DOES IT REALLY MATTER?
Through the years I have been asked two questions many times, “What kind of church is Restoration Fellowship?” and “What do you believe?”
Now you may say, “Does it really matter?” My answer is “Yes!” In this age of relativism and shifting attitudes toward truth itself, it is vitally important what we believe. Jude said this…
Jude 3 (NKJV) Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints.
Jude 20 (NKJV) But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith,
Faith here does not mean our personal faith in the Lord Jesus, but the body of doctrines and beliefs the Bible proclaims that defines Christianity. It is this body of truth that is the foundation of our personal faith. If the foundation is faulty, then our faith is faulty.
Matthew 7:24–27 (NKJV) Therefore whoever hears these sayings of Mine, and does them, I will liken him to a wise man who built his house on the rock: 25 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it did not fall, for it was founded on the rock. 26 “But everyone who hears these sayings of Mine, and does not do them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand: 27 and the rain descended, the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house; and it fell. And great was its fall.”
So, let me ask you, “What kind of church is Restoration Fellowship?” and “What do we believe?” Have you ever read our statement of faith! It is posted on our website. Let me read it to you from the site.
What We Believe
1. We believe the Bible to be inspired, the only infallible, authoritative Word of God, and our only guidebook to faith and practices.
2. We believe that there is only one God, eternally existent in three Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
3. We believe in the Deity of Christ, in His virgin birth, in His sinless life, in His miracles, in His vicarious and atoning death through His shed blood, in His bodily resurrection, in His ascension to the right hand of the Father to make intercession for us, and in His personal return in power and glory.
4. We believe that lost and sinful men and women must be regenerated by the Holy Spirit in the new birth in order to be at peace with God and become members of His Church.
5. We believe in the baptism of the Holy Spirit and the present ministry of the Holy Spirit, by whose indwelling the Christian is enabled to manifest both the gifts and fruits of the Spirit.
6. We believe in the resurrection of those who know Christ, and those who do not; one to eternal life in heaven, and the other to eternal death in hell.
7. We believe in the two sacraments instituted by the Lord Jesus: Water Baptism by immersion and the Lord’s Supper (Communion). Baptism is a post-salvation picture of our spiritual death, burial, and resurrection. Communion is a remembrance of His body and blood given for us in covenant.
8. We believe in the spiritual unity of all believers under the Lordship of Jesus Christ and that they constitute the Church Universal, His Bride and Body, the Fullness of Him who fills all in all. The local church is a voluntary band of baptized believers gathered together to carry out the Great Commission.
9. We believe in the personal, physical, and imminent return of Jesus Christ to the earth and the consummation of all things.
When we look at our church constitution and chartering statement, you will find some more…
10.We also believe other truths enumerated in our chartering statement:
a. The preeminence of Christ as our Divine Lord and Master
b. The right of private interpretation of Scripture
c. The competency of each person to directly approach God
d. The separation of church and state
e. The independence of the local church
f. The equality of congregational government
g. The world-wide program of missionary fervor and evangelism
During this summer, I want to help us see what kind of church we are and what we believe.
The first question is what kind of church is Restoration Fellowship?
I have always described us as a Bapticostal church: Baptist in theology and polity, charismatic in practice.
In truth, we are an independent non-denominational church who fellowship and cooperate with other churches of like faith and practice.
This is expressed clearly in our statement of faith. This gets around to question two: What do we believe?
Let’s begin with tenet #1.
1. We believe the Bible to be inspired, the only infallible, authoritative Word of God, and our only guidebook to faith and practices.
The Bible is God inspired.
2 Peter 1:20–21 (NKJV) knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, 21 for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.
1. We let the Bible speak; we do not decide what it says. We do not twist what the Bible clearly teaches in order to justify our position or justify our sin.
2. The writers were “carried along” by the Holy Spirit so that they wrote the very Words of God through their unique personalities.
3. We have an unction, an anointing, from God that allows us to know what the true meaning of the Bible is. We call this illumination.
The Bible is infallible.
The Bible contains no errors.
Psalm 119:89 (NKJV) Forever, O Lord, Your word is settled in heaven.
Psalm 119:160 (NKJV) The entirety of Your word is truth, and every one of Your righteous judgments endures forever.
Isaiah 40:8 (NKJV) The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever.”
This is important because if we believe the Bible is unreliable, then we cannot trust any of it.
The Bible is authoritative.
It judges us; we do not judge it.
Matthew 24:35 (NKJV) Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away.
Hebrews 4:12–13 (NKJV) For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. 13 And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.
1 Peter 1:23–25 (NKJV) having been born again, not of corruptible seed but incorruptible, through the word of God which lives and abides forever, 24 because “All flesh is as grass, And all the glory of man as the flower of the grass. The grass withers, And its flower falls away, 25 But the word of the Lord endures forever.”
The Bible is our only guide.
Psalm 119:105 (NKJV) Your word is a lamp to my feet And a light to my path.
Psalm 119:133 (NKJV) Direct my steps by Your word, And let no iniquity have dominion over me.
Where the Bible speaks, we speak. Where the Bible is silent, we are silent.
APPLICATION
This first tenet is the roots from which all the other tenets flow. The Word must be first! We must have a sure anchor in this world where truth is a commodity that is bought or sold to the highest bidder. Truth never changes.
Jesus declared:
John 17:17 (NKJV) Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.
James says that we can be deceived by listening to things that shift with the wind!
James 1:16–18 (NKJV) Do not be deceived, my beloved brethren. 17 Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning. 18 Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth, that we might be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures.
Do we individually and collectively live according to the dictates of the Word of God? That is the application question. Take any given area of your life. Does it line up with the Word of God? If not, why?
INSPIRATION
Matthew Emadi writes about Martin Luther.
He is the most famous of the reformers and his experience on April 16, 1521, is probably the most well-known event of the Reformation. It was the day Martin Luther stood before the Holy Roman Emperor, Charles V, at the Diet of Worms. Luther entered the city of Worms like a hero. People lined the streets, crowded the roof-tops, hung out of windows so that they might catch a glimpse of the people’s champion. But for Luther, the occasion for his coming to Worms was not a reason to celebrate. He was going to be tried for his life. The Diet of Worms would examine him for heresy, which if convicted, he would likely be burned at the stake.
So the day of his trial arrived. Luther, the son of a miner, was brought into the hall to appear before the Holy Roman Emperor himself, Charles V. Luther did not enter the Diet of Worms like the boxing heavyweight champion of the world. He did not have the eye of the tiger on his countenance. No posture of unswerving confidence, ready to defend his writings to the last breath. It appeared that he was a little nervous. Realize Charles V was thought to be “God’s Viceroy on Earth.” He was an intimidating figure viciously committed to the Roman Catholic Church. When he entered the Hall and saw Luther, Charles muttered, “That fellow will never make a heretic out of me” (Bainton, 177).
The emperor’s spokesman plopped all of Luther’s books on a table. He asked Luther if these were his writings. And Luther, in almost a whisper, admitted that the books were his. He was then asked to recant all of his writings. You know what Luther said? Let me think about it. Luther was caught off guard. He was not expecting to be asked to recant everything he had ever written. He knew the stakes were high, or should we say hot, so he needed more time to think about it. He was given one day. The next day Luther appeared again before the Holy Roman Emperor. This time he was not quiet as a mouse but bold as a Lion. He was asked to recant, and Luther announced that he would not retract his attacks against false doctrine. “Good God,” Luther said, “what sort of tool of evil and tyranny would I be” (Reeves, 15). Luther demanded that his views be refuted by Scripture. If Scripture would prove his teachings wrong, then he would burn the books himself. So one final time, the council demanded, “Will you recant your teachings?”
Here is Luther’s famous response:
Unless I am convicted by Scripture and plain reason—I do not accept the authority of popes and councils, for they have contradicted each other—my conscience is captive to the Word of God. I cannot and I will not recant anything, for to go against conscience is neither right nor safe. Here I stand, I cannot do otherwise. God help me. Amen (Bainton, 182).
Martin threw his arms up in the air and slipped out of the hall. For the rest of his life, Luther would never cease to stand on the authority of Scripture alone.
God is asking us to commit to the veracity of the Word of God and accept it as our only guide for faith and practice. Will we do it? As a people and a church?
MINISTRY TIME
POWERFUL!!!
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