____________________________________________________ THE GOSPEL OBSERVER ____________________________________________________ "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations...teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age" (Matthew 28:19,20). ____________________________________________________ June 22, 2003 ____________________________________________________ "Lord, To Whom Shall We Go?" (Part 2 of 2) by Tom Edwards Last week, we began considering the above question (as seen in John 6:60-69). Peter realized that it is only to the Lord that one can turn for everlasting life; but, unfortunately, many begin to follow and then fall away. In our previous lesson, we considered three reasons why some people depart: 1) They Never Gave Themselves Fully to God, 2) The Novelty of Following Jesus Wore Off, and 3) They Want to Only Receive -- and Not to Give of Themselves. Let us now give thought to some other factors for why people depart from the Lord, and conclude. 4) Some People Were "Forced" Into Accepting Christ If people felt "forced" to obey the gospel, rather than it being of their own accord, this could be why some soon left the Lord. In the book "Elmer Gantry," by Sinclair Lewis, the coarse-speaking Gantry had often been a brawler and a drunk. The way some men enjoy fishing or sports, Gantry enjoyed, in his inebriated state, to find someone he could use as a punching bag. What a stark contrast between the opening words of the Bible ("In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth....") and the first words of Elmer Gantry ("Elmer Gantry was drunk. He was eloquently drunk, lovingly and pugnaciously drunk."). He was a big man who had been captain of his football team in 1902, and he would ask his little friend Jim to get someone to pick on him, so that Elmer could "come along and knock his block off." He "was a shouter, a pounder on backs, an overwhelming force." Yet, there came a time in his life when so many were compelling him to become a "Christian" (though espousing the erroneous "sinner's prayer") that it appears he finally obliged them just to put an end to all their intrusions and silence their incessant pleas. For concerning his seeking God's forgiveness, "He had but little to do with what he said. The willing was not his but the mob's; the phrases were not his but those of the emotional preachers and hysterical worshipers whom he had heard since babyhood." It is true that others will want to see you obey the gospel, and they will rejoice when you do; but, above all, may it be something you do out of a desire to please God and to be right with Him -- not merely because you feel "forced" to by your parents, your spouse, or the crowd, etc. Yielding to the gospel must be something you do of your own volition. 5) Hard Teachings As in the case of the rich, young ruler, some things are just too hard to accept for certain people (Matt. 19:16-22). Christ, knowing the heart of this man and that covetousness was his fault, said to him, "...'If you wish to be complete, go and sell all your possessions and give to the poor, and you shall have treasure in heaven; and come, follow Me." This, however, was just too much for the young man. The Bible says, "he went away grieved" (v. 22). Christ's teaching on the "narrow way" to heaven is hard to accept for those who want to make that road much broader, so that it might include many other things, which the Lord doesn't. (See Matt. 7:13,14.) With such a widespread problem of divorce and remarriage these days, many individuals find it "too difficult" to accept what the Bible really has to say about this matter (Matt. 5:32; Luke 16:18; Matt. 19:9). It's hard for many people to accept the role of baptism in God's plan of salvation. Most people don't. Yet the Bible shows of its importance toward having sins forgiven and becoming a Christian (Mark 16:16; Acts 2:38; 22:16; Rom. 6:3,4; Gal. 3:26,27; 1 Pet. 3:21, etc.). That there is only "one" church (Eph. 4:4; 1:22,23) is difficult for many folks to see. Yet, where does the New Testament justify denominationalism? Don't we see the opposite to be true? Jesus states, "I will build My church" (Matt. 16:18); and He not only prayed for its unity (Jn. 17:20-23), but also died to make that possible (Eph. 2:12-16). Paul also stresses the need to be of "one spirit" and "one mind" when it comes to spiritual things (Phil. 1:27) and pronounces a "curse" upon anyone who would preach a "gospel" contrary to the true gospel of God's word (Gal. 1:6-9). For going "too far," rather than to "abide in the teaching of Christ," causes one to "not have God" (2 Jn. 1:9). Our faith and love for God, however, can help us make whatever sacrifice is necessary that we might be right in His sight and pleasing to Him. 6) Some Depart Because They Hadn't Counted the Cost First How many have left the Lord after learning He requires more of them than they were willing to give? I heard of one man, who had briefly been a Christian, that left the church (and the Lord) when he heard that he wouldn't be able to continue drinking alcohol. He went away, choosing his bottle over Jesus. Paul exhorts: "that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in righteousness and true holiness" (Eph. 4:22-24). In baptism, one is risen in order to "walk in newness of life" (Rom. 6:3,4). The Christian, therefore, is to be living a new life, for he is a new creature in Christ (2 Cor. 5:15,17). So, he is one who should also have some new goals, new perspectives, new challenges, and new priorities in his life. Realizing the need for a life of dedication and holiness should factor in to one's "counting the cost," prior to obeying the gospel. 7) Some Simply Neglect the Word By becoming lackadaisical with the Scriptures, and drifting away from it, one can end up in ruin. Like the need for rowing if you want to head upstream, the Christian must also ply with the spiritual oars of faith and works to keep himself from drifting over the waterfall of destruction (See James 2:14-26: "faith without works is dead"). One cannot remain stagnant (indifferent). Nor can one ply with the oar of "faith only," nor with the oar of works only. For if that be the case, then the rower will merely go in circles and not make any progress; but using both of those oars together, the bank of God's golden shore can eventually be reached. "Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall through following the same example of disobedience" (Heb. 4:11). The KJV, in this verse, translates "disobedience" as "unbelief." "Unbelief" can be the absence of obedience, as seen in Romans 10:14-16: the fact that they had not taken heed to the glad tidings, Isaiah viewed as a sign of unbelief; so unbelief and disobedience can often be used interchangeably. Unbelief, therefore, doesn't always indicate that the individual cannot give mental assent toward the reality of Jesus' deity; because, it could be that he does believe that, but -- in spite of it -- he still lives like an unbeliever by not submitting to God's commands. And, in view of that, isn't it worse for the believer to not obey than for the non-believer to not do so? For though they both will receive the same eternal punishment for their sin, the believer had the advantage by knowing better -- but he forsook that wisdom that could have saved his soul. Earlier, the Hebrew writer states: "For this reason we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. For if the word spoken through angels proved unalterable, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense, how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation? After it was at the first spoken through the Lord, it was confirmed to us by those who heard" (Heb. 2:1-3). Neglecting God's word leads to great danger -- and especially concerning one's eternal destiny. 8) Pleasures of This Life Lead Some Astray Jesus shows (in the parable of the seed and the sower) some who have heard the word and initially accept it, later turn away due to their being "choked" by the "worries and riches and pleasures of this life" (Luke 8:14). Some individuals become consumed by materialism. Paul shows one of the qualifications of an elder is that he is "free from the love of money" (1 Tim. 3:3). But this should also be true for every person: "For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith, and pierced themselves with many a pang" (1 Tim. 6:10). He also states in the previous verse (v. 9) that "...those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction." We need to, therefore, learn to be content (v. 8), realizing that when that is accompanied with godliness then there is "great gain" (v. 6); but "great gain" of a spiritual nature, which, by far, is more important. And concerning iniquitous pleasures, we can be impressed and encouraged by the life of Moses who chose "rather to endure ill-treatment with the people of God, than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin; considering the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt; for he was looking to the reward" (Heb. 11:25,26). May we each also exalt God in our lives -- putting Him above all others and above all things -- and "...seek first His kingdom and His righteousness," as Jesus Himself commands in Matthew 6:33. For if serving God be our chief joy, then we won't be so easily ensnared by the worldly, sinful pleasures of this life. Everyone Needs Someone They Can Turn To Peter had said, "Lord, to whom shall we go?" In one of Christ's illustrations of His relationship with His people, He refers to them as being His sheep; and He, the Good Shepherd. We need Christ to lead us to the greener pastures and the quiet waters (Psa. 23:2), to hear His voice and follow Him that we might remain in the safe keeping of His fold (Jn. 10:27-29). It is Jesus to whom we need to turn. Of all who could be turned to, who better to turn to than Jesus? Turning to the Lord is made even easier by our faith and love for Him, and we can be additionally motivated by considering what He's done for us: "Since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil; and might deliver those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives" (Heb. 2:14,15). Only Christ can deliver one from sin's captivating power. Do we have a need for that? Only through Christ can one be raised to walk in newness of life. Is that important to us? Only through Jesus can we receive everlasting life. Is that something we want? Only through the Lord can we learn of the true moral standard in which to live by. Is that a concern of ours? We need the benefits of Christ's intercessory work. For there is no forgiveness without His shed blood, but there is no contact of that blood without our faith and obedience. Who Else Could One Turn To? 1) Not Moses, Nor the Law of Moses Though there was a time when men could look to Moses, now God wants men to be looking to Christ (cf. Matt. 17:4,5). Moses had actually foretold of Christ and the importance of taking heed to His words (Deut. 18:15,18,19). Jesus also refers to this in John 5:46: "For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote of Me." Many of the early Christians were Judaizers who felt compelled to keep the Law of Moses along with the gospel of Christ in order to be saved (Acts 15:1,5). They were turning to Moses. By doing so though, they were also cutting themselves off from Christ and falling from grace (Gal. 5:4). 2) Not John the Baptist John was a forerunner for Jesus, pointing people to Him (Jn. 1:21-30). If one, therefore, could turn to John today, he would try to turn that person to Christ instead. Concerning his relationship with Jesus and to the world, John states, "He must increase, but I must decrease" (Jn. 3:30). It was time now for Christ to be in the limelight that all would look to Him. Those twelve men of Acts 19:1-9, who had been baptized into John's baptism, had to still be baptized with the baptism Jesus had commanded for the remission of sins (Mark 16:16) in order that they could be saved. On having learned this, they then submitted. It was time for these men to follow Christ fully. 3) Not Denominationalism or Other Religious Organizations Other Than the Lord's Church Jesus gave the warning that "...'Every plant which My heavenly Father did not plant shall be rooted up" (Matt. 15:13). We need to be in the church that God established. As mentioned above, Jesus was going to build His church (Matt. 16:18). Corresponding to this, the psalmist declares, "Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it..." (Psa. 127:1). Jesus is "the Savior of the body" (Eph. 5:23), and that body is "the church" (Col. 1:18,24). Therefore, no one today can be saved without being a part of the Lord's church. Even though other religions would view Christ as being a good man, a good teacher, or a good prophet, that is not enough! They must also recognize Him as being the divine Son of God who is the world's only Savior (cf. Acts 4:12). Jesus warns: "...unless you believe that I am He, you shall die in your sins" (Jn. 8:24). As also mentioned above, most denominations do not even teach the full plan of salvation, for they do not include baptism as a requirement for having sins forgiven and becoming a Christian. Jesus, however, states, "He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved..." (Mk. 16:16). And this is exactly what we find people doing in order to be saved in Acts 2:36-38, and elsewhere in the Scriptures. 4) Not Ourselves Can we turn to merely ourselves? Solomon writes, "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding" (Prov. 3:5). Why is this important? Consider what he says elsewhere: "There is a way which seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death" (Prov. 14:12). Corresponding to this, Paul shows the futility of man's search for God through merely human wisdom (1 Cor. 1:20,21). Without the Lord revealing Himself in the Scriptures, man -- regardless of how wise -- could have never come to know God that fully. Peter's rhetorical question (of almost 2,000 years ago), "Lord, to whom shall we go?," should also resound in the heart of every person today. For we need to take the time to think about our eternal destiny -- to "reason together" with the Lord (Isa. 1:18) -- and to make sure that we are setting ourselves on the right course, His course. For our life on earth can be illustrated by various roads that one travels when on a trip -- roads that lead to a particular destination. For even if one starts out okay on the first few roads (making the proper turns), what if one of the following roads is then missed? People get lost that way. So this also illustrates the need for perseverance, for remaining true to the Lord, and not veering to the right nor to the left; but, rather, remaining safely on that "highway to heaven." Is that where your final destination will be? Our road map, our guide, is the Scriptures. As Peter realized, only Christ has the words of eternal life that can show us the way to heaven above. There is to no other source one can turn, if one is concerned about making heaven his goal. So, to whom do people turn? To whom should we go? To whom do we go? If you are not heading for heaven above, then why not switch to the right road today? For then, when your journey is complete, you'll be eternally grateful for the new direction you had chosen; and you also will have found heaven not merely a great place to visit, but also a place where you'll want to spend all eternity to enjoy its beauty and bliss. So, though some folks might not ever have the time for that Hawaiian cruise or Bermuda getaway, they certainly won't regret it, if heaven will be their destination after all their labors are over! But remember, we must begin our journey by going to Jesus -- for only He has the words of everlasting life! ____________________________________________________ MYRTLE STREET CHURCH OF CHRIST 1022 Myrtle Street Denham Springs, LA 70726 (225) 664-8208 Sunday: 9:15 AM, 10:00 AM, 4:00 PM Wednesday: 7:00 PM evangelist/editor: Tom Edwards (225) 667-4520 e-mail: tedwards@onemain.com web site: http://home.onemain.com/~tedwards/go ____________________________________________________