Abide and Walk

He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.

I John 2:6 (NKJV)

If someone were to ask for a show of hands as to who abides in Christ, most likely each of us would quickly and eagerly raise our hand. But saying we abide in Christ is different than actually abiding in Christ. And the test for it, as stated here, is whether we walk as He walked. Are we living our lives in such a way that matches to Christ? Are the things we say the things that Christ would have said? Are the things we do things that Christ would have done? Or are we walking as we want to walk, and simply claiming to abide in Christ?

Confession

Christ makes very clear the necessity of confessing Christ.

Whosoever therefore shall confess me before men, him will I confess also before my Father which is in heaven. But whosoever shall deny me before men, him will I also deny before my Father which is in heaven.

Matthew 10:32-33

The implications are clear, of course. We must confess Christ if we desire eternal life. If we want to follow the Lord and be accepted by Him, we must make this confession.

We see that the confession of Christ was made by Peter in Matthew 16:16, when he stated that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God. And we see the Ethiopian Eunuch making the same confession in Acts 8:37. What we are to confess seems clear. We must confess before others that Jesus is the Christ, and that He is the Son of God.

We also learn that making this confession is a part of our salvation. In Romans 10:10, Paul writes,

For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

IF we wish to be saved, we must make a vocal confession of Him.

But is that all we have to do, as far as confessing the Christ goes? We just say once that we believe, and then no more confession Christ is required? Of course, such a thought is an absurdity. Every day of our lives should be a confession of Christ. Paul writes in II Corinthians 9:13 of the obedience that accompanies confession. And Galatians 2:20, Paul provides us with a wonderful description of what our lives should be:

I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

Are we living our lives in such a way that each day is a confession of our faith in Christ? Are we living so that Christ can be seen in us?

Verbal confession is absolutely necessary, as the Bible teaches. Likewise, a person must continue their lives in such a way that every hour of the day is a confession of the Christ. Obedience in both of these is an essential part of our salvation. Let us always remember what Christ promises to those who deny the Christ!

Is it Long Enough, or Too Long?

We all have a notion of how long sermons are supposed to last, do we not? Generally, it seems we expect a sermon to be 30-45 minutes long. Yet consider Acts 20:7, where Paul preached to midnight. Or Nehemiah 8:1-6, when the people stood for hours, listening to scripture. Or maybe we can look in Acts 2:14-36, and see how short a period of time it would take to preach this sermon (read it out loud and find out). None of these seems to fit in the 30-45 minute conception we have:yet all are examples of godly men speaking godly things, and of people learning from those lessons. Let us focus on the Word, regardless of how long or short, whether a Wednesday night or Sunday morning!

TULIP: A False Doctrine

You have probably heard of “Calvinism” or “the tulip doctrine.” TULIP is an acronym for a doctrine that was taught by John Calvin during the reformation, and continues to be taught in some form by many in the religious world today. As such, it may be useful to take a very quick look at this teaching, and compare it with what scripture says.

T – Total Depravity

Calvinism teaches that because of Adam and Eve's sin in the garden, man has been inclined, totally, toward evil and that man cannot accomplish good. It is often also taught as a doctrine identical to that of original sin: that because Adam sinned, we are all guilty of that sin until the point of salvation.

Yet the Bible Says:

The soul that sinneth, it shall die. The son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son: the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him. (Ezekiel 18:20)

Lo, this only have I found, that God hath made man upright; but they have sought out many inventions.(Ecclesiastes 7:29)

U – Unconditional Election

This doctrine teaches that God chooses which individuals will be saved in advance: that salvation is not based on human merit or action, but rather on God's predestined decisions. In other words, God has chosen and individuals have no say in their salvation.

Yet the Bible Says:

And if ye call on the Father, who without respect of persons judgeth according to every man's work, pass the time of your sojourning here in fear: (I Peter 1:17)

And the times of this ignorance God winked at; but now commandeth all men every where to repent: (Acts 17:30)

L – Limited Atonement

Limited Atonement is the teaching, based off the previous point, that only those who God has chosen to save can be saved, because it was only for those individuals that God sent Christ to earth to die for.

Yet the Bible Says:

For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that which was lost. (Luke 19:10)

And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.(I John 2:2)

I – Irresistible Grace

This teaches that man cannot resist the Holy Spirit.

Yet the Bible Says:

Ye stiffnecked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost: as your fathers did, so do ye.(Acts 17:51)

P – Perseverance of the Saints

This doctrine teaches that once a person is in a saved condition, they cannot lose that salvation: there is no way to “fall away.” And, if someone falls away, well, they must not have been saved to begin with.

Yet the Bible Says:

Christ is become of no effect unto you, whosoever of you are justified by the law; ye are fallen from grace.(Galatians 5:4)

Ye therefore, beloved, seeing ye know these things before, beware lest ye also, being led away with the error of the wicked, fall from your own stedfastness. (II Peter 3:17)

Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God. (Hebrews 3:12)

Calvinism, the TULIP doctrine, is a false doctrine from start to finish, teaching error. It is something we must be careful not to fall into. It can be easy to think there may be truth in it, as it is taught by so many. But remember, few are those who walk the straight and narrow path! (Matthew 7:14)