Beliefs of our Faith Community Part 6
Today we will wrap up our series concerning the doctrine of our faith community.
Our doctrines have a rich history that goes back further than the birth of the Church
of the Nazarene in 1909.
We can trace our ideas through 25 Articles of faith of Methodism,
And John Wesley, in 1784
to the 39 articles of faith of Anglican Church dating back
to 1563.
And from there through there various
permutation on back the Scripture
itself.
From This doctrine an identifiable spirituality, piety, and holiness have sprung
Forth all of which instructs us in how to live our lives to the full as Jesus
proclaimed his mission to be—that you might live an abundant life one so abundant that it spills over to life eternal.
For your consideration the last 2 articles of our 16 articles of faith dealing with the
Second Coming of Christ and Eternal Destiny.
XV. Second Coming of Christ
19. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ will come again; that we who are alive at His coming shall not precede them that are asleep in Christ Jesus; but that, if we are abiding in Him, we shall be caught up with the risen saints to meet the Lord in the air, so that we shall ever be with the Lord.
(Matthew 25:31-46; John 14:1-3; Acts 1:9-11; Philippians 3:20-21; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; Titus 2:11-14; Hebrews 9:26-28; 2 Peter 3:3-15; Revelation 1:7-8; 22:7-20)
318 times in the New Testament you will find a reference, direct or indirect to
Jesus returning to this Earth.
The technical term for this is parousi.
Parousi means presence or arrival.
“In the ancient world parousia indicated the visit of a
king to one of his provinces.” (Leonard, p. 90)
Today we understand it almost exclusively as a reference to the
second coming of Jesus.
Acts 1:6-11 (MSG)
When they were together for the last time they asked, "Master, are you going to restore the kingdom to Israel now? Is this the time?" He told them, "You don't get to know the time. Timing is the Father's business. What you'll get is the Holy Spirit. And when the Holy Spirit comes on you, you will be able to be my witnesses in Jerusalem, all over Judea and Samaria, even to the ends of the world." These were his last words. As they watched, he was taken up and disappeared in a cloud. They stood there, staring into the empty sky. Suddenly two men appeared—in white robes! They said, "You Galileans!—why do you just stand here looking up at an empty sky? This very Jesus who was taken up from among you to heaven will come as certainly—and mysteriously—as he left."
We live during the in between times.
The time between the ascension and the second coming.
This wonderful gospel that reveals how we can be set free from sin and
reconciled to God finds its start in the life and ministry of Jesus
Christ.
From his ministry, crucifixion, resurrection and ascension,
we live in a time when the gospel is proclaimed and whosoever hears
it may seek God, on God’s terms,
leave a life of spiritual death, and enter into a new and
abundant life of the Spirit.
This time of whosoever will come to an end when Jesus returns.
The Old Testament referred to it as the day of the Lord,
When God would make all things right,
The righteous will be rewarded and the wicked cast out.
Revelation 21:3-5 (MSG)
I heard a voice thunder from the Throne: "Look! Look! God has moved into the neighborhood, making his home with men and women! They're his people, he's their God. He'll wipe every tear from their eyes. Death is gone for good—tears gone, crying gone, pain gone—all the first order of things gone." The Enthroned continued, "Look! I'm making everything new.
When this second coming will occur the scripture is silent.
But every generation of believers have lived in the expectation that the event
will occur during the his or her life time.
For we believe the testimony of the Apostle Paul who told the
Christians of Corinth
1 Corinthians 15:51-53 (MSG)
But let me tell you something wonderful, a mystery I'll probably never fully understand. We're not all going to die—but we are all going to be changed. You hear a blast to end all blasts from a trumpet, and in the time that you look up and blink your eyes—it's over. On signal from that trumpet from heaven, the dead will be up and out of their graves, beyond the reach of death, never to die again. At the same moment and in the same way, we'll all be changed. In the resurrection scheme of things, this has to happen: everything perishable taken off the shelves and replaced by the imperishable, this mortal replaced by the immortal.
Every generation has held out the hope that this miracle would occur during
his or her life time.
The hope builds an expectancy and an urgency.
Now is the time to be right with God.
Now is the time to be about the work of the Lord.
Now is the time to get serious about our
faith.
Now is the time to live as ambassadors of God,
As salt and light in this world.
Now it is time to tell as many as we can the good news.
For the believer the second coming of Jesus ushers in victory.
For those who reject the invitation the fate is described in
our last article.
XVI. Resurrection, Judgment, and Destiny
20. We believe in the resurrection of the dead, that the bodies both of the just and of the unjust shall be raised to life and united with their spirits-"they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation."
21. We believe in future judgment in which every person shall appear before God to be judged according to his or her deeds in this life.
22. We believe that glorious and everlasting life is assured to all who savingly believe in, and obediently follow, Jesus Christ our Lord; and that the finally impenitent shall suffer eternally in hell.
(Genesis 18:25; 1 Samuel 2:10; Psalm 50:6; Isaiah 26:19; Daniel 12:2-3; Matthew 25:31-46; Mark 9:43-48; Luke 16:19-31; 20:27-38; John 3:16-18; 5:25-29; 11:21-27; Acts 17:30-31; Romans 2:1-16; 14:7-12; 1 Corinthians 15:12-58; 2 Corinthians 5:10; 2 Thessalonians 1:5-10; Revelation 20:11-15; 22:1-15)
Every one who ever lived and died will experience a resurrection from the dead.
Physical death is a symbol to all of us,
That we are under a curse.
That even though a relationship can be reconciled we still must live
with the consequences of our actions.
So all in Adam die.
In Christ all will live again to face the judgment of God.
Revelation 20:11-15 (NIV)
Then I saw a great white throne and him who was seated on it. Earth and sky fled from his presence, and there was no place for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Another book was opened, which is the book of life. The dead were judged according to what they had done as recorded in the books. The sea gave up the dead that were in it, and death and Hades gave up the dead that were in them, and each person was judged according to what he had done. Then death and Hades were thrown into the lake of fire. The lake of fire is the second death. If anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
Our faith community has no precise teaching as the nature of eternal damnation.
I’ve taught you that we are in fact immortal beings,
Created in the image of God is to be created eternal.
Salvation is found in living in a right relationship with God,
Knowing Him.
Damnation is living estranged from God.
It is my opinion,
Remember every one is entitled to an opinion no matter how right or
wrong it may be.
My opinion is that John could only describe existing in eternity
estranged from God as being thrown alive into a lake of fire.
Now you certainly can believe in a hell as pictured in
Dante’s Inferno from his book the Divine Comedy.
For me its something more horrible,
I think it is having seen what was offered through faith in Jesus,
To be cut off and caste out in an eternal isolation,
A god of your own creation, impotent, ignorant,
Lost and hopeless, no love, no light,
no end.
The wrath of God is giving to egoism what it always desired,
To be in charge,
But to be in charge of nothing,
Except me, myself and I.
No one and nothing else to interact with.
Full of desires that can never be satisfied.
Separated, isolated, alone.
Not just for a day, or a week, or a
month but for ever and ever,
To me that would be like being thrown alive into a lake of burning
fire.
I’ve heard some self proclaimed disciples of Jesus say that those who reject the
salvation that God offers deserve their fate.
But I can’t help thinking about the compassion of God,
Wanting to rescue his beloved but wayward creation,
Incarnates, and then allows Himself to be tortured to death for us to
see the punishment that awaits those who refuse to seek Him
and at the same time meeting the requirements of both
eternal love and eternal justice that is part of who
He is, making atonement for mankind’s
infidelity.
that I can’t imagine not caring about someone’s eternal destiny.
Christians face a judgment also.
First we know that our names are written in the Lamb’s Book of Life.
So our eternity is not damnation.
But the merit of works will be judged.
Again hear the words of the Apostle Paul
1 Corinthians 3:10-15 (MSG)
Using the gift God gave me as a good architect, I designed blueprints; Apollos is putting up the walls. Let each carpenter who comes on the job take care to build on the foundation! Remember, there is only one foundation, the one already laid: Jesus Christ. Take particular care in picking out your building materials. Eventually there is going to be an inspection. If you use cheap or inferior materials, you'll be found out. The inspection will be thorough and rigorous. You won't get by with a thing. If your work passes inspection, fine; if it doesn't, your part of the building will be torn out and started over. But you won't be torn out; you'll survive—but just barely.
Friends you are saved by grace, not by your works, your good deeds,
But after you are reconciled to God there is a work for you to do.
Cheap and inferior materials are readily found in not fulfilling your
calling, not using the talents God has given you, not loving.
The good stuff, the expensive stuff is purchased at the price of ministry.
Right belief and right action that makes a difference in this world.
And you know that action: Loving God, Loving Others, Loving
the Earth, Loving your self.
And you know how that loving is demonstrated.
Obedience to His commands.
Seeking to meet the need of another even at the cost of a
personal sacrifice.
Being a wise steward of the material goods God has
given you.
Becoming the person God created you to be and doing
the things God created you to do.
So the question looms:
Do you want to receive a reward for your work, or a just barely?
Bottom line there will be a resurrection,
Everyone will be judged by what they did and didn’t do.
Those who are found wanting are eternally damned.
Those who are in Christ,
Having accepted the fact that they are a sinner.
Having believed that Jesus is the only answer.
Having committed themselves to discipleship.
Having had God answer their cry to accept them.
They are the ones in Christ,
They give an account of their work,
And then enter the glory of God.
Hebrews 9:27-28 (NIV)
Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.
One more thing I’d like to touch upon before ending this series.
Doctrine informs lifestyle.
You believe, then this is how you should live.
I want to give you 15 lifestyle choices based on the doctrinal
understanding of this faith community.
1. Loving God with all the heart, soul, mind and strength, and one's neighbor as oneself.
(Exodus 20:3‑6; Leviticus 19:17‑18; Deuteronomy 5:7‑10; 6:4‑5; Mark 12:28‑31)
2. Pressing upon the attention of the pre‑Christians the claims of the gospel, inviting them to Christian activities and trying to achieve their salvation.
(Matthew 28:19‑20; Acts 1:8; Romans 1:14‑16; 2 Corinthians 5:18‑20)
3. Being courteous to all.
(Ephesians 4:32; Titus 3:2, 1 Peter 2:17; 1 John 3:18)
4. Being helpful to those who are also of the faith, in love forbearing one another.
(Romans 12:13; Galatians 6:2,10; Colossians 3:12‑14)
5. Seeking to do good to the bodies and souls of people: feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, visiting the sick and imprisoned, and ministering to the needy as opportunity and ability are given.
(Matthew 25:35‑36; 2 Corinthians 9:8‑10)
6. Contributing to the support of the ministry and the church and its work in tithes and offerings.
(Malachi 3:10; Luke 6:38, 1 Corinthians 9:14; 16:2)
7. Attending faithfully all the ordinances of God, and the means of grace, including public worship of God, the ministry of the Word, the sacrament of the Lord's Supper, searching the Scriptures and meditating upon them, conducting family and private devotions.
(Hebrews 10:25; Acts 2:42; 1 Corinthians 11:23‑30; Acts 17:11)
8. Honoring the name of God, refusing to use God's name as an expletive. Avoiding taking the name of God in vain through acts of hypocrisy.
(Exodus 20:7; Leviticus 19:12; James 5:12)
9. Keeping the Lord's Day free of any unnecessary secular activities which divert our attention from God and family. Avoiding profaning the Lord's Day by participation in unnecessary secular activities, thereby indulging in practices which deny His sanctity.
(Exodus 20:8‑11)
10. Staying sexually pure. Avoiding sexual immorality, such as premarital or extra‑marital relations, perversion in any form, or looseness and impropriety of conduct.
(Exodus 20:14; Matthew 5:27‑30)
11. Maintaining our physical and mental well‑being. Avoiding habits or practices known to be destructive of physical and mental well‑being. Christians are to regard themselves as temples of the Holy Spirit.
(Proverbs 20:1; 23:1‑3, 1 Corinthians 6:17‑20; 2 Corinthians 7:1; Ephesians 5:18)
12. Being kind with our words. Avoiding quarreling, returning evil for evil, gossiping, slandering, spreading surmises that are injurious to the good names of others.
(2 Corinthians 12:20; Galatians 5:15)
13. Being people of integrity. Avoiding dishonesty, taking advantage in buying and selling, bearing false witness and like works of darkness.
(Leviticus 19:10‑11; Romans 12:17; 1 Corinthians 6:7‑10)
14. Esteeming one another by avoiding the indulging of pride in dress or behavior.
(Proverbs 29:23; 1 Timothy 2:8‑10)
15. Enjoying music, literature, movies, entertainment and recreation that honor God and are consistent with a holiness lifestyle. Avoiding music, literature, and entertainment that dishonor God.
(1 Corinthians 10:31; 2 Corinthians 6:14‑17; James 4:4)
This is how people in our faith community are expected to live out the doctrine that
they believe.
Do these things and you will be building upon the foundation of faith
in Christ with precious materials.
Here we are at the end of this series about the doctrinal beliefs of this faith
community called the Church of the Nazarene.
If this teaching resonates in you soul and you can say,
I believe all of that.
Then let me extend to you an invitation to become an
official member of this faith community.
I welcome you to join this body of believers,
I have a handout for you that will give you an
opportunity to express your desire to recognized as
a member of this faith family.
I’d like for you to take it, sign it, and give it back to me today.
Next week I’d like to receive you as on of our own.