| Volume One, Number Two |
Back To The Bible
_____________________________________________________________________
Volume One January 15, 2007 Number Two
Back To The Bible is an evangelistic outreach for the expressed purpose of
helping people study the Bible. It is a work of the Belle church of Christ
which is located at the corner of 8th and Oak in Belle, Missouri.
Editors of this publication are Jerry McDonald and Ishmael Wilson and is
overseen by the Belle church of Christ.
You are cordially invited to all of our services and if you would like to
study the Bible with us we will be more than glad to assist you with this.
Our mailing address is the Belle church of Christ, P.O. Box 381, Belle,
MO 65013 and our phone number is (573) 859-6616.
Service Times:
Sun. Morn. Bible Study............9:30
Sun. Morn. Worship................10:30
Sun. Eve. Worship....................6:00
Wed. Eve. Bible Study..............7:30
WHAT MUST WE DO TO BE SAVED?
Ishmael Wilson
This may be one of the most important questions that one can ask. It was
asked and answered in the New Testament – Acts 2:37, 38; 16:30-33. One
may ask, “Saved from what?” Saved from our sins, sin separates us from
God (Isaiah 59:1,2). Saved from eternal death (Romans 6:23).
To answer the question “What must we do to be saved?” I would like to
use the above chart showing the steps that we must take. This will help us in
having a better understanding of God’s plan of salvation.
You may have noticed on the chart that there are five steps; three of the
steps are “UNTO” and one step is “INTO.”
Starting at the bottom of the chart we see that HEAR is the first step. It
is the duty, responsibility of the church to make known the truth, to teach
and preach the gospel (Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15,16). It is your
responsibility to hear and respond to the word that is preached:
“Without faith it is impossible to please him, for he that cometh to God
must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him”
(Hebrew 11:6) and “Faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God”
(Romans 10:17).
So we see how important that preaching and believing the gospel is:
BELIEVE, as you may notice on the chart is “UNTO” salvation.
REPENT is “UNTO.” Repentance is a change of the mind, and heart. It
is a change of life; the way one is living as is seen in the story of the prodigal
son (cf. Luke 15:11-24). Jesus said, “I tell you, Nay except ye repent, ye shall all
likewise perish” (Luke 13:3,5).
CONFESS is “UNTO.” It is a step unto salvation. Jesus said “Whosoever
therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess before my Father which
is in heaven” (Matthew 10:32).
The man from Ethiopia wanted to be baptized, but before he was baptized
he made this confession, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God” (Acts
8:37).
BAPTIZED: You may have noticed that baptism is “INTO.” This puts
one into Christ (Galatians 3:27). In Christ is where all spiritual blessings are
(Ephesians 1:3).
You may have noticed that according to the chart there are steps that we
must take before we are baptized. Baptism is the beginning of a new life.
What must one do after baptism? Live faithfully to the Lord (Romans 6:
3-5)
WHY YOU SHOULD BE BAPTIZED.
Thomas H. McDonald
Why is it that a person should be baptized? This is a valid question and will be
answered with three simple points. These points are (1) To Obey God; (2) To
Have Your Sins Washed Away and (3) To Be Added To The Church.
In 1 Peter chapter 1, verse 22 we see an example of obeying God,
“Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit
unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart
fervently.”
This is just one reason to be baptized for the remission of your sins. The
things mentioned above are easy to do.
The second part is to have your sins washed away. Think of sin as a
disease that is washed away when we are baptized. For example, in Matthew
chapter 9 and verse 2 it says:
“And, behold, they brought to him a man sick of the palsy, lying on a bed:
and Jesus seeing their faith said unto the sick of the palsy; Son, be of good cheer;
thy sins have been forgiven thee.”
The man with palsy is like a man living in sin. Now in reality a person living
with a sickness is not really living in sin, but this shows that in example form
they are somewhat the same. Jesus healed the palsy man and in example this
was like being baptized.
The third part is being added to the church. Acts 2:47 says: “And the
Lord added to the church daily, such as should be saved.” Paul said, “For by one
Spirit we are baptized into one body” (1 Corinthians 12:13). Paul also said that
Christ “is the head of the body, the church” (Colossians 1:18). Being added to
the church by baptism is the same as being added to the kingdom of heaven
(Colossians 1:13). God wants us to be part of heaven and to do that we must
be baptized.
So in conclusion, we have seen the three easy and equally important
parts of baptism for the remission of sins. They are to obey God, have your
sins washed away and to be added to the church. We have to keep these parts
in mind when following the five steps of salvation. Thank you for your time
in reading this article.
PRESENTING THE LORD’S CHURCH
Ben Justice
Those who have read through the pages of the New Testament know one thing
for certain: YOU READ ABOUT THE LORD’S CHURCH. In this brief article,
we wish to simply let the Bible speak about the Lord’s Church.
The Lord Jesus stated in 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.” There are several important truths contained in
this passage of scripture:
1.) Jesus made the promise to build His church. Notice the future tense –
“I will.” Hence, the church was not yet a reality when Jesus spoke these
words, but would become a reality.
2.) Jesus stated that He would build His church “upon this rock.” What
does “this rock” refer to? Certainly, Jesus was not looking at some literal
rock when He stated this. Earlier, in verse 16, Peter made this great
confession: “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.” The “rock” that
Jesus would build His church upon is the great truth that Peter confessed, and
that is, Jesus is indeed “the Son of the living God.” It would be upon this
“rock” or foundation that Jesus would build His church. Paul wrote in I
Corinthians 3:11, “For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which
is Jesus Christ.” The foundation is “Jesus Christ.” There is no other foundation.
3.) Notice the singular nature of the church Jesus would build. The word
“church” is singular. Note what Jesus did not say: He did not say, “I will build
one of my churches.” He did not say, “I will build a church.” He simply stated,
“I will build my church." The church would belong to Christ. It would be the
church of the Christ.
The question is, “When did the Lord’s church actually come into
existence, that is, when was it established?”
Every time before Acts 2, the church is spoken of as still in the future.
Every time after Acts 2, the church is spoken of as actually being in existence.
Acts 2:47 says, “. . . And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be
saved.” The saved ones were added to the church by the Lord. This is the
church Jesus promised to build in Matthew 16:18. A very important point to
be made from Acts 2:47 is the fact that the saved are in the church -- not out
of it! In order to be saved, I, therefore, must be in the church. How many of
the saved are in the church? Well, all of them! There are no saved outside of
the Lord's church.
In Ephesians 5:23, Paul affirmed that Christ “is the savior of the body.”
The body is one and the same as the church, according to Ephesians 1:22-23
and Colossians 1:18. Since it is the case that Jesus is the Savior of the body,
and since it is the case that the body is the church, then it follows that Jesus
is the Savior of the church. And, according to Ephesians 4:4, “There is one
body.” Again, if the body is the church, but yet, there is one body, then it
follows that there is one church. Jesus is the Savior of it. Doesn’t it follow, as
well, that I must be in that one body -- that one church -- in order to be
saved? This coincides perfectly with Acts 2:47 that teaches the saved are in
the church.
The question is, “What did these people do to be saved?” If we can
answer that question, then why can’t we do the very same thing and that
result in us being saved and the Lord adding us to His church? (From the
Sullivan church of Christ website located at the following website address:
http://www.sullivancoc.com/)
HOW DOES ONE CONTACT THE BLOOD OF CHRIST?
Jerry D. McDonald
The blood of Christ is what actually cleanses a person from his or her sins.
We have seen in this issue, articles on how to become a Christian, why one
should be baptized and a presentation of the Lord’s church. We have seen
that a person must hear, believe, repent, confess and be baptized into Christ
for the remission of his or her sins. We have seen that this is done in
obedience to God so that our sins can be washed away and we will be added to
the Lord’s church. We have seen the distinctive nature of the Lord’s church,
that it is the one church which Jesus established on the day of Pentecost of
Acts chapter two. Now, we want to look at how a person comes into contact
with the blood of Christ.
Many do not understand why baptism is so important, which is the
reason for the articles in this issue. Some think that those who believe in
baptism for the remission of sins think that there is something in the water
which cleanses one’s soul. However, nothing is further from the truth. The
water that one is baptized in isn’t the cleansing agent. The blood of Christ
does the cleansing.
The apostle Paul wrote:“Know ye not that so many of us as were baptized
into Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by
baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the
Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been
planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his
resurrection” (Romans 6:3-5).
From this we can see that when one is baptized he is baptized into Christ’
s death and in Christ’s death we come into contact with the blood of Christ
which “cleanseth us from all sin” (1 Jno. 1:7). The water itself isn’t the
cleansing agent, but rather the blood of Christ. However, when we are
baptized we are baptized into his death and in his death we come into contact
with the blood which has the power to cleanse us from all sin.
Baptism is merely the agent which puts us into contact with the source
(the blood) so that we can be cleansed. It is no more a work than belief or
repentance are works, or even confession.
From all this we can see that baptism is important because it is done in
obedience to God, it places us into contact with Christ’s blood so that we can
have our sins washed away, by it we are in Christ and he adds us to his
distinctive church. So, is baptism important? Yes it is! It is no more
important than hearing, believing, repenting and confessing, but it is no less
important than those things either.
Back To The
Bible
P.O. Box 381
Belle, MO 65013
_____________________________________________________________________
Volume One January 15, 2007 Number Two
Back To The Bible is an evangelistic outreach for the expressed purpose of
helping people study the Bible. It is a work of the Belle church of Christ
which is located at the corner of 8th and Oak in Belle, Missouri.
Editors of this publication are Jerry McDonald and Ishmael Wilson and is
overseen by the Belle church of Christ.
You are cordially invited to all of our services and if you would like to
study the Bible with us we will be more than glad to assist you with this.
Our mailing address is the Belle church of Christ, P.O. Box 381, Belle,
MO 65013 and our phone number is (573) 859-6616.
Service Times:
Sun. Morn. Bible Study............9:30
Sun. Morn. Worship................10:30
Sun. Eve. Worship....................6:00
Wed. Eve. Bible Study..............7:30
WHAT MUST WE DO TO BE SAVED?
Ishmael Wilson
This may be one of the most important questions that one can ask. It was
asked and answered in the New Testament – Acts 2:37, 38; 16:30-33. One
may ask, “Saved from what?” Saved from our sins, sin separates us from
God (Isaiah 59:1,2). Saved from eternal death (Romans 6:23).
To answer the question “What must we do to be saved?” I would like to
use the above chart showing the steps that we must take. This will help us in
having a better understanding of God’s plan of salvation.
You may have noticed on the chart that there are five steps; three of the
steps are “UNTO” and one step is “INTO.”
Starting at the bottom of the chart we see that HEAR is the first step. It
is the duty, responsibility of the church to make known the truth, to teach
and preach the gospel (Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15,16). It is your
responsibility to hear and respond to the word that is preached:
“Without faith it is impossible to please him, for he that cometh to God
must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him”
(Hebrew 11:6) and “Faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God”
(Romans 10:17).
So we see how important that preaching and believing the gospel is:
BELIEVE, as you may notice on the chart is “UNTO” salvation.
REPENT is “UNTO.” Repentance is a change of the mind, and heart. It
is a change of life; the way one is living as is seen in the story of the prodigal
son (cf. Luke 15:11-24). Jesus said, “I tell you, Nay except ye repent, ye shall all
likewise perish” (Luke 13:3,5).
CONFESS is “UNTO.” It is a step unto salvation. Jesus said “Whosoever
therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess before my Father which
is in heaven” (Matthew 10:32).
The man from Ethiopia wanted to be baptized, but before he was baptized
he made this confession, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God” (Acts
8:37).
BAPTIZED: You may have noticed that baptism is “INTO.” This puts
one into Christ (Galatians 3:27). In Christ is where all spiritual blessings are
(Ephesians 1:3).
You may have noticed that according to the chart there are steps that we
must take before we are baptized. Baptism is the beginning of a new life.
What must one do after baptism? Live faithfully to the Lord (Romans 6:
3-5)
WHY YOU SHOULD BE BAPTIZED.
Thomas H. McDonald
Why is it that a person should be baptized? This is a valid question and will be
answered with three simple points. These points are (1) To Obey God; (2) To
Have Your Sins Washed Away and (3) To Be Added To The Church.
In 1 Peter chapter 1, verse 22 we see an example of obeying God,
“Seeing ye have purified your souls in obeying the truth through the Spirit
unto unfeigned love of the brethren, see that ye love one another with a pure heart
fervently.”
This is just one reason to be baptized for the remission of your sins. The
things mentioned above are easy to do.
The second part is to have your sins washed away. Think of sin as a
disease that is washed away when we are baptized. For example, in Matthew
chapter 9 and verse 2 it says:
“And, behold, they brought to him a man sick of the palsy, lying on a bed:
and Jesus seeing their faith said unto the sick of the palsy; Son, be of good cheer;
thy sins have been forgiven thee.”
The man with palsy is like a man living in sin. Now in reality a person living
with a sickness is not really living in sin, but this shows that in example form
they are somewhat the same. Jesus healed the palsy man and in example this
was like being baptized.
The third part is being added to the church. Acts 2:47 says: “And the
Lord added to the church daily, such as should be saved.” Paul said, “For by one
Spirit we are baptized into one body” (1 Corinthians 12:13). Paul also said that
Christ “is the head of the body, the church” (Colossians 1:18). Being added to
the church by baptism is the same as being added to the kingdom of heaven
(Colossians 1:13). God wants us to be part of heaven and to do that we must
be baptized.
So in conclusion, we have seen the three easy and equally important
parts of baptism for the remission of sins. They are to obey God, have your
sins washed away and to be added to the church. We have to keep these parts
in mind when following the five steps of salvation. Thank you for your time
in reading this article.
PRESENTING THE LORD’S CHURCH
Ben Justice
Those who have read through the pages of the New Testament know one thing
for certain: YOU READ ABOUT THE LORD’S CHURCH. In this brief article,
we wish to simply let the Bible speak about the Lord’s Church.
The Lord Jesus stated in 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.” There are several important truths contained in
this passage of scripture:
1.) Jesus made the promise to build His church. Notice the future tense –
“I will.” Hence, the church was not yet a reality when Jesus spoke these
words, but would become a reality.
2.) Jesus stated that He would build His church “upon this rock.” What
does “this rock” refer to? Certainly, Jesus was not looking at some literal
rock when He stated this. Earlier, in verse 16, Peter made this great
confession: “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.” The “rock” that
Jesus would build His church upon is the great truth that Peter confessed, and
that is, Jesus is indeed “the Son of the living God.” It would be upon this
“rock” or foundation that Jesus would build His church. Paul wrote in I
Corinthians 3:11, “For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which
is Jesus Christ.” The foundation is “Jesus Christ.” There is no other foundation.
3.) Notice the singular nature of the church Jesus would build. The word
“church” is singular. Note what Jesus did not say: He did not say, “I will build
one of my churches.” He did not say, “I will build a church.” He simply stated,
“I will build my church." The church would belong to Christ. It would be the
church of the Christ.
The question is, “When did the Lord’s church actually come into
existence, that is, when was it established?”
Every time before Acts 2, the church is spoken of as still in the future.
Every time after Acts 2, the church is spoken of as actually being in existence.
Acts 2:47 says, “. . . And the Lord added to the church daily such as should be
saved.” The saved ones were added to the church by the Lord. This is the
church Jesus promised to build in Matthew 16:18. A very important point to
be made from Acts 2:47 is the fact that the saved are in the church -- not out
of it! In order to be saved, I, therefore, must be in the church. How many of
the saved are in the church? Well, all of them! There are no saved outside of
the Lord's church.
In Ephesians 5:23, Paul affirmed that Christ “is the savior of the body.”
The body is one and the same as the church, according to Ephesians 1:22-23
and Colossians 1:18. Since it is the case that Jesus is the Savior of the body,
and since it is the case that the body is the church, then it follows that Jesus
is the Savior of the church. And, according to Ephesians 4:4, “There is one
body.” Again, if the body is the church, but yet, there is one body, then it
follows that there is one church. Jesus is the Savior of it. Doesn’t it follow, as
well, that I must be in that one body -- that one church -- in order to be
saved? This coincides perfectly with Acts 2:47 that teaches the saved are in
the church.
The question is, “What did these people do to be saved?” If we can
answer that question, then why can’t we do the very same thing and that
result in us being saved and the Lord adding us to His church? (From the
Sullivan church of Christ website located at the following website address:
http://www.sullivancoc.com/)
HOW DOES ONE CONTACT THE BLOOD OF CHRIST?
Jerry D. McDonald
The blood of Christ is what actually cleanses a person from his or her sins.
We have seen in this issue, articles on how to become a Christian, why one
should be baptized and a presentation of the Lord’s church. We have seen
that a person must hear, believe, repent, confess and be baptized into Christ
for the remission of his or her sins. We have seen that this is done in
obedience to God so that our sins can be washed away and we will be added to
the Lord’s church. We have seen the distinctive nature of the Lord’s church,
that it is the one church which Jesus established on the day of Pentecost of
Acts chapter two. Now, we want to look at how a person comes into contact
with the blood of Christ.
Many do not understand why baptism is so important, which is the
reason for the articles in this issue. Some think that those who believe in
baptism for the remission of sins think that there is something in the water
which cleanses one’s soul. However, nothing is further from the truth. The
water that one is baptized in isn’t the cleansing agent. The blood of Christ
does the cleansing.
The apostle Paul wrote:“Know ye not that so many of us as were baptized
into Christ were baptized into his death? Therefore we are buried with him by
baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the
Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been
planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his
resurrection” (Romans 6:3-5).
From this we can see that when one is baptized he is baptized into Christ’
s death and in Christ’s death we come into contact with the blood of Christ
which “cleanseth us from all sin” (1 Jno. 1:7). The water itself isn’t the
cleansing agent, but rather the blood of Christ. However, when we are
baptized we are baptized into his death and in his death we come into contact
with the blood which has the power to cleanse us from all sin.
Baptism is merely the agent which puts us into contact with the source
(the blood) so that we can be cleansed. It is no more a work than belief or
repentance are works, or even confession.
From all this we can see that baptism is important because it is done in
obedience to God, it places us into contact with Christ’s blood so that we can
have our sins washed away, by it we are in Christ and he adds us to his
distinctive church. So, is baptism important? Yes it is! It is no more
important than hearing, believing, repenting and confessing, but it is no less
important than those things either.
Back To The
Bible
P.O. Box 381
Belle, MO 65013
| "Sanctify them through thy truth, thy word is truth" (Jno. 17:17). bellecofc@centurytel.net |
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