Looking at the importance of Christian doctrine. This is part number three. And as we will be discussing the doctrine and the church doctrine and the church. I'm filling in for Robbie. And he told me twice, wait, don't forget that you're teaching this morning filling in for me. And what does Wayne Lynch do? I forget, OK? So I'm reading this just as pretty much what's out of the book. I may give a little bit of insight here and there, but we're just going to be doing a lot of praying, OK? Let's pray together. Our Father, we thank you, Lord, for your goodness to us. And Lord, we thank you for your word. Thank you for the Holy Scripture, Lord, that you have. given to us so that we can know you. And what a blessing that that you are a God that reveals himself and is not ostracized from his creation, but rather he is. You are relational. And Lord, The very means by which we know you is through the revelation of scripture. So father, I pray that we would all. Love the scriptures more. Because. Our love for your word is as the same as our love for you. So father, I pray that we would take it seriously. We ask all these things in Christ's name, amen. All right, Paul Washer states in the opening of this chapter five, in this chapter we're looking at two final evidences of the great importance of the doctrine in the Christian life. Number one, doctrine separates light from darkness. And number two, doctrine is for every Christian from the most mature saint to the most recent convert. And that's something that we don't really hear a whole lot today. We think maybe the doctrine of scripture and having a Bible knowledge, well, that's something that maybe the pastor should have. Well, certainly the pastor should have it, but it's really for every believer, every believer. So notice, number one, doctrine separates light from darkness. He says it is lamentable that at times Christians fight and divide because of doctrine. Christian unity is an essential aspect of the Christian life, and it should be protected, but not at all costs. So right there, this kind of goes in complete opposite of what the mainstream churches are telling us today, right? The mainstream churches in America are saying, hey, we don't need to do anything that would divide the church or divide Christians in general. But he's correct when he says that Christian unity is an essential aspect of the Christian life, and it should be protected, but not at all cost. There are some things that we are going to divide over because we are defining certain doctrines. In other words, he says unity must not be maintained at the cost of the doctrines that define biblical Christianity. You know, I've heard it said many times, and I've said it, doctrine does not divide, it defines. But, it's really not true. Because doctrine that which defines, divides. And if I'm preaching a certain doctrine, and I'm laying it out through scripture, and you don't agree with me, then there is a division there, okay? And there are some things that there must never be unity on, such as, he mentions this, should we make the doctrine of the Trinity a non-essential in order to maintain unity with those who deny it? Absolutely not. What about the blood of Christ? Salvation by faith. the authority of the scriptures? Are we going to lay aside what those doctrines teach just so that we can say that we have unity? Of course not. Although division is always painful, it is sometimes necessary. Notice in the following text how this truth is very, very clear. Jude in verse 3, Jude verse 3 says, Beloved, while I was making every effort to write you about our common salvation, I felt the necessity to write to you appealing that you contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all handed down to the saints. So what does Jude 3 tell us about the Christian's responsibility toward biblical doctrine and its preservation? Well, first of all, what are we supposed to contend for? He tells us there we're to contend for the faith. That word faith refers to the fundamental beliefs or doctrines of the Christian faith. That word contend, means to extend strenuous effort on behalf of something. It may be also translated combat or struggle. We get our English word agonize from the Greek word that is used there. The Christian must not be indifferent regarding doctrine or passive when he sees it being corrupted. The phrase, once for all handed down, denotes that Christian doctrine is fixed and should remain unmodified. He goes on to say we must not disregard certain truths from the scriptures because culture says that they are antiquated or archaic, nor should we add to God's word some new truth recently discovered. And so a lot of times in our world, if we say that we believe homosexuality is a sin, One of the main rebuttals that you'll hear is, well, that's just antiquated. That was something that they believed in the Bible times. Or if we say that we believe that only men should hold the office of a pastor and deacon, there will be those that say, well, that was really antiquated. That was written at a time when women were, you know, not at the level that they are today and so forth. But that's not true. God's word trumps what culture says. I notice. Romans 16 verses 17 and 18. When is it necessary to separate from others who also profess to be Christians? Is it ever necessary? Well, Romans 16 verse 17. Says now I urge you, brethren. Keep your eye on those who cause dissensions and hindrances contrary to the teaching which you learned, and turn away from them. For such men are slaves, not of our Lord Jesus Christ, but of their own appetites. And by their smooth and flattering speech, they deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting. Now we notice the phrase there, the teaching which you have learned, it refers to the fundamental doctrines of the Christian faith. that were taught by the disciples and those within their fellowship. And there are things, he tells us, we urge you, brethren, you keep your eye on those who cause dissension. The King James says, you mark those who cause division and hindrances, contrary to the teaching which you have learned. What's the standard? That which you have learned and what we have learned has come from the apostles. The inspired word of God. Now notice 2 John. 9 through 11. 2 John verses 9 through 11. It says anyone who goes too far. And does not abide in the teaching of Christ. Does not have God. The one who abides in the teaching, he has both the father and the son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this teaching, do not receive him into your house and do not give him a greeting. for the one who gives him a greeting participates in his evil deed." This prohibition against receiving false teachers is quite severe, but it is very necessary. To properly understand it, we must recognize a couple of crucial truths. First of all, this text does not prohibit the Christian from demonstrating common courtesy to all men Rather, it prohibits us from associating and identifying ourselves with the ministry and the teaching of those who uphold to false doctrine. Secondly, this reference is made to false teachers who deny the fundamental doctrines that define the Christian faith, such as the deity of Christ. So what John is saying is, hey, do not so identify yourselves with these false teachers that you are seemingly aligning yourselves and agreeing to what they are teaching. So this prohibition does not refer to those who are faithful to the fundamental doctrines of the Christian faith, but differ with us in the interpretations of minor doctrines or non-essentials. So again, he's talking about those who deny the virgin birth or deny the resurrection of Jesus Christ, deny that salvation is by grace through faith. John is saying, do not associate yourselves with them in the manner as if it looks like that you are approving their message. We notice also 1 Timothy 6. First Timothy chapter number six, verse three says, if anyone advocates a different doctrine and does not agree with sound words, those of our Lord, does not agree with sound words, those of our Lord Jesus Christ, and with a doctrine conforming to godliness, he is conceited and understands nothing. That's pretty tough, isn't it? But he has a morbid interest in controversial questions and disputes about words out of which arise envy, strife, abusive language, evil suspicions, and constant friction between men of depraved mind and deprived of the truth who suppress that godliness is a means of gain. So verse three provides us the important key to identifying false doctrine. A false doctrine is any witch, number one, does not agree with the teachings of our Lord Jesus Christ. How do you know a false teacher? He does not agree with the teachings of Jesus Christ. Number two, he does not reflect or produce true godliness. You look at a person's life, and you do not see any true piety, you do not see any true devotion, you don't see any true reverence toward God. You look at some of these guys that are prominent men, such as like Kenneth Copeland. I don't know if y'all seen that interview where he was interviewed by this lady and they were asking him about the huge amounts of money that he brings in through his ministry and why he chooses to buy like a nearly $100 million Learjet. And he said, well, I don't want to ride on a commercial plane on a, how did he put it? a tube full of demons, you know. So here's a gospel preacher that doesn't want to identify himself with other sinners, and he sees them as, you know, demons and so forth. But you look at their life and you see no true piety, you see no true devotion. Really, they're just in it for their own gain. 2 Thessalonians 3, verse 6. Says, Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you keep away from every brother who leads an unruly life and not according to the tradition which you received from us. Up until now, the text that we have studied refer primarily to doctrine or teaching. But this particular text also refers to ethics or behavior. It proves that we should separate not only from false teachers, but also from those who claim to be Christians and yet manifest a lifestyle or behavior that is contrary to sound doctrine. Paul says this in 1 Corinthians 5 9. I wrote you in my letter not to associate with immoral people. I did not at all mean with the immoral people of this world or with the covetous and swindlers or with idolaters, for then you would have to go out of the world. But actually I wrote to you not to associate with any so-called brother if he is an immoral person or covetous or an idolater or a reviler or a drunkard or a swindler, not even to eat with such a one. Again, this is the same mindset of what John told them not to let a false teacher inside your home. He's not saying you don't be courteous to them, don't show common courtesy to them, but rather don't associate yourself to them to such a point that it looks like you are condoning their sinful behavior. Okay, that's what he's saying. Whenever you had a person into your home, especially in those days, you were saying that you accept them, You are condoning the way they live and they live in such a way that you are welcoming them in their home. And that's prohibited in God's word. We're to show kindness to all men. Galatians tells us that he tells us that we are to be good unto all men. Especially of those who are the household of faith. All right. Now, from what you have learned from the scriptural text in this chapter, explain why division is sometimes necessary. Why do you think that division sometimes is necessary? Anybody have any thoughts on that? Yeah, protection, exactly. Yeah, you have to have some type of division in place. Because like I say. Certain doctrines are going to ultimately divide. And if there is no doctrine that is to me, this is why churches should preach doctrine. Number one, it's. You're preaching then the systematic way of how the scripture defines certain things. but it does a great job of defining and thus really pointing out those who do not line themselves up with God's word. That's why a church has a statement of faith. That's why a church has a church covenant and so forth. They are trying to really articulate in a very good way what they believe, what doctrines they believe, so that those who join the church know at least the primary doctrines that the church holds to. He goes on to say, the purpose of doctrine is not to divide, but to unite the church. However, at times it may be necessary to separate over fundamental doctrines of faith and practice. While on this side of heaven, There will always be differences between us. Therefore, we must learn to walk in humility and mercy toward all. Nevertheless, there are certain fundamental doctrines that define Christianity, and we must defend these, even if doing so results in division. Examples of these fundamental and non-negotiable doctrines are The number one, the authority of the Bible. That's something that we're not going to unite on. If someone wants to join our church and they say, well, you know, we don't believe the Bible is inherent. We don't believe it is inspired. We can say, hey, look, this may not be the church for you because we believe it's absolutely inspired by God. And so that's one thing we're just not going to say, hey, just come on and we'll accept you for that. And and you just whenever I preach on the doctrine of inspiration of scripture, just don't say anything. You can't do that. You cannot do that because you're essentially letting in a person who is more than likely not even a Christian. If they don't believe that the Bible is the Word of God, the inspired Word of God, then they have totally minimized the Holy Scripture. Why would they believe it if it's just words of man? What would cause them not to believe in the Quran or some other religious writing, if it's just the words of men. This is a divine book. Another thing is. A non negotiable doctrine is the Trinity. The one true God exists in three distinct and equal persons, the father, son and the Holy Spirit. Again, a non negotiable doctrine. There is a movement going out there called modelism, which believes that there's only two persons in the Godhead, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Spirit is not such a thing, not such a person. That's false. The universality of sin is another non-negotiable. All men are born with a fallen nature inherited with the first man, Adam. This fallen nature results in rebellion against God and disobedience to His law. All men are sinners in need of reconciliation with God. That's another non-negotiable. Another one is the incarnation of the Son of God. That we believe that 2,000 years ago, the eternal son of God was conceived in the womb of a virgin and was born the God-man Jesus of Nazareth. He was fully God and fully man. We absolutely believe that. And if you don't believe that, this is not the place for you. The death of Christ, how that Jesus Christ, the eternal son of God, carried our sins upon the cross of Calvary and died in our place as a substitutionary sacrifice. His death satisfied and demands of God's justice against us, appeased the wrath of God toward us and made it possible for God to maintain his justice while pardoning the guilty. The other is the resurrection of Jesus Christ. It's a non-negotiable. After three days in the tomb, Jesus Christ was raised from the dead with the same physical body that had died. We believe that his resurrection is a real event in human history. Salvation by faith, non-negotiable. We have neither need Nor ability to add anything to our salvation. Salvation is by grace through faith. It is not of our own merit. It is the gift of God. The Holy Spirit. A non negotiable the Holy Spirit is the Holy Spirit is God, the third person of the Trinity. He dwells in the heart. of everyone who is genuinely converted through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. And then the second, coming. We believe that Jesus Christ will come to this earth to save His church and to judge the world. His coming will be visible, corporal, and known to all, heaven and hell, even human being Every human being will live forever in one of two places, heaven or hell. One of the most frequent excuses for the Christians neglect of doctrine is that it is simply too difficult for the common believer. That's false, right? That's false. This excuse is in direct contradiction to the scriptures. The Bible says all that God has revealed in his word is for every believer. It is true that God has gifted some Christians with an unusual capacity to comprehend his revelation and that he's also granted others the privilege of studying in seminaries. Nevertheless, we must always remember that our knowledge of God and his will does not depend upon our intellectual capacity or privilege as much as it depends upon our desire to know and to do his will. And I say amen to that. So according to Jesus Christ and John 7 verse 17, who can grow in the knowledge of God and his will? I love this John 717 if. What's that next word? Anyone. That's me. That's you. If anyone is willing to do his will, he will know of the teaching. Whether it is of God or whether I speak from myself. So what is the requirement for growth and spiritual things? Well, the requirement is for anyone who is willing. Do you have a desire? Do you have a longing? Do you have a hunger to learn the things of God? That's. The requirement. He goes on to say, it's interesting that the knowledge of Christian doctrine is more a matter of the will than of the intellect. The Christian who has made the decision to submit himself in obedience to the will of God will grow in his knowledge of the things of God. The one who searches for knowledge without commitment to obedience will learn little." My soul, that's good stuff right there. That's so true. The scriptures contain many promises of wisdom and knowledge for all the people of God, not just the priest, the cardinals, and the pope, right? God's word is for every single believer and every single believer can learn its truths. It can grow in the grace of knowledge of Christ and not just keep that regulated to the leadership of the church. Matthew 11. In 25. What does the following text promise to all who sincerely seek to know God and his doctrine? Matthew 1125 says, at that time Jesus said, I praise you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants. That's a remarkable verse there. Phrase the wise and the intelligent is a reference to those who are intellectually and spiritually proud and do not recognize their need to learn from Christ. And then the term infants refers to the humble, those who recognize their needs and sincerely seek the truth from Christ. In 1 Corinthians 3, verse 18, it contains sound advice to those who truly desire to grow in his grace and knowledge. It says, let no man deceive himself. If any man among you thinks he is wise in this age, he must become foolish so that he may become wise. In other words, he who believes that he is well-learned or enlightened should recognize that he knows nothing. Such humility accompanied by the sincere study of God's word will lead to a genuine knowledge that transforms. And one of my favorite verses is 1 John 5 20. 1 John 5 20 it says, and we know that the Son of God has come and has given us an understanding so that we may know him who is true and we are in him who is true. And so Jesus Christ is the greatest revelation of the person and will of God. And we see here that through Christ's life and teaching and through the Holy Spirit whom he gives to every believer, we can know God and sound doctrine. John 14 verse 25 says, These things I have spoken to you while abiding with you. But the helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you. He says, we have included this promise because it is often taken out of its original context and misapplied. In the immediate and primary context, Jesus is referring to the Holy Spirit's role in guiding the apostles into all truth, especially with regard to the writing of the New Testament. God has not promised to inspire every believer so that his doctrine might be infallible. However, he has promised to lead and to illuminate every believer by the Holy Spirit so that he might understand the inspired text written by the apostles. 1 John 2, verse 27. As for you, the anointing which you received from him abides in you, and you have no need for anyone to teach you. But as his anointing teaches you about all things and is true and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you abide in him. The word anointing comes from the Greek word charisma and is a reference to the Holy Spirit who dwells in every believer. The phrase, you have no need for anyone to teach you does not mean that we have no need of teachers in our churches. As Ephesians 411 makes it clear that God has given teachers for equipping the saints. Furthermore, John himself was teaching them through his letter. The phrase simply means that the believers were not utterly dependent upon others to instruct them. especially not the false teachers who had entered the churches with teaching contrary to that of the apostles. Every believer can benefit from the teaching and instruction of those who have been called of God to carry out such a ministry. However, the believer is not completely dependent upon the explanations of men. Through the Holy Spirit, we can all learn from our own private study of the scriptures. According to the following verses or following scriptures, how should we respond when we encounter a text or biblical doctrine that is difficult for us to understand? Number one, we should pray. We should pray. Do you have Matthew verses up there? It says, ask and it will be given to you. You see, I can't hardly read it. Ask and it will be given to you. Seek and you will find. Knock and it will be opened to you. And then James. Oh, excuse me, verse eight. For everyone who asked and receives and he who seeks finds and to him who knocks it will be opened. But if any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all generously without reproach, and it will be given to him. But he must ask in faith without any doubting, for the one who doubts is like the surf of the sea, driven and tossed by the wind." And so when you're reading scripture, you don't understand a certain doctrine or a certain passage, pray, because the Holy Spirit is the teacher of all teachers, okay? He can lead you to all truth. The second thing he mentions is to seek counsel. If there's a scripture or a certain doctrine that you're not quite grasping, seek counsel. Acts chapter 8 and verse number 30, it says, Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and said, do you understand what you're reading? And he said, well, how could I unless someone guides me? And he invited Philip to come up and to sit with him. And then Acts chapter 18 and verse number 23. And having spent some time there, he left and passed successively through the Galatian region and Phrygia, strengthening all the disciples. Now a Jew named Apollos, an Alexandrian by birth, an eloquent man, came to Ephesus, and he was mighty in the scriptures. This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord, and being fervent in spirit, he was speaking and teaching accurately the things concerning Jesus, being acquainted only with the baptism of John. And he began to speak out boldly in the synagogue, but when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, They took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately." Now, to me, that's amazing verses, because here you have a husband and wife who are Christians, and they're taking a man who is an eloquent speaker, a man that's mighty in the scriptures, and they disciple him because he's only preaching of the baptism of John, and so they're discipling