BIBLE DOCTRINE

THE DOCTRINE OF THE ATONEMENT FOR SIN–EPH. 2:8,9

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 THE DOCTRINE OF THE ATONEMENT FOR SIN
MEMORY VERSE: EPH. 2:8,9

The extreme importance of salvation is emphasized in our Confession of Faith. It is the subject of 5 (25%) of our 20 Articles of Faith.
1. The word “atonement” is found in our English Bible only once in the N.T. (Rom. 5:11).
2. The Greek word “KATALLAGE” – noun; “KATALLASSO” – verb; is translated atonement (1), reconciliation (2), reconciling (1), reconcile (6). This word “denotes reconciliation, a change on the part of one party, induced by an action on the part of another; in the N.T., the reconciliation of men to God by His grace and love in Christ.” Vine. God is never said to be reconciled. It is man that must be reconciled.
3. The O.T. word for atonement “KAPHAR” (has to do with a covering), is translated 70 or more times “make atonement”, and is translated “make reconciliation” 4 times. It is also translated a number of other ways–pacify, pardon, purge away, etc. It is definitely related to the N.T. mercy seat and propitiation.
4. While it is helpful to consult word studies on atonement, reconciliation, etc., we must be careful not to take a restricted meaning of a word that may not harmonize with the overall usage in the Bible.
I. SALVATION IS BY GRACE.

A. God Saves Only Sinners. (See Article “VI. Of The Fall).

1. Man is a sinner by birth, nature and practice.

2. Sin is transgression of the Law. I John 3:4. (Anything that is not in the will of God is sin).

B. Salvation Is Wholly By God’s Grace.

1. Grace is God’s unmerited favor. No man merits it.

2. It is wholly of grace. Not part grace and part works. See (a)-1-2-3

II. SALVATION IS BY THE SAVIOUR.

A. What The Saviour Did For Sinners.

1. He became the mediator, the go-between who possessed the nature of both God and man. I Tim. 2:5

2. He was appointed by the Father. (b)-1 John 3:16

3. He freely took upon Him our nature, yet without sin. (b)-3 Phil. 2:7

4. He personally obeyed all the Laws of God, and lived a life completely and perfectly in the will of God.

5. By His death He made full and vicarious atonement for our sins. “Vicarious” means on behalf of, or in place of another. Through the sacrifice of Christ, God is propitiated and the sinner is reconciled unto God. See (b)-5-67-8-9

B. The Saviour Took The Sinner’s Place.

1. He was a perfect example, but it was not through His perfect example that men are saved. He did not die as a martyr.

2. He voluntarily became our substitute. (c)-1-2-3

3. He bare our sins in His own body. (c)-4 I Pet. 2:24; (c)-5 1 Pet. 3:18.

4. His sacrifice completely satisfied the Father. (c)-6 Isa. 53:11; (c)-7 Heb. 12:2

C. He Is Now Our [Believer’s] High Priest And Intercessor.

1. He was raised from the dead. (d)-1 I Cor. 15:20; I Cor. 15:4

2. He is now sitting at the right hand of the Father, making intercession for us. I John 2:1,2; (d)-3 Heb. 9:12-15; (d)-4 Heb. 7:25. See also Heb. 10:10-14 and Rom. 5:8-11.

THE PERPETUITY OF THE CHURCH–MATTHEW 16:18

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GREAT BIBLE WORDS

CHURCH

THE PERPETUITY OF THE CHURCH

MATTHEW 16:18

Introduction:

We have look at the Lord’s Church and found it to be a local, visible congregation of scripturally baptized believers.

We have noted that His Church is made up of ONLY born-again believers in Jesus Christ.

Now we look at the Perpetuity of His Church.

I. IT IS THE LORD’S CHURCH

A. It is His Church because He instructed it, Matthew 4:19, “And he saith unto them, Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men.”

B. He continued to instruct it from the upper room to Gethsemane, Matthew 14-16.

1. The Lord spent at least 66% of His time instructing and preparing the disciples for the future, Matthew 5:1-2, “And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him: 2- And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying,”

2. The rest of the time He evangelized the Jews, John 3:3, “Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

C. He instructed them to continue to instruct others, Matthew 28:18-20, “And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. 19- Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20- Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”

II. THE PERPETUITY OR PERMANENT CONTINUANCE OF THE LORD’S CHURCH

A. When the Lord returns will He find faith on the earth? Luke 18:8, “I tell you that he will avenge them speedily. Nevertheless when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?”

B. The faith He will look for is the doctrine He taught when He first instituted the church, Ephesians 4:5, “One Lord, one faith, one baptism,”

1. The Lord instructed the church to preach the gospel, Mark 16:15, “And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.”

2. The gospel He instructed them to preach continues to the power of God unto salvation, Romans 1:16, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.”

C. Jesus empowered the church by the coming of “another Comforter,” John 14:16, “And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever;”

1. It happened on the Day of Pentecost, Acts 2:1-4, “And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. 2- And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. 3- And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. 4- And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.”

2. His church was “in one accord” and the Lord “added to the church,” Acts 2:47, “Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.”

3. He will be looking for the power of the Holy Spirit functioning in His church when He returns.

a. He will find a praying people, Isaiah 62:6-7, “I have set watchmen upon thy walls, O Jerusalem, which shall never hold their peace day nor night: ye that make mention of the LORD, keep not silence, 7- And give him no rest [silence], till he establish, and till he make Jerusalem a praise in the earth.”

b. He will come in a difficult time for His people, 1 Thessalonians 5:1-3, “But of the times and the seasons, brethren, ye have no need that I write unto you. 2- For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night. 3- For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.”
Next week: The Family of God vs. the Church

THE FOUNDING OF THE CHURCH–MATTHEW 16:13-20

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THE FOUNDING OF THE CHURCH

MATTHEW 16:13-20

BY ART DAVISON

Key verse: v. 18, “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.”

Introduction:

There is more than one idea regarding the definition of what a church is. There are at least two ideas about who started the church and when it was started.

We are not concerned with what men say or what they think about the origin of the church, but rather, what the Word of God says and teaches in relation to the church and its origin. So let’s consult the Scriptures and accept what we find there as the truth about the Lord’s church.

I. THE MEANING OF THE WORD “CHURCH”

A. The English word “church” is an Anglo-Saxon word. According to one dictionary’s etymology of the English word “church”, it originated from the Greek word meaning “of the Lord.”

B. The Greek word translated “church” is the word “ekklesia.”

1. “Ekklesia” means a “called out assembly.”

a. Acts 7:38, “This is he, that was in the church in the wilderness with the angel which spake to him in the mount Sina, and with our fathers: who received the lively oracles to give unto us:”

b. Acts 19:32, “Some therefore cried one thing, and some another: for the assembly was confused; and the more part knew not wherefore they were come together.”

2. “Ekklesia” is found 115 times in the New Testament.

a. The generic sense [synecdoche = “a figure of speech, by which the whole of a thing is put for a part, or a part for the whole.”]

b. 109 times it refers to the churches of the Lord Jesus that are local.

II. THE FOUNDING OF THE CHURCH

A. Jesus refers to the church as “My church,” Matthew 16:18, “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.”

1. Here we see Jesus, the One who builds the church.

a. He is the very foundation of the church, 1 Corinthians 3:11, “For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.”

b. He is the “builder” of the house of God, for He says, “I will build my church,” Hebrews 3:3-4, “For this man was counted worthy of more glory than Moses, inasmuch as he who hath builded the house hath more honour than the house. 4-For every house is builded by some man; but he that built all things is God.”

c. There is not one verse of Scripture that declares that the Holy Spirit built or founded the Church of Christ.

2. Jesus is the Head of the church, Ephesians 1:22-23, “And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, 23-Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.”

3. The church is His GLORY, Ephesians 3:21, “Unto him be glory in the church by Christ Jesus throughout all ages, world without end. Amen.”

a. He bought it with His own blood, Acts 20:28, “Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.”

b. His church is “the pillar and ground [stay] of the truth”, 1 Timothy 3:15, “But if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.”

1) The problem today is that His churches are not fulfilling their responsibility. We are NOT STAYING WITH THE TRUTH.

B. Jesus founded His Church DURING HIS PUBLIC MIHISTRY.

1. It was an important decision, Luke 6:12, “And it came to pass in those days, that he went out into a mountain to pray, and continued all night in prayer to God.”

2. He chose twelve men from His disciples, Luke 6:13-16, “And when it was day, he called unto him his disciples: and of them he chose twelve, whom also he named apostles; 14-Simon, (whom he also named Peter,) and Andrew his brother, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew, 15-Matthew and Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon called Zelotes, 16-And Judas the brother of James, and Judas Iscariot, which also was the traitor.”

3. These were the first members of His Church, 1 Corinthians 12:28, “And God hath set some in the church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers, after that miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, diversities of tongues.”

a. First in position.

b. First in responsibility.

III. THE PROMISE OF PERPETUITY THAT JESUS MADE TO THE CHURCH

A. Jesus promised that He would perpetuate His church.

1. “I will build my church” was a promise that Jesus gave that day and continued from that day, Acts 2:47, “Praising God, and having favour with all the people. And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be saved.”

2. “The gates of hell shall NOT [the absolute negative used here] prevail against it” is the promise that He would perpetuate His Church,

THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST–BY ART DAVISON

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THE CHURCH OF JESUS CHRIST
Matthew 16:13-18

Key verse: v. 18, “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.”

Introduction:

As I began to prepare this message I went back into my files and pulled everything I had about the church. At one time I had a copy of a booklet on the church that Dr. B. F. Dearmore had given me, but through the years I had misplaced it. I found it on Jim Dearmore’s web page.

Other sources were Dr. B. H. Carroll, Norman Wells, Roy Mason and C. C. Carroll. More recent writings such as Bro. Don Ross’ “A Local, Visible Church” written in Portuguese.

The only real reliable source is the Bible that states the truth of God without any bias whatsoever. While I agreed with some of the above mentioned writers, I disagreed with others. I wanted to present this a bit different than a history lesson.

I. THE ARCHITECT OF THE CHURCH IS GOD

A. THE PLAN — To build an assembly (ekklesia)

1. Of believers in Jesus Christ, Matthew 16:15-16, “He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? 16-And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

a. John the Baptist prepared the way, Luke 1:17, “And he shall go before him in the spirit and power of Elias, to turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the disobedient to the wisdom of the just; to make ready a people prepared for the Lord.

b. John turned his disciple toward the Saviour, John 3:28-30, “Ye yourselves bear me witness, that I said, I am not the Christ, but that I am sent before him. 29-He that hath the bride is the bridegroom: but the friend of the bridegroom, which standeth and heareth him, rejoiceth greatly because of the bridegroom’s voice: this my joy therefore is fulfilled. 30-He must increase, but I must decrease.”

2. Scripturally baptized, Acts 1:21-22, “Wherefore of these men which have companied with us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, 22-Beginning from the baptism of John, unto that same day that he was taken up from us, must one be ordained to be a witness with us of his resurrection.”

3. Who have coveted together to carry out God’s commission, Matthew 28:19-20, “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20-Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.”

4. This is a visible, local body, 1 Corinthians 1:2, “Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours:”

B. THE MAN – Jesus Christ as Head of that assembly, Ephesians 1:22-23, “And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, 23-Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.”

II. THE FOUNDER AND FOUNDATION OF THE CHURCH

A. The MAN of God, the Founder of the Church, Matthew 16:18, “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.”

B. The PLAN of God:

1. That Jesus Christ be the Foundation of the Church, 1 Corinthians 3:10-11, “According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise masterbuilder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon. 11-For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ.”

a. He is a sure foundation, Isaiah 28:16, “Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD, Behold, I lay in Zion for a foundation a stone, a tried stone, a precious corner stone, a sure foundation: he that believeth shall not make haste.”

b. The Stone which the builders rejected, Psalm 118:22, “The stone which the builders refused is become the head stone of the corner.”

2. Jesus is the Cornerstone of the Church, Ephesians 2:20, “And are built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the chief corner stone;”

The cornerstone identifies the owner, Acts 20:28, “Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood.”

a. The name on that stone is of fundamental importance, Romans 16:16, “Salute one another with an holy kiss. The churches of Christ salute you.”

III. THE SPIRIT WHICH EMPOWERS THE CHURCH

A. THE PLAN: To wait for POWER, not for the organization of the church, Acts 1:8, “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”

1. This is NOT the Holy Spirit organizing the church.

2. This is the Holy Spirit EMPOWERING the church to carry out God’s will.

B. The POWER of the Holy Spirit,

1. To occupy, to carry on the Lord’s business, Luke 19:12-13, “He said therefore, A certain nobleman went into a far country to receive for himself a kingdom, and to return. 13-And he called his ten servants, and delivered them ten pounds, and said unto them, Occupy till I come.”

2. To be missionaries throughout the world, Acts 1:8, “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”

a. Missionaries evangelize men.

b. Missionaries organize [not found] New Testament churches.

CONCLUSION

Jesus said, “I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” It is His Church; He founded it; He died for it; He will sustain it until He comes for it.

We are to “occupy” until he comes, i.e., negotiate, and do His business, which is to evangelize mankind and organize New Testament churches.

CHURCH COVENANT (SHORT)

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CHURCH COVENANT

Having been led, as we believe, by the Spirit of God, to receive the Lord Jesus Christ as our Saviour, and on the profession of our faith, having been baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost, we do now in the presence of God, angels, and this assembly, most solemnly and joyfully enter into covenant with one another, as one body in Christ.



We engage therefore, by the aid of the Holy Spirit, to walk together in Christian love; to strive for the advancement of this church, in knowledge, holiness, and comfort; to promote its prosperity and spirituality; to sustain its worship, ordinances, discipline and doctrines; to contribute cheerfully and regularly to the support of the ministry, the expenses of the church, and the relief of the poor, and the spread of the gospel through all nations.

We also engage to maintain family and secret devotion; to religiously educate our children; to seek the salvation of our kindred and acquaintances; to walk circumspectly in the world; to be just in our dealings, faithful in our deportment; to avoid all tattling, backbiting, and excessive anger; to abstain from the sale and use of intoxicating drinks as a beverage, and to be zealous in our efforts to advance the kingdom of our Saviour.

We further engage to watch over one another in brotherly love; to remember each other in prayer; to aid each other in sickness and distress; to cultivate Christian sympathy in feeling and courtesy in speech; to be slow to take offence, but always ready for reconciliation, and mindful of the rules of our Saviour to secure it without delay.

We moreover engage that when we remove from this place, we will as soon as possible unite with some other church, where we can carry out the spirit of this covenant and the principles of God’s Word.