Updated
21 May 2005
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The Bible Our Guide
Plain Scriptural
Teaching for Followers of Christ
The
Bible
Human
Nature
The
Future Of The Righteous
The
State Of The Dead
The
Return Of Christ To The Earth
Jesus
The King
The
Kingdom Of God
The
Source Of Sin
God,
Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit
Faith
In Jesus Christ
Taking
Up The Cross
True
Baptism
The
Christian Life
Resurrection
and Judgement
The
Glorious End
The
Bible
If we claim to follow
Christ we should trust in the Scriptures as confidently
as Jesus and his Apostles did:
Jesus: "The Scripture
cannot be broken." (John 10:35)
Paul: "All Scripture
is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for
doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in
righteousness." (2 Timothy 3:16)
Peter: "For prophecy
never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke
as they were moved by the Holy Spirit." (2 Peter 1:21)
Peter: "The things
which now have been reported to you through those who
have preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent
from heaven." (1 Peter 1:12)
True faith must be founded
on a fully inspired Bible.
Human
Nature
If we claim to follow
Christ we should admit that we are sinful and dying
creatures, without hope of life except in Christ:
Moses: "Dust you are,
and to dust you shall return." (Genesis 3:19)
Isaiah: "All flesh is
grass, and all its loveliness is like the flower of the
field. The grass withers, the flower fades." (Isaiah
40:6-7)
James: "For what is
your life? It is even a vapour that appears for a little
time and then vanishes away." (James 4:14)
Peter: "All flesh is
as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of the
grass. The grass withers, and its flower falls away."
(1 Peter 1:24)
The Bible makes it plain
that we are mortal: only when we admit this can we truly
look forward to the salvation it offers.
The
Future Of The Righteous
If we claim to follow
Christ we should admit that our reward is to be looked
for on the earth, not in heaven:
The Psalms: "But the meek shall inherit the earth,
and shall delight themselves in the abundance of peace."
(Psalm 37:11; Matthew 5:5)
Jesus: "And have made us kings and priests to our
God; and we shall reign on the earth." (Revelation 5:10)
Daniel: "The
stone that struck the image became a great mountain and
filled the whole earth ... In the days of these kings the
God of heaven will set up a kingdom which shall never be
destroyed." (Daniel 2:35,44)
Daniel: "The greatness of the kingdoms under the
whole heaven, shall be given to the people, the saints of
the Most High." (Daniel 7:27)
The Psalms: "The
heaven, even the heavens, are the LORD's; but the earth
he has given to the children of men. (Psalm 115:16)
John: "No man has ascended to heaven but he who came
down from heaven, that is, the Son of Man who is in
heaven." (John 3:13)
The Bible tells us that the reward is at present reserved
in heaven with Christ, to be revealed on earth at his
coming:
Peter: "An
inheritance incorruptible and undefiled and that does not
fade away, reserved in heaven for you ... salvation ready
to be revealed in the last time ... and rest your hope
fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the
revelation of Jesus Christ." (1 Peter 1:4,5,13)
Paul: "For our citizenship is in heaven, from which
we also eagerly wait for the Saviour, the Lord Jesus
Christ, who will transform our lowly body." (Philippians
3:20,21)
The Bible tells us that the earth, where God placed men
in the beginning, is the place where He will receive His
blessing.
The State Of The Dead
If we claim to follow Christ we should recognise that the
grave is a place of unconsciousness, which only
resurrection can bring to an end:
The Psalms: "For in death there is no remembrance of
you; in the grave who will give you thanks?" (Psalm
6:5)
Hezekiah: "For Sheol cannot thank you, death cannot
praise you; those who go down to the pit cannot hope for
your truth." (Isaiah 38:18)
Peter: "David, that is both dead and buried, and his
tomb is with us to this day ... For David did not ascend
into the heavens." (Acts 2:29,34)
Paul: "And if Christ is not risen, your faith is
futile; you are still in your sins! Then also those who
have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in this
life only we have hope in Christ, we are of all men the
most pitiable. (1 Corinthians 15:17-19)
The grave, and the hell of the Old Testament, are the
same word and the same place. It is to this place of
oblivion that all the dead must go.
The Return Of Christ To The
Earth
If we claim to follow
Christ we should loin all his early disciples in looking
for his second coming:
Jesus: "The Son of man comes in his glory, and all
the holy angels with him ..." (Matthew 25:31)
Angels: "This same Jesus, who is taken up from you
into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw him
go into heaven." (Acts 1:11)
Peter: "And that (God) may send Jesus Christ, who
was preached to you before." (Acts 3:20)
Paul: "For the Lord himself will descend from heaven
with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with
the trumpet of God." (1 Thessalonians 4:16)
Only by his second coming can Christ complete the work he
began when he came before.
Jesus The King
If we claim to follow
Christ we shall be sure that our Lord Jesus Christ, on
his return, is to be King over the earth:
The Angel Gabriel: "He will be great, and will be
called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give
him the throne of his father David. And he will reign
over the house of Jacob for ever, and of his kingdom
there will be no end." (Luke 1:32,33)
Jesus: "Do not
swear ... by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great
King." (Matthew 5:34,35)
Jeremiah: "Behold,
the days are coming, saith the LORD, that I will raise to
David a Branch of righteousness; a King shall reign and
prosper, and execute judgement and righteousness in the
earth. In his days Judah will be saved, and Israel will
dwell safely; now this is his name by which he will be
called: THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS." (Jeremiah 23:5,6)
Zechariah: "And in that day his feet will stand on
the mount of Olives ... And the LORD shall be king over
all the earth. In that day it shall be -- 'The LORD is
one', and his name one." (Zechariah 14:4,9)
Paul: "Because (God) has appointed a day on which he
will judge the world in righteousness by the man whom he
has ordained. He has given assurance of this to all, by
raising him from the dead." (Acts 17-31)
Only by the righteous reign of Jesus over the earth will
it be possible for God to fill the whole earth with His
glory.
The Kingdom Of God
If we claim to follow Christ we can rejoice in the
knowledge that God will establish His Kingdom in power
over the earth:
Daniel: "And in
the days of these kings the God of heaven will set up a
kingdom which shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom
shall not be left to other people; it shall break in
pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand
for ever. (Daniel 2:44)
Jesus: "The kingdoms of this world have become the
kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall
reign for ever and ever ... We give you thanks, O Lord
God Almighty, the one who is and who was and who is to
come, because you have taken your great power and reigned."
(Revelation 11:15,17)
God is truly the ruler over all His universe:
The Psalms: "The LORD has established his throne in
heaven, and his kingdom rules over all." (Psalm 103:19)
Daniel: "The Most High rules in the kingdom of men,
and gives it to whomever he chooses ... his dominion is
an everlasting dominion, and his kingdom is from
generation to generation." (Daniel 4:25,34)
He once established
His kingdom in Israel, and removed it because of His
people's wickedness:
Moses: "If you will indeed obey my voice and keep my
covenant ... you shall be to me a kingdom of priests and
a holy nation." (Exodus 19:5,6)
David: "Blessed are you, LORD God of Israel, our
Father, for ever and ever. Yours, O LORD, is the
greatness, the power and the glory, the victory and the
majesty; for all that is in heaven and in earth is yours;
yours is the kingdom, 0 LORD, and you are exalted as head
over all Then Solomon sat on the throne of the LORD as
king instead of David his father, and prospered." (1
Chronicles 29:10,11.23)
Ezekiel: "Now to you, 0 profane, wicked prince of
Israel, whose day is come, whose iniquity shall end, thus
saith the Lord GOD: Remove the turban, and take off the
crown ... Overthrown, overthrown, I will make it
overthrown! It shall be no longer, until he comes whose
right it is, and I will give it to him." (Ezekiel 21:25-27)
When Jesus re-establishes the kingdom, rebellious Israel
must repent, and the unrepentant will be rejected:
Zechariah: "Then
they will look on me whom they have pierced; they will
mourn for him as one mourns for his only son." (Zechariah
12:10; see Revelation 1:7)
Jesus: "There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth,
when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the
prophets in the kingdom of God, and yourselves thrust out."
(Luke 13:28)
Jesus will establish
his kingdom by subduing the nations, and moreover the
nation which crucified him will need to submit.
The Source Of Sin
If we claim to follow Christ we shall acknowledge that
sin springs from the human heart, and find in mankind the
"devil" who is at enmity against God:
Jeremiah: "The heart is deceitful above all things,
and desperately wicked." (Jeremiah 17:9)
James: "But each one is tempted when he is drawn
away of his own desires, and enticed." (James 1:14)
Hebrews: "Inasmuch then as the children have
partaken of flesh and blood, he himself likewise shared
in the same, that through death he might destroy him who
had the power of death, that is, the devil." "But
now, once at the end of the ages, he has appeared to put
away sin by the sacrifice of himself." (Hebrews 2:14;
9:26)
Jesus: "For from
within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts,
adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness,
wickedness, deceit, licentiousness, an evil eye,
blasphemy, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come
from within and defile a man." (Mark 7:21-23)
Paul: "Now the works of the flesh are evident, which
are: adultery, fornication, uncleanness, licentiousness,
idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies,
outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions,
heresies, evil, murders, drunkenness, revels, and the
like; of which I tell you beforehand, just as I also told
you in time past, that those who practise such things
will not inherit the kingdom of God." (Galatians 5:19-21)
The Bible traces the origin of human sinfulness to the
fall of man in Eden, and only by the redeeming work of
Jesus on the cross can this "devil" be
destroyed.
God, Jesus Christ and the
Holy Spirit
If we claim to follow
Christ we shall, with Jesus our Lord, acknowledge the
supremacy of God, the Father; we shall see in Jesus His
obedient Son; and we shall see in the Holy Spirit His
personal power:
Paul: "There is one God and one mediator between God
and men, the man Christ Jesus." (1 Timothy 2:5)
Paul: "The head of Christ is God." (1
Corinthians 11:3)
Paul: "Now when
all things are made subject to him, then the Son himself
will also be subject to him who put all things under him,
that God may be all in all." (1 Corinthians 15:28)
Paul: "There is
one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one
hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism;
one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through
all, and in you all." (Ephesians 4:4-6)
Jesus: "My Father
is greater than I." (John 14:28)
Jesus: "The Son
can do nothing of himself, but what he sees the Father do."
(John 5:19)
Jesus: "If you
keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as
I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his
love." (John 15:10)
Jesus: "Nevertheless
not my will, but yours, be done." (Luke 22:42)
The Angel Gabriel:
"The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power
of the Highest will overshadow you; therefore, also, that
holy one who is to be born will be called the Son of God."
(Luke 1:35)
Peter: "Holy men
of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit."
(2 Peter 1:21)
Peter: "God
anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with
power." (Acts 10:38)
The Bible traces
everything to God, that is, to the Father; it centres all
the purpose of God in Jesus, that is, the Son; and it
reveals God's working among prophets, apostles and saints
by His own power, that is, the Holy Spirit.
Faith In Jesus Christ
If we claim to follow
Christ we shall know that faith in Jesus is essential. A
Christian must accept the true gospel before he can
belong to Christ:
Jesus: "God so
loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that
whoever believes in him should not perish but have
everlasting life." (John 3:16)
Jesus: "For if you do not believe that I am he, you
will die in your sins." (John 8:24)
Paul: "For (the
gospel of Christ) is the power of God to salvation for
every one who believes, for the Jew first and also for
the Greek." "If you confess with your mouth the
Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised
him from the dead, you will be saved." (Romans 1:16:10:9)
Hebrews: "But without faith it is impossible to
please him, for he who comes to God must believe that he
is, and that he is a rewarder of those who diligently
seek him." (Hebrews 11:6)
and, as a warning against false teaching:
Paul: "But even
if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach any gospel
to you other than what we have preached to you, let him
be accursed." (Galatians 1:8)
or against simply
following the majority:
Jesus: "Enter by
the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the
way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go
in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the
way which leads to life, and there are few who find it."
(Matthew 7:13,14)
The Bible does not
allow us to take salvation for granted. The only way for
sinners is to follow in obedience where Jesus has led, in
faith in him and in the Word of God he honoured.
Taking Up The Cross
If we claim to follow
Christ we shall want to renounce the weakness and pride
of our fleshly nature, and lay it down after the pattern
of Jesus' death on the cross:
Jesus: "If anyone
desires to come after me, let him deny himself, and take
up his cross, and follow me." (Matthew 16:24)
Paul: "Let this
mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who ...
humbled himself and became obedient to the point of
death, even the death of the cross. Therefore God also
has highly exalted him and given him the name which is
above every name." (Philippians 2:5-11)
Paul: "Our old
man was crucified with him, that the body of sin might be
done away with." (Romans 6:6)
Paul: "I have
been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live,
but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in
the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me
and gave himself for me."
Paul: "And those
who are Christ's have crucified the flesh with its
passions and desires." "God forbid that I
should glory except in the cross of our Lord Jesus
Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I
to the world" (Galatians 2:20; 5:24; 6:14)
Jesus: "These are
the ones who ... washed their robes and made them white
in the blood of the Lamb." (Revelation 7:14)
By his death on the cross Jesus destroyed the power of
sin, and is now perfect and immortal. Those who crucify
their old way of life with Christ and seek to follow him,
will receive his help to the same end.
True Baptism
If we claim to follow
Christ we shall know that we must obey the command of
Jesus, to follow our faith by baptism:
Jesus: "Permit it
to be so now, for thus it is fining for us to fulfil all
righteousness ... Then Jesus, when he had been baptised,
came up immediately from the water ... and suddenly a
voice came from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son,
in whom I am well pleased." (Matthew 3:15-17)
Jesus: "He who
believes and is baptised will be saved; but he who does
not believe will be condemned." (Mark 16:16)
Jesus: "Unless
one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the
kingdom of God." (John 3:5)
Peter: "Repent,
and let every one of you be baptised in the name of Jesus
Christ for the remission of sins ... Then those who
gladly received his word were baptised ... and they
continued steadfastly in the apostles' doctrine and
fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in prayers."
(Acts 2:38,41,42)
Paul: "As many of
us as were baptised into Christ Jesus were baptised into
his death. Therefore we were buried with him through
baptism into death." (Romans 6:3,4)
In the Bible, baptism
is a burial in water, undertaken by those who have
confessed their desire to crucify and bury their former
lives, and start again in a risen life with Christ.
The Christian Life
If we claim to follow
Christ we shall want to follow the pattern of Jesus'
life, keep his commandments, remember his death, and keep
unspotted from the world:
Jesus: "If you
love me, keep my commandments." "A new
commandment I give to you, that you love one another."
(John 14:15; 13:34)
Jesus: "Put your
sword in its place, for all who take the sword will
perish by the sword." (Matthew 26:52)
John: "Do not
love the world or the things in the world ... For all
that is in the world - the lust of the flesh, the lust of
the eyes, and the pride of life - is not of the Father
but is of the world." (1 John 2:15-16)
Paul and Jesus: "For
I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to
you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which he
was betrayed took bread; and when he had given thanks, he
broke it and said, Take, eat, this is my body which is
for you; do this in remembrance of me. In the same manner
he also took the cup after supper, saying, This cup is
the new covenant in my blood. This do, as often as you
drink it, in remembrance of me. For as often as you eat
this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord's
death till he comes." (1 Corinthians 11:23-26)
The Bible therefore
encourages true Christians to remember the Lord in a
regular Breaking of Bread, and to keep him constantly in
remembrance in their lives, waiting always for his coming
again.
Resurrection and Judgement
If we claim to follow
Christ we shall know that one day we must stand before
the Lord Jesus Christ as our Judge, to receive blessing
or condemnation:
Jesus: "Every
idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in
the day of judgement. For by your words you will be
justified, and by your words you will be condemned. (Matthew
12:36,37)
Paul: "For we must all appear before the judgement
seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done
in the body, according to what he has done, whether good
or bad." (2 Corinthians 5:10)
Daniel: "And many
of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake,
some to everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting
contempt." (Daniel 12:2)
Jesus: "... and
your wrath has come, and the time of the dead, that they
should be judged, and that you should reward your
servants the prophets and the saints, and those who fear
your name, small and great, and should destroy those who
destroy the earth." (Revelation 11:18)
Paul: "There will
be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and
unjust ... Now as he reasoned about righteousness, self-control,
and the judgement to come, Felix was afraid." (Acts
24:15,25)
Peter: "They (who
walk in the lusts of men) will give an account to him who
is ready to judge the living and the dead." (1 Peter
4:5)
Those who have understood their duty to God, whether they
have accepted it and obeyed in faith, or rejected or
neglected it, must stand before the Lord's judgement, for
blessing or for rejection.
Jesus: "When the
Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the holy angels
with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory.
All nations will be gathered before him, and he will
separate them one from another, as a shepherd divides his
sheep from the goats. And he will set the sheep on his
right hand, and the goats on the left. Then the King will
say to those on his right hand, Come, you blessed of my
Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the
foundation of the world ... Then he will also say to
those on the left hand, Depart from me, you cursed, into
the everlasting fire prepared for the devil and his
angels." (Matthew 25:31-41)
Jesus: "It is
better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye,
than having two eyes, to be cast into hell fire." (Mark
9:43-48)
The hell fire of the
Bible is the destruction of everything which is
displeasing in God's sight at a time of judgement. It is
also called "everlasting fire" and "the
lake of fire".
The Glorious End
If we claim to follow
Christ we shall look to the time when the earth will be
perfected through the work of Christ, and filled with God’s
glory:
To Moses: "But
truly, as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the
glory of the LORD." (Numbers 14:21)
The Psalms: "Give
the king your judgements, 0 God, and your righteousness
to the king's Son. He will judge your people with
righteousness ... Blessed be the LORD God, the God of
Israel, who only does wondrous things! And blessed be his
glorious name for ever! And let the whole earth be filled
with his glory." (Psalm 72:1,18,19)
Isaiah: "They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my
holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the
knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea."
(Isaiah 11:9)
Habakkuk: "For
the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory
of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea. (Habakkuk 2:14)
Paul: "Then comes
the end, when he (Christ) delivers the kingdom to God the
Father, when he puts an end to all rule and all authority
and power. For he must reign till he has put all enemies
under his feet. The last enemy that will be destroyed is
death." (1 Corinthians 15:24-26)
Jesus: "Then death and Hades (the grave) were cast
into the lake of fire." "Behold the tabernacle
of God is with men, and he will dwell with them, and they
shall be his people, and God himself will be with them
and be their God. And God will wipe away every tear from
their eyes: there shall be no more death, nor sorrow, nor
crying; and there shall be no more pain, for the former
things have passed away." (Revelation 20:14; 21:3,4)
Thus the Bible shows
how the perfection intended in the work of creation will
finally be realised, in the presence of all the true
saints of God.
Reproduced
by courtesy of the Christadelphian Magazine and
Publishing Association by whom all rights are reserved.
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