Only The Saved Are In The Lord’s Church

[Shammu]

In order to be in the one church the Lord established, those added to it by the Lord must be saved according to His requirements. In Acts 2:47 we read, "And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved." The Lord only adds the saved to His church. There are no unsaved people in His church. The Lord makes no mistakes. We are not saved just because we think or say we are. We are saved only when we have done what God has said we must do. Jesus says in Matthew 7:21, "Not everyone who says to Me Lord, Lord shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father which is in heaven." We must do God’s will, not man’s will, to go to heaven.

According to the Bible, who are the saved? Jesus is quite clear as to who the saved are. Jesus says in Mark 16:16, "He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned." A person has to have help to misunderstand what the Lord says here. Here we see the Bible says we must believe and be baptized in order to be saved. This is what Jesus says. But men have tried to change what the Lord has said. Men today say that all you have to do is "to accept Christ as your personal Saviour" and you will be saved. This may sound good and impressive, but there is more to it. Where in the Bible are you told that all you have to do to be saved is "to accept Christ as your personal Saviour"? It is not there. Men say that one does not have to be baptized to be saved, because they say you are saved before you are baptized. Who are you going to follow men or Christ? Do not allow the different doctrines of men to blind or confuse you concerning your salvation. You have so much to gain and too much to loose.

And also Peter tells us in 1 Peter 3:21, "The like figure baptism does now save us." Only when we have obeyed the Lord’s command to be baptized will we be saved. These scriptures will be the only standard of judgment on Judgment Day, and not what we think or what men say. Jesus says in John 12:48, "The word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day." Are you putting your trust and confidence in what men say or what God has said in the Bible? You will have to make the choice whether you are going to follow God’s word or man’s word.

Also in order to be the church which Jesus built, the church must worship God and Christ according to the way They have specified. We are told in Ephesians 5:17, "Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is." It is very unwise not to find out and understand what the will of the Lord is. The vast majority of people do not know what the will of the Lord is. All you have to do is look around and see all of the differing doctrines that are being taught in all the differing churches. Are they understanding and following the will of God? Absolutely not. If they were there would only be the one church which Christ established. This is a pitiful condition of which people should be ashamed, but they are not.

If you are not worshipping Christ the way, they have specified in the Bible then your worship is vain. Our Lord says in Mark 7:7, "And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men." Have you been following the commandments of men and only some of what God says in the Bible? If you have this is vain. Jesus says in Matthew 28:20, "Teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you." We must observe only what the Lord has commanded us. Is your worship vain? If it is then it will do you no good and you will be lost eternally.

Is each congregation of the Lord’s church is autonomous? The church that Jesus built does not have a central earthly headquarters. There is no Biblical authority for an earthly headquarters. Christ is the only head over His church. As we read in Ephesians 1:22, "And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church." The church is not to be overseen by a pope, patriarch, president, cardinals, association, convention, synod or any other organization that man has come up with.

Each autonomous congregation of the Lord’s church is to be overseen by a group of elders. In Acts 14:23  "So when they had appointed elders in every church." You see, there is to be a plurality of elders in every church or congregation. This is the way the Lord set up His church.

But what does the Lord intend for the elders to do in His church? In Acts 20:28 the apostle Paul was talking to the elders from the church at Ephesus and told them, "Therefore take heed to yourselves, and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers." The church the Lord built is to be overseen by a group of elders. The qualifications of elders who are to oversee each congregation of the Lord's church are given in 1 Timothy 3:1-7 , Titus 1:3-9.  Is the church you belong to overseen by a plurality of elders? If not, why not? Or is your church overseen by the preacher? If it is to be the Lord’s church and has men who qualify, each congregation is to be overseen by a plurality of elders.

If we accept the Bible as our only authority, we will want to worship God only as He has specified. We must reject human traditions and doctrines such as creed books, catechisms, manuals, articles of faith, confessions of faith, the book of Mormon, the Koran, constitutions, disciplines and other guidelines which men have written, all of which produce new and differing religious doctrines.

We are warned in Colossians 2:8, "Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ." It would be a tragedy to find out on Judgment Day we have been cheated of our eternal reward in heaven; but it will be too late then. These differing doctrines have caused the many departures from the New Testament teaching concerning Christ and His church.

Resting in the cradle of the Lord.
Bob

edited to correct a mistake.

[Soldier4Christ]

Amen DW, a really big Amen!

There are indeed many doctrines in the world today. The one that we should all be looking to is the Doctrine of Jesus Christ.

[Shammu]

Amen DW, a really big Amen!

Coming from you Pastor Roger, thank you.  

The one that we should all be looking to is the Doctrine of Jesus Christ.

AMEN, Pastor Roger!!

[BigD]

BigD responds:
DreamWeaver I totally agree with you that "Only The Saved Are In The Lord's Church."

After reading what you posted, I am somewhat confused as to how one enters the Lord's Chruch today.

It would be greatly appreciated if you can clarify some things for me.

When I study the Bible, I find two major doctrines. The doctrine of LAW and the doctrine of GRACE.

In Matthew 23:1 "Then spake Jesus to the multitude, and to His disciples,
2 Saying, The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses' seat:
3 ALL therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe ando, but do not ye after their works for thaty say and do not."

Moses was the Law giver and the the scribes and Pharisees were the administrators/inforcers of the Law.

Is the above for us today? If not, Why not?

Jesus said in Matthew 15:24 "I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel."

Why was Jesus only sent to "the lost sheep of the house of Israel?

Could it be because of what Paul says in Romans 15:8? "Now I say that Jesus Christ was a minister of the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made to the fathers."

The Jewish fathers were promised an everlasting kingdom upon the earth. Will the members of the Chruch (the Body of Christ) inherit an earthly kingdom that was promised to Israel? Or, will we inherit the heavenly hope that Paul says that we have? (See 2Cor5:1; Philippians 3:20.)

For one to enter the Jewish Chruch; Peter says in Acts 2:38 "Repent and be baptized."

The Philippian jailer asked Paul in Acts 16:30 "...Sirs, what must I do to be saved? Paul replied "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ..."

What happened to the act of "repent and be baptized?"

Under "the gospel of the grace of God" I cannot find any mention of a work, such as baptism, to demonstrate one's faith. Ephesians 2:8,9 says: "For by grace are ye sasved thriough faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works lest any man should boast.

My study of the Bible tells me that salvation/justification was ALWAYS based on FAITH in what God required at that point of time in human history.

The instructions in righteousness for the children of Israel came from God and given to Moses through the Civil, Moral and Ceremonial Laws. The children of Israel had to do them by FAITH. For a Gentile to serve the true and living God, at that time, had to become Jews (proselytes) and place themselves under the Law in order to receive Israel's blessings - to include the kingdom on earth promises.

The above is my understanding of how one became a member of the Jewish Chruch when Christ taught upon the earth.

It is my understanding that the instructions in righteousness for members of the Chruch, the Body of Christ, was given to the Apostile through the "revelation of the MYSTERY,and the preaching of "the gospel of the grace of God."

Today, because they rejected their King and His Kingdom, Israel is set aside. The "middle wall of partition" that seperated the Jew and Gentile is now broken down. The Jew was placed on the same footing as the set aside Gentiles of Genesis 11, at the Tower of Babel. God MADE the "one new man" of Ephesians 2:15, known as "the Body of Christ." Salvation is being offered to ALL mankind today, not on the basis of keeping the Law, by FAITH but on the basis of the Cross work (death, burial and resurrection) of Christ by FAITH ALONE.

It appears to me that you are mixing the doctrine of Law and Garce. To me they are opposing doctrines. Mixing the two doctrines (to me) lead to confusion and denominations.

Should you feel that what I have posted above is in error, PLEASE correct me.

God Bless.
Live Well, Laugh Often and Love the Lord!

[Shammu]

We are under the age of Grace. When Jesus died, he fulfilled God's Law, as my understanding.

Now that Jesus has laid down his human life in sacrifice as an atonement for sin, those who follow on in faith in the steps of their Redeemer receive eternal-life salvation. Such faith makes all things new: those far off are brought nigh, they pass from death to life, from disobedience to sonship, from evil conduct to good works, from fleshly desires to spiritual fellowship, from children of wrath to sitting in the heavenlies. Those improved relationships are described by the Apostle Paul:

Eph. 2:1-13 "And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince ofthe power of the air, ofthe spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places, in Christ Jesus, in order that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches in His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, that no one should boast For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them. Therefore remember, that formerly you, the Gentiles in the flesh,...were at that time separate from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers in the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ."

Today, because they rejected their King and His Kingdom, Israel is set aside. The "middle wall of partition" that seperated the Jew and Gentile is now broken down. The Jew was placed on the same footing as the set aside Gentiles of Genesis 11, at the Tower of Babel. God MADE the "one new man" of Ephesians 2:15, known as "the Body of Christ." Salvation is being offered to ALL mankind today, not on the basis of keeping the Law, by [b/FAITH[/b] but on the basis of the Cross work (death, burial and resurrection) of Christ by FAITH ALONE.

Yes this is correct, Big D.

[BigD]

THANKS for your reply. I fully agree with what you have written. However, I was hoping you would have clarified and answered my questions.

God Bless.
Live Well, Laugh Often and Love the Lord!

[Shammu]

Sorry, I couldn't stick around more yesterday. I had to drive 400 miles to Phoenix, and pick up Yvonne.

Moses was the Law giver and the the scribes and Pharisees were the administrators/inforcers of the Law.

Is the above for us today? If not, Why not?

Galatians 3:24-25 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith. But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster.

That says the 10 commandments are abolished. The whole Law given at Sinai the 10 commandments is abolished in Christ. It calls the law a tutor, it then says, once we get to Christ, we no longer need the law.

Why was Jesus only sent to "the lost sheep of the house of Israel?

Matt 1:21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins.

The Lord Jesus is the Good shepherd who has come to save His people from their sins

What happened to the act of "repent and be baptized?"

When John the Baptist warned the people of Israel to "repent for the Kingdom is near Matt 3:2", he wasn't telling them to be on their best behavior because the King was coming. He was telling them to reconsider their need for a savior while they could. When Peter admonished the Jews at Pentecost to repent and be baptized for the forgiveness of their sins so they could receive the gift of the Holy Spirit Acts 2:38 he wasn't saying, "Clean up your act." He was telling them that as soon as they changed their perception about who Jesus was and what He had done they would be forgiven. When the evangelist tells his audience to "repent and be saved... he's not telling them to become good enough to someday be accepted by the Lord. He's admonishing them to realize they can't be good enough and ask the Lord to take them right now just as they are.

My study of the Bible tells me that salvation/justification was ALWAYS based on FAITH in what God required at that point of time in human history.

A person is justified by faith Rom. 5:1; that is, he is made right before God by his faith in Christ (excluding the cults that teach a false Jesus).  We are not saved by our works or our works added to the sacrifice of Christ.  Our works, our good deeds, have absolutely no affect upon our salvation.  Our good works do not get us salvation, nor do help us keep our salvation.  This is because our good works are filthy rags before God Is. 64:6.

If we could be saved by works, then righteousness would have been based on the law and Christ would have not needed to die.  Gal. 2:21 "I do not nullify the grace of God; for if righteousness comes through the Law, then Christ died needlessly.”  But, Christ did need to die which proves our works cannot save us. However this does not mean that we are not to have good works.  The Bible clearly tells us that if we claim to be Christian and we do not have good works, then we are not saved 1 John 2:4.  Furthermore, the Bible also says that once we are saved, we are not free to be bad Rom. 6:1-2.  On the contrary, we are obligated to be good.  

I hope this this makes clear, the postion I was taking Big D.

Resting in the Lord's arms.
Bob

[BigD]

Part 1

DW:
I probably should have responded to your first post in this manner. Then you would have had a better idea as to what I was trying to say. I do not question or doubt your salvation, but I do question some of your doctrine.

DW posted:

In order to be in the one church the Lord established, those added to it by the Lord must be saved according to His requirements. In Acts 2:47 we read, "And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved." The Lord only adds the saved to His church. There are no unsaved people in His church. The Lord makes no mistakes. We are not saved just because we think or say we are. We are saved only when we have done what God has said we must do. Jesus says in Matthew 7:21, "Not everyone who says to Me Lord, Lord shall enter into the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father which is in heaven." We must do God’s will, not man’s will, to go to heaven.

BigD replies:
The Chruch that existed when Christ was upon the earth was the Jewish Church. It was not the Chruch, the Body of Christ. It wasn't "made" yet.

At the time Jesus was ministering upon the earth the requirement for a Gentile to serve the true and living God was by becoming a Jew (proselyte). Doing "the will of the Father" while Jesus was upon the earth meant that one had to do the deeds/works of the Law BY FAITH. Those that were added to the Church in Acts 2:47 were added to the Jewish Church, NOT the Body of Christ. The Body of Christ was still future revelation.

The kingdom that Jesus was speaking of in Matthew 7:21 is the kingdom that is be established here upon the earth. It is not the kingdom that members of the Body of Christ will inherit. We, as members of the Body of Christ, will inherit the kingdom which IS IN HEAVEN.

Jesus only spoke of those things pertaing to the kingdom that He was to establish here upon the earth, and will be established at His 2nd coming.

DW continues:

According to the Bible, who are the saved? Jesus is quite clear as to who the saved are. Jesus says in Mark 16:16, "He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned." A person has to have help to misunderstand what the Lord says here.

BigD responds:
What help did you get to misunderstand this verse? If Mark 16:16 is in force today, then verses 17 and 18 are in force today also. Tell me, How many hospitals have you emptied out lately? Have you cast out many devils lately?

The instructions that Jesus gave to His disciples were for the purpose of establishing His kingdom here upon the earth. These instructions were never given to members of the Body of Christ, the Chruch for today.

Didn't Jesus say in Matthew 15:24 "I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel"? Doesn't Paul say in Romans 15:8 "Now I say that Jesus Christ was a minister of the circumcision for the truth of God, to confirm the promises made to the fathers"?

I fully understand what Jesus said and meant in Mark 16:16, however, I take it in the context in which it was said. If I tried to fulfill verses 17 and 18, it would be like shoveling sand against the tide. Those that are able to do those things in verses 17 and 18 are doing it through a spirit, but not the Holy Spirit.

The "so called" great commission, that Jesus gave His disciples, CANNOT be carried out today.

DW continues:

Here we see the Bible says we must believe and be baptized in order to be saved. This is what Jesus says. But men have tried to change what the Lord has said. Men today say that all you have to do is "to accept Christ as your personal Saviour" and you will be saved. This may sound good and impressive, but there is more to it. Where in the Bible are you told that all you have to do to be saved is "to accept Christ as your personal Saviour"? It is not there. Men say that one does not have to be baptized to be saved, because they say you are saved before you are baptized. Who are you going to follow men or Christ? Do not allow the different doctrines of men to blind or confuse you concerning your salvation. You have so much to gain and too much to loose.

BigD responds:
In Acts 10, Did Cornelius "repent and be baptized" before he was saved and filled with the Holy Ghost? Did Paul tell the Philippian jailer, in Acts 16 that he had to "repent and beptized" to be saved?  Didn't those at Pentecost have to "repent and be baptized" to receive the gift of the Holy  Ghost? Does Paul ever require a repentant to be baptized? If baptism is so important today; Why did God not send Paul to baptize (see 1Cor.1:170)?

DW continues:

And also Peter tells us in 1 Peter 3:21, "The like figure baptism does now save us." Only when we have obeyed the Lord’s command to be baptized will we be saved. These scriptures will be the only standard of judgment on Judgment Day, and not what we think or what men say. Jesus says in John 12:48, "The word that I have spoken will judge him in the last day." Are you putting your trust and confidence in what men say or what God has said in the Bible? You will have to make the choice whether you are going to follow God’s word or man’s word.

BigD responds:
Peter is not addressing "US" (members of the Body of Christ in 1 Peter. 1Peter 1:1 says: "PETER, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the strangers scattered (sojourners of the dispersion/Isrealites) throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia, and Bithynia,"

These are the same one that he, James and John agreed to stay with in Galatians 2:9, at the council at Jerusalem. The Jewish believer that the Jesus and the 12 ministered to were the believers saved while under the Law, and the preaching of "the gospel of the kingdom."

I do follow the the instructions in righteousness, found in the Bible, and given to members of the Body of Christ. I am not a Jew, spiritual Jew or a member of the Jewish Church that existed when Christ ministered upon the earth.

to be continued:

God Bless.
Live Well, Laugh Often and Love the Lord!

[BigD]

PART 2

DW goes on:

Also in order to be the church which Jesus built, the church must worship God and Christ according to the way They have specified. We are told in Ephesians 5:17, "Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is." It is very unwise not to find out and understand what the will of the Lord is. The vast majority of people do not know what the will of the Lord is. All you have to do is look around and see all of the differing doctrines that are being taught in all the differing churches. Are they understanding and following the will of God? Absolutely not. If they were there would only be the one church which Christ established. This is a pitiful condition of which people should be ashamed, but they are not.

If you are not worshipping Christ the way, they have specified in the Bible then your worship is vain. Our Lord says in Mark 7:7, "And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men." Have you been following the commandments of men and only some of what God says in the Bible? If you have this is vain. Jesus says in Matthew 28:20, "Teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you." We must observe only what the Lord has commanded us. Is your worship vain? If it is then it will do you no good and you will be lost eternally.

BigD responds:
As I have said in my earlier post, it demonstrates that you are mixing the doctrine of Law, for the children of Isreal, and Grace, for members of the Body of Christ, the Chruch for today.

That is what I refer to as a "scrambled egg" doctrine. (I will explain that doctrine later if you wish.) When one mixes the doctrine of LAW, given for instructions in righteousness for the children of Isreal by God to Moses, and the doctrine of GRACE for instructions in righteousness to member of the Body of Christ that were given by God to Paul, one has to "spiritualize" Scripture to make them fit what they want to believe. Mixing the doctrine of LAW and GRACE only leads to confusion and denominations.

DW continues:

Is each congregation of the Lord’s church is autonomous? The church that Jesus built does not have a central earthly headquarters. There is no Biblical authority for an earthly headquarters. Christ is the only head over His church. As we read in Ephesians 1:22, "And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church." The church is not to be overseen by a pope, patriarch, president, cardinals, association, convention, synod or any other organization that man has come up with.

Each autonomous congregation of the Lord’s church is to be overseen by a group of elders. In Acts 14:23  "So when they had appointed elders in every church." You see, there is to be a plurality of elders in every church or congregation. This is the way the Lord set up His church.

But what does the Lord intend for the elders to do in His church? In Acts 20:28 the apostle Paul was talking to the elders from the church at Ephesus and told them, "Therefore take heed to yourselves, and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers." The church the Lord built is to be overseen by a group of elders. The qualifications of elders who are to oversee each congregation of the Lord's church are given in 1 Timothy 3:1-7 , Titus 1:3-9.  Is the church you belong to overseen by a plurality of elders? If not, why not? Or is your church overseen by the preacher? If it is to be the Lord’s church and has men who qualify, each congregation is to be overseen by a plurality of elders.

If we accept the Bible as our only authority, we will want to worship God only as He has specified. We must reject human traditions and doctrines such as creed books, catechisms, manuals, articles of faith, confessions of faith, the book of Mormon, the Koran, constitutions, disciplines and other guidelines which men have written, all of which produce new and differing religious doctrines.

We are warned in Colossians 2:8, "Beware lest anyone cheat you through philosophy and empty deceit, according to the tradition of men, according to the basic principles of the world, and not according to Christ." It would be a tragedy to find out on Judgment Day we have been cheated of our eternal reward in heaven; but it will be too late then. These differing doctrines have caused the many departures from the New Testament teaching concerning Christ and His church.

BigD resonds:
I can agree with what you say above, because you are quoting the Scriptures that pertain to members of the Body of Christ, the Church for today.

If you wish, I will post the reason that I believe that the "so called" great commission, that Jesus gave His disciples, cannot be carried out during this dispensation of grace in which we presently live.

God Bless:
Live Well, Laugh Often and Love the Lord!

[bluelake]

The term, 'the so-called Great Commission?'
The Great Commission was given by Jesus Christ, in Mt.28:19
"Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, babtizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them everything I have commanded you. And surely 'Iam' with you always, to the end of the age."

If you deny this Great Commission, perhaps it is because you deny the Triune God. Is that the reason?

God bless you as you search for the truth in His Word.

bluelake.

[bluelake]

What is your definition of 'The Lord's Church?'

bluelake

[cris]

I have a question that doesn't fully pertain to the subject, but would appreciate it if someone could give me their opinion.

Jesus Christ is the head, and we, saved ones, are His body.  The Church, or the body of Christ is "the bride".  Christ is "the bridegroom."  Since Christ is the head and we're His body, aren't we one with Him already?  Shouldn't we be the bridegroom also?  If this be the case, then who is the bride?  Previous to this thought (question) I thought the marriage supper of the Lamb was when Christ (bridegroom) came back for His church (bride), but now I'm wondering about this.  Head separated from body, and then uniting that head and body, being called a marriage?  Humm!

Any thoughts?  Do you understand what I mean?  Sometimes I have a difficult clarifying my thoughts in writing.

Grace and peace,
cris

[BigD]

PART 1

bluelake posted:

The term, 'the so-called Great Commission?'
The Great Commission was given by Jesus Christ, in Mt.28:19
"Therefore, go and make disciples of all nations, babtizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them everything I have commanded you. And surely 'Iam' with you always, to the end of the age."

If you deny this Great Commission, perhaps it is because you deny the Triune God. Is that the reason?

BigD
Bluelake, I use the term "so called" great commission to distinguish it from other commissions in the Bible, not to deminish the commission that our Lord gave to His disciples.

I firmly believe that the commission that Jesus gave to His disciples, prior to his return to heaven, cannot be carried out today. Also, I do believe that the commission to members of the Body of Christ, the Chruch for today, is not the one given to the 12, but can be found in Ephesians 3:9 "And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ;" and to preach "And all things are of God who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not "imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation. Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech (beg/plead) you by us..."[/b] (2Cor.5:18-20

To show you my reasons as to why I believe that the "so called" great commission cannot be carried out today, I will copy for the book "Common Questions About the Grace Message" by Joel Finck.

Question 13) Aren’t we supposed to be carrying out the Great Commission?

To answer the question, let’s take a mental stroll through the Bible. From the fall of Adam and Eve until this present day, God has always sought the salvation of mankind. He has always provided some way for man to approach Him on His terms. Throughout the ages, God has even gone the extra step of commissioning certain individuals or groups to carry His message to the people of the earth so that they clearly understand just what God expects of them. Before the flood, Noah was commissioned as a preacher of righteousness. For 120 years, as he was building that ark, he proclaimed God’s righteousness to an increasingly sinful and wicked world.

After the flood, the world soon turned away from God once again. Mankind showed its rebellion against God by building a tower and a city to make a name for themselves. To this day we know the name of that tower - the Tower of Babel, the city of Babylon. At this point, God commissioned someone else to become a separate nation through whom He could reach these unbelieving Gentile nations. That person was Abram, soon to become Abraham. This nation, which eventually was known as the nation of Israel, inherited the commission to be a light to the other nations, to lead them to the true and living God. Here is how it was supposed to work: God promised the people of Israel that if they would obey His covenant, then He would be their God and they would be His people. As the nations round about Israel looked at the blessing of God falling upon this one nation, they would ask why they were so blessed? Then they would come and inquire, and Israel would point them to their God and say, “We’re blessed because we serve the living and true God.”

Let us give an Old Testament passage to illustrate how this was supposed to operate. This was God’s order for bringing the nations of the earth to Himself through Israel. We sometimes call this the Kingdom program or the prophetic program. We call it the prophetic program because it was revealed in the prophets. It was spoken of by the mouth of all the holy prophets since the world began (Acts 3:21). Isaiah 60:1-3, “Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the Lord shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee.” Who is He talking about? In this context, He is referring to Zion. Zion is another name for Jerusalem, the capital city of the nation of Israel, in biblical times. In verse 3 we read, “And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising.” God’s intention and plan was to bring Israel as a light to the nations and to lift her up on high so that the nations would see that light and so that kings would seek out the glory of God through Israel. This was how it was supposed to work. But unfortunately, many times, it did not work that way. Israel, as the centuries rolled on, failed to be the light that God wanted her to be. Israel, herself, slipped into apostasy. She slipped away from the truth of God’s word and God’s revelation to her. This was the condition that Christ found her in when He came to the earth as a babe in the manger. As our Lord ministered on the earth, His first commission to His apostles was not for them to go out unto all the world. In order for the world to be saved according to that kingdom or prophetic program through the nation of Israel, first Israel had to rise up as a great light. Israel herself was in great darkness when Christ came.

Notice how He first commissioned His apostles. Matthew 10:1-4: “And when he had called unto him his twelve disciples, he gave them power against unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all manner of sickness and all manner of disease. Now the names of the twelve apostles are these: The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; Philip, and Bartholomew; Thomas, and Matthew the publican;James the son of Alphaeus, and Lebbeaus, whose surname was Thaddaeus; Simon the Canaanite, and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed him.”

to be cont'd

[BigD]

PART 2:
Verse 5, “These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, ‘Go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not.’” We should ask the question, why not? Did not God love the Gentile nations at this time? Did not Christ desire to see them saved? Of course He did. But He was operating according to knowledge and understanding that God would bring His light to the nations through Israel. If Israel herself was lost, she first needed to come to the Lord, then Israel could be a light to the nations. This is why He says in verse 6, [/b]“But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.”[/b] In Matthew 15 we see that this commission applied even to our Lord. Matthew 15:21 says, [b ]“Then Jesus went thence, and departed into the coasts of Tyre and Sidon. And, behold, a woman of Canaan came out of the same coasts.”[/b] Notice that the Holy Spirit inspires the writer to show us this is a Gentile woman; a woman of Canaan. Why is that so important? Because of what the Lord is about to say. She comes with a request in verse 22: “She cried unto him, saying, Have mercy on me, O Lord, thou son of David; my daughter is grievously vexed with a devil. But he answered her not a word. And his disciples came and besought him, saying, Send her away; for she crieth after us. But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” Does that sound like our loving, caring Lord? He does not even talk to her. Why does He do this?

Verse 25, ”Then came she and worshipped him, saying, Lord, help me. But he answered and said, It is not meet to take the children’s bread, and to cast it to dogs.”[/ b] This is going from bad to worse it seems. The Lord knew His commission, didn’t He? He knew he was sent to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. He knew that the nations could not be blessed until the children were filled. What children? The children of Israel. Let the children first be filled. But notice her faith in verse 27, “And she said, Truth, Lord.” Her answer shows that she understood the program under which she lived. She understood she did not have a claim on God’s blessings directly. She understood she did not have access to the glorious blessings that God promised to Israel. But then notice her statement of faith, “Yet the dogs eat of the crumbs which fall from their masters’ table.” She is saying in effect, Lord I don’t expect the direct blessing that you have promised to your children of Israel. I do not expect that. I just want a few leftovers. I just want a few crumbs. The Lord at that point saw her great faith and so He blessed her. Verse 28, “Then Jesus answered and said unto her, O woman, great is thy faith: be it unto thee even as thou wilt. And her daughter was made whole from that very hour.”

You see that principle being well established that the nations are not to be blessed under this kingdom and prophetic program until Israel is first blessed. Once Israel was straightened out, then and only then, was the message to go out to the nations. Christ made this perfectly clear when He commissioned the twelve apostles.

Luke 24:46, “And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day: And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.” Here is that same principle. Let the children first be filled. Acts 1:8, “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.” When Israel was filled, then the message could go on to the nations. The only problem was that Israel rejected the kingdom offer.

This was a problem from our point of view. But was it a problem for God? Of course not. God had in His mind a plan by which He could reach the nations in spite of the stubbornness of Israel. He had a plan whereby the nations could hear His word and they would not have to come through Israel’s rising. Remember Isaiah 60:3 where God says the nations would come to the light of Israel’s rising. Now consider a contrast to that in Romans 11:11. Here the Apostle Paul draws a contrast between how God reaches the nations today as opposed to how the prophets spoke of Israel’s rising. Under the prophetic program, the kingdom program, the nations were to be reached through Israel’s rising. But in Romans 11:11 we read, “I say then, Have they stumbled that they should fall? [Referring to Israel] God forbid: but rather throughb their fall salvation is come unto the Gentiles, for to bprovoke them to jealousy.” Do you see the difference? In Isaiah, the nations are to come through Israel’s rising. In Romans, the nations are blessed through Israel’s fall. How can that be? And how does that tie into the Great Commission?

God revealed his plan to reach the nations in spite of Israel through the Apostle Paul. God determined that if Israel would not go to the nations, He would temporarily by-pass that nation and go directly to the Gentiles. He chose a messenger by the name of Saul of Tarsus to become the great apostle of the Gentiles. When He did so, He temporarily suspended the Great Commission which was given to the Twelve. This leads to the next questions:

14)Where in Scripture do we ever find the Great Commission that was given to the Twelve being suspended."

>SNIP<

I will send a copy of this book, AT MY EXPENSE to anyone who desires it. In order to do that you will have to e-mail me at jellema@alliancecom.net you mailing address. I PROMISE to keep that information confidential and will not send any unrequested material.

The answer to question 14 is a good one.

bluelake asks:

What is your definition of 'The Lord's Church?'

BigD
After the Lord set the nation of Israel aside (the Jewish Chruch), He MADE the "one new man" of Ephesians 2:15. The "one new man" is a member of "the Body of Christ," Jew and Gentile on equal footing, without distinction, and not under the Law. It is 'The Lord's Chruch' for this dispensation of Grace.

For one to become a member of 'The Lord's Chruch," that one must put their FAITH and trust in the Cross work (death, burial and resurrection) of Christ for their salvation. NOTHING ELSE IS REQUIRED. Jesus did it ALL for us upon the Cross. There is nothing we can do to add to it.

God Bless.
Live Well, Laugh Often and Love the Lord!

[BigD]

cris asks;
[quoteI have a question that doesn't fully pertain to the subject, but would appreciate it if someone could give me their opinion.

Jesus Christ is the head, and we, saved ones, are His body.  The Church, or the body of Christ is "the bride".  Christ is "the bridegroom."  Since Christ is the head and we're His body, aren't we one with Him already?  Shouldn't we be the bridegroom also?  If this be the case, then who is the bride?  Previous to this thought (question) I thought the marriage supper of the Lamb was when Christ (bridegroom) came back for His church (bride), but now I'm wondering about this.  Head separated from body, and then uniting that head and body, being called a marriage?  Humm!

Any thoughts?  Do you understand what I mean?  Sometimes I have a difficult clarifying my thoughts in writing.

BigD
Cris, The Chruch today, the Body of Christ, IS NOT "the Bride of Christ." We are more part of the Bridgroom then the Bride. "For we are members of his body, of his flesh and of his bones"[/b] (Ephesians 5:30).

To read about the answer to this "problem" go to
http://www.starlightresearch.com/Problem7.html.

God Bless.
Live Well, Laugh Often and Love the Lord!