Lesson 14: By Making Proper & Necess ary Distinctions

1. c o n t i n u e d Lesson 14: By Making Proper & Necessary Distinctions

2. A Key Verse & Key Responsibility in Understanding the Bible • 2 Timothy 2:15 • Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. (KJV) • Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. (NKJV) • Give diligence to present thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, handling aright the word of truth. (ASV) • Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth. (NASB) • Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. (ESV)

3. Must Make Proper & Necessary Distinctions Between • The Temporary & the Permanent • The early church had: • Apostles, possessing a miraculous measure of the Holy Spirit to perform miracles (Mark 16:20; Heb. 2:3-4; Ac. 2:4) • Apostles, endowed with the power and ability to impart miraculous gifts to others (Acts 8:14-20; 19:1-6; 2 Cor. 12:12) • Spiritual/Miraculous gifts, possessed by Christians upon whom an apostle had laid his hands (1 Cor. 9:2; 2 Tim. 1:6) • Necessary, yet temporary elements in infant church • Living apostles (John 21:18-19; Acts 12:1-4; 2 Tim. 4:6-8) • Miracles (cease when purpose fulfilled, John 20:30-31) • Spiritual gifts (1 Cor. 13:8-13; Eph. 4:11-13) • Never intended to be a part of permanent Christianity

4. Must Make Proper & Necessary Distinctions Between • The Temporary & the Permanent • The early church had: • Desperate need for divine guidance & instruction (but did not have the complete, written word of God) • Prophets, placed in the church by God, through whom He directly revealed His message (1 Cor. 12:10; 14:29-31) • Necessary, yet temporary elements in infant church • Prophets (1 Cor. 13:8) • Direct revelation (1 Cor. 13:8-13; Eph. 4:11-15; Jude 3) • Never intended to be a part of permanent Christianity

5. Must Make Proper & Necessary Distinctions Between • The Temporary & the Permanent • The 10 Commandments, incl. Sabbath = temporary • Sabbath NOT a religious day of “observance” from creation • It was hallowed as a day of worship through the Law • “You came down also on Mount Sinai, And spoke with them from heaven, And gave them just ordinances and true laws, Good statutes and commandments. You made known to them Your holy Sabbath, And commanded them precepts, statutes and laws, By the hand of Moses Your servant” (Neh. 9:13-14). • It was not until this time at Mt. Sinai that God’s people knew anything about hallowing or observing the Seventh day. It did not start at creation and exist from the beginning of time, as some so assert.

6. Must Make Proper & Necessary Distinctions Between • The Temporary & the Permanent • The 10 Commandments, incl. Sabbath = temporary • God promised a new covenant, different from the first • “Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah—not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt…But this is the covenant that I will make…” (Jer. 31:31-34). • “And there I have made a place for the ark, in which is the covenant of the LORD which He made with our fathers, when He brought them out of the land of Egypt” (1 Kings 8:21). • “Nothing was in the arkexcept the two tablets of stonewhich Moses put there at Horeb, when the LORD made a covenantwith the children of Israel, when they came out of the land of Egypt” (1 Kings 8:9). • The two-tablet-covenant, including the Sabbath, was temporary!

7. Must Make Proper & Necessary Distinctions Between • The Temporary & the Permanent • The 10 Commandments, incl. Sabbath = temporary • Christ released us from the old law, incl. 10 Commandments • “Or do you not know, brethren (for I speak to those who know the law), that the law has dominion over a man as long as he lives? For the woman who has a husband is bound by the law to her husband as long as he lives. But if the husband dies, she is released from the law of her husband. So then if, while her husband lives, she marries another man, she will be called an adulteress; but if her husband dies, she is free from that law, so that she is no adulteress, though she has married another man. Therefore, my brethren, you also have become dead to the law through the body of Christ, that you may be married to another—to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God. For when we were in the flesh, the sinful passions which were aroused by the law were at work in our members to bear fruit to death. But now we have been delivered from the law, having died to what we were held by, so that we should serve in the newness of the Spirit and not in the oldness of the letter. What shall we say then? Is the law sin? Certainly not! On the contrary, I would not have known sin except through the law. For I would not have known covetousness unless the law had said, ‘You shall not covet’” (Rom. 7).

8. Must Make Proper & Necessary Distinctions Between • The Temporary & the Permanent • The 10 Commandments, incl. Sabbath = temporary • The handwritten commandments, incl. Sabbath, were wiped out • “…having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it. So let no one judge you in food or in drink, or regarding a festival or a new moon or sabbaths” (Col. 2:14-16).

9. Must Make Proper & Necessary Distinctions Between • The Temporary & the Permanent • The 10 Commandments, incl. Sabbath = temporary • The law written on stones, incl. Sabbath, done away • “Who also made us sufficient as ministers of the new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life. But if the ministry of death, written and engraved on stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of the glory of his countenance, which glory was passing away…For if what is passing away was glorious, what remains is much more glorious” (2 Cor. 3:6-7, 11). • “So He declared to you His covenant which He commanded you to perform, the Ten Commandments; and He wrote them on two tablets of stone” (Deut. 4:13).

10. Must Make Proper & Necessary Distinctions Between • Faith & Opinion • It is dangerous to treat the faith as an opinion, likewise it is dangerous to treat an opinion as the faith. • It is dangerous to treat the revealed as if unrevealed, and likewise the unrevealed as if revealed. • There is and must be a distinct difference between: FAITH OPINION God’s Revealed Will Man’s Thoughts Must NOT Determine Fellowship Determines Fellowship (2 Jn. 9 - 11) Basis of Unity (Ep. 4:1 - 13; 1 Co. 1:10) May Have Diversity (Rom. 14:1 - 9) Must Judge (2 Thess. 3:14) Must NOT Judge (Rom. 14:13) Must Preach (Gal. 1:23; 1 Pet. 4:11) Must NOT Preach (Rom. 14:22) Must Contend For (Jude 3) Must NOT Contend For (Rom. 14:22)

11. Must Make Proper & Necessary Distinctions Between • Faith & Opinion • Failing to distinguish between faith (God’s say so) and opinion (man’s think so) is the source of religious division • Must never arrogantly treat our opinions as divine revelation or lower God’s Word to the level of human thoughts (cf. Isa. 55:8-9). MATTER OF FAITH MATTER OF OPINION Nicodemus came by night (Jn. 3:1 - 2) Because he feared the Pharisees Vocal, Congregational Singing w/o Number of songs, number of verses, musical accompaniment (Eph. 5:19) selection of songs, tempo of singing Worship with the Lord’s Supper Location, time of day, order of every Sunday (1 Cor. 11:23 - 33) worship service, trays, matzos, etc. Remission of sins only for immersed Baptistry , lake, ocean, pool, heated, penitent believers (Acts 2:38 ) garments, backwards, forwards

12. Must Make Proper & Necessary Distinctions Between • Faith & Opinion • Example of differences of opinion: • Paul & Barnabas regarding John Mark on 2nd Missionary Journey • They did not disagree over a matter of faith (they were united) • They disagreed over a matter of opinion (parted company) • Still brothers – Paul later wrote 1 Cor. 9:6; 2 Tim. 4:11 • Summary: • In matters of faith • In matters of opinion • In all things • – UNITY • – LIBERTY • – LOVE

13. Must Make Proper & Necessary Distinctions Between • Faith & Opinion • It is dangerous to treat the faith as an opinion, likewise it is dangerous to treat an opinion as the faith. • It is dangerous to treat the revealed as if unrevealed, and likewise the unrevealed as if revealed. • There is and must be a distinct difference between:

14. Must Make Proper & Necessary Distinctions Between • Faith & Opinion • Failing to distinguish between faith (God’s say so) and opinion (man’s think so) is the source of religious division • Must never arrogantly treat our opinions as divine revelation or lower God’s Word to the level of human thoughts (cf. Isa. 55:8-9).