Re: ragarding the paradox of faith/doctrine
- From: "Bill" <wmech@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Sun, 12 Mar 2006 17:18:33 -0500
"Jim" <jim@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote in message
news:g_qdnap2OOaQzonZRVn-jA@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Paradox of Doctrine and Faith
Which comes first, theology or faith?
Which comes first, theology, faith or mythology? It's hard to say because
they all come from the same source.
Believe it or not, many who should know better believe that theology comes
first, even though their theology plainly teaches otherwise. While it's
true that good doctrine (teaching) is foundational for good spiritual
growth, unless there is already faith to mix with that theology, there
will never be spiritual life to begin with (see, for one example, Hebrews
3:19-4:2).
Where does spiritual life come from? Does it originate within us, in the
"deeper self" that some psychologists and theologians talk about? Or does
it come into our human lives from an "outside" source? The Bible teaches
that it must come from an outside source. And that outside source is God
Himself. No human being possesses real spiritual life until God
intervenes by His grace. Real spiritual life begins with a genuine
relationship with God Himself. Until we are born again, as children of
God, by faith in Jesus Christ, we are spiritually dead.
All of this is basic Bible theology. We do not become pleasing to God by
adopting certain rules or ideas as truth. We become pleasing to God by
embracing Him. It may seem confusing, but need not be.
God accepts all who truly embrace His Son by faith. God Himself came down
among us in the Person of Jesus Christ. In Jesus, God's very nature and
character are revealed most fully. When we examine Christ, and accept
Him, we accept God for who and what He truly is. The result is spiritual
life within. That spiritual life is nothing less than God's own Holy
Spirit living in us when we open our hearts to Him in simple faith.
So why bother with doctrine at all?
Church membership and participation is valuable to the Christian life.
Singing and worship is like water to a thirsty land. When mixed with
faith, sound Bible doctrine can help to make us secure against the enemy
(Ephesians 6:10-18) who tries always to undermine our faith in God, and it
provides us good hand-rails, if you will, for navigating in the dangerous
storms of life. But the only thing that saves us is God Himself -- His
great love for us, His endless grace for us, His hand that no one can ever
break or weaken, and the precious blood of Jesus Christ that truly makes
us clean.
If we have Jesus Christ as our Lord and Savior, we need not judge each
other falsely by doctrines which, alone, make no eternal differences. Our
fellowship with all true believers is because of Jesus Christ. Our
spiritual life is given to us by His Holy Spirit. Our spiritual Father is
the same Father in heaven.
If we truly belong to God, then He will ever draw us to Himself, and to
genuine godliness and faith.
Falsely judging other Christians is useless.
Why stumble over doctrines and silly arguments? Why judge people by what
their church professes to believe? A man may have been raised in a
"Bible-teaching" church all his life, and still not know God. He may even
be a preacher, a pastor, a theologian. How do you suppose so many
denominations that began so well ended up so spiritually dead and
worthless? Spiritual life cannot be automatically passed on, from
generation to generation. Doctrine alone saves no one. One must have a
genuine walk with God through a living faith in Jesus Christ.
Our strength does not come from a mental agreement with sound teachings.
True spiritual strength does not automatically grow from having a
"perfect" understanding of Bible doctrine, as good as that might be. Our
strength comes from abiding -- from living and remaining in -- the
Presence of God. We must know God and have life with Him.
Theology alone can't give us this relationship or keep us there. But love
will call us back. As with any relationship, when we see that we're not
where we really should be with the Lord, we need to return.
David wrote this, from his years of knowing the Lord: "Seek the LORD and
His strength; seek His presence continually." (Psalm 105:4)
David had learned the secret: Never stop seeking to draw near to the Lord,
and to remain in His Presence.
Another Psalm says:
I keep the LORD always before me;
because He is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.
Therefore my heart is glad,
and my soul rejoices;
my body also rests secure.
For you do not give me up to Sheol,
or let your faithful one see the Pit.
You show me the path of life.
In your presence there is fullness of joy;
in your right hand are pleasures forevermore. (Psalm 16:8-11)
So where's the paradox?
The paradox of faith and sound teaching comes from the Bible itself, from
what God's Spirit says about faith. In the New Testament book of Romans,
Paul is inspired by God's Spirit to write: "So then faith comes by
hearing, and hearing by the word of God." (Romans 10:17)
And in chapter 4 of the same book, Paul says, "For what does the Scripture
say? 'Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for
righteousness.'" (Romans 4:3, where Paul is paraphrasing Genesis 15:6)
One does not become a genuine Christian believer by simply joining a
church or by giving mental or academic assent to a set of ideas. On the
other hand, a person is genuinely transformed into a true spiritual being
(a child of God) by believing the good news about Jesus Christ. The Bible
is very clear on this.
In the first chapter of Romans, for another example, Paul writes: "I am
ready to preach the gospel (good news of Jesus Christ) to you who are in
Rome also. For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the
power of God to salvation for everyone who believes..." (Romans 1:15b &
16)
So far, I've only quoted Paul in showing what the Bible says about how the
gospel changes the "inner self," transforming us and giving us true
spiritual life. But Paul is not the only one who says such things.
Consider the words of John, one of the original apostles of Jesus Christ.
John wrote the Gospel of John, an eye-witness account of what Jesus did
and taught during His earthly ministry. He also wrote the 3 Epistles
(letters) of John to the churches of the last first century. And John
wrote the Book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ, an apocalyptic view of
the summation of this age.
At the end of John's Gospel account of Jesus, he writes:
"And truly Jesus did many other signs in the presence of His disciples,
which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may
believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you
may have life in His name." (John 20:30,31)
John's message is clear: When we believe the truth about Jesus Christ we
will have life in His name. And if you've ever read the Gospel of John
(or any of his other New Testament material) you know that when he says
"life" he's talking about eternal life. He picked up the term from Jesus
Himself (see, for example John 3:14-21; 5:24).
John says almost the same thing again, later on, in his first epistle or
letter to the churches:
"If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater; for this
is the witness of God which He has testified of His Son. He who believes
in the Son of God has the witness in himself; he who does not believe God
has made Him a liar, because he has not believed the testimony that God
has given of His Son. And this is the testimony: that God has given us
eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has life;
he who does not have the Son of God does not have life. These things I
have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you
may know that you have eternal life, and that you may continue to believe
in the name of the Son of God." (1 John 5:9-13)
Putting it all together.
True faith stems from spiritual life, not from theology alone. The
spiritual life we need is offered to us in the person of Jesus Christ (God
in the flesh). This life enters into our "inner self" by the power and
Presence of God's own Holy Spirit. If we accept what God offers us in
Jesus, then the Holy Spirit comes to live inside us forever, granting us
genuine spiritual life -- and eternal life with God.
We cannot become real Christian believers, then, by simply deciding to
hang out with other believers, or by saying the same things they say. On
the other hand, we cannot become real children of God until we are born
again by God's Spirit (John 3:1-16). We are born again, made truly alive
spiritually, when we accept what God says about Jesus Christ.
Accepting Christ is accepting God Himself. Believing what God says in
Scripture is believing God (Genesis 15:6 and Romans 4:1-8). When we
believe God, when we accept what God has revealed about Himself in Jesus
Christ, we become alive in Christ -- made truly and spiritually alive by
the very Spirit of God.
This new life in Christ flows out from God Himself, and our willingness to
be with Him, to walk and live in Him (see John 15:1-8). True spiritual
life does not flow into us from the church, or from good theology.
Rather, the opposite is true. Truth flows into our theology, and life
flows into the church from God -- in Jesus Christ -- as each believer
walks in genuine fellowship with the Lord Jesus (see 1 John 1:1-7). Sound
theology, then, comes from genuine faith, which originates with God, and
is imparted to each genuine believer as we receive God's Son as Savior and
Lord.
As the Scripture says, "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be
saved, you and your household." (Acts 16:31)
And again, "Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other
name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved." (Acts 4:12)
Do you need more help?
If you want to know more about how to surrender your life to Jesus Christ,
feel free to visit the following web page:
http://www.goodwordusa.org/word/peace4.htm
I suggest you spend time reading the Bible, especially in the New
Testament. The whole Bible points us to Jesus Christ.
In the Old Testament we learn, through many examples, that all people need
the grace of God. Everyone needs a savior.
In the New Testament we see the salvation that God has provided for all
people in Jesus Christ. How can Jesus save those who lived and died long
before He came to earth as a human being? How can Jesus open the way for
everyone to be reconciled to God? Why do we need to be reconciled?
All these questions, and many more, are answered for us in the pages of
the Holy Bible. The Bible shows us what it means to be truly spiritual
and truly alive spiritually.
The best place to begin, in my opinion, is in the gospel accounts of Jesus
Christ, the first 4 books of the New Testament. Then read the rest of the
New Testament, and then read all the Old Testament.
But you don't have to read the entire Bible in order to become a child of
God. Open you heart to God right now, right where you are. Accept the
free gift of His own Son, Jesus Christ. Turn to Him in faith, and trust
Him as the Shepherd and Savior of your life.
God's best to you as you grow in Him.
Jim
www.goodwordusa.org
.
- Prev by Date: What is identity......
- Next by Date: Do you believe in Life or death ?
- Previous by thread: What is identity......
- Next by thread: Do you believe in Life or death ?
- Index(es):
Relevant Pages
|
