Regrets

While it would be wonderful to live life with no regrets there are few, if any, that do. Regret is common to mankind for no one lives a perfect life always making the right decisions and doing the right things. I think it would do us some good to look back at some of the Bible's famous men and see if they had any regrets. By doing so it may strengthen us to go on despite our own regrets.

Adam, the first man, no doubt had great regret. He once lived in an earthly paradise with an unending life ahead of him having free access to the tree of life. For food all he had to do was reach up and pluck it from the trees on which it grew. There was no need to store it or do hard labor for it, as it would always be there. God walked with him in the garden and thus for a time he had full fellowship with God. Adam gave it all up.

Do you not think while he was toiling the soil by the sweat of his brow, fighting the thorns and thistles, realizing his destiny was to die, that he had also brought this same destiny upon his children, that he was responsible for what they would have to go through, that he often looked back on how it once was and deeply regretted what he had done?

Samuel was a great man of God. I do not recall a single passage that speaks ill of Samuel. He was God's man and judged Israel all the days of his life (1 Sam. 7:15) and, furthermore, he was a prophet of God (1 Sam. 3:20). In the New Testament we find him listed in the book of Hebrews, chapter 11, along with others in what one might call faith's hall of fame. And, yet, we find this, "Now it came to pass when Samuel was old that he made his sons judges over Israel." (1 Sam. 8:1 NKJV) And then a little later we read, "But his sons did not walk in his ways; they turned aside after dishonest gain, took bribes, and perverted justice." (1 Sam. 8:3 NKJV)

Do you not think this grieved Samuel greatly? The thought comes naturally to mind when a child goes wrong where did I fail, where did I go wrong in raising him or her? There is possibly no other regret that cuts deeper than this one. We think to ourselves if I had just done this or that differently. We blame ourselves. I failed my child or my children.

I do not claim Samuel sinned in the way he raised his family, for I have no way of knowing, but I do believe parents naturally blame themselves, at least to an extent, and have regrets about how they parented their children when their children go astray, singular or plural. When one looks back in time there were a number of great men of God listed in the Bible who could not have qualified to be an elder in the church in the New Testament era, one of the requirements being "having faithful children" (Titus 1:6 NKJV), due to the kind of lives one or more of their children lived. I also suspect being the godly man he was that Samuel regretted making his sons judges of Israel after him.

David was another great man of God. Here is what God thought about David after his death, speaking of King Abijam, the scripture says, "His heart was not wholly true to the Lord his God, as the heart of David his father." (I Kings 15:3 ESV) Then in the latter part of verse 4 of the same chapter we read, "David did what was right in the eyes of the Lord and did not turn aside from anything that he commanded him all the days of his life, except in the matter of Uriah the Hittite." (1 Kings 15:4b ESV) He also is listed in faith's hall of fame in Hebrews 11 verse 32. Certainly, we all expect to see David in heaven.

Yet, David had occasion for regret in his life. Yes, the most obvious was committing adultery with Bathsheba and having Uriah her husband murdered. No doubt he looked back on that occasion many times in his life with deep regret. Not only had he done this great evil it also brought with it great consequences resulting in much harm later to others. Hear the words of Nathan the prophet, "Now therefore the sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised me and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife. Thus says the Lord, 'Behold, I will raise up evil against you out of your own house. And I will take your wives before your eyes and give them to your neighbor, and he shall lie with your wives in the sight of this sun.'" (2 Sam. 12:10-11 ESV)

What was the evil that came down the road? Absalom, a son whom David loved, murdered another son of David--Amnon. Awhile later, Absalom sought to take the kingdom away from his father and even have his father put to death. David had to flee to save his own life. In a battle that brought defeat to Absalom, David commanded those in charge of his army, "Deal gently for my sake with the young man Absalom." (2 Sam. 18:5 ESV) You know the story of how in disobedience to David's orders Joab killed Absalom. You also remember the deep grief David suffered over this.

The Bible says when David learned of Absalom's death he was deeply moved and wept. "O my son Absalom, my son, my son Absalom! Would I had died instead of you, O Absalom, my son, my son!" (2 Sam. 18:33 ESV) What sorrow, what regret! Had David not brought this upon himself by his sin? Much like Adam, he could look back with deep regret over his sins. It had cost him dearly and resulted in much harm to others he loved deeply. To me the Bible is clear that had David pursued a different course in his life regarding Bathsheba and Uriah the life of his own family would have turned out differently. Solomon later had another son of David's put to death--Adonijah. Prophecy was most certainly fulfilled.

Sin can have deep consequences in this life not only for ourselves but also for those we love and care about. It is not as we sometimes hear "my life" and no one else's business. There are always consequences for good or ill for others in the things we do as well as the things we fail to do that we should have done. But the subject is regret. There is no doubt about regret being in David's life as he thought about these things in reflection from time to time.

In the New Testament, we also find great men of God who undoubtedly had regret. Paul said he was "not worthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God." (1 Cor. 15:9 NKJV) Elsewhere he calls himself the chief of sinners (1 Tim. 1:15). There is every reason to believe that Paul was at the least indirectly responsible for the deaths of some Christians. In Acts 22:4 Paul says, "I persecuted this Way to the death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women." (NKJV) Paul says the persecution was "to the death." In Acts 26:10 he says, "Many of the saints I shut up in prison…and when they were put to death, I cast my vote against them." (NKJV) One wonders how many fathers and mothers were in the group of those who were persecuted leaving behind children as orphans. Do you think Paul had regrets? Do you think those regrets ever completely passed from his thoughts as he lived day by day?

All are well aware of how Peter denied Christ and of his deep regret over having done that.

A lesser-known case is that of James and John. Do you remember when Jesus was heading to Jerusalem how he sent messengers before him and as they came to a village of the Samaritans how those living there refused to receive him? James and John responded by saying to the Lord, "Do you want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them"? (Luke 9:54 NKJV) Jesus answered by saying, "You do not know what manner of spirit you are of. For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men's lives but to save them." (Luke 9:55-56 NKJV) As you know James was killed not long after the church was established but John lived a long life. Do you not think that John looked back with regret when he thought about the kind of man he once was, a man willing to bring about the death of others? He is known as the apostle of love and yet there was this in his life, the very opposite of love. It had to hurt as he looked back. There had to be regret concerning the kind of attitude he once had.

While other examples come to mind we have seen enough examples to make the point. There are often in the best of men things they look back on with regret. Things they wish they had done differently, attitudes and actions they deeply regret, or things they wish they had done but didn't. These regrets can drag us down and destroy us if we allow it.

When I look at you or you look at me we think we know the person we are seeing if we have been acquainted with them for any length of time. That is not necessarily the case. We do not know the inner man and the sorrow he or she may be carrying deep within. Paul said in 1 Cor. 2:11, "For what man knows the things of a man except the spirit of the man which is in him?" (NKJV) There may well be a very deep regret within others that we know not and cannot see, a burden that is carried every day.

Sometimes we see those who are overly righteous so to speak. They feel they have led exemplary lives and perhaps their sins have not been as great as that of others except for one thing--their attitude. One is reminded of the two men who went up to pray, the one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee prayed thanking God he was not like the tax collector. (Luke 18:10-11) He busied himself telling God the good things he was doing and how he was not doing evil and yet Jesus says of the tax collector "I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other." (Luke 18:14 NKJV) The Pharisee did not deep down feel a need for God, to him his works were of such a quantity and quality as to fully justify him. He had no sense of sin and guilt, had no regret.

When we begin to think too much of ourselves we ought to stop and consider. If I am so good why do I need Jesus' blood? There is not a person on the face of the earth who has lived such a life that on its own merits deserves anything other than eternal damnation. A nasty attitude toward others is just as bad as anything else and even more distasteful to others. It is disgraceful and unbecoming a Christian.

It matters not how bad a life a person, or even a Christian, has lived in the past. When a person repents and comes to God or back to God, as the case may be, they deserve all the honor and respect that can be given one of God's children whom Jesus came to earth to save, who he died for. No matter how bad a life they may have lived they are just as good as you are in God's eyes no matter how good a life you have lived or think you have lived. You probably never committed the sins David did but would you dare say, because you have not, that God sees you as superior to David? We sometimes, despite ourselves, carry about a sense of superiority. We did not do this or that and we become the Pharisee of Luke 18:10 that went up to pray.

Remember the account of the man who sent workers out into his field at different times of the day in Matthew 20? When evening came those who had worked longer felt they deserved more money than those who had worked fewer hours and in some cases far fewer hours. They felt the landowner was unjust when he gave the same amount to every man regardless of the hours worked. It seemed unfair to them. We have to be careful that we never develop that kind of attitude toward our fellow man and especially toward one another, brethren in Christ. The attitude of we have done more, we have been better, we deserve more, is unchristian. The truth is we deserve nothing, nothing that is but punishment for our sins, the sins we think we don't have.

Why do people sometimes develop this kind of negative attitude? Perhaps there are other reasons as well but here are a couple that come to mind. One, they are unwilling to be honest with themselves for they find more comfort in self-deception. The Bible says, "Every way of man is right in his own eyes, but the Lord weighs the hearts." (Prov. 21:2 NKJV) God said in Jeremiah 17:9 (NKJV), "The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?" If we want to be self-deceived it is not hard to do so.

A second reason some develop this negative attitude is their ignorance of the scriptures. Some do not know the scriptures well enough to know what is and is not sin. There are all kinds of sins apart from just sins of commission but some are relatively unaware of this. If I do not love my brother have I sinned? Some act as though as long as they do a man no harm all is well. Is it? Did you do him any good if and when he needed it?

We sometimes blame a person for his or her past and want to see it corrected before we accept him or her. There are a ton of things in our past we cannot correct and if that is to be the standard of Christian love toward another it is a standard that sinners can never attain to. How do you correct the past? There is only so much any of us can do to correct the past.

We want mission impossible out of people sometimes rather than accept them as full-fledged brothers and sisters in Christ. We will love them later when everything has been corrected. The trouble is that it is often impossible to correct the past no matter how much we might desire to do it.

I would like to reflect on the men mentioned in this study. Of the men we have looked at some were already children of God at the time events unfolded in their lives that brought them regret. I guess Paul would be the only exception. Of the men we have mentioned I believe we all agree that we expect to see at least five of them in heaven. As for Adam, I am only willing to say that I do not know what happened in the many years after his fall in the garden. Did he repent? Did God forgive him? I suspect he did but the Bible does not say so I cannot know.

Because we are all in the same boat together, should we not fully accept one another with all of our faults of the past (the assumption being we have repented and turned to God)? We have all sunk our own boat and all of us are reaching up to Jesus for salvation. We are all hoping with Christian expectation that Jesus will reach out his hand to us as he did to Peter when Peter was sinking in the water he had been walking on. Only Jesus can save us.

The past is the past but we can help one another, comfort and console one another, and help one another get to heaven. We all have regrets but we all can have hope if we will, as the old song goes, but trust and obey. The time comes when we must move on. The past cannot be undone and we do not want it to destroy us. Paul gave us inspired advice when he said, "But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus. Let those of us who are mature think this way." (Philippians 3:13b-15a ESV)

The inspired advice is let the past go. Look to the future. That is the best advice you will ever get on this subject--inspired advice. Turn loose of the past, let it go. Christ has called us to freedom.

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Things About The Church

One should never minimize the value of the church, the church Jesus built. I am not speaking about man-made denominational churches established hundreds of years after the Lord built his church, but the church you read about in the Bible. Many do not understand the importance of the church. Years ago this sentiment was popularized by the saying, "Jesus yes; the church no." The church that was being rejected by so many was the organized churches they could see.

Certainly, one can do without the church if one is talking about a denominational church. Almost all of them were begun long after the church one reads about in the Bible. Those in them will generally admit it does not matter whether or not you are a member of their particular denomination, for they say you can be saved without being a member of their fellowship. This is a confession, although unintended, that their denominational church is not the church of the Bible. But, with that said, it is a whole different story when it comes to the Lord's church, for no one can be saved outside it.

Here is a list of 12 things many people do not know or understand about the Lord's church--things that make all the difference.

(1) The same process that makes you a Christian, believing and obeying the gospel, adds you to the church the Lord built. There is no such thing as a Christian who is not a part of the Lord's church. "And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved." (Acts 2:47 NKJV) Who is saved? Is it the Christian or the non-Christian? If God has not added you to the church there is a good reason--you are not yet one of those who are being saved; you have not yet obeyed the gospel.

It is only the church, not those outside the church, that Christ sanctified and cleansed "with the washing of water by the word that he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that it should be holy and without blemish." (Eph. 5:25-27 NKJV) If you are saved, you are in this glorious church.

(2) The church is the saved. All of the saved are in the church. One cannot be saved outside the church. Jesus is the Savior of the body (Eph. 5:23), which is the church (Eph. 1:22-23, Col. 1:18, 24). There is no passage to be found in the Bible where Jesus ever said he would save a person outside his body, outside the church. Paul speaking to the Christians at Corinth said, "Now you are the body of Christ, and members individually." (1 Cor. 12:27 NKJV) "Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body." (Eph. 5:23 NKJV) Christ is "head over all things to the church, which is His body." (Eph. 1:22-23 NKJV)

This is not to imply everyone in the church is saved, but only that all who are saved are in the church. Paul said, as an example, that Demas had forsaken him, having loved this present world (2 Tim. 4:10). Unless he later repented and was restored, he would not have been saved, so here is a man who was in the church but left. Not all Christians are faithful, but, nevertheless, all who are saved are in the church.

(3) Jesus purchased the church with his blood. Paul, in speaking to the Ephesian elders, admonished them to "shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood." (Acts 20:28 NKJV) It is by his blood that we will be saved. "In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins." (Eph. 1:7 NKJV) One is either in the church purchased with Christ's own blood or he is outside. Jesus' blood never purchased anything other than the church. "The Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved." (Acts 2:47 NKJV) Saved how? By the blood of Jesus. The saved are in the church, not outside it.

(4) You cannot join the church or be added by man. The Lord adds you to the church (Acts 2:47) once you have obeyed the gospel and been cleansed by the blood of Jesus in doing so. You cannot join the church because God adopts you into it, the church being God's family. God "predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ." (Eph. 1:5 NKJV) If you are a child of God, it is because God chose to add you to his family. He willingly does so when we make our desire to be a part of the family known by gospel obedience, obedience that is sincere and from the heart (Rom. 6:17).

(5) "Christ also loved the church and gave himself for it." (Eph. 5:25 NKJV) Will we say Christ loved the church and still belittle its importance? If he loved the church, should we not also love it? The church is brothers and sisters in Christ. What has Christ said about loving one another? "He who does not love his brother abides in death." (1 John 3:14 NKJV)

(6) When one persecutes, or belittles, or makes fun of the church (Christians are the church), he is doing it to Christ. Saul, who later became the apostle Paul, was a great persecutor of the church, as you are well aware. When Christ confronted Saul on the road to Damascus, he said to Saul, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?" (Acts 9:4 NKJV) In persecuting the church, Saul was persecuting Christ.

[Please note I said "the church," not denominations, for it would have to be first proven that a denomination is the church. They came on the scene generations after Jesus' church. Since they all deny they are the church, claiming they are only a denomination within it, and they say you can be saved outside their denomination, then surely they are right, thus their denomination is not the church, for you cannot be saved outside Christ's church.]

(7) God receives glory in the church. "To him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus." (Eph. 3:21 ESV) Christians are the ones who give God glory, and they are the ones within the church. "For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's." (1 Cor. 6:20 NKJV) "That you may with one mind and one mouth glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ." (Rom. 15:6 NKJV)

(8) It is through the church that the manifold wisdom of God is made known. "To the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church." (Eph. 3:9 NKJV) Do not ever expect to learn about God or the gospel or salvation from those outside the church. Remember, the church is Christians. They are the ones who proclaim God's word, whether within the meeting house or outside it.

(9) The church is a spiritual building built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets with Jesus as the chief cornerstone (Eph. 2:20), a holy temple in the Lord (Eph. 2:21), "built together for a habitation of God in the Spirit" (Eph. 2:22 NKJV). One either desires to be a living stone in that building or one does not. "You also, as living stones, are being built up a spiritual house, a holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ." (1 Peter 2:5 NKJV)

Paul told Timothy, "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." (1 Tim. 3:15 NKJV) One is either a living stone in that building of God or else he is no part of it at all. Can one be saved outside it? To ask is to answer.

(10) The church is where God the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit are. Christians are the church. Christians have the Holy Spirit. "Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you." (1 Cor. 6:19 NKJV) The church is "a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together for a habitation of God in the Spirit." (Eph. 2:21-22 NKJV) "Where two or three are gathered together in My name, there I am in the midst of them." (Matt. 18:20 NKJV)

This is not to say God is unaware of those outside the church, but it is to say that he abides within the church in a way he never abides in those outside the church. If you want to be where Jesus is, where the Father is, where the Holy Spirit is, you cannot remain out in the world away from the church.

(11) There is only one way into the church--through Jesus. "Jesus said to him, 'I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.'" (John 14:6 NKJV) Elsewhere he said, "I am the door. If anyone enters by me, he will be saved." (John 10:9 NKJV) The saved are in the church (Acts 2:47, Eph. 5:23, Col. 1:24).

To enter into Christ is to be baptized into his spiritual body based upon a genuine faith, repentance of sins, and a willingness to confess him with the mouth. "For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body." (1 Cor. 12:13) Baptism is into Christ (Rom. 6:3, Gal. 3:27). "He who believes and is baptized will be saved." (the words of Jesus--Mark 16:16 NKJV)

(12) The church is the place where prayers to God will be heard. "The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much." (James 5:16 NKJV) No one is righteous who has not been cleansed by the blood of Jesus and who, thus, is not a member of the church Jesus built. All the righteous are in the church; there are none who are righteous outside it who are of accountable age and mentally competent. "The prayer of the upright is his delight." (Pro. 15:8 NKJV) "He hears the prayer of the righteous." (Pro. 15:29 NKJV)

If it be said that God heard the prayer of Cornelius, a man at the time outside the church, the answer is yes, he did. He will hear your prayer also outside the church, "if" you are willing to hear and obey his word. Those who are willing have become Christians or will do so as soon as they hear the word. Cornelius was a true seeker after God.

Cornelius had a heart immediately ready to receive God's word and obey it. God knew that, and thus it was not long until Cornelius was given that opportunity and soon became a Christian, a member of the church. But the scripture says, "One who turns away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer shall be an abomination." (Pro. 28:9 NKJV) Want God to hear your prayers? In the church is the place you need to be for that. "And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying out 'Abba, Father!'" (Gal. 4:6 NKJV)

Let us love the church as Jesus loved it.

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Thoughts On The Church Of Christ

There are many misconceptions about the church of Christ, its membership, and what they believe. I am speaking of the church of Christ that you see advertised in your local community and on church bulletin boards out in front of the buildings they meet in. It is often said that the membership of the church of Christ is the people who think they are the only ones who are going to be saved. One wonders if people who make statements like that have ever read their Bible.

The Bible clearly teaches one must be a member of the church of Christ (the church either belongs to Christ or it doesn't—you tell me which). The church is his body (Eph. 1:22-23, Col. 1:18). Christ is "head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body." (Eph. 5:23 NKJV) If Christ is the Savior of the body, and the body is the church, and the church is his church, then please tell me how you are going to be saved outside his body, the church of Christ? It cannot be done. Jesus said, "I will build My church." (Matt. 16:18 NKJV) If he did, it is his church, "the church of Christ. (see Rom. 16:16)

But it is said, "We mean the denominational church of Christ that exists today, the one that meets down the road. It is not the church of Christ of the Bible." How do you know the church of Christ you see advertised today is a denomination? Are you like the lady who told me years ago it was impossible today to have the original church of Christ? It was once possible, but it is no longer possible; is that the idea? Many seem to think so. If they are right, then no one can be saved today because that would mean Jesus is the Savior of something that does not exist today. He would be the Savior of a body that no longer exists — reread the Eph. 5:23 quote in the paragraph above. If it does not exist, you cannot be part of it and cannot be saved.

The lady's idea was that no matter what a body of believers was to believe and practice today, it would end up being no more than another denomination, for it is simply impossible in our day and age to have the original New Testament church. In the eyes of the world, including the eyes of what is generally called Christendom, even if your belief, practice, and terms of admission are identical to that taught and practiced in the New Testament, all you end up with is another denomination. Denominationalism is dependent on that line of thought and cannot survive without it.

If it were admitted that the New Testament church in individual congregations could exist today, outside of denominationalism, it would destroy denominationalism, which is the thing that cannot be allowed to happen. If your faith and practice in your congregation were identical to that of the New Testament church, say the church in Jerusalem or Antioch of the first century, do not kid yourself into thinking that the denominations would admit it or accept it, for if they did so, it would mean their ruin. You would be in their eyes just another denomination because that is the way it has to be for them to survive, to justify their existence. However, denominational opposition to the New Testament church does not mean it cannot and does not exist on earth today.

All of this has been a lead-in to what I want to talk about in this article. Many are unhappy with the church of Christ, thinking it is far from what it ought to be. They think we, who are members of the church, are blind and cannot see the problems in the church. Folks, the history of the church as recorded in the New Testament shows the church has rarely been what it ought to be. There is nothing new today along that line.

Even in the original church of the New Testament, the church at Jerusalem, we find the Hellenist widows being neglected in the daily distribution of food (Acts 6:1). The Hebrew widows were being cared for, but not the Hellenist widows. Should this have been? Of course not! To their credit, the problem was quickly resolved but there should not have been a problem in the first place. A little later, we find two bold-faced deceivers in the church (Ananias and Sapphira). Even the model church had problems.

Who would even know where to begin in talking about the problems of the church at Corinth? The Holy Spirit himself speaking through Paul calls them carnal (1 Cor. 3:3). He speaks of envy, strife, and divisions among them (1 Cor. 3:3). They had in full fellowship a man living with his stepmother in a sexual relationship that Paul says not even the Gentiles (non-Christians) would tolerate (1 Cor. 5:1). They were suing one another in court (1 Cor. 6) which would certainly make for a loving church atmosphere would it not? Paul says, "No, you yourselves do wrong and defraud, and you do these things to your brethren!" (1 Cor. 6:8 NKJV) Then there was the way they were conducting the Lord's Supper, which was atrocious (1 Cor. 11:20-22). Paul said about that, "I do not praise you." (1 Cor. 11:22 NKJV)

Later in 2 Cor. 12:20-21, when Paul was planning another trip to Corinth, he writes to them saying, "For I fear lest, when I come, I shall not find you such as I wish, and that I shall be found by you such as you do not wish; lest there be contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, backbitings, whisperings, conceits, tumults; lest, when I come again, my God will humble me among you, and I shall mourn for many who have sinned before and have not repented of the uncleanness, fornication, and lewdness which they have practiced." (2 Cor. 12:20-21 NKJV) Yes, there is no need to tell me the church is not what it ought to be today, for when has it been? It has not been very often and not in very many places, based on the historical record we have in the New Testament.

In reading the book of Galatians, it appears the churches there were ready to leave Christianity and go into Judaism. Paul starts the third chapter, "O foolish Galatians!" (Gal. 3:1 NKJV) He says, "I am afraid for you, lest I have labored for you in vain." (Gal. 4:11 NKJV) "You have become estranged from Christ, you who attempt to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace." (Gal. 5:4 NKJV) False doctrine was being perpetuated in the church of such a serious nature that if not countered would destroy it. Was there a problem in the church?

One can also see problems in the book of Hebrews. They were not progressing in the faith as they should have been. "For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food." (Heb. 5:12 NKJV) Some were forsaking the assembling of themselves together (Heb. 10:25). They had need of endurance (Heb. 10:36). A careful reading of the book leaves one with the impression they were wavering, or were on the brink of it, and thus were being exhorted and encouraged to stiffen up and hang in there. This book was not written to a particular church, but it does show problems among the people that make up the church. You cannot get a perfect church without perfect people.

Among the seven churches of Asia, we see a church that had "left your first love" (Ephesus, Rev. 2:4 NKJV), a church that had some in it who "hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols, and to commit sexual immorality." (Pergamos, Rev. 2:14 NKJV) That same church, Pergamos, also had people in it "who hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate." (Rev. 2:15 NKJV) Would you say there was serious false doctrine in the church? Why was nothing being done about it? Would you say this church of Christ was what it ought to have been?

At the church at Thyatira, Jesus says they were allowing Jezebel, "who calls herself a prophetess, to teach and beguile My servants to commit sexual immorality and to eat things sacrificed to idols." (Rev. 2:20 NKJV) A lot of translations use the word "tolerate" rather than "allow," but the point is that the church was letting it go on. Can you imagine that?

Jesus described the church at Sardis as "dead" (Rev. 3:1), yet even so, there were a few in it that had "not defiled their garments" (Rev. 3:4) and would be saved. They all could be saved if they would repent, but that was a question yet to be resolved, whether or not they would do it. Finally, there was the church at Laodicea, which was the lukewarm church (Rev. 3:14-22). This was the church Jesus said he would spew out of his mouth (Rev. 3:16). They could not see (Rev. 3:18) and did not know their true state (Rev. 3:17), yet Jesus teaches they could even yet repent and be saved (Rev. 3:19).

One can see there have been very few congregations, even in New Testament times, that were what they ought to have been. The church at Philadelphia, Rev. 3:7-13, passed the test when the Lord (via means of John) wrote, and it seems nothing negative was said by Paul about the church at Philippi. But even in the church at Colosse, they were subjecting themselves to regulations (Col. 2:20-22) that were no part of the law of Christ but were in accord with "the commandments and doctrines of men." (Col. 2:22 NKJV) The church of the Thessalonians had those who were walking disorderly (2 Thess. 3:11). The church has always had problems and often very serious ones, and one can only wonder how long the church at Philadelphia and the church at Philippi remained free of problems.

Yes, people look at the church of Christ today that you see advertised, and because there are problems within it, the feeling is that it cannot be any better than any of the denominations or Catholicism. But here is the thing that makes the big, big difference. The one thing all the congregations I have discussed in this article had in common, along with the congregations of the church of Christ today, was that the membership understood what the true gospel was and believed and obeyed it, and thus were in a place where they could be saved individually if not collectively. That place was the church of Christ, his body, his church, that which he is the Savior of (Eph. 5:23). Not everyone in the church of Christ, first century or today, is saved. How one lives after gospel obedience does matter, and not all remain faithful or live the life.

The problem today is that the denominational world does not understand what gospel obedience is. As sincere as they may be, and I do not doubt them on that count, they do not and will not accept Peter's preaching on the day of Pentecost that baptism is for the remission of sins (Acts 2:38). Until they are ready to accept and obey that clearly stated fact, they remain outside the body of Christ, which is what Christ is saving. One enters into the body of Christ by being baptized into it. "For by one Spirit we were all baptized into one body." (1 Cor. 12:13 NKJV) We are baptized into Christ ("For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ."—Gal. 3:27, NKJV), which is the same thing as being baptized into his body. Salvation is in Christ, not outside of him, and we are baptized into him. "Do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus…" (Rom. 6:3 NKJV) Sins are only forgiven when one enters into Christ.

Many denominational people will eventually be immersed, but it is often for the wrong reason. We are not to be baptized to gain admission into some manmade denomination. If we do, what does that avail? Again, if I say I am saved before and without baptism, why bother with it at all, for your immersion will not be that which Peter preached or Paul preached? The baptism Peter preached (Acts 2:38) gave you remission of sins. The baptism Paul preached (see the prior paragraph, Rom. 6:3) put you in Christ where salvation is (see 2 Tim. 2:10), which is in reality the same thing Peter taught, but in different words.

I freely grant that everyone who has believed the gospel, repented of their sins, confessed Jesus, and was thereafter immersed "for the remission of sins" and did those things from the heart is in the church of Christ, even if his/her membership thereafter is in some denomination. That person is a Christian and was saved at the point of such obedience. However, as the Bible clearly teaches, we must, as Christians, follow God's commandments and walk in truth. Can that be done in a denomination?

I know of no denomination that does not use instrumental music in worship, but even secular history itself tells you it was no part of first-century Christian worship. There is no command for it, no example of it, and no authority for it in the New Testament. It is another manmade doctrine that prevents worshipping in truth (John 4:24). Is worshipping in error just as good as worshipping in truth with God? "God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth." (John 4:24 NKJV) Does the word "must" mean anything? Does it mean a man is free to worship as he pleases? Does the word "truth" have any importance, or does it mean freedom of choice?

I know we have problems in the church and I have known it for a long, long time. Our teaching and preaching often leave a lot to be desired. In many ways, we are tradition-bound in matters of indifference, preferring to live in the mid-twentieth century rather than the twenty-first century. Check the copyright dates on the songs we sing if you think otherwise, and I have nothing against old hymns, but I am just saying.

However, if one is unhappy with the church of Christ, they must ask themselves, what is the alternative? There is no other place to go. It is as Peter said, "Lord, to whom shall we go?" (John 6:68 NKJV)

(1) If you step out of the church of Christ into denominationalism, then you step out of the Lord's church into a manmade church where Jesus never promised salvation. All of the denominations came into existence generations after Christ established his church.

(2) You then give your support, participation, and funds to encourage the false doctrine they teach that you don't need to be baptized for the remission of sins, denying what Peter preached on the Day of Pentecost.

(3) You become a supporter of the idea that truth doesn't matter—you can be saved anywhere in any denomination, they generally all teach that, even if they are all in disagreement on doctrine. You become a proponent of the idea that error is as good as truth since they all differ on doctrine. If one can be saved in error, then truth simply no longer matters.

(4) You accept the idea that how one worships is a matter of personal choice. You become one who is willing to cross the words "must" and "truth" out of the John 4:24 passage, "God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth." (John 4:24 NKJV)

There was a time in Jesus' ministry when many of his disciples left him because of his teaching. Jesus then said to the twelve, "Do you also want to go away?" (John 6:67 NKJV) Peter answered, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life." (John 6:68 NKJV) I feel much that way about the Lord's church. Sure, there are problems, but where does one go if not there, for it is the body of Christ of which he is the Savior? Why would I step out of that body into a body created by man, of which Christ is not the Savior? Why would I do that? Why would you do that? Would it be to keep peace, to keep men happy? Does it make sense to try and please men over God? I think not.

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Who Is The Believer Of John 3:16

This was part of a conversation Jesus was having with a man named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews, who came to Jesus by night confessing that Jesus had to be a teacher from God because of the miracles he had been doing. "No one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him." (John 3:2 NKJV) The reader would do well to open his Bible to John 3, and if you have a red-letter edition all the better. You can readily see this conversation between Nicodemus and Jesus runs from John 3:1-21.

John 3:16 has given comfort to many, self included, as it should. It clearly teaches, for it clearly states, that the believer in Jesus will have eternal life. But, unfortunately, this is a verse that has been isolated not only from the rest of the teaching of the New Testament but even ripped from its immediate context and thus made to mean what men desire it to mean versus what it teaches when taken in context.

Who is this person who will have everlasting life? Who is this believer? Is it not the same person who will see the kingdom of heaven if he is "born again" in verse 3 and who will enter the kingdom of God if he is "born of water and the Spirit" in verse 5? Most certainly! It is all the same conversation directed at the same man, the man Nicodemus.

The believer of John 3:16 is the man who is born again (verse 3), the man who is born of water and the Spirit (verse 5). If this is not the same man, the man of John 3:16 and the man of John 3:3,5, then we have Jesus contradicting himself and teaching one is going to be saved one way in the earlier verses and another way in the later verse, all in the same conversation with the same man. Surely, all can see Jesus is talking about the same person.

This makes the believer of John 3:16, the one who will be saved, a baptized person. The person who is born again, born of water and the Spirit, is the person who, led by the Spirit, came to a belief so strong as to lead him to be baptized (which is the water of John 3:5). As Jesus taught elsewhere, "He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned." (Mark 16:16 NKJV)

Who is the person who does not believe? It is the person who will not be baptized. He is the person who does not believe Jesus when he said, "He who believes and is baptized will be saved." He is the person who does not believe one must be born again of water and the Spirit. Of the Spirit, often yes, he believes that, but does not believe water is necessary.

One cannot be a believer in Jesus while not believing what Jesus says. You do not believe Jesus if part of his word is no good to you and you reject it. The believer in Jesus is the man who takes Jesus at his word -- yes, all his word. In this very same chapter there is another verse confirming this very thing. Note John 3:36, "He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him." (NKJV) The phrase "does not believe the Son" means just that -- does not believe what Jesus says. That man shall not be saved. That man does not believe in Jesus even though he may proclaim his faith day and night.

The phrase "does not believe the Son" is in some translations translated differently, by the words "does not obey the Son" or similar words (ASV of 1901, NAS versions, ESV, NLT, NRSV, and others). Why? The Greek behind both translations is the word "apeitheo." Vincent says in his word studies the Greek ought to be translated "More correctly, as Rev., obeyeth not. Disbelief is regarded in its active manifestation, disobedience."

Thayer, famous for his Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament, says this word means "to not allow one's self to be persuaded." Vine's Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words says it means, "to refuse to be persuaded, to refuse belief, to be disobedient." (page 311) Adam Clarke, the well-known Bible commentator, says the person being spoken of in this verse is "The person who will not be persuaded, in consequence, does not believe; and, not having believed, he cannot obey." This seems to be the consensus meaning of the Greek. It is a person who does not believe and thus cannot obey because of his unbelief. One can see then how either translation would be acceptable, "does not believe" as in the NKJV, or "does not obey" as in the NAS and ESV.

So, what do we learn from John 3:36? Simple! To believe in the Son for salvation (as per John 3:16) means one believes the Son enough to be persuaded by him to obey what he says. So we see again, looking at it from the perspective of another verse in the same chapter, that it is he who is "born of water and the Spirit" (John 3:5 NKJV) who will "enter the kingdom of God" (John 3:5 NKJV), for that is the man who is persuaded enough by the words of Jesus to obey him because he believes him. This is the man who believes in Him so that he should not perish but have everlasting life, the man who has eternal life in John 3:16.

It is not the man who merely gives mental assent. It is a believer who acts, who obeys.

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