By Rick Liggin
In discussing first century paganism, Merril C. Tenney made the following observation: “Paganism is the human attempt to satisfy an inner longer for God by worship of a deity which will not obstruct one’s desires for selfsatisfaction” (NEW TESTAMENT TIMES, p. 107). You see, the pagans of the New Testament world had a desire for God…but they also had personal desires. They wanted to “party” and get drunk and lay with the whore. And so, in order to satisfy both desires, they merely brought the two desires together—they made the fulfillment of their personal desires expressions of worship to the gods. The religious fertility cults, which included prostituting priestesses, and the gluttonous feasts and boisterous drinking parties in honor of the gods, are examples of this ungodly combination.
In the nearly two thousand years that have passed since the New Testament era, man has really not changed. People still want to worship God, but they don’t want that worship to get in the way of their own personal desires. And so, one can find a church today that will sanction almost any life-style he may choose (including homosexuality). The philosophy of people today is: “I’ll go to church as long as it doesn’t interfere with my life-style.” And most religious groups today have incorporated recreational activities into their religious activities. Modern man may not go as far as the New Testament pagan did, but he still goes. When will we learn? Combining carnality and spirituality simply will not work! It did not bring the pagan any closer to God, and it will not bring us any closer either!
A Unique Church
To minimize misconceptions that some people have about the “church of Christ,” it becomes necessary to compare its marks of identity with modern religious error. The “church of Christ” (i.e the church that belongs to Christ) is not…
…the building, but the Christians who worship in it. The New Testament word for “church” means an “assembly” or “group of people” (cf. 1 Corinthians 1:2; 12:27).
…a hierarchical superstructure with different “classes” of saints. All members are “brothers” (Matthew 23:8-10). Though different Christians may perform different tasks at times (Romans 12:3-8), each member is of equal importance.
…just another denomination. The denominational spirit, portrayed in terms like “divisions” (ASV) or “dissensions” (NKJV), is condemned in the Bible (Galatians 5:20). Unity among God’s people was prayed for by Jesus (John 17:20-21) and commanded by the inspired apostle Paul (1 Corinthians 1:10). We want no denominational affiliation at all. Our aim is to be the one church that Christ promised to build (see Matthew 16:18).
…a local recreational center. Since God’s kingdom is primarily spiritual in nature, predominance is given to spiritual things such as learning the Truth of God from the Bible.
…a dispenser of temporal blessings or even eternal salvation. There is only one Savior—Jesus Christ. The church is not the Savior, but rather the church is the saved (Ephesians 5:23; 2:24-27).
In short, a local church of Christ is simply a group of Christians who meet together regularly to do what God has commanded them to do as a collective group. If you would like to know more about the church you can read about in the Bible, feel free to Contact us.
Turning Towards God
“They turn, but not upward, They are like a deceitful bow; Their princes will fall by the sword Because of the insolence of their tongue. This will be their derision in the land of Egypt.”
Hosea 7:16
Often when we get ourselves into trouble or see that a certain course of action is not working out as we had hoped, planned or expected, we attempt to switch courses. We change direction, and begin moving on a different path. We hope that this will lead to satisfaction, quiet, happiness, joy, and fulfillment. Unfortunately, it is not too long before we realize that this path also leads to a dead end. And so after hitting the wall, yet again, we turn around and try to find a new path, a new approach. What we need to do is to stop turning around in circles, and instead turn upward. Turn toward God and head toward Him on the path that He has outlined for us in His word. As long as we persist in turning, but not upward, we will continue the futile struggle of seeking for something more that cannot be found outside of God.
Just something to think about.
This bulletin is being published for the purpose of encouraging a further study of the Word of God. Editor – Josh Liggin
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