divisions.' - Louw-Nida
A divisive (factious) man is to be warned and then rejected if he does not repent!

[I would define factionalism as the tendency to split into factions, prompted by a contentious, partisan spirit or disposition. Let's now consider some...]

MANIFESTATIONS OF FACTIONALISM

WITHIN CHURCHES...

The problem at Corinth - 1Co 1:10-12

Symptomatic of spiritual immaturity and carnality - 1Co 3:1-4
Manifested also in their observance of the Lord's Supper - 1Co 11:17-20

The problem today often exists due to:

Generational, racial, cultural, or doctrinal issues
The development of cliques, and then the formation of factions

AMONG CHURCHES...

The issue of circumcision in the early church - Ac 15:1-2

Led by a faction from the church at Jerusalem
Creating problems with churches in Syria and Galatia - Ga 2:11-13; 6:12

Intra-church factions today often occur

Where congregations often align themselves into a faction
Usually the first step into sectarianism and denominationalism

INFLUENCES OF FACTIONALISM...

Undue allegiance - cf. 1Co 1:12

To notable persons like a preacher, writer, editor
To an institution such as a college, missionary or benevolent society
To brotherhood magazines, lectureships, websites

Compounded by the same spirit found at Corinth - cf. 1Co 3:1-4

Spiritual immaturity - 1Co 3:1
Carnality - 1Co 3:2-4

[Factionalism needs to be taken seriously. Here are some thoughts for...]

AVOIDING FACTIONALISM

REMEMBER THE IMPORTANCE OF UNITY...

Jesus prayed for unity, He died to create unity - Jn 17:20-21; Ep 2:14-17
Paul condemned division, it is a work of the flesh - 1Co 1:10-13; Ga 5:20

DEVELOP SPIRITUAL MATURITY...

Remember, division is often the result of carnality - 1Co 3:1-4
We need the mind of Christ: lowliness of mind and concern for others - Php 2:1-5
We need to learn gentleness, longsuffering, forbearance, love, diligence - Ep 4:1-3

CONTEND WITHOUT CONTENTIOUSNESS...

Contending for the faith is essential - Jude 3; Php 1:27
But we can contend without contentiousness, disagree without being disagreeable
By displaying the gentleness and meekness of Christ, which together with truth are "weapons mighty in God" - 2Co 10:1-6

AVOID A PARTISAN SPIRIT ...

That is, being quick to align oneself with a party, faction, group
Instead, strive to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace - Ep 4:3-6
Working toward unity if at all possible
Being a part of the solution, not the problem

CONCLUSION

Factionalism is a terrible, destructive, work of the flesh - Ga 5:20; Tit 3:10

Like denominationalism, it hinders unity
Like sectarianism, it fosters division

Unity among brethren is a beautiful thing - Ps 133:1; Jn 17:21

It is good and pleasant
It helps the world to believe in Jesus

Finally, all of you be of one mind, having compassion for one another; love as brothers, be tenderhearted, be courteous;

Not returning evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary blessing, knowing that you were called to this, that you may inherit a blessing.

For "He who would love life And see good days, Let him refrain his tongue from evil, And his lips from speaking deceit. Let him turn away from evil and do good; Let him seek peace and pursue it.

For the eyes of the LORD are on the righteous, And His ears are open to their prayers; But the face of the LORD is against those who do evil." - 1Pe 3:8-12

Notice by Gary Rose

Sounds like a lot of double-talk, doesn’t it? Recently, I needed to review some insurance documents and they were full of “communication” like this. I use the word communication very loosely, because the level of communication is very, very low. Like the insurance documents, one has to read this quite slowly to understand what is being said. Also, being a lawyer would be very helpful.

For almost my entire adult life, I have been reading the Bible. Some things in it are hard to understand, like prophecies for example. But the things that matter a great deal are quite straightforward. Consider the book of Acts. This book is a history of people becoming Christians; here is but one example ( but a very good one ).

Acts 2 ( World English Bible )

¹Now when the day of Pentecost had come, they were all with one accord in one place.

²Suddenly there came from the sky a sound like the rushing of a mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting.

³Tongues like fire appeared and were distributed to them, and one sat on each of them.

⁴They were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and began to speak with other languages, as the Spirit gave them the ability to speak.

⁵Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men, from every nation under the sky.

⁶When this sound was heard, the multitude came together, and were bewildered, because everyone heard them speaking in his own language.

⁷They were all amazed and marveled, saying to one another, “Behold, aren’t all these who speak Galileans?

⁸How do we hear, everyone in our own native language?

⁹Parthians, Medes, Elamites, and people from Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, Asia,

¹⁰Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, the parts of Libya around Cyrene, visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes,

¹¹Cretans and Arabians: we hear them speaking in our languages the mighty works of God!”

¹²They were all amazed, and were perplexed, saying one to another, “What does this mean?”

¹³Others, mocking, said, “They are filled with new wine.”

¹⁴But Peter, standing up with the eleven, lifted up his voice, and spoke out to them, “You men of Judea, and all you who dwell at Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and listen to my words.

¹⁵For these aren’t drunken, as you suppose, seeing it is only the third hour of the day.

¹⁶But this is what has been spoken through the prophet Joel:

¹⁷‘It will be in the last days, says God, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh. Your sons and your daughters will prophesy. Your young men will see visions. Your old men will dream dreams.

¹⁸Yes, and on my servants and on my handmaidens in those days, I will pour out my Spirit, and they will prophesy.

¹⁹I will show wonders in the sky above, and signs on the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and billows of smoke.

²⁰The sun will be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and glorious day of the Lord comes.

²¹It will be, that whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved.’

²²“Men of Israel, hear these words! Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved by God to you by mighty works and wonders and signs which God did by him in the midst of you, even as you yourselves know,

²³him, being delivered up by the determined counsel and foreknowledge of God, you have taken by the hand of lawless men, crucified and killed;

²⁴whom God raised up, having freed him from the agony of death, because it was not possible that he should be held by it.

²⁵For David says concerning him, ‘I saw the Lord always before my face, For he is on my right hand, that I should not be moved.

²⁶Therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced. Moreover my flesh also will dwell in hope;

²⁷because you will not leave my soul in Hades, neither will you allow your Holy One to see decay.

²⁸You made known to me the ways of life. You will make me full of gladness with your presence.’

²⁹“Brothers, I may tell you freely of the patriarch David, that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day.

³⁰Therefore, being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his body, according to the flesh, he would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne,

³¹he foreseeing this spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that neither was his soul left in Hades, nor did his flesh see decay.

³²This Jesus God raised up, to which we all are witnesses.

³³Being therefore exalted by the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this, which you now see and hear.

³⁴For David didn’t ascend into the heavens, but he says himself, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit by my right hand,

³⁵until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”’

³⁶“Let all the house of Israel therefore know certainly that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”

³⁷Now when they heard this, they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?”

³⁸Peter said to them, “Repent, and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

³⁹For the promise is to you, and to your children, and to all who are far off, even as many as the Lord our God will call to himself.”

⁴⁰With many other words he testified, and exhorted them, saying, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation!”

⁴¹Then those who gladly received his word were baptized. There were added that day about three thousand souls.

The Jews had Jesus crucified. They were guilty of his execution. They needed to repent and turn to God and be baptized and become a members of THE CHURCH bought with Jesus’ own blood. This is how someone becomes a Christian. No double-talk, just plain language. Follow their example: Believe in Jesus, repent of sin, submit to God’s will for your life by being baptized for the remission of sins. Do this and live with God forever.