The Danger of
Isolation - When Fellowship Fails |
|
Brother Royce Ellis -
Associate Editor |
You may recall
the story of the concerned pastor checking on a member who
had decided he didn’t need the fellowship of church and
could worship wherever he was. As they sat near the
fireplace visiting, nothing the preacher said seemed to
impact the man’s position that he didn’t need a congregation
of believers to worship God successfully. Finally, the
pastor, using the fireplace poker, slides a small piece of
glowing wood away from the fire and the two men watch as the
individual timber burns out and turns cold. The former
member sighs, nods, and promises to be in services from then
on.
We often wonder what becomes
of people who have left the church for one reason or another
and how they manage in life without the rest and comfort
that only the true worship of God with like-minded believers
can give them.
The other side is equally important. What happens to a flock
that is without a pastor for an extended time? The scripture
gives us a glance at both of these situations.
Acts chapter 19 reveals circumstances where some had kept
their efforts ongoing long after they lost their leader.
John the Baptist had been imprisoned, then beheaded, yet
some of his mis-guided followers, who had not gone on to be
active disciples of Jesus, kept pushing forward, despite
John’s instructions that he (and by extension, his
disciples) must decrease, while Jesus must increase.
Paul meets some who had been exposed to the teachings of
John, but not firsthand.
Act 19:1 And it came to pass, that, while Apollos was at
Corinth, Paul having passed through the upper coasts came to
Ephesus: and finding certain disciples, :2 He said unto
them, Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed? And
they said unto him, We have not so much as heard whether
there be any Holy Ghost. :3 And he said unto them, Unto what
then were ye baptized? And they said, Unto John's baptism.
:4 Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of
repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe
on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ
Jesus.5 When they heard this, they were baptized in the name
of the Lord Jesus.
Paul recognized that these
folks had been “taught wrong” and were probably not part of
an unbroken baptism chain. I call it an unbroken chain,
because if you were properly baptized – by a properly
ordained Elder, who was himself baptized by a properly
ordained Elder, you are added to the unbroken chain that
goes back to the river Jordan.
It’s one of the many reasons
we insist on immersing those from other orders. They are not
part of that chain, nor have they properly believed before.
Old Baptists insist that for baptism, there be three proper
conditions present. A baptism’s mode or method must be
correct. We say that’s immersion, not only because of our
Lord’s example, but it is the only mode that pictures the
death, burial and resurrection.
Then we insist upon a proper
administrator. That’s the Elder we spoke of above. Third, we
ask for a proper subject. Some say candidate, but a
candidate is someone running for something and they may not
be successful. I prefer subject.
I think we should include a fourth proper: Proper
doctrine. Maybe we call it something else – proper
belief, proper understanding, but when the subject comes
forward for baptism and says something outside of our view
of the doctrines of grace, that is, takes some credit for
the salvation by their act of submission – that’s not a
condition we can accept. Would we want someone coming up out
of the water proclaiming they had accepted Christ and
finished the job of salvation?
What takes place at baptism is multi-fold. Baptism is a
public example, a public admission that Christ has died for
your sins. It’s a confession that you are unable to do
anything on your own regarding salvation and that you are
answering the good conscience God has given you by this
step.
It’s also a betrothal ceremony. The subject is publicly
taking the name of Christ, agreeing to walk in a certain,
righteous way henceforth. There are some, who having been
baptized among the Old Baptists, turn away after a time and
end up among another people. This verse should put that
behavior in perspective:
Exd 20:7 Thou shalt not
take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will
not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.
It isn’t talking about profaning the name by verbally
cursing as so many teach. It’s taking the name and later
disregarding it. It’s walking away from the marriage. You’ve
taken the name of a husband, but you don’t wear it as you
should, as the visible bride. You’ve taken it for no reason,
or in vain.
When I suggest a fourth
proper, the proper doctrine, it’s intended to keep
well-meaning or over-emotional people from being swept up in
the moment, caught up in Spirit-filled preaching and
desiring to be married before they know to whom they are
being betrothed. I’ve seen many come this way, wanting to
join before they understood the doctrines of grace. We
shouldn’t ask them to take a test and put their knowledge
under a microscope, but there is something to be said for
inquiring about an experience, seeking proof of the new
birth.
Paul recognized the folks in Acts 19 didn’t recognize the
bridegroom, the real Jesus. They couldn’t answer legitimate
questions about the bridegroom and the gifts he gave the
bride. Act 19:2 He said unto them, Have ye received the
Holy Ghost since ye believed? And they said unto him, We
have not so much as heard whether there be any Holy Ghost.
So serious was Paul about this illegitimacy, he required a
legitimate ceremony, but first, they were educated. The
reading of Acts makes it sound as if Paul mentioned the name
of Christ Jesus and that was all it took. I suspect
in-between Acts 19:4 and 19:5, Paul told in great detail
about the one they were going to join in that watery grave.
Of course, the situation regarding John the Baptist was
unique, but in normal circumstance, had another pastor
stepped in when John was apprehended, the proper education
of members would have continued.
When you step away from that path and try to go it on your
own, it becomes harder after time to even recognize the
original path.
Let’s visit the disciples of
John, one more time. Here are those who were in the
wilderness with the forerunner of Christ. They heard the man
preach, they saw the Lamb of God appear, they saw His
baptism, and they beheld the Spirit descend on Him like a
dove. They heard the voice of God declare him. Luk 3:22
And the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape like a dove
upon him, and a voice came from heaven, which said, Thou art
my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased.
But John is arrested, they depart and the next time we hear
of them, they have gone completely away from their position
and doctrine. Listen as they confront Christ: Mat 9:14
Then came to him the disciples of John, saying, Why do we
and the Pharisees fast oft, but thy disciples fast not?
Do you see that? The disciples
of John, a flock without guidance or a pastor, have now
aligned themselves with the Pharisees, whom John called a
generation of vipers. Mat 3:7 But when he saw many of the
Pharisees and Sadducees come to his baptism, he said unto
them, O generation of vipers, who hath warned you to flee
from the wrath to come?
Moses, Luke and Paul all warned us to take heed: Heb 3:12
Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil
heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God.
Isolation from the flock works against a preacher as well.
John was born of God in his mother’s womb. A true Old
Testament high priest called of God to come in the spirit
and power of Elijah. John was honored of God to baptize the
redeemer. He touched the savior and heard the voice of God.
Yet after the arrest - Mat 11:3 And said unto him, Art
thou he that should come, or do we look for another? His
remoteness had caused him to doubt. So much so, he sends a
coded message to the Messiah.
Luk 7:17 And this rumour of
him went forth throughout all Judaea, and throughout all the
region round about. :18 And the disciples of John shewed him
of all these things. :19 And John calling unto him two of
his disciples sent them to Jesus, saying, Art thou he that
should come? or look we for another?
Art thou he that should come? or look we for another?
Consider the weight of this statement by the blessed
Baptist. Surely his isolation hadn’t come to the point where
he was in disbelief. For just mere moments before, his
remaining disciples told of the miracles of Jesus.
But John was sending a coded
message. “You have the power to instantly free me from this
prison and coming fate.” How is this different than Satan’s
charge in the wilderness? “If thou be the Son of God…”
Luk 7:20 When the men were
come unto him, they said, John Baptist hath sent us unto
thee, saying, Art thou he that should come? or look we for
another? :21 And in that same hour he cured many of their
infirmities and plagues, and of evil spirits; and unto many
that were blind he gave sight.
22 Then Jesus answering said unto them, Go your way, and
tell John what things ye have seen and heard; how that the
blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf
hear, the dead are raised, to the poor the gospel is
preached. :23 And blessed is he, whosoever shall not be
offended in me.
And Jesus responds in code. Remind him again, and let him
know, he’s blessed and he should not be offended or angry at
Jesus because these things must happen. How often do we
forget what Christ has done on our behalf? How many times
have unfortunate circumstances in our lives caused us to be
offended at God?
I like the ending of the book
of Matthew, because it caused me to ponder the strange
wording. Mat 28:20 Teaching them to observe all things
whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you
alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
I always thought it was wrongly worded and should have read
“lo, I am with you until the end of the world, and alway.”
But when I considered it and prayed, I came away with this:
He’s with us unto the end of the world; after that, we’re
with him. Perfect wording after all!! |