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The Lord’s Prayer

Gary L. Grizzell

    Jesus' prayer in Gethsemane is one of the most touching of all his recorded prayers, if in fact it is not the most meaningful one. It is found in John chapter 17.

    This is the real Lord's prayer! Jesus' work of teaching the disciples how and what to pray in his sermon on the mount (cf. Matthew 6:9-13) cannot be rightfully called, The Lord's Prayer. It may be called The Disciples' Prayer since it was what the disciples were to pray. However, the private prayer of Jesus in the garden may be rightfully called theLord's pra yer since it was his prayer to the Father.

While Jesus' prayers were brief publicly, they were longer privately. His private prayer in John 17 consisted of no less than 26 verses as the Savior poured out his heart's intentions before God. Much may be learned from an indepth study of this touching and famous prayer prayed just prior to the Lord's vicarious death on the cross.

1) We may know and believe the truth (6-12).
2) We may have joy in the face of an antagonistic world (13-14).
3) We are in the world but not of it (15-16).
4) We are to be holy and fulfill our mission (17-19).
5) We are to be united (20-23).
6) We may partake of his heavenly glory (24-26).

     While Jesus perspired "as it were great drops of blood falling down to the ground" (Luke 22:44) during such an emotion filled prayer, his unselfish requests help us to appreciate the will of God for our lives.

_________________________________________________________

Thanks!

Bearing Your Burdens

By Gary L. Grizzell

The word "burden" is used a multiplicity of times in the Bible. The word itself is found some 67 times and a form of it is seen no less than 95 times. What is the definition of a burden? Of the word BAROS (BURDEN) in the New Testament one authority wrote:

"BAROS ... denotes a weight, anything pressing on one physically, Matt. 20:12, or that makes a demand on one's resources, whether material, I Thess. 2:6 (to be burdensome), or spiritual, Gal. 6:2; Rev. 2:24, or religious, Acts 15:28." *

Burden Bearing From The Spiritual Perspective

The most important burden bearing being done today is the burden bearing involved in living together in a sin cursed world. Think of the need for burden bearing from the spiritual perspective.

I. The Burden Of Sin We All Have To Bear

The Bible says, "For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God" (Rom. 3:23). The first pair, Adam and Eve, were the first to carry this burden in the Garden of Eden (Gen. 3:1-6). They were to blame for creating this burden and soon learned that guilt is the great burden of sin. After they sinned, they were so bothered by this burden they hid from God and made figleaf aprons to cover themselves. Never before had they been afraid of God. God soon allowed the offering of animal sacrifices by which men might be forgiven and therefore the burden of sin be taken away (Gen. 4:4; Heb. 11:4). Today, we are grateful God has given his only begotten Son that we might have him as the sacrifice for our sins. The Hebrew writer said: "For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins" (Heb. 10:4).

Jesus told a Pharisee, "For God so loved the world that he gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life" (Jn. 3:16).

Paul wrote, "And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory" (I Tim. 3:16). In II Corinthians 5:21 the Bible says concerning Jesus, "For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him." Christ is our sin offering who bears our sins (Isa. 53:10-11).

The great folly of man has always been to bear sin through humanly devised schemes.

Consider the following:

1) Some try to ignore the burden of sin. The humanistic oriented counselor of modern times denies that sin is real, yet one can see sin in his {the counselor's} own life. While some are treating the sin problem by saying, "Oh well, that's human nature," Paul the apostle says, No, that is the old man of sin (Rom. 6:3-4). Yes, it's true that "To err is human, to forgive is divine" but this old uninspired cliche is not to serve as an excuse for living a life of habitual sinning. At the trial of Jesus, Pilot tried to wash his hands of the burden of sin (Matthew 27:24), but water alone will not cleanse a man of his sins. It takes the blood of Christ (Revelation 1:5) along with belief and a penitent heart to be cleansed by immersion in water (Mark 16:16; Luke 13:3; Rom. 10:9-10; 6:3-4; Acts 22:16).

2) Others try to carry the burden of sin by blaming their sin on someone else. This is what Adam and Eve did (Genesis 3:12-13). "Well, I'm just as good as anyone down there in that church, therefore I don't need to become a member of the church to be saved." But, it does not matter how good you are but where you are, that is, in the body of Christ (Gal. 3:26-27; Eph. 1:3; Titus 3:5). On the day of judgment it will be worthless to say, "Lord, I was just as good as brother so-in-so." If you allow a religious hypocrite to keep you out of heaven, you'll be forced to spend an eternity with him in hell. "Every man must bear his own burden" (Gal. 6:5).

3) Still others try to bear the burden of sin by the process of self destruction (the Judas complex). Some practice slow motion suicide by drinking their problems away. However, the problems are still there the next morning (cf. Gal. 5:19-21).

The answer to bearing up under the burden of sin is to live the faithful Christian life. The Bible says, "Casting all your care (anxiety) upon him, for he careth for you." God's Word teaches the Christian, "Be careful (anxious) for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God. And the peace of God, which passeth all understanding, shall keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus" (I Peter 5:7; Phil. 4:6-7). God promises to keep one who is a faithful Christian from being tempted above what he is able to bear (I Cor. 10:13). God desires to remove our burden of sin through forgiveness. We are reminded of His words long ago to a wayward people:

"Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord, though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool" (Isa. 1:18).

When addressing the matter of Jewish circumcision for the Christian Paul wrote: "For neither is circumcision anything, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature" (Gal. 6:15).

Friend, which is the better choice, to seek to be a new creature in Christ or to resort to the Judas complex?

II. The Burden Of Physical Infirmities That All Must Bear

It all started as a result of man sinning in the Garden of Eden. God had said, "In the day you eat thereof, ye shall surely die" (Gen. 2:17). This was a prophecy concerning death and all the infirmities that accompany death. Then Adam ate of the forbidden tree and at that moment he died spiritually and at that very moment he physically became a decaying creature. [The word "death" means separation]. It would only be a matter of time before his spirit would depart from his body and he would die physically. At the age of 930 years Adam died. Tragically, he continued in the beautiful garden for less than 130 years, which was less than 14% of his total life span (James 2:26; Gen. 5:5; Gen. 5:3). Satan, who was involved in the fall of man into sin, was later indicted by the Lord for his relationship to physical infirmity (cf. Luke 13:16).

Likewise, today, man's body is in a state of decay. Interestingly, the Bible mentions numerous conditions:

            Blemishes, Crookedback, Scurvy (Lev. 21:20).

                          Fever, Inflammation, Extreme Burning (Deut. 28:22).

                          Blains, Boils, Dropsy (Luke 14:2; Exo. 9:9; Job 2:7).

Madness (Deut. 28:28).

                       Dwarfism (Lev. 21:20, not allowed in priesthood, Lev. 21:18).

Botches, Canker (or gangrene) (Deut. 28:35; II Tim. 2:17).

            Leprosy, Blindness, Lameness, Inability to speak (Matt. 15:30; Luke 5:12), and others.

While we rejoice in the great and marvelous achievements of medical science, we "groan being burdened" in the fleshly body and look forward to our heavenly body (II Cor. 5:4). The Christian is promised a better body which is eternal in nature (I Cor. 15:50-53).

III. The burden Of Bearing One Another's Burdens

The apostle Paul instructed to "Bear ye one another's burdens and so fulfill the law of Christ" (Gal. 6:2). Jesus taught this same lesson while here on the earth, saying that burden-bearing involved feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, visiting the sick and those in prisons (Matt. 25:34-40).

In I Corinthians 12:12-26 the inspired penman teaches the BODY CONCEPT. He pointed out there are different members which make up the spiritual body of Christ, just as different members make up the physical body of a man. Some are the eyes, while others are the hands or the feet. Each member is concerned about the other members. When one member rejoices, all the other members rejoice with that member. When one member suffers, all the others suffer with that one member. Therefore, to
bear one another's burdens:

• Rejoice with the brother who has had something good happen to him.

• Say to the brother who is sick or shut-in: "I'll be praying for you" and let him know that you mean it.

• If a Christian has fallen away from the faith and has been offended, then try to understand him; bear his burden
and when he feels his burden becoming lighter because of your help he'll find it easier to come home to the Lord.

Remember, the Bible says to "Bear ye one another's burdens," not Ridicule ye one another's burdens.

IV. Last, There Is The Burden Of The Cross

Jesus carried His cross by doing His part as the savior of the world (John 3:16). He left the glories of heaven, the singing of angels and the walking of the streets of gold to come to a sin-cursed world and die at the hands of wicked men for wicked men. He left the joys of the Father's heavenly home to be beaten, mistreated, hated, mocked, spat upon, despised, falsely accused as a drunk and glutton, and nailed to a tree. "He was despised and rejected of men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief" (Isaiah 53:3). Ask yourself, "Is my burden as heavy as the burden our Lord carried?"

Jesus now expects us to carry our crosses if we would prepare ourselves for the heavenly home where sorrow does not exist and perfect joy reigns forever. We must interrogate ourselves daily by asking the question of the songwriter: "Must Jesus bear the cross alone and all the world go free?" Then the answer must be: "No, there's a cross for everyone and there's a cross for me."

"Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith" (II Cor. 13:5). It is an utter impossibility to expect a crown of life without previous crossbearing. Unless a man carries his cross he cannot be Jesus' disciple (Luke 14:26-27).

                     To Bear The Cross Means:

    ⇒ To live faithfully the Christian life (Mat. 7:21-23).

    ⇒ It means sacrifices in the work of saving souls (Mat. 6:33).

    ⇒ It means never putting the cross down (Luke 9:62).

Jesus carried His cross as far as was possible and He walked on to allow himself to be nailed to it. Though He could carry it no further than He did, He chose to meet it at Calvary. (see John 19:17; Mat. 27:31-32; Mark 15:20-21; Luke 23:26). Friend, your cross may become heavy, but you can walk on toward the door of heaven. Jesus is your example (I Peter 2:21).

Stephen carried the cross unto death! (Acts 7:60). We are to carry the cross unto death if necessary (Rev. 2:10). With reference to persecution, most of us will probably carry it until death rather than unto death. But one thing is certain, carry it we must! We can't carry it on Sunday and then put it down on Monday. We must carry it through the week: overcoming temptations, studying the Scriptures, praying, teaching and living for the Master (I Cor. 15:58). We will carry it until the Lord calls us home to gather around the great white throne with the angels and the redeemed of all the ages singing, "Worthy is the Lamb that was slain" (Rev. 5:12).

                                                                                          REFERENCES
* W.E. VINE, M.A. EXPOSITORY DIC. OF N.T. WORDS. Fleming H. Revell Co., Old Tappan, N.J., 1966. p. 157.
* All references are from the King James Version.

QUESTION: Who or what should be the final
authority regarding the most important issues
of life?

ANSWER: This is an excellent question. To
answer it one must first seek to identify the
important issues of life. The Bible gives us a
knowledge of the existence of God, creation, Jesus
Christ, salvation, heaven and hell. It gives us a
knowledge of God's will for us (Eph. 5:17). The
Word of God frees us from sin and all its evil
consequences which reach out to grab and
destroy us. It frees us from the power of sin (Col.
1:13-14). It frees us from the pollution of sin, that
is, guilt and fear (2 Tim. 1:7). It frees us from the
pleasure of sin (Heb. 10:25). It frees us from the
old man of sin (Rom. 6:3-4). It offers us heaven
where we will be free from the presence of all sin.
The Bible tells man of his origin, his purpose of
existence, and his destiny (Gen. 1:1; Eccl. 12:13-
14; 2 Cor. 5:10). The Bible is the only book that
deals sufficiently with the subject of death (Gen.
2:17; Gen. 3:1-6, 19; Rom. 5:12; 6:23).

The same book which answers these significant
questions also teaches that God pleased when
men seek authority only from Him in His word
with reference to salvation, Christianity and
religion. This is the case since, "All scripture is
given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for
doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction
in righteousness: That the man of God may be
perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good
works" (2 Tim. 3:16-17). God is displeased when
men either add to or subtract from His word (see
Deut. 4:2; Prov. 30:5-6 & Rev. 22:18-19). Men
must not tamper with God's written revelation
from Heaven. In every age since the beginning of
the world, God has required men to recognize His
authority. To those who lived under the Law of
Moses, it is written, "The secret things belong
unto the LORD our God: but those things which
are revealed belong unto us and to our children
for ever, that we may do all the words of this
law" (Deut. 29:29). In the New Testament Age in
which we now live, God's inspired word
commands, "And whatsoever ye do in word or
deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving
thanks to God and the Father by him" (Col. 3:17).
Therefore, men today must have a book, chapter
and verse from the New Testament of Christ for
whatever they teach or practice with regard to
salvation. We are to abide in the doctrine of Christ
if we expect to have a saving relationship with
God the Father (2 John 9). In view of this fact,
someone who respected Bible authority once
stated, "Let us speak where the Bible speaks and
be silent where the Bible is silent." Another
correctly stated, "In the Bible there are facts to be
believed, commands to be obeyed, and promises
to be enjoyed." These statements are in harmony
with the teaching of Colossians 3:17.

Accepting God's standard of truth by which we
live and seek eternity with God, we must reject
the false standards which men seek to impose
upon us today. Some of these faulty,
unauthorized standards are: feelings, human
wisdom, conscience only, dreams, personal
experiences, false traditions, and false "gospels."
In place of giving priority to feelings, study (2 Tim.
2:15); in place of human wisdom, get God's
wisdom (I Cor. 1:18-25); in place of the conscience
only, educate your conscience by the word of God
(Acts 9:1-2; 23:1; John 8:31-32); in place of
socalled modern-day miraculous dreams, accept
only the meaning of the recorded miraculous
dreams of certain ones in the first century (Acts
2:17; I Cor. 13:8-10); in place of personal
experiences, let us appreciate the testimony of the
Lord (Rev. 1:9; 6:9); in place of false gospels, let
us accept the one and only gospel of Christ (Gal.
1:6-9).

Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God said,
"He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my
words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I
have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last
day" (John 12:48). May we let Christ be the
authority in our lives today by hearing, believing
and obeying His teaching. In so doing, we may
expect Him to receive us at the last day, taking us
into heaven where we shall live eternally in joy
and peace (read John 14:1-3).

--Gary L. Grizzell

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May Be Found In The Following Libraries:

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Are We Saved By Faith Alone?

Gary L. Grizzell

One of the most deceiving, damnable doctrines in all of "Christiandom" is the doctrine of Faith Only! Jesus warned in his sermon on the mount: "Beware of false prophets which come to you in sheep's clothing but inwardly they are ravening wolves" (Mt. 7:15). Paul exhorted Christians to be not tossed to and fro by every wind of doctrine taught by men who in cunning craftiness lie in wait to deceive (cf. Eph. 4:14). Some say, "Oh, but you can prove anything by the Bible, therefore, everyone may have his own interpretation." It is any insult to any author (especially to God) to say that any theological or philosophical position may be taught from his book. All men may understand the will of God alike on things necessary to salvation! Paul taught by inspiration that we are not to remain unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is (Eph. 5:17). A true student of the Bible is required by God to "prove all things" and hold fast to the truth (I Th. 5:21). We are to be set for a verbal defense of the gospel against all perversions of the same (Phil. 1:17). We are to "try the spirits" to see who is truly of God and who is of the Devil (I Jn. 4:1). We are to contend earnestly for the faith which was once delivered to the saints (Jude 3). Dear reader, have you ever truly examined the popular doctrine of Faith Only in light of the New Testament of Christ?

Doctrine of Faith Only Violates Two Areas of New Testament Teaching

The Plan of Salvation is the first area adversely affected by the false doctrine of Faith Only. The Bible teaches that men are saved by sincerely obeying five steps: 1) Hear the gospel (Rom. 10:17), 2) Believe in Christ (Jn. 8:24), 3) Repent of sins (Lk. 13:3), 4) Confess Jesus as Lord (Rom. 10:9-10), and 5) be buried in baptism for the remission of sins (Acts 2:38; Col. 2:12). However, the proponents of the doctrine of Faith Only say a person is saved after having obeyed the first four steps and verses on water baptism are rejected as unnecessary to salvation. The disunity among those who believe in Faith Only is seen in that some believe that one is saved after step two while other believe one is saved after step number four. Either way their doctrine of Faith Only is a misnomer since all agree that one must at least "hear" in order to believe (Rom. 10:17). Man is not saved by anything alone and certainly not by belief alone. Basically, the doctrine of Faith Only believed by so many today says that one is saved at the point of intellectual accent in the deity of Christ.

A second area of the teaching of Christ which is violated by the doctrine of Faith Only is the teaching concerning the Christian Life. Whereas the Bible teaches the necessity of faithfulness to Christ, the doctrine Faith Only teaches that a Christian may obtain eternal life with a dead faith. But the Christian must be willing to be faithful unto death if necessary (cf. Rev. 2:10).

The Doctrine of Faith Only Violates Plain Scriptural Teaching

One of the golden texts on the subject of Faith and Works is the second chapter of the Epistle of James. James originally wrote to Jewish congregations of Christians in the first century (James 1:1). Their problem was that some were practicing the doctrine of Faith Only. He began by stating that God's blessing of the crown of life was upon those who endured temptation (James 1:12). He pointed out the need to be doers of the Word and not hearers only (James 1:22-25). The faith-only "Christian" who boasted he was a true child of God was instructed to have an alive faith by practicing true religion (James 1:25-27). Then, in chapter two James showed the ugly result of the doctrine of faith only. He rebuked the Christians who were guilty of the respect of persons by their mistreating the poor in the assembly. They sought to flatter the rich who came into the worship assembly (James 2:1-6). Also, the attitude of their dead faith resulted in saying to the naked and hungry person, "Be ye warmed and filled," but they neglected to help that naked and hungry individual (James 2:15-16). James' response was: "Faith, if it hath not works is dead, being alone" (James 2:17). Friend, did you hear what the Bible says? You know enough right now to know that an obedient faith saves, as opposed to faith-only!

James 2:24 also proves conclusively that faith-only is a doctrine straight out of the chambers of Satan. Consider: "Ye see then how that by works a man is justified, and not by faith only." The only time the expression "faith only" (in that word order) is found in the New Testament and it is condemned! Works only will not save. Faith only will not save. However, faith plus works equals an alive faith which God accepts. This is the proper response to the unmerited favor of God (grace: Eph. 2:8-9). To be "justified" is to be counted righteous in the sight of God. James 2:26 reveals that God's view is that there are two kinds of faith: 1) An Alive Faith, and 2) A Dead Faith. A Christian with dead faith is compared by divine analogy to a corpse without its spirit. A dead faith, like that James addressed, is the kind of faith that Satan has. He believes Christ is God's only begotten Son and his chief enemy. A dead faith is the kind of faith the Demons have (James 2:19). They even tremble in the presence of Christ because of their strong belief in his true identity (cf. Mk. 5:7). This is more than some today do when they consider the presence of Christ coming in judgment. However, as in the case of Satan, the Demons refused to add works of obedience to their belief. There can be no doubt about it, the doctrine of Faith Only violates the plain scriptural teaching of the second chapter of James!

The Single Message of Hebrews Chapter 11 Should Be Appreciated

The single message of Hebrews chapter 11 is the fact that the faith that saves is the faith that obeys. The great heroes of the faith are listed in this chapter and the nature of their great faith is seen. Each of these individuals received the blessings and promises of God because of his obedient faith. Abel not only believed God but he added works to his faith and offered a sacrifice as God had commanded (Heb. 11:4). Enoch not only believed God's words but he "walked" with God and therefore received the blessing of translation, i.e. he was taken into eternity without suffering natural physical death (Heb. 11:5; Gen. 5:22). Noah "moved with fear" (reverence) and built the ark. He not only believed God would save him (along with his seven member family) if he built the huge ship, but he added works to his faith by building it. Would not Noah have drowned along with the rest of the population if he had refused to do what God gave him 120 years to do? (Heb. 11:7; Gen. 6:5-8:22). Without this kind of faith "it is impossible to please him" because one must "diligently seek him." (Heb. 11:6). Abraham believed God's Word to him and he performed what God commanded of him. The Bible says that "By faith Abraham . . . obeyed" (Heb. 11:8-10). He not only believed God would make of his seed a great nation (and that the Messiah would come into the world through his seed) but he packed up his tents, took his family, drove his herds and traveled to the land flowing with milk and honey as God had commanded (Gen. 12:1-3; Gal. 3:16). Can any rational thinker seriously suggest that Abraham received the promise by Faith Only?! And yet, let us face it, this is the conclusion implied by the false doctrine of Faith Only. However, the truth is that God never saved anyone in any age who possessed a dead faith.

The Doctrine of Faith Only Did Not Originate With Christ

Jesus' conclusion to his great sermon on the mount was concerning who is wise in the sight of God and who is foolish in the sight of God. The wise man is the man who builds his house on the rock and is therefore saved during the time of flooding. The spiritually wise man is the individual who builds his life on the Word of God! This is the opposite of the foolish man who builds his life on the sandy foundation of false philosophy (cf. Mt. 7:24-27; Col. 2:8). You'll note that the person Jesus will commend on the day of judgment is the one who not only believes in the need to build a life on God's Word but the one who actually does it. In this text it was not merely preferable to build one's house on the rock but it was absolutely necessary in order to avoid destruction. Jesus said that to simply call Him "Lord" was not enough. One must do something, i.e "the will of my Father" (Mt. 7:21). For one's works to be works of obedience (which are acceptable to God) as opposed to works of merit (which are rejected by God), one must do the specified Will of The Father (the doctrine of Christ, 2 Jn. 9-11). This is because we are under the New Testament today as the binding law of God (Gal. 6:2).

Many religious people are pictured before the judgment seat of Christ pleading for eternal life. These people seek to remind the Lord of all the wonderful works they supposedly did in his name. Yet, his response to them is: "I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity." (Mt. 7:22-23). Jesus asks of those who have faith-only: "Why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?" (Lk. 6:46). Commandment-keeping proves love for Christ and one is a friend of Christ when he does whatever Christ commands (Jn. 14:15; Jn. 15:13-14).

The apostle Paul's words serve as an indictment of the doctrine of faith only Paul summed up the Christian life when he wrote it is "faith which worketh by love" (Gal. 5:6). Faith is the substance of the Christian life. Works is the response of faith. Love is the motive for a working faith. In view of this above passage, who can rationally and honestly deny that God requires a faith which works as opposed to a faith which is alone? Paul spoke of "obedience to the faith" and the need to "work out your own salvation with fear and trembling" (Rom. 1:5; Phil. 2:12-13). Every Christian is to "prove his own work" before God (Gal. 6:4-5). These statements are descriptive of a true Bible Faith and not that of the humanly devised doctrine of Faith Only.

Objections Answered

Objection Number One: "Baptism is a work and to say that one must be baptized to be saved is to try to earn one's salvation." Yes, baptism is a work but so is belief (Jn. 6:28-29). There is a difference between works of obedience and works of merit. God accepts only the former.

Objection Number Two: "The thief on the cross was saved by faith only." No, he added works to his faith when he defended the Lord (cf. Lk. 23:40-41).

Any Doctrine Which Implies A False Doctrine Is False Within Itself

If the doctrine of Faith Only is true then Satan and his Demons are saved (James 2:19). If the doctrine of Faith Only is true then the Chief Rulers who believed on Christ, but who would not confess him lest they be put out of the Synagogue, were saved (Jn. 12:42-43). If the doctrine of Faith Only is true then the doctrine of Universalism is true, i.e. all will be saved on the Day of Judgment. This is the case since the Bible declares that all will confess Jesus as Lord on the last day (Phil. 2:10-11; Rom. 14:11). So, if the doctrine of Faith Only is true then no one will be in Hell. If the doctrine of Faith Only is true then the wicked will be admitted into heaven since there will be no other place for them to exist in eternity (Rev. 20:14). So, if the doctrine of Faith Only is true then the righteous will be forced to spend eternity with the wicked. Who is willing to accept these clear implications of the doctrine of Faith Only?

What Will Your Choice Be?

Friend, will you be warned of wolves in sheep's clothing who devour modern man with false doctrine? Will you be tossed to and fro with every wind of doctrine by men who in cunning craftiness lie in wait to deceive? The doctrine of Faith Only is a sinfully convenient, false, watered-down gospel. Will you respectfully, courageously, and sincerely exercise an obedient faith so as to obtain the salvation in Christ? Then with anticipation we may look for that blessed God and our Savior Jesus Christ to return and carry us to heaven at the last day. May we prayerfully study and rightly divide God's Word of Truth (2 Tim. 2:15). "But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead?" (James 2:20).

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