I Believe Everything

Not too long ago, I was having a conversation with a friend about religion, and she said, “ I believe in everything.”  I was a little taken back with this response, and did not reply to her immediately, but decided to ponder upon it for a while.  Knowing a little something about this person, I am pretty sure that she did not mean something like “ I believe red lights mean ‘go’,” or “I believe that 2+2=2365.”  Given the context of our discussion, she seemed to be referring to religious beliefs, and so, to be charitable with her statement, I will comment upon that.

Even given religious beliefs, however, one will soon find that not all of them can be accepted so that one could truly say, “ I believe everything.”  For example, popular Hindu beliefs accept reincarnation.  This is the idea that one’s soul leaves one’s body and comes back in another life to inhabit a different body.  In Hindu belief, this happens impersonally.  One’s soul is simply the “energy” from one body that inhabits a new body, but no personality is transferred.  Hindus also believe that reincarnation can take place into other beings like dogs, cats, horses, cows, birds, rats, and other animals.

However, Christianity does not hold to reincarnation.  Christians believe that one’s life on earth is the only life that one has to live before final judgment, and that there is no cycle of reincarnation that occurs (Hebrews 9:27).  Each individual is a separate person unique in identity for all time and space.  Each person has one body, which will be resurrected on the Day of Judgment (John 5:28-29).  On that day, everyone will be judged by Jesus the Christ according to what he or she has done in that body whether good or bad (2 Corinthians 5:10).

Perhaps one might say, “I can believe both of these things, and do well.”  Such seems like a high-minded way of looking at it, but that both sets of beliefs cannot be maintained is easily seen by simply considering the differences.

Christianity -Resurrection Popular Hindu Belief – Reincarnation
Personhood is real; The self is personal. Personhood is an illusion; The self is not personal.
Death occurs once. Death occurs multiple times.
The self is resurrected into his own body. The self is reincarnated into a different body.
The self is resurrected for eternal judgment. The self is reincarnated according to karma (a type of judgment that is cyclical).
The self survives resurrection. The self does not survive reincarnation.
Resurrection occurs once. Reincarnation occurs multiple times; it is cyclical.
Judgment occurs once and is final. Judgment is cyclical occurring many different times.
The personal self spends eternity in heaven or hell; in fellowship with God or not, respectively. The impersonal energy that was one’s self eventually merges with cosmic oneness.

It seems clear that one cannot believe both sets of teaching (reincarnation and resurrection) at least as these doctrines are set forth in Christianity and Popular Hindu Religion.  One may try to synthesize these beliefs somehow, but one will wind up with something different and end up compromising one set of beliefs or the other.  The new set of beliefs will still be different from the old set and one will still end up not believing everything.

Most importantly, though, an individual who professes to believe everything must ask himself how he is going to live his life right now?  If one accepts the teachings of reincarnation, there really is no motivation beyond one’s own personal feelings as to how he should live.  So, if one lives in such a way so as to destroy his or someone else’s life, then no big deal.  One is reincarnated into the next life as something lesser than human and one’s energy moves to that state.  If one fulfills the purpose of that state (whatever that is), one may then move back up and take on being human again.  If one becomes “enlightened,” then he may move on to an impersonal state of existence with the whole of the cosmos.  One would never know all of this is happening because in this religious system, each change destroys one’s personality.

However, if one truly believes in resurrection, one will order his or her life so as to anticipate the Day of Judgment when all will be judged according to his deeds.  One will seek to ensure that his deeds have been of the sort that accord with the Judge’s standards of right and wrong (John 12:48).  If one only has one shot at life and doing the right thing therein, then one had better get it right lest his soul is lost eternally.  Such circumstances do not entail impersonal cosmic union, but the eternal persistence of an individual consciousness under just punishment for wrongdoing.  However, should someone act according to the Judge’s standards, he or she will receive judicial mercy and eternally persist in a state of harmony and union with the Judge (God) in a personal loving relationship.

Surely these two sets of beliefs entail different sets of life choices.  One will either believe he has another opportunity to do right in the next life, or he will believe this life is his only opportunity to do right.  One will act according to the one belief or the other, and consequences will follow.  When it comes down to making personal decisions, one simply cannot believe everything.

Practically speaking, one must act one way or another at any given point in life.  One will act based upon what one believes about one’s actions.  It is important that we believe the right things so that we will act the right way.  However, in order to believe the right things, we must have the right standard of behavior.  The Bible is that standard.  It is the word of God that God has given for us to study, learn, and believe so that our actions may be ordered correctly.  The apostle Paul wrote, “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:  That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works” (2 Timothy 3:16-17).  Why not ask someone today to sit down and study the Bible with you.

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Hold Fast

One of the saddest occurrences in this life is to witness the falling away of a Christian. Sadder yet is the death of a Christian who has failed to walk worthy of his calling and stepped into eternity separated from the gift of God’s love he once held to be precious. Peter wrote “For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and overcome, the latter end is worse with them than the beginning. For it had been better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them. But it is happened unto them according to the true proverb, The dog is turned to his own vomit again; and the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire” (2 Peter 2:20-22).

This is why I have taught that the most important word in all of Scripture is the word ”faithful.” It is my deepest desire to hear the Father of our souls say to me “Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a few things, I will make you ruler over many things. Enter into the joy of your lord” (Matthew 25:21, 23). Seven times in the King James Version the phrase “hold fast” is used (1 Thessalonians 5:21; 2 Timothy 1:13; Hebrews 3:6, 4:14, 10:23; Revelation 2:25, Revelation 3:3). This teaches us at least two things:

  • The Calvinistic doctrine of “once saved, always saved” is erroneous!
  • If we hope to spend eternity with God we must be faithful!

So I want to share just a few thoughts about the idea of “holding fast” to our salvation:

  1. Remember Why You Became a Christian! You obeyed the gospel in order to be cleansed from your sins, not to continue in them (Romans 6:1-9). You were baptized to be delivered “from this present evil world” (Galatians 1:4) so we should keep ourselves “unspotted” from it (James 1:27). You came to the cross to obtain salvation (2 Timothy 2:10). Hold Fast!
  2. Remember What Lies Ahead! When Jesus gave us a glimpse into the Day of Judgment he stated unequivocally that there would be only two options: One for the disobedient and one for the righteous, “And these will go away into everlasting punishment, but the righteous into eternal life” (Matthew 25:46). Paul reminds us that “Eye has not seen, nor ear heard, nor have entered into the heart of man the things which God has prepared for those who love Him” (1 Corinthians 2:9). Plus, hell is to horrible of a place for anyone to ever have to go and was not a place intended for the souls of men, but for Satan and his angels (Matthew 25:41). Hold Fast!
  3. Remember We Have Not Yet Attained! While the blood of Christ has saved us through our obedience to the gospel we have not yet been perfected (Philippians 3:12), and will not be until the Lord shall come. So Paul said, “I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus has also laid hold of me.” So we run with certainty “that ye may obtain” the prize (1 Corinthians 9:24). So we must be faithful; we must… Hold Fast!

Have you obeyed? Do you have the hope of what lies ahead? Have you held fast? Why not?

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Effective Evangelism

How Can We Be More Effective in Evangelism?

While not much has been announced as of yet, the elders have determined to emphasize the role of evangelism in the congregation, and to execute their plan, we will be having an evangelism class this summer to prepare for our “Fishers of Men” class this fall. Moreover, our lectureship begins this weekend, and because our theme centers on questions that non-Christian seekers are often asking, we can utilize this format to accommodate our need and joy to share the gospel with others.

Why do we often fail in evangelism? Reasons could include fear of embarrassment (as opposed to shame of Christ) and fear of resentment, rejection and controversy. In addition, we very often assume that people will not be interested before we even ask—by so doing, we overlook some who may be interested that we misjudge. Finally, we as Christians need to convince ourselves in the power of the gospel and the condition of lost souls. What are some practical ways of being more effective in evangelism? First, we need to find a method that suits our talent. According to Jesus, we all have at least one talent (Matt. 25:14-30). I know that the word “talent” indicates a financial term, but the Bible is clear that God has given us all abilities (at least one ability) to carry out the mission of the church—to preach and teach the gospel to those who are lost (Luke 19:10; Matt. 28:19; Mark 16:15). Therefore, we must begin by searching inwardly to see what abilities we have that match well with evangelism. If we are outgoing individuals, then conducting Bible studies will not be difficult. If we are shy, then we may want to become involved in things such as distributing and grading Bible correspondence courses, distributing tracts and such like that involve less personal contact. If we love to be sociable, then we may use our abilities of hospitality to focus on evangelistic efforts. Whatever ability we may have, we need to get busy and use it for evangelistic causes!

Second, we need to revive our enthusiasm for Christianity. The psalmist declared it best: “Restore unto me the joy of thy salvation; and uphold me with thy free spirit. Then will I teach transgressors thy ways; and sinners shall be converted unto thee” (Ps. 51:12-13). We need to radiate with a joy of salvation! When people in the world who are facing problems of every nature see the true joy and contentment of the Christian life, they will want to know what makes the difference!

Finally, we need to demonstrate Christianity at its finest! The apostle Peter makes a powerful statement concerning the non-Christian husbands of Christian wives: “… they may without the word be gained by the behavior of their wives” (1 Pet. 3:1 ASV). Evangelism can take place by simply demonstrating the fruit of the Spirit (cf. Gal. 5:22-23). This will take an exhibition of the change that God has made in our lives (Rom. 12:1-2). I hope that these practical points will help all of us to become more evangelistic, and may God bless our efforts to sow the seed of the kingdom!

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Popularity Contest

The Pharisees desperately wanted to be popular during Jesus’ time on earth. They were fond of the nice seats in the synagogues. They loved the wealth that their students gave them. They enjoyed making a show of their prayers. They delighted in binding their man‐made traditions on those whom they could get to follow them (Matt. 23). Oh, how they loved to be popular! When Jesus appeared on the scene, their popularity was threatened. They wanted so badly to look good that they killed the Son of God in order to retain their status and fame.

More and more, it seems, religious groups are exhibiting a desire to be popular like the Pharisees. It seems as though every week I hear of a different religion receiving “revelations,” finding a hidden passage, or blatantly changing doctrine so that they can fit into popular culture. I can see how this would be possible since many are man-made religions. But those that profess to be Christian are destroying the teachings that Christ and the apostles stood for in their quest to be popular. Just like the Pharisees, they will do whatever they can to gain a following. Jesus rightly quoted Isaiah in Mark 7:6-7 when He said “…This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me. 7 And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.”

On the other hand, some eccentric churches establish terrible traditions to ensure that they are hated. They think that the more people dislike them, the better they are serving Christ in seeming correlation to John 15:19. Sadly these people are confused as well.

We as followers of Christ should not be concerned with popular opinion. We should be concerned about Christ’s truth! We should seek to please Him, not men. When others had been delivering a perverted and changed gospel, Paul explained why he taught the true gospel: “For do I now persuade men, or God? Or do I seek to please men? For if I still pleased men, I would not be a bondservant of Christ. 11 But I make known to you, brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man” (Gal. 1:10–‐11). The gospel given to him was from Christ (v. 12)!

The world thinks that we should change Christ’s doctrine for the sake of people and popularity. Whatever happened to changing our lives to match Christ’s doctrine (1 Cor. 6:9-11; Gal. 2:20)?

Brethren – in all things we need to do what’s right! Not what will tickle people’s ears.

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God’s Promises

God’s Promises: Eternal Life, a Crown and Rest

There is one thing which our God has never done—He has never told a lie. Because every promise He has ever made is certain, we can build our lives knowing that He has never told a lie and He cannot tell one (Tit. 1:2)! When you read the Bible, just remember that the promises in it are from the One who has always kept His promises.

Promises are future until He fulfills them. He promised Abraham that his descendants would be oppressed in a foreign land but would come out with great substance. When the Jews left Egypt, it was devastated. There were no crops—the locusts had destroyed them. There were no cattle—the fifth plague had killed them. There was little silver and gold—the Egyptians had given their jewelry to Israel. God had promised it, then waited 400 years and fulfilled His promises. He gave them all He promised (Josh. 21:43-45).

He has promised us eternal life. When we become Christians, God promises us that we will never die. “And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die” (John 11:26). We have eternal life, but it is conditional. We must keep living in Him and believing in Him. Hebrews 10:23 describes it as the “hope of eternal life.”  Paul describes hope in these words, “Hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what He sees” (Rom. 8:24). Eternal life is promised to us but we must “hold fast . . . without wavering” (Heb. 10:23). We will receive the promise “after we have done His will” (Heb. 10:36).

He has promised us a crown of life. “Blessed is the man who endures temptation; for when he has been approved, he will receive the crown of life which the Lord has promised to those who love Him” (James 1:12). Look at it carefully. We must endure and be approved, then we shall receive the crown.

He has promised us a rest. Hebrews chapters three and four show how those who left Egypt failed to receive the rest prepared for them since the foundation of the world. Later, David urged the people of his day to seek that rest (Psalm 91 as quoted in Hebrews 3). God had the rest prepared, but neither Jews of Moses’ day nor those of David’s day received it. They had the Sabbath, but not the rest which remains. This is why chapter four urges us to recognize the promise of rest lies before us (v. 1) and must keep believing (v. 4) and keep laboring to enter into it (v. 11). The rest that remains for us is future. We have the promise of it, but it lies before us.

God, who cannot lie, has promised us eternal life, a crown and eternal rest. Heaven awaits us. “Let us hold fast the confession of our faith without wavering” (Heb. 10:23). It is ours! It is as certain as the promises of He who cannot lie!

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