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The Water of the Word |
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1 Timothy 6
I never have believed that God condones slavery. I believe that because of the influence of godly believers in Jesus Christ, we no longer have slavery at least in many countries. If we are moved away from the truth of Jesus, slavery will no doubt return. However, those that did find themselves slaves or servants, are to do that service as they would do it unto the Lord so that their faith in Jesus is not blamed. They were to treat their masters with respect and not despise them. If they are believers in Jesus, they were to consider them to be brothers in the Lord. In the eyes of the Lord they are equal but for now they were to show honor and respect to them even though they were servants.
Hopefully this was paid servants and not the type of slavery that we heard about in early American days. Here is where we have to have patience. Not everyone is going to see wrong in something they have been doing for centuries. It takes the gospel one moment to make a sinner into a born again believer but it takes longer to change customs and traditions that have been around for years. Look how long it took the world to accept Democracy or a constitutional Republic over a Monarchy. However, freedom comes with great responsibility. If we do not exercise moral restraint we will lose what we have and get anarchy. If anarchy reigns, people will prefer a dictator. If we have a dictator, Democracy is gone. The believing masters were not to despise and mistreat their servants but consider them as brethren in the Lord also. I see America losing their freedom or as some call it Democracy; they have in the future if they continue the downhill slope they are on. We will be ruled by either a dominating religion that uses force or by secular dictatorship. It could go either way. Either way the true believer who wants to remain standing by the word of God and walking in the spirit will have no place in this new world system. Actually the United State is a Constitutional Republic rather than a Democracy. The Constitutional Republic being the better system of government, but it can be lost if we leave God out of public recognition. We need God.
True sound doctrine will always include a life of godliness and holiness. There is no such thing as a willful sinning born again believer. That doesn't mean we are not capable of sin, but we will not desire to sin. One trait of a false teacher is rebellion against the truth.
We have to be very careful even in disputing the truth. It is so easy to get mad and start beating up our fellow servants in the Lord over issues that may not even matter. We must avoid false accusations. I can't get the words of Collin Carter out of my head. "We must have discernment but with the heart of God." If we don't, we are going to be like Cain that slew his brother over religious jealousy. Being proud and puffed up in oneself is another symtom of a false teacher. They are also either ignorant of the truth or gloss over the part that they don't want to teach but want to hide. Back in the days of the early church they had those that still expected to live by the rituals of the law given by Moses, like circumcision and observing the feast days. Some expected the Gentile converts to Christ, to live by the law also. Its not wrong to observe feast days but it is wrong to impose them on people in a way that they were adding to the simple gospel that saves the soul. We must avoid legalism and arguing over minor points of doctrine that do not matter in the long run. Accusers of the brethren, evil speaking, and making assumptions is to be avoided. We may not kill anyone physically but we can kill them with our unkind words. The word of God is to correct and rebuke but with love and with the heart of God. Be careful in being so suspicious of false teachers though that we go too far the other way and falsely accuse them. It's possible to read articles on the Internet and then find one mistake we disagree with and snap off the article and assumed the writer was a false teacher. We have to be so careful in these things so as not to wound the innocent and be quick to cast away our brethren (sisters) in the Lord.
To gain is not godliness and the bible says to withdraw ourselves from them. I'm sure this does not mean that we are to hate them and try to get rid of them. By withdrawing, we show that we are not supporting false teaching and not agreeing with it. Continue always to pray for those who preach falsely. Withdraw seems to mean just do not attend or support a church that has a pastor that teaches those things or do not attend a meeting where the group teaches those things or else the doctrine will eventually find its way into our own hearts. While I do believe the modern prosperity doctrine is false, I do have to have compassion on those that teach that doctrine and not assume all of them are false deceivers. I'm sure many of them are not purposely deceiving anyone but sincerely believe what they teach. I believe they are wrong but I don't believe all of them are all just after money. Some of them teach the same way of salvation that I do. I disagree with their doctrine of saying if someone is poor they are out of the will of God and God is not blessing them. I never grew up believing that any of God's blessings were material. My teachers always emphasized spiritual blessings as blessings from God. Material things didn't enter the picture. We were thankful for a way to have a home, shelter, food and clothing but we didn't major on that.
There are rich brethren and there are poor brethren. Both are equal in the sight of God. God does not prefer one above another but we are to be thankful and content with whatever situation we are in.
I can't say it better than Paul on this subject. When we see those err from the faith, we must not give up on them but pray diligently that they may be restored back into the truth. James chapter 5 warns against seeking riches I know of one preacher who accidentally allowed a prosperity preacher to preach in his pulpit and had to preach the very next Sunday a message to contradict what was preached the week before. He will not allow that to happen again but I'm sure he is still friends with the one who preached falsely. Another preacher allowed someone to preach that preached on eternal security. He got up after the preacher was finished and refuted the doctrine. He felt he had a responsibility to his congregation but knowing that person myself, I'm sure he loves the brother he considered to be wrong about this doctrine. We can love one another and still not agree on doctrine. This doesn't mean we throw away God's word to "get along" and "have unity", but we can have compassion, pray and love one another without joining each other's associations. I can love individual Catholics for example but I could never join the Catholic church myself. Some of their doctrines would trouble me. Yet I can work along side a Catholic, attend school with them and live next door to them and be kind as I would a Pentecostal family. But joining in ecumenical movements is not necessary to show love. I can have my church and they can have theirs. However, if any asked me what I disagree with I would have to voice my opinion without hesitation. Love is also telling the truth. I believe repenting of sin and believing in Jesus Christ as the only way of salvation whether or not one joins a particular church or assembly, although I believe in gathering together of people with like faith to worship God. I'm not against having church in someone's home but I prefer to attend a church building myself. I'm afraid that if we forsake the assembling ourselves together, the church would die out. People tend to move from one place to another and situations change in our lives so much that having one in a home might risk it turning into nothing. The early church started out that way though and there is nothing wrong with it but if the Lord keeps adding to the church daily as such should be saved like on the day of Pentecost, we would need a building sooner or later. Either method is not wrong.
Notice there there never is any teaching, Old or New Testament that says we can still sin willfully and be saved once we've accepted Jesus Christ. Still, I know people who believe this doctrine and they do not live in sin that I know of and they still are brethren in Christ. I feel no different toward them than I do a Pentecostal believer but I still disagree with their doctrine. We can love others when we disagree but I still do not have to join their church or any ecumenical movement or political movement for any common cause. When the church gets big and powerful politically, they might lose something if they are not careful to maintain their first love for the Lord and His word. When they no longer depend upon the Holy Spirit, they do not win souls to Jesus Christ. They may win converts to a religion but there are less people being "born again" by the spirit of God.
What commandment is this that we are to keep.
The bible never teaches us to live in sin willfully after we come to Christ but it does make provision for us to repent and do the first works.
There are some believers who are rich and we must accept them as our equals but they must be careful not to trust in their riches instead of God.
We have much more opposition of science than they did. A true scientist will not be afraid to search for answers that may lead them to prove evolution is totally wrong. Unfortunately those kind are ignored and dismissed by the evolutionary scientists who accuse them of being biased but actually it is the ones who do not even consider the creation that are usually the biased ones. I would venture to say that most creation scientists have examined evolution at one time or another and dismissed it as impossible. It is based on a theory, not based on actual facts.
It is amazing though that we have had evolutionary teaching in public schools for years now, also many other things are popping up in more frequency than ever before but those that believe, still believe. I had a history teacher that came to class with a tape recorder supposedly proving to us that there was no God. It didn't even phase me or challenge my faith in any way. A Catholic girl stood up to oppose him. Unfortunately she found out the teacher was Catholic also. How can one be Catholic and not believe in God puzzled me later but at the time I didn't know anything about the Catholic church except we didn't believe the same way they did. Yet once we know Jesus Christ especially those that have been baptized in the Holy Spirit, we have proof of the existence of God. When one has truly been born again by God's spirit they know God exists. Its more than a religious conversion, it is a new life. DC
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