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Guard the Gospel. How to Deal with Doctrinal Issues. What are we going to talk about?. The Spiritual Battle Attacks on the Gospel Survey of Doctrinal Issues How to Differentiate False Teaching from Errors Scriptural Weight of False Teaching Restoring the Gospel
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Guard the Gospel How to Deal with Doctrinal Issues
What are we going to talk about? • The Spiritual Battle • Attacks on the Gospel • Survey of Doctrinal Issues • How to Differentiate False Teaching from Errors • Scriptural Weight of False Teaching • Restoring the Gospel • Current Doctrinal Errors and Tendencies • How to Deal with False Teaching • Protecting the Gospel • The Amazing Gospel • Practical applications • Discussion
Why do I teach this class? • I am no expert • Why am I teaching this class? • I had to deal with doctrinal issues • I love the Bible • I train myself in the Bible • Dealing with Doctrinal Issues is a controversial topic • I teach with great humility
Why Guard the Gospel? The Szabad family
Our Challenge • We have changed some of our doctrinal stance as a movement! • This is HUGE! • This has led to an insecurity of ALL DOCTIRNE! • Therefore we are in a process of evaluating all of our doctrines. • Good side – it is biblical! • Challenge – not hard to go off course • We will have to guard the gospel!
Attacks on the Gospel • Culture • Hypocrisy • Other „gospels”
Culture – all of our „isms” • Liberalism • You entitled to freedom to do whatever • Relativism • There is no objective truth • Ecumenism • The lowest common denominator • Pluralism • There are many ways to do something. Many roads to God. • Pragmatism • Whatever works practically.
Hypocrisy • If we don’t live out the gospel, it looses its power. • Follow the hard parts of the Bible (Ex. disfellowship) • Discipleship – helping each other to live out the gospel • Once we compromise the lifestyle, doctrinal change will soon to follow!
Other „gospels” • We have become more open from being exclusivistic. • Fear of being judgmental!„Don’t judge or you shall be judged!” • Everybody draws a line! • The question is: Where is the line?
What is „the gospel”? Core doctrine Important Peripheral
1 Corinthians 15:2-5 • By this gospel you are saved, if you hold firmly to the word I preached to you. Otherwise, you have believed in vain. For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve.
What is „the gospel”? The Gospel Core doctrine Important Peripheral
The difference between teaching error and false doctrine • Galatians 1:1-2 • I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you by the grace of Christ and are turning to a different gospel – whichis really no gospel at all. • Galatians 5:2 • Mark my words! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all.
How about other differences? • Philippians 3:15-16 • All of us who are mature should take such a view of things. And if on some point you think differently, that too God will make clear to you. Only let us live up to what we have already attained.
Scriptural weight of False Teaching • In the epistles there are just as much written about dealing with false doctrine than dealing with ungodly lifestyle. • Same emphasis, same effect! • Compare • 1 Cor. 5:6 • Galatians 5:9 • "A little yeast works through the whole batch of dough."
Current Issues • Two main areas of doctrine are questioned in churches: • Who is saved • What about the Holy Spirit • What is the source of questioning? • Biblical study? NO! • Reaction to our former church culture
Baptism • What are we reacting against? • We are „the one, true church” • Arrogance • Emphasizing the righteousness of God • What is the reaction • People can be saved not only by baptism into Christ • God in his grace can (and should) pardon good people at judgment even if they have not been biblically baptized.
The Holy Spirit • What are we reacting against? • De-emphasis of the Holy Spirit • Mechanical Christianity • Uniformity • What is the reaction • Making our emotional mood swings into the leading of the Holy Spirit • Acceptance of the Pentecostal doctrine of Holy Spirit baptism. • Defining who is saved by looking for the fruits of the Spirit in ones life.
How to Deal with False Doctrine? • Are we dealing with a matter of core doctrine? Will this change the gospel? • Step One: • Somebody in your church is teaching (or talking about) something false. • Step Two: • This person didn’t stop teaching the false doctrine. He has become a „False Teacher”!
Step One • 1 Timothy 1:3-6 • As I urged you when I went into Macedonia, stay there in Ephesus so that you may command certain men not to teach false doctrines any longer nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies. These promote controversies rather than God's work--which is by faith. The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith. Some have wandered away from these and turned to meaningless talk. They want to be teachers of the law, but they do not know what they are talking about or what they so confidently affirm.
Step Two • 2 Peter 2:1-3 • But there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the sovereign Lord who bought them--bringing swift destruction on themselves. Many will follow their shameful ways and will bring the way of truth into disrepute. In their greed these teachers will exploit you with stories they have made up. Their condemnation has long been hanging over them, and their destruction has not been sleeping.
Step Two • Romans 16:17-18 • I urge you, brothers, to watch out for those who cause divisions and put obstacles in your way that are contrary to the teaching you have learned. Keep away from them. For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery they deceive the minds of naive people.
A case study – The Warsaw church • The belief system: • Salvation occurs when somebody receives the Holy Spirit (they do not distinguish between the indwelling and other gifts of the Holy Spirit). • This can happen before, at or after baptism (as is seen in Acts 8, 10 and 19). • Therefore baptism is not the way to be saved, to receive the forgiveness of our sins. It is an outward sign of inward grace and a matter of obedience to the Scriptures
Guard the Gospel • 1 Timothy 6:14 • Guard the good deposit that was entrusted to you--guard it with the help of the Holy Spirit who lives in us. • We have a responsibility! • Guard, protect • The Holy Spirit helps us! • Best defense is offense!
The Amazing Gospel • The center: The person of Christ! • The credo: He died, was buried and raised from the dead! • All the sermons to non-Christians include this! • Acts 2:14-41 • Most epistles to Christians contain this! • Col 2:8-15
What helped the Early Church? • There were two important sacraments of the church that kept the gospel at the center: • Baptism • The story of the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus • Incredible celebration! • Communion • Retelling the story!
Practical applications: • If the Christians are excited about the gospel they will guard it! • Help them to be able to tell the gospel. • We need to be students of the word. • Be living gospels
Guard the Gospel • There is a Spiritual Battle going on. • We need to be aware of the attempted attacks on the gospel. • We need to be able to restore and protect the gospel. • 1 Tim 4:16 • Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.
