The Only Ones? (Part 3 of 4) by David McClister
(Reprinted from The Palmetto Reminder http://www.palmettochurchofchrist.org/)
"You people in the Church of Christ think that you
are the only people who are going to heaven, and that everyone
else is going to hell."
Have you ever heard anyone say such things about the Church of
Christ? In short, it is a charge of intolerance, narrow- and/or
closed-mindedness, and even spiritual bigotry. It is, to be sure,
a very serious complaint and warrants equally serious attention
and answer.
4. The charge assumes not only that religious diversity can
be tolerated, but also that it must be tolerated.
"Unity in diversity" is a central element in much denominational
thought today. The idea is that we can all be Christians - brethren
in Christ - in spite of our theological and doctrinal differences.
In fact, this idea is so strongly held that anyone who dares to
come along and challenge another's teachings from the Bible is
branded a troublemaker and an intolerant, closed-minded bigot.
There is an unwritten code that says we must never criticize,
much less condemn, another person's beliefs, practices, or doctrines.
This strong emphasis on religious toleration has much to do with
the charge that people in the Church of Christ think they are
the only people who will be saved. If we insist that we teach
and practice nothing more and nothing less than what the early
Christians taught and practiced, and if we rebuke those who depart
from the New Testament teachings, we are going to be labeled as
intolerant. In an atmosphere of "anything goes," anyone
who dares to say that there is one standard of truth and that
departures from that standard are wrong will necessarily be seen
as the oddball.
Anyone who has ever read the New Testament, however, knows that
Jesus and His apostles were very intolerant by modern standards.
Consider the following passages:
John 17:20-21 - "I do not ask in behalf of these alone, but
for those also who believe in Me through their word; that they
may all be one."
1 Cor 1:10-13 - "Now I exhort you, brethren, . . . that you
all agree, and there be no divisions among you, but you be made
complete in the same mind and in the same judgment. . . . each
one of you is saying, 'I am of Paul,' and 'I of Apollos,' and
'I of Cephas,' and 'I of Christ.' Has Christ been divided?"
1 Cor 4:17 - "For this reason I have sent to you Timothy,
. . . and he will remind you of my ways which are in Christ, just
as I teach everywhere in every church."
2 John 9 - "Anyone who goes too far and does not abide in
the teaching of Christ, does not have God; the one who abides
in the teaching, he has both the Father and the Son."
Consider this illustration. Imagine a world in which there was
no standard of measurement. You would never know how much flour
your dollar could buy, because what one grocer said was a pound
of flour would be different from what other grocers called a pound
of flour. The amount of gasoline in a gallon would vary from station
to station, and the amount of milk or detergent in a gallon would
vary from store to store. If you bought twenty yards of carpet,
how much carpet you actually got would depend on the measurement
being used by your carpet dealer (which might not be the same
one you are using). If there were no standards of measurement,
it would be impossible to cheat, fraud, or deceive, because everyone
would be right even though everyone's measurements were different.
As ridiculous as that scenario might sound, that is exactly what
many people today want when it comes to religion. They want everyone
to be right regardless of what they believe or practice. In other
words, they want to ignore the standard of measurement in religion,
the Bible.
The person who insists that we all follow the same standard is
not being intolerant or bigoted. The standard is the truth, and
everyone is expected to abide by it. We realize that this is true
when it comes to the length of an inch or the amount of fluid
in a gallon, so why can't we see it when it comes to religion?
If there were no standard of authority in religion, then the person
who claimed that his teachings or practices were right and everyone
else's were wrong would indeed be a fool and a bigot. But the
fact is that God has given us a standard of authority in religion.
It is the Bible. Insisting that we all follow the same standard
is not intolerance. And if we are not going use the Bible as our
standard in religion, then we do not need the Bible at all.
Many religious groups use a variety of carnal appeals to draw
people to their assemblies. For instance, there are suppers and
ice cream socials, ball games and entertainment events, etc.
When asked to justify these activities they will commonly refer
to the episodes where Jesus fed the multitudes. Some have said,
"If you first feed a man's body, then you'll have a chance
to feed his soul." Let's see if their reference to Jesus'
activities will really support their practices.
There were two separate instances in which Jesus miraculously
fed huge crowds of people with small quantities of food. One
time there were 5000 men, plus women and children (Mt. 14:15-21;
Mk. 6:30-44; Lk. 9:10-17; Jn. 6:1-14). On another occasion there
were 4000 men, plus women and children (Mt. 15:32-38; Mk. 8:1-9).
In both instances, the people had followed Jesus to hear His marvelous
teaching and to see His amazing miracles. There had never been
a promise of food to draw them. In fact, both episodes show the
people following long distances and for a long time before they
were offered food. For example, in Matthew 15:32 we read: "Then
Jesus called his disciples unto him, and said, I have compassion
on the multitude, because they continue with me now three days,
and have nothing to eat and I will not send them away fasting,
lest they faint in the way." Do you see it? The people were
not lured to follow by an offer of food.
The food came AFTERWARDS, as an act of compassion. The people
had NOT come in anticipation of being fed.
We have one reference where Jesus suspected that the people did,
indeed, come with a desire of receiving food (Jn. 6:22ff). On
that occasion He DID NOT feed them!
Those who would use the example of Jesus feeding the multitudes to justify their carnal practices today are simply wrong!
CLOSING THOUGHTS (Selected from The Beacon)
"I asked, 'Why doesn't somebody do something?' Then I realized
I was somebody!"
"The Golden Rule never tarnishes."
"Christ is the way; our Bibles the roadmap; heaven our destination."
MARK YOUR CALENDARS
Our weekly services are held at 1318 Griffin Road, Leesburg, Florida
34748.
Phone: (352) 365-9946 for times of services.
Web site: http://www.geocities.com/~cdillinger/cocbs/cocbshp.htm
MONTHLY BIBLE READING: Genesis 11-35; Job
QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS
BIBLE INSIGHT is published
for the members of, and visitors to, the Church of Christ at Beverly
Shores, Leesburg, Florida, USA.
Carey Dillinger is the editor. He can be reached at the church
address or via e-mail: dillinc@yahoo.com