The Bible Our Guide
Plain Scriptural Teaching for the Followers of Christ
Part Two
The statements on this page represent Christadelphian beliefs. The statements are deliberately challenging, asking every reader to compare his own opinions with the plain teaching of Scripture, examining carefully the Bible passages offered as proof. If, as a result, a change of mind and heart is called for, there will be no doubt that the teaching of the Lord, and the book he trusted, must be followed wherever it leads.
Scripture quotations taken from the New King James (also known as the Revised Authorized) Version of the Bible.
The Source of Sin
If we claim to follow Christ we shall acknowledge that sin springs from the human heart, and find in mankind the "devil" who is at enmity against God:
Jeremiah:
The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked.
(Jeremiah 17:9)
James:
But each one is tempted when he is drawn away of his own desires, and enticed.
(James 1:14)
Hebrews:
Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, he himself likewise shared in the same, that through death he might destroy him who had the power of death, that is the devil.
But now, once at the end of the ages, he has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.
(Hebrews 2:14;9:26)
Jesus:
For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within and defile a man.
(Mark 7:21-23)
Paul:
Now the works of the flesh are evident, which are: adultery fornication, uncleanness, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, evil, murders, drunkenness, revels, and the like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told you in time past, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
(Galatians 5:19-21)
The Bible traces the origin of human sinfulness to the fall of man in Eden, and only by the redeeming work of Jesus on the cross can this "devil" be destroyed.
God, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit
If we claim to follow Christ we shall, with Jesus our Lord, acknowledge the supremacy of God, the Father; we shall see in Jesus His obedient Son; and we shall see in the Holy Spirit his personal power:
Paul:
There is one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.
(1 Timothy 2:5)
The head of Christ is God
(1 Corinthians 11:3)
Now when all things are made subject to him, then the Son himself will also be made subject to him who put all things under him, that God may be all in all.
(1 Corinthians 15:28)
There is one body and one spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling: one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.
(Ephesians 4:4-6)
Jesus:
My father is greater than I.
(John 14:28)
The son can do nothing of himself, but what he sees the Father do.
(John 15:10)
If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love.
(John 15:10)
Nevertheless not my will, but yours, be done.
(Luke 22:42)
The Angel Gabriel:
The holy spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that holy one who is born of you will be called the Son of God.
(Luke 1:35)
Peter:
Holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.
(2 Peter 1:21)
God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power.
(Acts 10:38)
The Bible traces everything to God, that is, to the Father; it centers on the purpose of God in Jesus, that is, the Son; and it reveals God's working among prophets, apostles and saints by his own power, that is, the Holy Spirit.
Faith in Jesus Christ
If we claim to follow Christ we shall know that faith in Jesus is essential. A Christian must accept the true gospel before he can belong to Christ:
Jesus:
God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life.
(John 3:16)
For if you do not believe that I am he, you will die in your sins.
(John 8:24)
Paul:
For (the Gospel of Christ) is the power of God to salvation for every one who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.
If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead, you will be saved
(Romans 1:16; 10:9)
Hebrews:
But without faith it is impossible to please him, for he who comes to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of those who diligently seek him.
(Hebrews 11:6)
A warning against false teaching:
Paul:
But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach any gospel to you other than what we have preached to you, let him be accursed.
(Galatians 1:8)
A warning against simply following the majority:
Jesus:
Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.
(Matthew 7:13,14)
The Bible does not allow us to take salvation for granted. The only way for sinners is to follow in obedience where Jesus has lead, in faith in him and in the Word of God he honored.
Taking Up the Cross
If we claim to follow Christ we shall want to renounce the weakness and pride of our fleshly nature, and lay it down after the pattern of Jesus' death on the Cross:
Jesus:
If anyone desires to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross and follow me.
(Matthew 16:24)
Paul:
Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who ... humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also has highly exalted him and given him the name which is above every name.
(Philippians 2:5-11)
Our old man was crucified with him, that the body of sin might be done away with.
(Romans 6:6)
I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me... ...And those who are Christ's have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires... ...God forbid that I should glory except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.
(Galatians 2:20; 5:24; 6:14)
Jesus:
These are the little ones who washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
(Revelation 7:14)
By his death on the cross Jesus destroyed the power of sin, and is now perfect and immortal. Those who crucify their old way of life with Christ and seek to follow him, will receive his help to the same end.
True Baptism
If we claim to follow Christ we shall know that we must obey the command of Jesus, to follow our faith by baptism:
Jesus:
Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness ... Then Jesus, when he had been baptized, came up immediately from the water ... and suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
(Matthew 3:15-17)
He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not will be condemned.
(Mark 16:16)
Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God
(John 3:5)
Peter:
Repent, and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins ... Then those who gladly received his word were baptized ... and they continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers.
(Acts 2:38,41,42)
Paul:
As many of us were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death. Therefore we were buried with him through baptism into death.
(Romans 6:3,4)
In the Bible, baptism is a burial in water, undertaken by those who have confessed their desire to crucify their former lives, and start again in a risen life with Christ.
The "Christian Life"
If we claim to follow Christ we shall want to follow the pattern of Jesus' life, and keep his commandments, remember his death, and keep unspotted from the world:
Jesus:
If you love me, keep my commandments.
(John 14:15)
A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another.
(John 13:34)
Put your sword in its place, for all who take the sword will perish by the sword.
(Matthew 26:52)
John:
Do not love the world or the things in the world ... For all that is in the world - the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life - is not of the Father but of the world.
(1 John 2:15-16)
Paul and Jesus:
For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which he was betrayed took bread; and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, Take, eat, this is my body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of me. In the same manor he also took the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new covenant in my blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me. For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's death till he comes.
(1 Corinthians 11:23-26)
The Bible therefore encourages true Christians to remember the Lord in a regular Breaking of Bread, and to keep him constantly in remembrance in their lives, waiting always for his coming again.
Resurrection and Judgment
If we claim to follow Christ we shall know that one day we must stand before the Lord Jesus Christ as our Judge, to receive blessing or condemnation:
Jesus:
Every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment. For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.
(Matthew 13:36,37)
Paul:
For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.
(2 Corinthians 5:10)
Daniel:
And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting contempt.
(Daniel 12:2)
Jesus:
... and your wrath has come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that you should reward your servants the prophets and the saints, and those who fear your name, small and great, and should destroy those who destroy the earth.
(Revelation 11:18)
Paul:
There will be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust... Now as he reasoned about the righteousness, self control, and the judgment to come, Felix was afraid.
(Acts 24:15,25)
Peter:
They (who walk in the lusts of men) will give an account to him who is ready to judge the living and the dead.
(1 Peter 4:5)
Those who have understood their duty to God, whether they have accepted it and obeyed in faith, or rejected or neglected it, must stand before the Lord's judgment, for blessing or for rejection.
Jesus:
When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his sheep from the goats. And he will set the sheep on his right hand, and the goats on the left. Then the King will say to those on his right hand, Come, you blessed of my father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world... Then he will also say to those on the left hand, depart from me, you cursed, into the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his angels.
(Matthew 25:31-41)
It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes, to be cast into hell fire.
(Mark 9:43-48)
The hell fire of the Bible is the destruction of everything which is displeasing in God's sight at a time of judgment. It is also called the "everlasting fire" and the "lake of fire".
The Glorious End
If we claim to follow Christ we shall look to the time when the earth will be perfected through the work of Christ, and filled with God's glory:
To Moses:
But truly, as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD.
(Numbers 14:21)
The Psalms:
Give the king your judgments, O GOD, and your righteousness to the king's son. He will judge your people with righteousness... Blessed be the LORD God of Israel, who only does wondrous things! And let the whole earth be filled with his glory.
(Psalm 72:1,18,19)
Isaiah:
They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain, for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters now cover the sea.
(Isaiah 11:9)
Habakkuk:
For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD, as the waters now cover the sea.
(Habakkuk 2:14)
Paul:
Then comes the end, when he (Christ) delivers the kingdom to God the Father, when he puts an end to all rule and all authority and power. For he must reign till he has put all enemies under his feet. The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.
(1 Corinthians 15:24-26)
Jesus:
Then death and Hades (the grave) were cast into the lake of fire... Behold the tabernacle of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes; there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor crying; and there shall be no more pain, for the former things have passed away.
(Revelation 20:14; 21:3,4)
Thus the Bible shows how the perfection intended in the work of creation will finally be realized, in the presence of all the true saints of God.
"The Holy Scriptures ... are able to make you wise for salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus"
(2 Timothy 3:15)
The text of this page is taken from the Christadelphian booklet The Bible Our Guide, author unknown.
