A Daily Devotional

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The Doctrine of Christ

"If there come any unto you, and bring not this doctrine, receive him not into your house, neither bid him God speed." (2 John 10)

This apparently harsh instruction seems at first to conflict with the many biblical exhortations to show hospitality, but it needs to be placed in context. The one-chapter epistle of 2 John was addressed to "the elect lady and her children" by John, who also extended greetings from "the children of thy elect sister" (vv. 1, 13). These unusual phrases, together with the general tone of the epistle, make it almost certain that John was not referring simply to two individual Christian women, but to two churches, symbolically personified as two noble ladies with the "children" being the new converts in the churches.

The warning, then, is primarily against the danger of allowing a false teacher to come into the church, as a pastor or a teacher or even as a visiting speaker, who would not bring "this doctrine." The doctrine mentioned is obviously "the doctrine of Christ" (v. 9). This doctrine of Christ is not, however, simply a set of doctrinal tenets about the person and work of Jesus Christ. It is not the doctrine about Christ, but of Christ--belonging to Him--His doctrine. The word "doctrine" is didache, meaning literally "teachings." The meaning clearly is "the teachings of Christ," that is, not just one or two least-common-denominator statements about Christ to which all nominal Christians could give assent, but the entire body of teachings that had come from Jesus.

Further, since He taught that all the Old Testament is inspired and authoritative, and also promised the same to the writers of the New Testament, this "doctrine of Christ" includes "all the counsel of God" (Acts 20:27), from Genesis through Revelation. How important it is not to allow false teaching to get a foothold in a local church.

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Love Thy Neighbor
 
"But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour?" (Luke 10:29)
 
This question was asked Jesus by a "lawyer" (one who specialized in the interpretation and application of the more than 600 commandments of the Old Testament) in response to Jesus' affirmation that the greatest commandments of the law were, first, to love God, and second, to love "thy neighbour as thyself" (Luke 10:27; Matthew 22:39).
 
The Lord Jesus answered his question by telling the famous story of the good Samaritan, concluding by saying: "Go, and do thou likewise" (Luke 10:37). From this parable are derived several important principles concerning neighbors and what it means to love them.
 
In the first place, a neighbor is not necessarily someone whose home is near ours, or even one who is an acquaintance. The Samaritan had never met the traveler who had been robbed and wounded, nor was he even a fellow countryman.
 
However, there were three criteria which, in the mind of Christ, did make him a neighbor: (1) he was someone whose path had crossed that of the Samaritan; (2) he had a real need; and (3) the Samaritan had the ability to meet that need. Since all three criteria were satisfied, then there was such an obligation, and the Lord has told us to do likewise.
 
It is such an action that is involved in "loving" one's neighbor in the same way we love ourselves. It is doing what we would want to have done for us, if the roles were reversed. However, there is still something more to it than that: The "love" of which the Lord spoke here is the well-known agape love, which describes an unselfish love--one which serves the best interests of the recipient without regard to any benefit for the one who loves. In the highest sense, therefore, a genuine love for one's neighbor would mean seeking the will of God in and for the one who is loved.

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Christ Our Intercessor
 
"Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us." (Romans 8:34)
 
One of the most glorious truths of the Christian life is that the Lord Jesus Christ, who died for our sins and rose for our justification, now lives to intercede for us before God. The greatest example of intercessory prayer in the Bible is in John 17, where the Lord poured out His heart for His disciples. "I pray for them," He said, "I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine" (John 17:9). But that was not all! "Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word" (John 17:20). And that's us! That includes us!
 
What is it that He prays for us? First of all, He prays for our security. "Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are" (John 17:11). Then He prays that we might have real victory over sin and the devil. "I pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil |or 'the evil one'|" (John 17:15).
 
His next request is: "Sanctify them through thy truth: thy word is truth" (John 17:17). Our sanctification will come, therefore, not through some special experience, but through God's Word. He also prays for true unity among His true disciples: "That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me" (John 17:21).
 
Finally, He prays for our ultimate glorification. "Father, I will that they also, whom thou hast given me, be with me where I am; that they may behold my glory, which thou hast given me" (John 17:24).
 
We can be assured that the Father will grant these requests of His beloved Son.

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Commitment to God
 
"Commit thy way unto the LORD; trust also in him, and he shall bring it to pass." (Psalm 37:5)
 
Frustration must come as the saints of God battle with evil forces. The pain and pressure of torment is nonetheless real as these evil "devices" (Isaiah 32:7) take their toll on the people of God. The Lord will destroy the plans of the wicked (Psalm 33:10), but while those plans are active, they can cause much hurt.
 
Nevertheless, we must maintain trust in the Lord and commit our lives to Him if we are to be victorious. The unusual Hebrew word galal used here is more often translated as "roll on" or "roll with" something. It seems to imply a unity in the commitment, that the committed one is bound up in the actions or activities of the thing or person committed to--we "roll on" or "roll with" the Lord in our "way."
 
Paul spends much of his letter to the Philippians describing the link between the Creator-Savior and the mind, heart, and lifestyle of the Christian who has given his life over to God. "Being confident of this very thing," Paul says, "that he which has begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ" (Philippians 1:6). We are to "work out |our| own salvation with fear and trembling. For it is God which worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure" (Philippians 2:12-13).
 
While admitting that he had not yet "attained," Paul was so focused on the work of the Kingdom that he was "forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus" (Philippians 3:13-14). God’s promise to "bring it to pass" is conditioned on our being committed to His sovereign will for our "way."

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Knowing and Trusting
 
"And they that know thy name will put their trust in thee: for thou, LORD, hast not forsaken them that seek thee." (Psalm 9:10)
 
When one really knows the name of the Lord, that one will surely come to trust Him. How could anyone fail to trust God and to believe His Word, when they know Him to be the Almighty Creator (Elohim), the self-existing One (Jehovah), and the gracious Master (Adonai)? When they further learn that He is none other than Jesus Christ ("Anointed Savior"), surely they ought to believe and bow in thankful love, calling Him "Lord" by the Holy Ghost (1 Corinthians 12:3).
 
The word for "trust" means "take refuge in." We can trust our Lord for protection from harm, from want, from all the attacks of the wicked one, and finally, from hell itself. That trust is well placed, because the Lord never forsakes those who truly trust Him. The Word confirms this truth over and over again. "(For the LORD thy God is a merciful God;) he will not forsake thee, neither destroy thee, nor forget the covenant of thy fathers" (Deuteronomy 4:31). "I have been young, and now am old; yet have I not seen the righteous forsaken, nor his seed begging bread" (Psalm 37:25). These are glorious promises, always fulfilled--that is, with one exception.
 
The only man who always fully trusted God, who was altogether righteous and who perfectly manifested the Father's name to His disciples and to the world--that One was forsaken! "My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?" He cried, as He died on the cross (Matthew 27:46).
 
And it was because He was willing to be forsaken and to suffer hell itself in our place--dying for our sins--that God can make and keep His promise never to forsake anyone who seeks Him and puts their trust in Him, through Jesus Christ.

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David's Son
 
"He shall build an house for my name, and I will stablish the throne of his kingdom for ever. I will be his father, and he shall be my son. If he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men." (2 Samuel 7:13-14)
 
These verses comprise the heart of the great "Davidic Covenant" made by God with David and his "seed." As with many Old Testament prophecies, it had both an immediate and ultimate fulfillment. Initially, it applied to Solomon who did, indeed, "build an house for my name." Its complete fulfillment, however, had to await the distant coming (a thousand years in the future for His first coming) of David's greater Son, the Messiah. It was only of Him that God could promise uniquely that He would also be the Son of the heavenly Father (Hebrews 1:5). To His mother, Mary, the angel Gabriel confirmed the Davidic promise: "He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of His father David: And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end" (Luke 1:32-33).
 
But before his eternal throne could be established, his iniquities must be judged. As far as Solomon was concerned his iniquities ultimately cut his own seed off from the throne. "The seed of David according to the flesh" (Romans 1:3) came through Nathan, not Solomon (Luke 3:23-31).
 
Although Jesus Christ "knew no sin" (2 Corinthians 5:21), "he was bruised for our iniquities," because "the LORD hath laid on him the iniquity of us all." He deserved no chastening; nevertheless, "the chastisement of our peace was upon him" (Isaiah 53:5-6).
 
Thereby the Lord Jesus Christ, "greater than Solomon" (Matthew 12:42), is indeed "a son over his own house; whose house are we" (Hebrews 3:6).

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Strong and Courageous
 
"And David said to Solomon his son, Be strong and of good courage, and do it: fear not, nor be dismayed: for the LORD God, even my God, will be with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee, until thou hast finished all the work for the service of the house of the LORD." (1 Chronicles 28:20)
 
This admonition--to be strong and of good courage--is found eleven times in the Bible--thrice on the lips of Moses, five times in Joshua, then twice from David, and once from Hezekiah. Although these all involved specific challenges confronting God's people at the time, the principles behind them indicate the need for courage of conviction for God's people at all times.
 
The first occurrence is in the command given by Moses to the Israelites just before his death as they were about to enter the Promised Land. "Be strong and of a good courage, fear not, nor be afraid of them: for the Lord thy God, he it is that doth go with thee; he will not fail thee, nor forsake thee" (Deuteronomy 31:6). In the next verse, Moses gave a similar exhortation to Joshua, their leader.
 
The next-to-last occurrence is in our text, containing almost the same words as in the first occurrence, with David this time exhorting Solomon to build the great temple in Jerusalem. Whether entering a new field of service for God or beginning a great work for God, the people of God will encounter opposition, and must be strong and courageous to carry it through.
 
The word "courage" occurs more in Joshua than in any other book of the Bible, and this specific exhortation is given five times: three by God, once by the people to Joshua, and once by Joshua to the people. In all these, the context stresses obedience to the Word of God, especially in resistance to sin and pagan belief systems. Especially significant is God's command: "Be thou strong and very courageous, that thou mayest observe to do according to all the law . . . that thou mayest prosper" (Joshua 1:7).

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The Song of Creation
 
"Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding . . . When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?" (Job 38:4-7)
 
It is significant that there was singing at the very time of creation. The "morning stars" of this verse are, by Hebrew poetic parallelism, the same as the "sons of God" who were present when God "laid the foundations of the earth." Similarly, "sang together" is parallel with "shouted for joy."
 
It is thus beautifully appropriate to sing of the glories of God's creation, for angels were doing this even before Adam and Eve were created! The first actual human song mentioned in the Bible, however, was the thanksgiving song of Moses (Exodus 15:1-21), composed and sung by Moses and the children of Israel after their deliverance from Pharaoh and the waters of the sea.
 
Finally, it is significant that the last song mentioned in the Bible is "the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb" (Revelation 15:3), sung in heaven by "them that had gotten the victory over the beast" (v. 2). This presumably refers back to the original song of Moses, since the deliverance from Pharaoh was, spiritually, a type of their triumph over the beast, the great world ruler in the end times. However, it must now be combined with the song of the Lamb, probably the "new song" of the saints at the Lamb's throne in Revelation 5:8-10, praising the Lord for their redemption through His blood, shed in substitution for their sins.
 
These should surely be the three major themes of Christian music, for these are the main themes of the Bible's songs. It is fitting that they should refer to the past, present, and future works of Christ--His mighty work of creation in the beginning, His gracious work of sustenance in the present, and His glorious work of full redemption in the future.

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As I Have Loved
 
"A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another." (John 13:34)
 
No Christian could ever question the preeminent importance of love. "God is love" (1 John 4:8, 16), and the greatest of the Christian virtues is love (1 Corinthians 13:13). The first and second commandments of the law are love for God and love for one's neighbor (Matthew 22:37-40). Christ's new commandment, however, gives us a definition of love! To love as He loved, we must observe how Christ loved.
 
In the first place, His love was not ephemeral. "When Jesus knew that his hour was come that he should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end" (John 13:1).
 
The Lord Jesus Himself defined love this way: "Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends" (John 15:13). However, Christ died not only for His friends, but for all sinners, including His bitter enemies. "But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us" (Romans 5:.
 
"In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. . . . Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another" (1 John 4:9-11).
 
The measure of love is the undeserved, yet gladly offered, substitutionary death of Christ for our sins. Whenever we think the love commandment is demanding too much of us, we should compare our love to His. "For the love of Christ constraineth us |not our love for Him, but His love for us| . . . that they which live should not henceforth live unto themselves, but unto him which died for them, and rose again" (2 Corinthians 5:14-15). "We love him, because he first loved us" (1 John 4:19), and we must live for Him.

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Cities Set on a Hill
 
"Ye are the light of the world. A city that is set on an hill cannot be hid." (Matthew 5:14)
 
Cities in ancient times were often built on a hill, and this was especially important for those six cities in Israel which had been designated as cities of refuge. They were located, geographically, so that no one in Israel was more than a day’s journey from one of them--accessible to all who might need to flee to one for refuge some day. These were designated as havens, "that the slayer that killeth any person unawares and unwittingly may flee thither: and they shall be your refuge from the avenger of blood" (Joshua 20:3).
 
"And they appointed Kedesh in Galilee in mount Naphtali, and Shechem in mount Ephraim, and Kirjatharba, which is Hebron, in the mountain of Judah. And on the other side Jordan by Jericho eastward, they assigned Bezer in the wilderness upon the plain out of the tribe of Reuben, and Ramoth in Gilead out of the tribe of Gad, and Golan in Bashan out of the tribe of Manasseh" (Joshua 20:7-8). The first three cities are specifically said to be on mountains. On the east of Jordan, Ramoth was on Mount Gilead, Golan on the Golan Heights east of the Sea of Galilee, and Bezer apparently on the high tablelands east of the Dead Sea. Thus, all could be seen from a great distance, even at night, by its watch fires. Their strategic locations were a comfort to the accidental killer as he fled for his life from an avenger of blood.
 
The cities of refuge were a type of Christ, to whom we "have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us" (Hebrews 6:18). He is, to us, a strong city set on a hill, ready to receive all who come to Him in faith. He called Himself "the light of the world" (John 8:12), but then He also said that those who now have His light must also serve as lights--as cities on a hill that those who see them may "glorify |their| Father which is in heaven" (Matthew 5:16).

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Occupied Territory
 
"But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light." (1 Peter 2:9)
 
In our ongoing struggle for both survival and victory in this world, we do well to recognize that we are in enemy territory. While it is true that our Captain created the world--indeed, "all things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made" (John 1:3)--sacrificed His life to redeem it, and will reign over it for eternity, it is also true that "the whole world lieth in wickedness" (1 John 5:19), occupied by "the prince of this world" (John 12:31), "the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience" (Ephesians 2:2).
 
The fact that we are surrounded by such darkness should come as no surprise, for before we were rescued by His grace, we too were part of the darkness--indeed, we had to be called out of it. John the Baptist came "to give light to them that sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace" (Luke 1:79). Furthermore, as Christ taught, "men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil" (John 3:19).
 
This confrontation overshadows mere human conflict, however, "for we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places" (Ephesians 6:12). But, praise God, we have been called "out of darkness into his marvellous light" as described in our text. Although we may be still in the world, our King has "delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son" (Colossians 1:13). "In him was life; and the life was the light of men" (John 1:4).

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The Trinity and the Christian
 
"The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen." (2 Corinthians 13:14)
 
The doctrine of the triune God is unique to Christianity. There is only one God, yet three Persons--Father, Son, and Holy Spirit--each with His own distinct relation to mankind, yet each equally, fully, and eternally God. Although these truths are implicit throughout the New Testament, the doctrine of the Trinity is seldom, if ever, presented therein explicitly as a formal doctrine.
 
There are several passages, however, where all three Persons are mentioned in the same context, and each one deals with a significant aspect of the Christian life. There is, first of all, the provision of salvation, ". . . the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God" (Hebrews 9:14). Then follows regeneration. "And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father" (Galatians 4:6). Salvation and regeneration are then publicly testified in baptism "in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost" (Matthew 28:19).
 
The chief resource of the believer is prayer, and this also involves all three Persons. "For through |Christ| we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father" (Ephesians 2:18). He must also continue to learn of Christ, and to bear witness of Him. "The Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things" (John 14:26). "The Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me: And ye also shall bear witness" (John 15:26-27).
 
Finally, in the words of our text, we have eternal assurance in the triune God. "The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen."

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Learning to Trust
 
"Though I walk in the midst of trouble, thou wilt revive me: thou shalt stretch forth thine hand against the wrath of mine enemies, and thy right hand shall save me." (Psalm 138:7)
 
David makes three simple points in his final admonition to those who struggle with trusting in God's lovingkindness and truth.
 
First, God loves His saints, but those with a pride problem are not going to gain His attention (Psalm 138:6). This is somewhat basic to Christian doctrine. Pride is one of the seven things that God hates (Proverbs 6:16-19). God responds to the desire of the humble person (Psalm 10:17) and He stays near to those who have a broken heart or a contrite spirit (Psalm 34:17).
 
Second, God will revive us when we are in trouble (our text). The promise is about the reviving and the saving. That is, we may gain God's sufficient grace to endure (as in the case of Paul's "thorn in the flesh," 2 Corinthians 12:7) rather than a physical cure. We may receive the ability to be victorious in the face of opposition (as during Paul's ministry to Ephesus, 1 Corinthians 16:8-9) rather than relief from the circumstances. We may, indeed, be delivered from the pressure of the enemies or have God's miracle performed in our lives, but whatever the circumstantial occasion, God will respond for our good.
 
Third, God will bring about our perfection (Psalm 138:. That term, both in the Old and the New Testaments, relates to completing God's work or purpose. Here, it is specifically related to that which concerns the saints of God. The sovereign Lord will see to it that His chosen will make it (1 Peter 2:9). There is no question about this. God's mercy is always refreshed. There is no limit to His forgiveness. Nothing about who we are will defeat God's plan for us (Philippians 2:13).

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The 'Two' Books of Isaiah
 
"Comfort ye, comfort ye my people, saith your God. Speak ye comfortable to Jerusalem, and cry unto her, that her warfare is accomplished, that her iniquity is pardoned: for she hath received of the LORD's hand double for all her sins." (Isaiah 40:1-2)
 
These two verses introduce the so-called book of "Deutero-Isaiah," which biblical critics (who deny that prophecy can be fulfilled) claim was written by a second Isaiah simply because it contains prophetic claims which have come to pass. The Lord Jesus, however, quoted more than once from both "divisions" of Isaiah, attributing both of them to the same inspired author, and He surely knew more about their true authorship than do modern liberals!
 
Actually, however, the two divisions of Isaiah are quite distinctive in their respective vocabularies, simply because their respective themes are different. In fact, the chapter structure of the two divisions is quite remarkable, possibly even providential. The first book (chapters 1-39) contains the same number of chapters as the Old Testament has books. The second book (chapters 40-66) contains 27 chapters, the same as the number of books in the New Testament. The New Testament portion begins with John the Baptist (Isaiah 40:1-5), just as the New Testament itself does, and ends with the new heavens and the new earth (Isaiah 65 and 66; compare Revelation 21 and 22).
 
The central chapter in the New Testament part of Isaiah is Isaiah 53, which contains the clearest and fullest exposition of the substitutionary death of Christ for our sins to be found anywhere in the Bible. And the central verse of this chapter (which actually should begin at Isaiah 52:13) is: "But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed" (Isaiah 53:5).

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Setting Up an Ebenezer
 
"Then Samuel took a stone, and set it between Mizpeh and Shen, and called the name Ebenezer, saying, Hitherto hath the LORD helped us." (1 Samuel 7:12)
 
Many Christians have joined in the singing of a familiar verse in an old hymn, without knowing its great meaning: "Here I raise mine Ebenezer; hither by thy help I've come." When the Ark of the Covenant was captured by the Philistines, the old priest Eli and his sons, Hophni and Phinehas, all died the same day, as did Phinehas' wife, in childbirth. It was a tragic day for Israel.
 
But then the people returned to God, under Samuel, and 20 years later the Lord gave them a miraculous victory over the superior armies of the Philistines. In commemoration of this deliverance, Samuel set up a stone monument in the same place where the Philistines had captured the Ark 20 years before, calling the stone "Ebenezer," a name which was always associated thereafter with the site (1 Samuel 4:1; 5:1).
 
Now "Ebenezer" means "Stone of Help," and seeing it would always remind the people, whenever they might later come to fear the circumstances around them, that God had been their "help in ages past," and thus could be trusted as their "hope for years to come." Only God is truly able to help in times of great need, but He is able! "From whence cometh my help. My help cometh from the LORD, which made heaven and earth" (Psalm 121:1-2).
 
It is well to remember those times in our own lives when God has helped us in some special way. We forget so easily, and the sin of ingratitude is cited by God as one of the first harbingers of imminent apostasy (note especially Romans 1:21). A physical token can help us remember, but whatever it takes--remember! God will hear and answer our prayers for future help, too, but "with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God" (Philippians 4:6).