Gene Hill
I have the following statements pasted in the front of my Bible. I do not recall the source, so I am unable to give proper credit if it is due. They may in fact be original with me, but as sure as I claim authorship, someone will come forth with proper credit. So, thanks in advance to whomever.
On Becoming a Christian
One does not become a Christian by joining a particular denomination and adhering to its particular rules of entrance and membership.
In Other Words
What one must do (in order to be pleasing to God) to become a child of God, and gain heaven, is entirely separate and distinct from what one does in order to become a member of any particular denomination.
Or,
I can do all those things commanded of God to become His faithful child in faith, work and worship and obtain heaven and not be a member of a denomination.
In writing this article, I claim no special knowledge or sources of information other than what one can read for himself upon the pages of the Bible for authority. The Bible plainly teaches us that we can read it and understand it and come to a common understanding as to its meaning and then obey what we are commanded to do in response to the invitation of the Spirit. I know this to be the case because Paul says so:
For this cause I Paul, the prisoner of Jesus Christ for you Gentiles, If ye have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which is given me to you-ward: How that by revelation he made known unto me the mystery; (as I wrote afore in few words, Whereby, when ye read, ye may understand my knowledge in the mystery of Christ) (Eph. 3:1- 4).
John tells us:
And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of life freely (Rev. 22:17).
The reason for writing is to respond to two issues of The Christian Chronicle, specifically those of March and April of 2018. The March issue, hereinafter 75:3, referenced a survey titled “A closer look at Churches of Christ in the U.S.” (75:3:15).
The survey was taken by 645 readers (75:3:15) and responded to the question, “What would you say defines a Church of Christ” (75:3:1). “The majority of respondents (225) were over age 60. The 51-60 category had 140 respondents. The other categories were 41-50 (112), 31-40 (102) and under 30 (66).” (75:3:15). This may or not be any sort of scientific survey, but it does provide some very interesting information on how at least some brethren think about spiritual matters.
The original article (75:3:1), in its opening paragraphs, addresses issues the church has faced over the years. The term “Non-institutional Churches of Christ,” the support for para-church organizations, mission ministries, the belief in a single cup and an undivided loaf, instrumental worship services, ministering alongside denominations, still claiming to identify with the fellowship of autonomous congregations, were all used to illustrate practices and beliefs of various members and congregations of “Churches of Christ.”
One responder said that, “poor hermeneutics have resulted in a rigid form of legalism in many places,” and “Spirituality seems to be lacking in some congregations, he added, which turns away those seeking God” (75:3:14). This was from an “American missionary” (75:3:1). A minister from South Carolina said, “Our mission was very simple at one time: convert the lost. And ‘the lost’ was everybody who’s not Church of Christ,” and “Our focus point is now Jesus Christ, which it should have been all along, so why am I trying to convert my Baptist friend? It is our mission to focus on the unchurched.” (75:3:14).
The quotes could continue from the younger side of the scale to those in the upper age range, but these are sufficient to illustrate the great chasm between what the New Testament reveals about that blood-bought institution one reads of on the pages of the New Testament and apparently among members of the church, the current awareness and understanding of what that body is.
Observe what Dub McClish says about legalism:
Those who do not want to obey the teachings of the New Testament often accuse those of “legalism” who dare emphasize obedience to God’s commands. Legalism is defined as “strict, or excessive conformity to the law.” In the religious context, this definition refers to God’s Law. One who truly loves the Lord should consider it a compliment to be called a “legalist” by the foregoing definition. It is impossible to practice “excessive conformity to the law,” as long as it is the Law of God one is determined to preach and practice. Often people use legalist to refer to some who overemphasize one part of God’s law to the neglect of others or those who elevate a human opinion to the level of Divine law. In these senses the scribes and Pharisees of Jesus’ time were “legalists” (Mat. 15:3, 6-9; 23:23). Some of the same types of “legalists” are around today. They ought to be exposed and condemned per Jesus’ example.
The great apostle Paul informs us as to what true spirituality of a godly sort is when he said, “If any man think himself to be a prophet, or spiritual, let him acknowledge that the things that I write unto you are the commandments of the Lord” (1 Cor. 14:37). Unless one acknowledges the commandments of the Lord, there is no hope of possessing a true Biblical spirituality. Paul also told the Colossians that all they did, whether in word or deed, was to be done by or through the authority of Christ (Col. 3:17). The only way to prove our profession is through demonstration of what you believe. Jesus said, “If ye love me, keep my commandments” (John 14:15). Abraham was told to sacrifice his only son (Gen. 22:1-13). Just as he was ready to take the knife and slay his son, Jehovah said this, “And he said, Lay not thine hand upon the lad, neither do thou any thing unto him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thine only son from me” (22:12). When Abraham obeyed God performing the work God ordained (Eph. 2:10), his faith was demonstrated and perfected with the result that God imputed righteousness unto him (Jam. 2:14-26).
Question: Upon whom will the Lord Jesus take vengeance when He returns with His mighty angels? Hear the Holy Spirit: “In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2 The. 1:8). It will be the ignorant and disobedient. Another related question: what is it that was not obeyed that brought the Lord’s vengeance? The Gospel. We are told specifically what the Gospel is by Paul, that it is the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ, all according to the Scripture (1 Cor. 15:3-4). How do you obey a stated fact? By obeying its form as illustrated by Paul in Romans 6:1-4. Paul says that we are dead to sin (repentance) (6:2), we are buried with Him by baptism into His death, and as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we also rise to walk in newness of life (6:3-4). It is at that point that we become the servants of righteousness having obeyed from the heart the form of doctrine (6:16-17) being made free from sin through the blood of Jesus (6:18; Rev 1:5; 7:14; Heb. 9-10). It is in this process that the Lord translates us from darkness into the kingdom of His dear Son (Col. 1:13-14), which is the same as being added to the church (Acts 2:47). This is something that we can know and know that we know. Yes, it is “by faith,” but Biblical faith is always based on knowledge. God’s plan from before the foundation of the world that all of the elect would be holy and without blame before Him in love (Eph. 1:4). We become holy and without blame by obeying His Word and being sanctified and purified by the Lamb’s blood (1 Pet. 1:22). Biblical faith causes us to act on God’s promises that He will perform as He has promised. Bible study causes us to draw the conclusion that God keeps His promises whether it is blessing the obedient (Deu. 28:1-14) or raining curses on the disobedient (28:15-68). Even a cursory study of the Old Testament demonstrates God keeps His promises to either bless the obedient or to curse the wayward (1 Cor. 10:11).
It is the case that the blood of Jesus purchased one church and one church only (Mat. 16:18; Eph. 4:4), to which body (1:22-23) He added all the saved and only the saved (Acts 2:47; 20:28). Those saved by Jesus’ blood met conditions ordained of God before being saved by Jesus (Eph. 2:10).
Let us take a closer look at the plan of salvation and see what Jesus said to do. The Lord said we needed to be taught before we could come to the Father (John 6:44-45), we then must believe that Jesus is the Christ (8:24), repent of our sins (Luke 13:3), confess Him before men (Mat. 10:32-33), and be immersed (Mark 16:16). Upon complying with the God-ordained terms of Gospel obedience, the Lord washes our souls in His blood and adds us to the church (Acts 2:47; Eph. 2:10). We then must live faithfully (Rev. 2:10). We have not earned our salvation nor brought God into our debt for we have done merely that which was our duty to do (Luke 17:10). We become Christians only, having done nothing to become a member of any man made denomination whatsoever. Those who have complied with Christ’s Word to obtain salvation and the hope of heaven (Col. 1:5) were saved by God’s grace when they obeyed as commanded (2 The. 2:13-14; Gal. 3:26-29; Eph. 2:8-10).
All those who are of sufficient age and mental capacity, until they have heeded and obeyed the Gospel call (2 The. 2:13-14), are yet in the kingdom of darkness (Col. 1:13-14). Those who have yielded themselves as servants to unrighteousness (Rom. 6:16-18), are those who remain lost in their sins and stand condemned before God.
It may be the case that some of those who responded to The Christian Chronicle survey would accuse me of legalism for having written the above words. It is not legalism to insist upon obedience to that which Jesus has commanded. What is written is nothing more nor less than the grace of God that brings salvation (Tit. 2:11-12). When the words of the Lord telling us what we must do to obtain salvation are obeyed, salvation results. To refuse to heed and obey Christ’s commands is to remain in darkness lost in sin.
If one belongs to a religious institution larger than the local congregation but smaller than the church universal, they belong to a man made denomination. If any local congregation is composed of only those who obeyed Christ’s terms of salvation and each member is faithful, following only that which Christ commanded for work and worship, they are a member of the church Jesus promised to build and something distinctly not merely non-denominational but particularly un-denominational. We are not merely not a man made religious group, we are opposed to such things.
We can know what we must do to be saved. We can know if we have done those things. We are able to determine if someone else has complied with the terms of the plan of salvation. We can tell if they continue to live faithfully. We can read the Bible and know about the church Jesus built. We can identify that church and know we are members of it. We can know that anyone who does not comply with the terms of salvation is lost and a fit subject for evangelism. It is only by the grace of God that we are able to determine any and all of this. May the great God of heaven continue to grant us the opportunity to tell others about the truth of salvation and the church He purchased with His own blood.
Works Cited
“About the Christian Chronicle’s Survey” 28 Feb. 2018, The Christian Chronicle, Oklahoma City, OK: Oklahoma Christian University, 12 Apr. 2018.
McClish, Dub, “Legalism or Love” thescripturecache.com, 14 Oct. 2017.
Tryggestad, Erik “Big C or little c?” The Christian Chronicle, Oklahoma City, OK: Oklahoma Christian University, 75:4
The Christian Chronicle, Oklahoma City, OK: Oklahoma Christian University, 75:3 (March 2018).
