CHRISTIAN IDENTIFICATION
ILLUSTRATION
I remember the time when my wife’s brothers and other relatives were very busy certifying their Native American linage. There was a flurry of activity as relatives and ancestor were identified and traced back to their Indian roots. Then, there was a period when everyone waited for the decision to be made on his or her qualifications for membership into the tribe. Once they got their “Indian cards” they were welcome to attend tribal meetings and participate in other gatherings … they were identified as being of Native American heritage … they were proud of their identification.
I wonder how many Christians find excitement in being able to identify themselves as a new creation … as a Christian.
SERMON
Who are we?
We are Christians. It is not our affiliation with any organization of man that makes us Christians. It is not by the observance of any man made creed, nor is it by following the inventions of an intellectual’s mind, that we are Christians. We are Christians because we have heard the words of the one true living God, and we have believed His words. To this end, we now proclaim that there is but:
ONE GOD,
ONE SAVIOR,
ONE HOLY SPIRIT, AND
ONE HOLY BIBLE.
We are Christian because we know that Jesus Christ was, and still is, the messiah prophesied in ancient Hebrew scripture, and we now bow in humble obedience to His loving authority. We are not be like those who call themselves Christians, but are not willing to manifest the belief that no spiritual authority, for eternal life and the governing of their temper and conduct, exists outside of that revealed in the New Testament.
Who is our God?
Our God is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Is this God the God of Jews only? No, He is also the God of the Gentiles. There is only one true God, and it is this God who justifies the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through that same faith. Yes, I will admit that there are other so?called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as indeed there are many "gods" and many "lords"), yet for the true believer there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we live; and there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we live. But not everyone knows this! Many in Christendom have started to ignore their first love, and they now wander in the wilderness of man’s intellectualism. Therefore, we all need to be alert to those who would so much as even hint that a doorway into the kingdom of God exists outside of Christ Jesus. That person is confused and led astray by persons who love the sound of their own voice more than the gospel message itself. If you are a Christian, then remember that you were justified by faith in Jesus ... so return to your first love. It is time for true believers to join together in a call for Christendom to restore recognition of the authority of Jesus Christ as King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Christianity is not one of many paths to eternal life; Christianity is the only path.
What is truth?
Jesus said, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” Yet, there are those in Christendom who have turned their back on the truth and turned to embrace the inventions of mortal minds. The truth is the complete and final revelation of God’s will for mankind. This truth is not found in the wisdom of man: the truth is only found in the word of God, as recorded in the Holy Bible. The central truth is that God loves us … all of us. God loves us so much that He sent His only begotten Son that we all might have eternal life. Our God is TRUTH, and He has always been with His people. For the law was given through Moses, and grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. True worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. If you are a Christian then know that this TRUTH is eternal. We all need to guard against the words of man and turn again to the truth that is only found in the word of God.
Is there but one true church?
Yes, but it did not come into existence through the will of man nor does it now exist through the labors of any organization of man. Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, and it is on this fact alone that His church exists as his own personal creation. Yet bold men, with no spiritual wisdom, continue to take fragments of scripture and endow their encapsulated concepts with doctrinal powers thus forging their own personal representation of the church. That we fellowship in groups with a kindred mind is understandable, but no matter how great the principles underpinning our personal church, and no matter how firmly linked with scripture, these principles are still subordinate to the fact that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God and that He is the creator of the Church. It is important for us to realize that our personal fellowships are but an invention of man, and as such they pale in comparison to the one true Church ... the Body of Christ. In truth, every single believer is a member of the church, which Jesus created. Thus, we are one through Jesus Christ in spite of the evil our creeds, statements of faith, and oaths do in dividing the children of God. Restoration ministries encourages everyone to set aside those horrid traditions, which divide us, and instead fan into flame a spirit, which reaches out in love to all our brothers and sisters scattered throughout Christendom.
Is there justification for division in the Church?
No! I know that I speak to sensible people; therefore I ask you: “Is not the cup of thanksgiving for which we give thanks a participation in the blood of Christ? And is not the bread that we break a participation in the body of Christ? Then is it not true that because there is but one loaf, we, who are many, are but one body, for we all partake of the one loaf. After all, were we not all baptized by one Spirit into one body?” If this were not true then how could I come so boldly before you? It is true, and because I know that the love of Jesus can quench the hostility of human emotion I know that you will understand what I am saying. Our denominational and organizational forefathers set out to worship in a manner for which they felt a strong conviction; very few, if any, set out to war against other Christians. Yet, we have engaged in separatist and sectarian wars; wars where we have associated the name of Jesus with the vile filth of Christian division. A division which is often spawned by arrogant men who lift up their personal opinions as church doctrine and in so doing lure foolish people to join them in their militant denominational mentality.
Who suffers in these wars? Christians suffer from the hostility and isolation these wars bring! The lost, who stay lost because of our hypocrisy, suffer! The world suffers from a lack of Christian love. It would be so wonderful if we could only have peace through the love of Jesus. If we could accept the fact that we worship one savior, Jesus Christ. If we could just agree with one another on the simple essentials of Christian brotherhood: accepting different levels of Christian maturity; differing modes of observance and abstention; varying expressions of spirituality and styles of worship. Perhaps, through the power of Jesus, we can restore within our souls a humble heart, and bring to remembrance that it is God’s will that: “there shall be only one flock and only one shepherd.” Perhaps if we seek first the Kingdom of God and His righteousness the suffering would end.
CONCLUSION
Have you been turned off by organized religion?
If you have been hurt by organized religion ... then let me assure you that you are not alone. This fact, however, does not justify you in the presence of God. Yes, I know that many, perhaps like yourself, have experienced a situation in which a Christian, or a local church, did not display the love of God. The sad truth is that when you visit a Christian fellowship you may encounter the full spectrum of mankind; from the mature Christian who is full of the love of Jesus to the evil hypocrite who thinks that his membership in a Church buys him a one-way ticket to heaven. Does this imperfection do away with the need for the local church? No! The New Testament church was not established by man, nor was it’s purpose set forth through the mind of man. The church was brought into existence as the body of Christ so that now, through the church, the manifold wisdom of God should be made known. This is why God has instructed us to not forsake our own assembling together, but to encourage one another; and all the more, as we see the day drawing near.
Look around you, because the day is near. You may have never sought a relationship with Jesus. You may have a relationship with Jesus but trials and tribulations have damaged that relationship. You may have a good relationship with Jesus but you know that it could be improved. It does not really matter. Do not try to stand alone; seek out New Testament Christians to fellowship with. As you search, I urge you to look beyond the few bad apples and seek out those who have truly given their hearts over to Jesus. I also plead with you to measure the message of a church against the word of God as it is recorded in scripture. I say this because it is so important that you listen to God speak to you through His word, and that you do not put your faith in what some person tells you. I know, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that if you ask God to reveal to you the wonders of His love that the words of Jesus Christ will become a spring of living waters for you. God’s message to you, as recorded in the New Testament, has survived the ravages of time and after almost two thousand years it is still as powerful a force in changing lives as it was in the beginning.
