Is Christ divided? was Paul crucified for you?
or were ye baptized in the name of Paul? 1 Corinthians 1:13
I know someone who has fallen into a snare
This is quite an entangled mess
I told the Lord I do not think I am the best one for the job,
to help him see his entanglement
It seems I am the only one for the job at this time
There is not another who is challenging his lofty teachings
and reliance on doctrines
His pinnacles of royalty in the church he belongs to
give him much security and prestige
It is a false security
Jesus is our Rock
The only One in whom we can have confidence
The Way
The Truth
And the Life
Security in doctrines is not going to help you
when you meet Jesus, face to face
He will say to many, “I never knew you. Depart from Me!”
How and why could that happen?
That someone who thinks they are serving God be turned away?
Help us, Lord Jesus, to understand what you are looking for
and how we can truly know You
and not just know about You
Thou believest that there is one God; thou doest well.
The devils also believe — and tremble. James 2:19
Years ago, this very friend to whom I am referring said
that he told the Lord he didn’t want to fall away
He said the Lord responded to him:
“If you follow Me and not a man, you will never fall away.”
That sounds just like Jesus
and verification of that can be found in His word
even if you simply look at how many times Jesus said:
“Follow Me.”
And whatsoever ye do in word or deed,
do all in the name of the Lord Jesus,
giving thanks to God and the Father by him. Colossians 3:17
If you follow a specific doctrine
and test everything against that,
Is that not following a man?
I see no difference
I think we can find our answer here,
the difference between following Christ
and doctrines or the law:
The Parable of the Good Samaritan
And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him,
saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?
He said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou?
And he answering said,
Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart,
and with all thy soul,
and with all thy strength,
and with all thy mind;
and thy neighbour as thyself.
And he said unto him,
Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live.
But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus,
And who is my neighbour?
And Jesus answering said,
A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho,
and fell among thieves,
which stripped him of his raiment,
and wounded him,
and departed, leaving him half dead.
And by chance there came down a certain priest that way:
and when he saw him,
he passed by on the other side.
And likewise a Levite,
when he was at the place,
came and looked on him,
and passed by on the other side.
But a certain Samaritan,
as he journeyed,
came where he was:
and when he saw him,
he had compassion on him,
And went to him,
and bound up his wounds,
pouring in oil and wine,
and set him on his own beast,
and brought him to an inn,
and took care of him.
And on the morrow when he departed,
he took out two pence,
and gave them to the host,
and said unto him,
Take care of him;
and whatsoever thou spendest more,
when I come again,
I will repay thee.
Which now of these three, thinkest thou,
was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves?
And he said, He that shewed mercy on him.
Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.
Luke 10:25-37
The moral of the story is that
no matter what your doctrine says,
if you don’t do what Jesus teaches us,
the doctrine is meaningless
We have to touch Jesus and His will with every step we take
You cannot do that if you are seeking refuge in man’s doctrines
We can tell from John 4
that Samaritans were not thought of highly:
v 7 There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water:
Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink.
v 9 Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him,
How is it that thou, being a Jew,
askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria?
for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans.
Here we see the disciples try to stop followers
who were trying to do the will of the Lord,
but the disciples were not familiar with them,
still being bound by rules:
Now John answered and said,
“Master, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name,
and we forbade him because he does not follow with us.”
But Jesus said to him,
“Do not forbid him, for he who is not against us is on our side.”
Luke 9:49-50
We have been given leaders
and others who help us stay on track,
on the straight and narrow
We still must keep our relationship with Christ
as utmost importance
and not allow others to step
in between our relationship with God
We are not married to any church
and are not obligated to serve the doctrines of men
I suppose some could refuse to hear truth
perhaps due to sin or refusal to love the truth,
think the Lord told them something when He didn’t
That is a-whole-nother situation entirely
This writing is not intended to comfort people in their sin
The teachers of the law were always testing Jesus
The law was their foundation
Jesus spoke of another foundation:
He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am?
And Simon Peter answered and said,
Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.
And Jesus answered and said unto him,
Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona:
for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee,
but my Father which is in heaven.
And I say also unto thee,
That thou art Peter,
and upon this rock I will build my church;
and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
Matthew 16:15-18
The Rock, Jesus, and the revelation that He is God
was what Jesus was telling Peter
That knowledge and realization is our foundation as Christians
Jesus did not have boundaries or preconceived notions
of who belonged in which religious camp
as humans did or those who taught the law:
For the Son of man is come
to seek and to save that which was lost.
Luke 19:10
And His kingdom was not of this world,
neither was it of doctrines,
pinnacles and tabernacles of men
Scriptural References:
Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world:
if my kingdom were of this world,
then would my servants fight,
that I should not be delivered to the Jews:
but now is my kingdom not from hence. John 18:36