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Some
may ask, "What is the theology of the church of Christ?
Some say, ‘No creed but Christ; no law but love.’ I want to
know what they teach and why they teach it." Jesus tells
us that we can know and be saved by the truth (John 8:32).
Truth is one and can have no contradictions. If two statements
are in disagreement, one or both of them must be wrong, but
both cannot be right.
Truth
is of paramount importance; seeing that Jesus said that he
is the truth, the way, the life, and that we cannot come to
the Father except by him (John 14:6). The way of truth is
the way of life.
Succinctly
put, the churches of Christ -- if that is what they truly
are -- speak where the Bible speaks and be silent where the
Bible is silent. By a strict following of the Bible, salvation
and the church of the New Testament are recovered in each
generation.
The
church, if it is truly of Christ, must follow carefully and
absolutely the teaching of Christ. The Bible warns us about
neglecting the great salvation that was at the first spoken
by the Lord, confirmed by those who heard him, and witnessed
and certified by Jehovah (Heb. 2:3-4).
That
is a short and correct answer, but it provokes another question:
What is the exact teaching of Christ? Another short answer
would be, it is found in the Bible and especially the New
Covenant, but that does not define the teaching – it merely
points to where it is stored.
Still,
it gives us information about where to find good doctrine.
The Bible is the source. It is the very word of very God and
therefore true; being true there can be no mistakes in it.
We
begin, then, with a commitment to the Bible as an authoritative
rule book. If we would know the truth and be made free, the
Bible, and the Bible only, must be our guide. There is no
other way.
If
we are agreed on this point, we can proceed with our study
of the Bible, always remembering that while mere mortals may
be able to help us to a better understanding of God’s word,
it is the word itself that is the authority.
If
a teacher says something different from the Bible, the teacher
is wrong and the Bible is right. Always weigh and measure
what human teachers say by the never failing balance of the
eternal and inerrant word of God. Make the Bible your standard.
Following
the sacred scriptures may not make you popular, but it will
make you right and deliver you blameless before the throne
of God. So, do not make the mistake of seeking the majority
position, but decide to seek truth, even if it is hated by
most people (John 17:14).
Jesus
said, "Many are called, but few are chosen" (Matt.
22:14). It is the wide gate and broad way that leads to destruction;
the strait gate and narrow way lead to life (Matt. 7:14-15).
Please
keep in mind that the Bible is the standard -- nothing else!
The church is the people and the people are not the standard.
The church Jesus built and purchased with his blood is precious
and necessary, but the question is not what do the churches
of Christ teach, but what does the Bible teach?
There
is no salvation outside the church, seeing that God adds to
the church daily such as should be saved (Acts 2:47). Because
the Lord adds the saved to the church daily, no saved person
was ever out of the church overnight. God does not make mistakes.
He knows who the saved are and he adds them to the church
of Christ, which is the one body of Christ. The church is
one just as the truth is one.
The
church is the body of Jesus (Eph. 1:22-23; Col. 1:18). There
is one body (Eph. 4:5). Therefore there is one church. Jesus
is the head of the church and the church is his body. Can
you conceive of one head with many bodies?
The
church is essential to eternal salvation, but it is not the
measure of what is right and wrong. When we go to the Bible
and follow it unfailingly, we are a part of the universal
body of Jesus, which is his one church. Yet, we are not seeking
to reproduce even churches that existed in the first century
-- like the church at Corinth, or Berea, or Laodicea, or any
other New Testament location – but we are dedicated to finding
the exact teaching of Jesus about the church and salvation
and obeying his words. "The seed [of the kingdom or church]
is the word of God" (Luke 8:11).
To
the extent first century churches kept the teaching of the
Son of God, they were right and to the extent that varied
from it, they were wrong, just as we are either right or wrong
on the basis of whether we faithfully walk in the light of
God’s undying word. We will be judged in the last great day,
not by any first century church, but by the words of Jesus
(John 12:48).
It
is not what does the church of Christ teach, but what does
the Bible teach that matters. We are not so much interested
in what people teach as we are in what the Lord teaches.
The
Bible tells us plainly and emphatically what we must do to
be saved by the grace of God and the blood of Christ. In the
second chapter of the book of Acts we learn that Jesus baptized
the apostles in the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:1-4);
A
crowd gathered and were overwhelmed by what they saw and heard
(Acts 2:5-13);
Simon
Peter preached a fabulous sermon proving that Jesus is both
Lord and Christ (Acts 2:14-35);
Many
of those who heard believed that Jesus is the anointed Lord
and asked, "What shall we do?" (Acts 2:37);
Peter
told these believers to repent and be baptized in the name
of Jesus for the remission of sins and they would receive
the "gift" of the Holy Spirit (The Holy Spirit reveals
the word of God and confirms the revealed word. Only God-breathed
scriptures make us complete before God, giving us peace, joy,
hope and multiple gifts – 2 Tim. 3:16-17; Gal. 5:22-24);
Many
received the words of Peter and were baptized and God added
them to the church (Acts 2:41);
They
continued to study, worship and love each other (Acts 2:42-46);
Jehovah
added to the church daily such as should be saved (Acts 2:47).
These
first century converts had the teaching of the apostles, the
sanction of Christ, the gifts (blessings) of the Holy Spirit
and the approval of Jehovah. If we obey the same commands,
the same results will follow. It is that simple – that clear.
The penitent believer is to be baptized to wash away sins
(Acts 22:16).
This
is the unmistakable teaching of the Bible with regard to personal
salvation.
Still
Interested?
Click
on the articles below for more information!
The
Church of Christ is One Body: unique, indivisible and real.
How
Can We Identify the True Church?
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