Author: Richard Bargas

The True Church

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On Sunday mornings at our church we have been going through the book of Acts. Right now, we are looking at the characteristics of the Church given at the end of chapter 4. Today I came across this gem by Bishop J.C. Ryle, included in R.A. Torrey’s collection of essays known as The Fundamentals. I have given the full text below (it’s pretty short) for your edification. It is a powerful reminder of the beauty and unity of the True Church of Jesus Christ. Enjoy.

THE TRUE CHURCH
by the Late Bishop Ryle

Do you belong to the one true Church; to the Church outside of which there is no salvation? I do not ask where you go on Sunday; I only ask, “Do you belong to the one true Church?”

Where is this one true Church? What is this one true Church like? What are the marks by which this one true Church may be known? You may well ask such questions. Give me your attention, and I will provide you with some answers.

The one true Church is composed of all believers in the Lord Jesus. It is made up of all God’s elect—of all converted men and women—of all true Christians. In whomsoever we can discern the election of God the Father, the sprinkling of the blood of God the Son, the sanctifying work of God the Spirit, in that person we see a member of Christ’s true Church.

It is a Church of which all the members have the same marks. They are all born of the Spirit; they all possess “repentance towards God, faith towards our Lord Jesus Christ,” and holiness of life and conversation. They all hate sin, and they all love Christ. They worship differently and after various fashions; some worship with a form of prayer, and some with none; some worship kneeling, and some standing; but they all worship with one heart. They are all led by one Spirit; they all build upon one foundation; they all draw their religion from one single Book—that is the Bible. They are all joined to one great center—that is Jesus Christ. They all even now can say with one heart, “Hallelujah”; and they can all respond with one heart and voice, “Amen and Amen.”

It is a Church which is dependent upon no ministers upon earth, however much it values those who preach the Gospel to its members. The life of its members does not hang upon church-membership, and baptism, and the Lord’s Supper—although they highly value these things, when they are to be had. But it has only one great Head—one Shepherd, one chief Bishop—and that is Jesus Christ. He alone, by His Spirit, admits the members of this Church, though ministers may show the door. Till He opens the door no man on earth can open it—neither bishops nor presbyters, nor convocations, nor synods. Once let a man repent and believe the Gospel, and that moment he becomes a member of this Church. Like the penitent thief, he may have no opportunity of being baptized; but he has that which is far better than any water-baptism—the baptism of the Spirit. He may not be able to receive the bread and wine in the Lord’s Supper; but he eats Christ’s body and drinks Christ’s blood by faith every day he lives, and no minister on earth can prevent him. He may be excommunicated by ordained men, and cut off from the outward ordinances of the professing Church; but all the ordained men in the world cannot shut him out of the true Church.

It is a Church whose existence does not depend on forms, ceremonies, cathedrals, churches, chapels, pulpits, fonts, vestments, organs, endowments, money, kings, governments, magistrates, or any act of favor whatsoever from the hand of man. It has often lived on and continued when all these things have been taken from it; it has often been driven into the wilderness or into dens and caves of the earth, by those who ought to have been its friends. Its existence depends on nothing but the presence of Christ and His Spirit; and they being ever with it, the Church cannot die.

This is the Church to which the Scriptural titles of present honor and privilege, and the promises of future glory, especially belong; this is the body of Christ; this is the flock of Christ; this is the household of faith and the family of God; this is God’s building, God’s foundation, and the temple of the Holy Ghost. This is the Church of the first-born, whose names are written in heaven; this is the royal priesthood, the chosen generation, the peculiar people, the purchased possession, the habitation of God, the light of the world; the salt and the wheat of the earth; this is the “Holy Catholic Church” of the Apostle’s Creed; this is the “One Catholic and Apostolic Church” of the Nicene Creed; this is that Church to which the Lord Jesus promises, “the gates of hell shall not prevail against it”, and to which He says, “I am with you always, even unto the end of the world” (Matt. 16:18; 28:20).

This is the only Church which possesses true unity. Its members are entirely agreed on all the weightier matters of religion, for they are all taught by one Spirit. About God, and Christ, and the Spirit, and sin, and their own hearts, and faith, and repentance, and necessity of holiness, and the value of the Bible, and the importance of prayer, and the resurrection, and judgment to come—about all these points they are of one mind. Take three or four of them, strangers to one another, from the remotest corners of the earth; examine them separately on these points; you will find them all of one judgment.

This is the only Church which possesses true sanctity. Its members are all holy. They are not merely holy by profession, holy in name, and holy in the judgment of charity; they are all holy in act, and deed, and reality, and life, and truth. They are all more or less conformed to the image of Jesus Christ. No unholy man belongs to this Church.

This is the only Church which is truly catholic It is not the Church of any one nation or people; its members are to be found in every part of the world where the Gospel is received and believed. It is not confined within the limits of any one country, or pent up within the pale of any particular forms or outward government. In it there is no difference between Jew and Greek, black man and white, Episcopalian and Presbyterian—but faith in Christ is all. Its members will be gathered from north, and south, and east, and west, in the last day, and will be of every name and tongue—but all one in Jesus Christ.

This is the only Church which is truly apostolic. It is built on the foundation laid by the Apostles, and holds the doctrines which they preached. The two grand objects at which its members aim are apostolic faith and apostolic practice; and they consider the man who talks of following the Apostles without possessing these two things to be no better than sounding brass and a tinkling cymbal.

This is the only Church which is certain to endure unto the end. Nothing can altogether overthrow and destroy it. Its members may be persecuted, oppressed, imprisoned, beaten, beheaded, burned; but the true Church is never altogether extinguished; it rises again from its afflictions; it lives on through fire and water. The Pharaohs, the Herods, the Neros, the bloody Marys, have labored in vain to put down this Church; they slay their thousands, and then pass away and go to their own place. The true Church outlives them all and sees them buried each in his turn. It is an anvil that has broken many a hammer in this world, and will break many a hammer still; it is a bush which, often burning, yet is not consumed.

This is the Church which does the work of Christ upon earth. Its members are a little flock, and few in number, compared with the children of the world; one or two here, and two or three there. But these are they who shake the universe; these are they who change the fortunes of kingdoms by their prayers; these are they who are the active workers for spreading the knowledge of pure religion and undefiled; these are the life-blood of a country, the shield, the defense, the stay and the support of any nation to which they belong.

This is the Church which shall be truly glorious at the end. When all earthly glory is passed away then shall this Church be presented without spot before God the Father’s throne. Thrones, principalities, and powers upon earth shall come to nothing; but the Church of the first-born shall shine as the stars at the last, and be presented with joy before the Father’s throne, in the day of Christ’s appearing. When the Lord’s jewels are made up, and the manifestation of the sons of God takes place, one Church only will be named, and that is the Church of the elect.

Reader, this is the true Church to which a man must belong, if he would be saved. Till you belong to this, you are nothing better than a lost soul. You may have countless outward privileges; you may enjoy great light, and knowledge—but if you do not belong to the body of Christ, your light, and knowledge, and privileges, will not save your soul. Men fancy if they join this church or that church, and become communicants, and go through certain forms, that all must be right with their souls. All were not Israel who were called Israel, and all are not members of Christ’s body who profess themselves Christians. Take notice, you may be a staunch Episcopalian, or Presbyterian, or Independent, or Baptist, or Wesleyan, or Plymouth Brother—and yet not belong to the true Church. And if you do not, it will be better at last if you had never been born.

Godliness through Discipline

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godliness

Do you remember the last time that you left a church service fired up to change? You were determined to be different. “This time,” you said, “I mean it; I am going to become the person that God wants me to be!” By Tuesday the fire had burned out….[1]

Here it is, another bright and crisp New Year’s day. Scores of Christians have made some pretty serious commitments to “get things right in their lives.” New Year’s resolutions are riddled with renewed commitments to Bible reading, prayer, fasting, church attendance, sharing their faith, and countless other stuff Christians believe are important. But like Jay Adams wrote above, it doesn’t take long to lose steam.

May I humbly suggest something? Godliness doesn’t come merely through human effort and goal setting. Holiness requires the empowering of the Holy Spirit acting in concert with the efforts of the believer. All too often, the Christians that I know (and I must include myself in this), find themselves frustrated because they either strive for holiness without a full-hearted dependence upon the Spirit’s assistance, or they leave all the heavy lifting to the Spirit and think that He will somehow zap them with godliness with little effort on their part.

So, as you write up your lists of resolutions to be more disciplined toward godliness this year, prayerfully seek the power of the Spirit to carry those goals out. Then roll up your proverbial sleeves and put in the holy sweat that God requires of all who strive for godliness.

Happy New Year!

[1] Jay Adams, Godliness Through Discipline, P&R, 1972; 1. [I highly recommend this little booklet!]

Beware of Tempting, Sinful Morsels

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“Sinful morsels, though sweet in the mouth, turn out to be poison in the bowels: if we wantonly give a portion of our strength to sin, it will by and by take the remainder from us.” C.H. Spurgeon

Why Doctrine Is Worth Fighting For

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Ali

A few years ago I read this headline in my local newspaper. As a pastor, it grabbed my attention immediately. It said: INSTRUMENTS STOLEN FROM 5 MANHATTAN BEACH CHURCHES

It told the story of how 5 local churches had been robbed in the period of one week. They took guitars, keyboards, ukuleles, drums, a tambourine, a mixing machine, audio and video equipment, projectors, laptop computers, microphones and speakers. They cleaned out those churches.

The worst part is that it seems that the thieves got access to the church through unlocked windows and doors. They just walked right in!

I would like to suggest to you that as sad as it is that a church was robbed partially due to its own negligence, there is a greater danger that is facing the church—the danger of giving up the foundational doctrines that under gird our faith. And much like these robberies in the South Bay, the church and each of us as members of the body of Christ are too often leaving to windows and doors open and allowing the thieves in.

The book of 1 Timothy is rightly considered a Pastoral Epistle, designed to instruct Pastors in leading Christ’s church. But that is not its only purpose. 1Tim 3:15 gives us the undergirding reason for us to look at this book-To know how we should behave in God’s House.

In this post I would like to focus on one aspect of this behavior—our attitude toward guarding the church’s doctrinal integrity.

“This charge I entrust to you, Timothy, my child, in accordance with the prophecies previously made about you, that by them you may wage the good warfare, holding faith and a good conscience. By rejecting this, some have made shipwreck of their faith, among whom are Hymenaeus and Alexander, whom I have handed over to Satan that they may learn not to blaspheme.” 1Timothy 1:18-20 ESV

From this passage I want to share with you three reasons why true doctrine is worth fighting for so that we might join in the battle for truth.

It Is A Precious Trust (v. 18)

We put alarms on cars, homes, & banks, but not on trash dumpsters, junked cars and abandoned homes. We guard what we value. We protect what we cherish. In 1Timothy 1:15-17, Paul gives us the essence of the Gospel message and his own personal example of its effect upon his life. Inherent in Paul’s words was the assumption that the truth of God’s Word is so valuable that it needs to be guarded. Not a passive guarding, like those security guards you see who only have a flashlight to stop an armed robber. No, Paul calls Timothy to wage war with the enemies of the cross—he calls this war “good” or “noble.” So what do we need to protect the gospel from three danger:

Guard It Against Being Watered Down: “for I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27). Paul didn’t fear the opinions of man so that he tailored his words to fit what they wanted to hear. He told them what the Ephesian church what they needed to hear.

Guard It Against Being Changed: “I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting him who called you in the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel— not that there is another one, but there are some who trouble you and want to distort the gospel of Christ” (Gal 1:6-7). A different gospel is really no gospel at all. We need to guard against the subtle and not-so-subtle changes that are assaulting the Gospel.

Guard It Against Being Set Aside: “For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.” (2Tim 4:3-4). Moving past the Gospel to something that is better? That was the attitude in Paul’s day, and many today hold the same sentiment.

D.A. Carson reminds us of this concern when he writes,

“I fear that the cross, without ever being disowned, is constantly in danger of being dismissed from the central place it must enjoy, by relatively peripheral insights that take on far too much weight. Whenever the periphery is in danger of displacing the center, we are not far removed from idolatry.” (The Cross & Christian Ministry, 38).

This is a most subtle danger, and this makes it all the more insidious. It does not ask the gospel to be watered down or changed, it just adds on to and covers over the gospel and claims to be better than God gave it to us. This was what the Pharisees did. Jesus said “You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men.” (Mark 7:8)

It like when I was in high school and my dad gave me this ’71 VW beetle. I loved reading the magazine Hot VW’s and seeing the way people “improved” on the original designs. Some guys reworked their cars so much that in reality they weren’t even VW Beetles anymore. They may have had some pieces of the original car, but most of the original was set aside for an after-market part.

The same can and is done to the gospel. People try to make it look cooler and more appealing. They remove sin and hell or add cussing and tattoos. Others add man-made rules a requirement for heaven. These are all cheap add-ons to the real Gospel and it impedes its work.

There are other ways that the Gospel is attacked, but here we have three strategies used by our enemy in order to tone down the message of the cross: Water it down, change it, or set it aside.

How can you personally guard this precious trust? By knowing the gospel, by proclaiming the gospel and by living the gospel. It is the word preached and taught that guards us from being tossed about in the waves of false doctrine and lying schemes. So:

Get to church. Just because your body is there doesn’t mean your heart and mind are.  God has given us teachers to help keep us grounded in good, solid doctrine.

 Guard Your Heart. Just because a preacher is funny or a book is popular or a YouTube clip of a speaker gets a million hits doesn’t mean it’s spiritually healthy. Learn discernment so that you can avoid being another casualty of false teaching.

Grow Theologically. You may not be a Bible or theology scholar, but if you are a Christian you have the Holy Spirit as your teacher. You need to grow deeper roots in your faith so that you will see the next guy that comes along with a new discovery from the Bible a mile away.

False teachers produce false teachers. Their heresy spreads like gangrene producing more and more ungodliness. Those like Hymenaeus (v. 20) are not satisfied with keeping their false doctrines to themselves. They are impelled to spread them amidst the church.

Therefore the church needs to guard against these wolves in sheep’s clothing. This might seem harsh in a church culture that doesn’t like to confront sin, but it is a merciful act.

  1. It stops the influence of the heresy.
  2. It removes the divine protection that the false teachers enjoy inside the church so that he can be dealt with by Satan with the hope that he would be driven back to God (1Cor 5:5).
  3. It seeks restoration-learning not to blaspheme. This is corrective, not primarily punitive.

We’re talking about the eternal destiny of people’s souls.

Truth matters. Failure to guard the truth of the Gospel is to declare that the soul saving Gospel really isn’t that important.

Truth matters. Failure to guard the Gospel will result in a person being tossed around in a spiritual rip tide.

Truth matters. Failure to guard the truth of the Gospel will result in a shipwrecked faith and false teaches that will spread the disease even further, damning countless souls to hell.

True Doctrine Is Worth Fight For Because It Gives Divine Direction (v. 19)

For the faith, cp. 6:12.-How can we wage the good warfare when we no longer continue to believe the truth?

  1. How can we continue fighting when we no longer have a good conscience about what we believe and of whom we believe?
  2. When we lose these two, the enemy has dismantled us and made us useless.
  3. Paul says that those who had abandoned the faith have no stability for their conscience and became like a ship without a rudder for direction.
  4. Without being anchored to the truth of Jesus Christ, we wander into uncharted waters and grave dangers. This is why we need pastors and teachers:
    1. Application: When we abandon absolute truth as revealed in the Bible, we are susceptible to spiritual and doctrinal drift. How can you avoid this danger?
  1. True Doctrine Is Worth Fight For Because The Alternative Is Unthinkable (v.20)
    1. What ultimately happens to those who reject the faith and follow different doctrines, myths and speculations?
    2. Using two men as examples, Paul shows Timothy and us how serious it is when someone abandons the faith.
    3. Although the exact nature of what Alexander taught is not too clear, Hymenaeus’ involvement in revealed in 2Tim 2:16-18:
    1. Paul’s solution to this is radical surgery. To keep this gangrene of heresy from growing, Paul says in 1:20 that he needs to cut them away from the church in order to teach them not to blaspheme.
    1. Illustration: Not too long ago, there was a news story about a business that called itself the California Alternative High School who targeted people who had not finished high school and wanted to complete there education. They advertised on TV and many immigrants sought out these schools in hopes of bettering their situation in the US through education.
    1. The Truth matters. Doctrine is worth fighting for.
    2. Brothers and Sisters, guard the precious trust of the Gospel given to all of us.

Is Your God Truly Sovereign?

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“The God of many a present-day pulpit is an object of pity rather than of awe-inspiring reverence. To say that God the Father has purposed the salvation of all mankind, that God the Son died with the express intention of saving the whole human race, and that God the Holy Spirit is now seeking to win the world to Christ; when, as a matter of common observation, it is apparent that the great majority of our fellowmen are dying in sin, and passing into a hopeless eternity; is to say that God the Father is disappointed, that God the Son is dissatisfied, and that God the Holy Spirit is defeated. We have stated the issue baldly, but there is no escaping the conclusion. To argue that God is “trying His best” to save all mankind, but that the majority of men will not let Him save them, is to insist that the will of the Creator is impotent, and that the will of the creature is omnipotent. To throw the blame, as many do, upon the Devil, does not remove the difficulty, for if Satan is defeating the purpose of God, then, Satan is Almighty and God is no longer the Supreme Being.” (A.W. Pink, The Sovereignty of God)