No Need of Salvation? - A Sampling of Websites Among churches of Christ

There was a time when nearly every Christian could share the gospel plan of salvation with anyone who would listen,  Not only that, numerous persons in every congregation were "at the ready" to study the Bible with anyone, anywhere, anytime.  Sadly, times may have changed.  For the last twenty years or so most every congregation has posted and maintained a website.  The website is a snapshot of one individual congregation of the churches of Christ (Romans 16.16) and is a reflection of the spiritual health and teaching found there.  

The other day, I viewed three websites of prominent "churches of Christ" (1) in three cities (2) that openly espouse Calvinist / Baptist error on the subject of salvation.  All three state without

equivocation that salvation comes to one without and prior to baptism.(3)  In other words, baptism is simply an "outward sign of an inward grace."  Disturbed, I began to wonder, "Just how prominent is this sectarian error among us?"  "How can we know?"  I needed a sample, a sample that everyone would agree that it was not random on my part.  Where would I find such an objective sample? I decided to list every congregation mentioned in the current issue of the Christian Chronicle for any reason.  Though my count may be off somewhat, I found 42 congregations mentioned by name.  I proceeded to look up the 42 congregations and discover for myself what kind of salvational message each one had on their respective websites.  I then grouped the 42 into 5 separate categories based upon what I discovered.  Here they are:

1. NO - No website
2. N/A - No salvational message of any kind
3. AMB - A salvational message written in ambiguous language that contains some Bible and some Calvinism.  These salvational messages seem to want to have in both ways, "Calvin and Christ"
4. BIB - A salvational message consistent with what the New Testament teaches.
5. BAP - A salvational message clearly Calvinist and clearly anti-biblical.

The results are not encouraging.  Of those 42 congregations:

• 11 congregations have a clearly articulated and biblical salvational message clearly stating that "baptism is for the remission of sins."  This is where the "good news" ends.
• 11 congregations have no websites whatsoever.
• 9 congregations have no salvational message of any kind.  In other words these 9 websites do not answer the question of the ages; "What must I do to be saved?"
• 9 congregations have a salvational message that contains "some Bible" and some "Calvinism."
• 2 congregations have a clearly articulated Baptist / Calvinist salvational message in clear contradiction with Scripture.

Here are the chilling conclusions:

• In this sample, only about 26% of all the congregations mentioned by name in the current (August, 2018) edition of the Christian Chronicle have communicated the gospel message on their websites.
• An equal amount of about 26% of the 42 congregations mentioned have no kind of website at all!
• Another approx. 21% of the 42 congregations mentioned have no salvational message whatsoever!
• Disturbingly, yet another approx. 21% of the mentioned congregations have an ambiguous salvational message, mixing Christ and Calvin.
• At least honestly, an approx. 5% of mentioned congregations openly admit their Baptist / Calvin error by publishing it on their website in a "salvational message."

What does this say about churches of Christ in America?  Can God be pleased when 75% of these "mentioned congregations" either have no website at all, have no salvational message at all, have mixed "Christ and Calvin" in a synchronistic Yahweh / Baal kind of way, or have apostated completely from the Truth by teaching the "doctrines of men?"

Simply, these say that each and every eldership must monitor and revamp their website to biblically answer the question of the ages; "What must I do to be saved?"  Each and every eldership must purge it's website of all Calvinist teaching.  Each and every congregation must make sure that no elder, no deacon, no preacher, no Bible school teacher, or anyone else openly articulates Calvinistic error.  God help us!

NOTES:

(1)  Though their salvational statements are consistent with the teachings of the Baptist Church and other "evangelical" sectarian bodies, these congregations continue to promote themselves as what they once were but are no longer.... "churches of Christ." 

(2) These 3 are: The Providence Road "church of Christ" in Charlotte, NC, the Williamsburg "church of Christ" in Williamsburg, VA, and the Madison "church of Christ" in Madison (Nashville), TN.  

(3) Here are the specific links to which I refer:

a. http://prcoc.org/new/new-life - "If you have accepted Jesus Christ as your Lord and      Savior, then your are ready to be baptized,  Just like a bride and groom show others their love for one another by a wedding ceremony, your baptism is your opportunity to show others that you trust in Christ and are now walking with Him,,, It is a pronouncement of belief.  It is like preaching a visual sermon.  It is a public way of saying to everyone that you have decided to give your life to Jesus Christ... Baptism doesn't make you a believer it shows that your already believe.  The Bible teaches that faith in Christ is the source of our salvation.  Baptism is the biblical response to saving faith.  It is the visible symbol of the commitment you make in your heart....Does water baptism save me?  No.  Scripture is abundantly clear that only Jesus saves (Acts 4.12).  Faith in His actions is the heart of our salvation.  The work of salvation is a finished work by Christ on the cross (Hebrews 9.23 - 28; 10.10 - 14).  Baptism has no redemptive powers of it's own.  There is nothing special about the water in the river, pond or baptistery."

b. https://www.williamsburgcoc.org/baptism  - A very similar statement to Providence Road's appears on the Williamsburg website as you can see by the link.

c. http://www.madisonchurchtn.org/what-we-believe/- "SALVATION BY GRACE THROUGH FAITH - We believe in the salvation of sinners by grace through repentance and faith in the perfect and sufficient work of the cross of Calvary by which we obtain remission of sins.  (Ephesians 2.8 - 9; Hebrews 9.12, 22; Romans 5.11).  WATER BAPTISM - We believe in the necessity of water baptism by immersion in the Name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit in order to fulfill the command of Christ. (Matthew 28.19; Acts 2.37 - 39; 19.1 - 6).

NOTE: Public Domain Image of John Calvin Courtesy of Wikipedia.  "Church of Christ" photograph courtesy of the Archdale church of Christ, Charlotte, NC.

The Hallowed Name of God

God is not limited to just one name.  The OT lists at least 21 formal names for God.  We serve and pray to a God who is intrinsically and definitionaly Holy.  Anything else and / or anyone else is only declaratively holy.  God must declare it to make it so.  Holiness can never be self obtained.  In this lesson on prayer, we learn that the God to whom we pray is the only Father, the only Hallowed One, and has many powerful Names for His Infinite Holiness.

LISTEN! now on SOUNDCLOUD!

https://soundcloud.com/archdale-church-of-christ/sounds-from-sunday-evening

It's WHEN We Pray, Not IF We Pray!

LISTEN! to this sermon on SOUNDCLOUD!

https://soundcloud.com/archdale-church-of-christ/its-when-not-if-you-pray-032518-russell-h-mccullough-archdale-church-of-christ

Outline:

“From Ulster Plantation to the Carolina’s with the Gospel!” *

Russell H. McCullough / Archdale church of Christ, 2525 Archdale Drive, Charlotte, NC 28210

www.archdale.org / gospelcall.blogspot.com - Date:  25 March 2018

Text: Matthew 6.5 - 13

Thesis:  Prayer is to the soul as breathing is to the body.  Breathing is not optional, and neither is prayer!

Introduction

          Sing: “How Long Has It Been?”

          Read the Words to the Song

          Luke 11 – “Teach us to pray”

          Matthew 6 – In the middle of the Sermon on the Mount

* Prayer is to be taught but more important, it is to be lived.

F. B. Meyer – “The greatest tragedy of life is not unanswered prayer, but unoffered prayer.”

Please stand:

Our Most Kind and Gracious Heavenly Father;

As we study the prayer that Jesus taught us, may we with broken and contrite hearts seek Your Presence in prayer with the breath of our lungs as we receive the Breath of Your Word from the Scriptures.  Forgive us not for what we say in prayer but, for not saying it more often.

In the Name of Jesus Christ;

And All the church said; AMEN

Please be seated:

William Law – “Prayer is the nearest approach to God and the highest enjoyment of Him that we are capable of in this life.”

          Jesus makes 3 points as He introduces the Disciples Prayer

1.   It’s WHEN not IF

2.   Don’t Pray like this

3.   Do Pray like this

I It’s WHEN not IF We Pray!

A.  That Christians not pray is not in the equation of Christ at all.

B.  The question before us today is NOT “when should we pray?” but rather, “when should we NOT be praying[RM1] ?!”

C.   The fact remains though, we are not typically praying people.  Why not?

D.  Why do Christians fail to pray?

1.   They don’t really believe.

a.   God and / or prayer

b.   We really don’t believe “that God is and He is the rewarder of those that diligently seek Him.”

2.   They neglect the assembly

a.   I Corinthians 11.30 – “That is why many of you are weak and ill, and some have died.”

1)  Dead people don’t breathe, dead Christians don’t pray.

3.   They feel guilty about something.

4.   They are afraid God is angry with them.

5.   They feel awkward.

6.   They feel embarrassed

7.   They don’t know what to say or how to say it.

8.   They are afraid God won’t answer their prayers.

9.   They are afraid God WILL answer their prayers!

E.   George Herbert: “Prayer is the key to the day and the lock of the night.”

F.   BREATHING IS NOT OPTIONAL, AND NEITHER IS PRAYER

II Pray Not Like This – READ Matthew 6.5 - 8

A.  We automatically discount this portion for no one in our society is admired for public praying.

1.   BUT, should we ignore this?

B.  When praying publicly, we often word things in certain ways so we will meet 3^rd party expectations.

C.   When praying either publicly or privately, we often say things in such a way to make sure we “say it the right way” so God won’t “hang up the phone on us.”

D.  When praying publicly, we often word things in such a way so as not to offend someone in our hearing[RM2] , or to please someone in our hearing.

E.   We must pray always regardless of how we feel spiritually, physically, mentally, psychologically or any other way and NOT give in to changes based upon any other person’s expectations.

F.   Albert Mohler – “Authentic prayer is never about impressing anyone (for any reason.)”

G.  BREATHING IS NOT OPTIONAL, AND NEITHER IS PRAYER

III Pray Like This – READ Matthew 6.9

A.  Charles Sprugeon, the English Baptist preacher of the 19^th century once said; “I would just as soon pray with a machine as to sing with one.”  

1.   Rout praying, like an instrument, is mechanical.

2.   Mechanical prayers are liturgical.

a.   “The Book of Common Prayer”

3.   There is no kind of liturgical worship patterned for us in the New Testament.

4.   The Disciples Prayer is not liturgical and was never meant to be by Jesus.  It was instead, a guide for spontaneous, heartfelt, and sincere prayers for the saints of all time.

5.   How do we know this?

6.   We know this because of Jesus’ very precise use of the compound Greek word, houto, rendered “like this,” “in this manner,” or “after this manner.”

a.   Per Strong’s: “In this way, after this manner, like, on this fashion, in like manner, thus.”

b.   Christians are not robots and Jesus did not teach us to pray like robots.

B.  BREATHING IS NOT OPTIONAL, AND NEITHER IS PRAYER

Let us pray:

Our Most Divine and Majestic Heavenly Father;

May we this day and every day pray to You often as we should.  May we never seek the favor or permission of any human for what we say to You in private or in public.  May we pray as Jesus taught us to.  May our prayers never be mechanical or artificial.  May we approach You in prayer always even if we are fearful.  Even if we are feeling awkward.  Even if we feel guilt and remorse.  Even when the words won’t come.  Even when we are embarrassed.  Even when we are weakened by fear and doubt.  May we hurry to prayer especially when we are tempted by our weaknesses.  Forgive us Lord and draw us near to Your heart.

In the Name of Jesus, we pray;

And all the church said; AMEN

CONCLUSION:

The Word of God is our conclusion today: “The Lord is far from the wicked, but He hears the prayer of the righteous.” – Proverbs 15.29

The Challenge of the Text for Christians Today – TO PRAY LIKE JESUS TAUGHT US AS BREATHING IS NOT OPTIONAL, and NEITHER IS PRAYING!

“The Gospel Call” – If you are not a Christian, you cannot pray “Our Father.”  Therefore: “Repent, everyone of you, and be baptized in the Name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” – Acts 2.38

·         My fifth great uncle was Hugh Gaston who was rector at the Ballywillan Presbyterian Church (pictured above left) in County Antrim, Ulster Plantation (Northern Ireland) and wrote the most dangerous book of his time; Gaston’s Collections.  It allowed “the ploughman to know more Bible than his clergyman.”  Hugh fled to South Carolina where he died prematurely of the measles.  He is buried just one hour south of Charlotte in Chester County, S.C. in “Burnt Meeting House Cemetery.”   Uncle Hugh continues to inspire my ministry to this very day.  You can read more about Uncle Hugh here: http://www.ballywillanpci.org/rev-hugh-gaston

Ruins photo courtesy of: ballywillanpci.org.

---

 [RM1]

 [RM2]

Our Contrasting Walks - Bible Lesson & Answer Grid for FREE & Public Use

Ephesians

Paul’s Greatest Church Planting Success

 14 March 2018

Archdale church of Christ – Russ McCullough

Lesson # 12 – Ephesians 5.3 – 5.17

1.     How is the word “but” used in transition between vs. 2 and 3?

2.     The phrase “sexual immorality” is better translated F___________________

The Greek for this word is P______________ from which we get our English word P_________________.  It is an all inclusive word that describes A_____ sexual contact of A_______ outside of the marriage of one man to one woman.  This includes all forms of H__________________.

3.     What other two things must be avoided?

4.     How much variance in this decree is noted?

5.     Define, then, what is “proper among saints?”

6.     What 3 things are “out of place?”

7.     Replacing all of these things is T____________________.

8.     Discuss how that when there is thanksgiving that this battles all that is evil.

9.     Who has no inheritance in the Kingdom?

10. How is idolatry considered the same as covetousness?

11. The so-called “Word of Faith” movement is I_______________ for it is based on C__________________.

12. What kind of words deceive?  Give some examples of some of these kinds of words in our society.

13. Why is all of this so vitally important?

14. What does the word “associate” mean in vs. 7?  A better translation might be P________________ which literally means Co P___________________.

15. How does Paul use “Hebrew Parallelism” (C____________) in vs. 8?

16. How are we to walk?

17. How does Paul define this “fruit of the light?”

18. What are we to actively and continually to do?

19. How much darkness are we to allow into our world view?

20. What is a Christian need to do when confronting darkness?

21. How does one go about “exposing darkness” in the public square?

22. What is shameful for a Christian?

23. What happens when the light exposes these sins?  What (who) is the light?

24. The light, then, is actually the S________________ and we are but the V_____________ through which the light shines.

25. We are, therefore, to look C______________, how we W___________, not as U___________ but as W__________.

26. Why?

27. We escape foolishness when?

                                                      ANSWER GRID:

1.     How is the word “but” used in transition between vs. 2 and 3?

It contrasts the walk of the Godly and the un-godly

2.     The phrase “sexual immorality” is better translated F___________________

The Greek for this word is P______________ from which we get our English word P_________________.  It is an all-inclusive word that describes A_____ sexual contact of A_______ outside of the marriage of one man to one woman.  This includes all forms of H__________________.

Fornication, Porneia, Pornography, All, Any, Homosexuality

3.     What other two things must be avoided?

Impurity, Covetousness

4.     How much variance in this decree is noted?

None

5.     Define, then, what is “proper among saints?”

The absence of all the above

6.     What 3 things are “out of place?”

Filthiness, Foolish Talk, Crude Joking

7.     Replacing all of these things is T____________________.

Thanksgiving

8.     Discuss how that when there is thanksgiving that this battles all that is evil.

See Romans 1.21 & Ecclesiastes 12.13 – 14.   A truly thankful person is a God-fearer

9.     Who has no inheritance in the Kingdom?

The Fornicator, The Impure, and The Covetous

10. How is idolatry considered the same as covetousness?

The idol was seen as a kind of ATM machine to get what one wanted.  The idol seemed to offer man a kind of quid-pro-quo “let’s make a deal” religious program

11. What kind of words deceive?  Give some examples of some of these kinds of words in our society.

Empty, Congregational input – Hint: one example: “Missional”

12. Why is all of this so vitally important?

Because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience

13. What does the word “associate” mean in vs. 7?  A better translation might be P________________ which literally means Co P___________________.

Partaker, Co-Participant

14. How does Paul use “Hebrew Parallelism” (C____________) in vs. 8?

Contrast.  Darkness is contrasted with light

15. How are we to walk?

As children of light

16. How does Paul define this “fruit of the light?”

All that is Good, Right and True

17. What are we to actively and continually to do?

Proving what is acceptable to God / Discerning what is pleasing to God

18. How much darkness are we to allow into our world view?

None

19. What does a Christian need to do when confronting darkness?

Take no part in it and instead expose it

20. How does one go about “exposing darkness” in the public square?

Congregational response

21. What is shameful for a Christian?

To speak of what evil doers do in secret

22. What happens when the light exposes these sins?  What (who) is the light?

Evil becomes visible for what it is.  Jesus Christ per John 8.12.  Jesus Christ is the Word per John 1.1

23. The light, then, is actually the S________________ and we are but the V_____________ through which the light shines.

Scriptures, Vessels

24. We are, therefore, to look C______________, how we W___________, not as U___________ but as W__________.

Carefully, Walk, Un-wise, Wise

25. Why?

The days are evil

26. We escape foolishness when?

When we understand what the Will of the Lord is