unity

1. ““And doAnd do notnot bebe
conformed to this world,conformed to this world,
but be transformed bybut be transformed by
the renewing of yourthe renewing of your
mind…”mind…”
Romans 12:1-2

2. Renewed View of the ChurchRenewed View of the Church
Satan succeeded in Eden because he changed theSatan succeeded in Eden because he changed the
view of Godview of God’s will –’s will – Gen 3Gen 3 – “die” to “not die”– “die” to “not die”
The serpent of brass (The serpent of brass (Nu. 21:4-9Nu. 21:4-9), saved many but), saved many but
people changed in their view of it (people changed in their view of it (2 Kg. 18:42 Kg. 18:4))
Denominations have changed the LordDenominations have changed the Lord’s Supper to’s Supper to
an ornate sacramental rite (one extreme) and to aan ornate sacramental rite (one extreme) and to a
common meal (other extreme) and “it is not to eatcommon meal (other extreme) and “it is not to eat
the Supper” (the Supper” (1 Cor. 11:201 Cor. 11:20).).
Israel wanted a king, but viewed him as earthly,Israel wanted a king, but viewed him as earthly,
like Solomon, and killed the Christlike Solomon, and killed the Christ John 6:14-15John 6:14-15

3. Altering GodAltering God’s Plan Corrupts It’s Plan Corrupts It
Jeroboam assumed GodJeroboam assumed God’s authority and’s authority and
substituted his ownsubstituted his own wisdomwisdom, for the wrong, for the wrong
motivemotive, wrong, wrong placeplace, wrong, wrong elementselements, wrong, wrong
priestspriests, at the wrong time, corrupting Israel –, at the wrong time, corrupting Israel –
1 Kings 121 Kings 12
Jews changed MosesJews changed Moses’ law about parents to’ law about parents to
satisfy their own greed and were rebuked bysatisfy their own greed and were rebuked by
Jesus –Jesus – Mt. 15:1-9 (Mk 7)Mt. 15:1-9 (Mk 7)
Changing GodChanging God’s will insures sinful activity.’s will insures sinful activity.

4. The Church of ChristThe Church of Christ
is Scarcely Recognized Todayis Scarcely Recognized Today
 Jesus had a particular thing in mind whenJesus had a particular thing in mind when
He thought of the churchHe thought of the church
 Mt 16:18; Mt. 4:17; Mk. 9:1; Mt. 13:3, 31,
33, 44; Lk 17:21; Jn 18:36; Jn 3:5
 ApostlesApostles understood the church as they wereunderstood the church as they were
moved by the Holy Spiritmoved by the Holy Spirit 2 Pt 1:212 Pt 1:21
 Acts 2; Col. 1:13; Eph 1:22-23;
Col 1:21-26
 We need a renewed view of the churchWe need a renewed view of the church

5. Prophetic View of the churchProphetic View of the church
Undeniable ProofUndeniable Proof
----
IsaiahIsaiah
SaidSaid
DanielDaniel
Said --Said --
JoelJoel
Said --Said --
WouldWould
Begin inBegin in
JerusalemJerusalem
Isa 2:2-3Isa 2:2-3
Would BeginWould Begin
in Days ofin Days of
Roman KingsRoman Kings
Dan 2:44Dan 2:44
Would BeginWould Begin
With HolyWith Holy
SpiritSpirit
Joel 2:28ffJoel 2:28ff

6. Prophets Confirmed By God
“This is That”
----
Isaiah Acts 2
DanielDaniel
JoelJoel
InIn
JerusalemJerusalem
Holy SpiritHoly Spirit
CameCame
Under RomanUnder Roman
KingsKings
This is the church that Jesus Built
The date is right – the place is right
The Holy Spirit confirmed it 2:16

7. Denominational Views of the ChurchDenominational Views of the Church
 ““One church is as good as another”One church is as good as another”
SeeSee Eph 4:4-6; 5:23Eph 4:4-6; 5:23
 ““Church not essential to salvation”Church not essential to salvation”
SeeSee Eph 1:6; 2:13, 16; Acts 20:28Eph 1:6; 2:13, 16; Acts 20:28
 ““The church must adapt to new customs”The church must adapt to new customs”
SeeSee 1 Cor 6:9-11; Col. 1:18-231 Cor 6:9-11; Col. 1:18-23
 ““Christianity, not churchianity”Christianity, not churchianity”
SeeSee Eph 1:22-23Eph 1:22-23 How do we separateHow do we separate
Christ and His body?Christ and His body?

8. Bible Doctrine About the ChurchBible Doctrine About the Church
Has Been ChangedHas Been Changed
 Bible baptism –Bible baptism – Mt 28:18-20; Acts 2:38Mt 28:18-20; Acts 2:38
1 Pt 3:211 Pt 3:21 – has been changed to sprinkling…– has been changed to sprinkling…
 Bible contribution –Bible contribution – 1 Cor 16:1-21 Cor 16:1-2 – has– has
been changed to pie sales, bingo, publicbeen changed to pie sales, bingo, public
begging….begging….
 Bible elders –Bible elders – Acts 14:23; Titus 1; 2 Tim 3Acts 14:23; Titus 1; 2 Tim 3,,
has been changed to boards, conventions…has been changed to boards, conventions…
 Bible music – Eph 5:19; Col 3:16 – has beenBible music – Eph 5:19; Col 3:16 – has been
changed to big bands, choirs, entertainment..changed to big bands, choirs, entertainment..

9. Doctrinal Soundness Has BeenDoctrinal Soundness Has Been
CorruptedCorrupted
TheThe “doctrine of Christ” –“doctrine of Christ” – 2 Jn 9-112 Jn 9-11 - has- has
become meaningless through human traditionbecome meaningless through human tradition
““Doctrine” is God’s expression of whatDoctrine” is God’s expression of what
pleases him, but has been abandonedpleases him, but has been abandoned Mt 15Mt 15
““Doctrine of Christ” gives the church andDoctrine of Christ” gives the church and
individual Christians their moral principlesindividual Christians their moral principles
and scriptural activity.and scriptural activity.
What makes theWhat makes the “church of Christ” unique!“church of Christ” unique!
What makes ChristiansWhat makes Christians “peculiar”“peculiar” 1 Pt 2:91 Pt 2:9

10. Alexander Campbell - 1829
“Nothing should be admitted into our churches
(congregations) either as to doctrine, or
practice, or manner of teaching, or terms of
communion, orf ministerial qualifications, or
government, but what we find taught, enjoined
and practiced in the primitive church.”
• This was the restoration plea.
• “Speak where Bible speaks…be silent…”
• This distinctive plea isolates us from those
think otherwise.
• No denomination can make this statement!

11. Wineskins - 1992
Andre Resner wrote an article entitled “Christmas at
Matthew’s House.” It was published in the Nov 1992
issue of Wineskins magazine. In the article, Resner, a
professor of preaching and theology at ACU, calls the
apostle Matthew “sneaky.” Matthew wrote as directed
by the Holy Spirit, and if he is sneaky, then the Holy
Spirit is underhanded and cowardly, which is the
meaning of sneaky. Resner refers to what he calls
“Matthew’s covert statement” that Mary was found to
be with child from the Holy Spirit. How was that a
“covert” statement? We fail to see how the inspired
apostle’s announcement of the angelic statement could
be called “hidden, disguised, concealed, or
surreptitious.” (cont’d)

12. Is this what the professor means by calling Matthew
sneaky? Resner calls Mary the mother of Jesus
“another sexually questionable woman.” The author
refers to Rahab the harlot, and to Tamar, who seduced
her father-in-law, and to Bathsheba, who committed
adultery with David. Resner called Mary’s pregnant
condition a “similar” situation. He says that Mary’s
“predicament” was caused because she behaved like a
street-walker. He says that Matthew in preparing to
recount the birth of Jesus was about to tell “the most
embarrassing scandal.” I have asked Resner what is
embarrassing or scandalous about the virgin birth of
the Son of God, but he has not answered. H. A. Dobbs
(Note: Pres. Money of ACU defended Resner.)

13. “The law of God must never be read apart from
who God is as he as shown himself through his
actions, nor apart from the reasons God gave
the law in the first place. This is Jesus’ point.
Jesus shows that the real issues of
understanding the Bible go beyond being
focused on the words of the text or even the
context. We must instead focus centrally on the
heart of God as it reaches out from behind
those words and contexts to people.” (Gary D.
Collier, The Forgotten Treasure, p. 98)
Gary Collier - 1995

14. A man – to keep from offending men generally. Let’s say
a preacher – leaves his wife and children without a
scriptural cause and marries another woman.
Jesus said, “Whosoever shall put away his wife, except it
be for fornication, and shall marry another,
committeth adultery: and whoso marrieth her which is
put away doth commit adultery” (Matt. 19:9)
Not to worry. Not to worry. This fornicating preacher can
run right past the text and the context, paying no
attention to the words, to the very heart of God. When
he gets to the heart of God, he finds that God is loving,
merciful, full of grace, forgiving, kind, gentle, and
unwilling to every punish anyone, even adulterers
(maybe especially adulterers). Now he finds relief.
What a blessing. They’re just words. We are interested
in the very heart of God. H. A. Dobbs
Just What Does This Mean?

15. He went to Matthew 12:1-21 and found
that Jesus did not use a “mechanical
method” to understand the Old
Testament scriptures, but used “dynamic
perspective.” Jesus found out by reading
the Bible that “the deeper concerns of
God’s heart are more important than the
specific instructions of God’s law” (The
Forgotten Treasure, Gary D. Collier, p.
97). (cont’d)
Gary D. Collier - Again

16. David and his men, when hungry, ate the
shewbread, which Jesus said, “it was not lawful
for him to do.” What David and his men did
was sin. They were punished for it. Eighty-five
men who wore the linen ephod died as a result
of their sin. Collier takes that to mean the law
of God can be set aside with impunity. You sure
cannot pay attention to the words of the text
and to the context and come up with Collier’s
conclusion about this sin of David. Anyhow,
Jesus did not approve what David did. (ibid)
H. A. Dobbs
Gary D. Collier - Again

17. Brandon L. Fredenburg once wrote: “Persons
who have placed their faith in their Bibles more
than in the God the Bible reveals, end up
sending the signal that the ‘real purpose’ of the
Bible is to mine it for doctrinal tidbits. I find
this approach disgusting and spiritually
malnourishing.”
Jesus said, “The words that I speak unto you,
they are spirit and they are life.” Paul said, “I
commend you to God, and to the word of his
grace, which is able to build you up, and to give
you an inheritance among them which are
sanctified.” James wrote, “Receive with
meekness the engrafted word, which is able to
save your souls.” H. A. Dobbs

18. Thomas Olbricht of Pepperdine is the chief guru
for the new hermeneutic. He often says that we
must begin with God and not with the Bible. He
also tells us that when he wants to know what
the Bible teaches, he first searches throughout
the whole world to find out what God is doing
in the world (often called a world view) and
then he interprets the Bible in the light of this
knowledge. All of which sound mighty like
Collier’s insistence that we run right pasts the
words of the Bible and find in some mysterious
limbo the bleeding heart of God. H. A. Dobbs

19. Another example, Professor Carroll Osburn, also
of ACU says in his book, The Peaceable
Kingdom, that the Bible contains mistakes in
science. He has been asked many times to name
just one mistake in science in the Bible. He will
not! Why not? If he misspoke himself, let him
say so and the matter will be at an end. If he
meant what he said, then please tell us what the
scientific mistake is. Instead he goes about with
a zipped lip. H. A. Dobbs
Carroll Osburn – 1996

20. “It is also worth considering that the account of
these events may be, to some degree,
accommodative and symbolic. Genesis may use
the serpent motif because it is borrowing
imagery from the mythological culture of that
day regarding a cosmological foe of Deity. Old
Testament writers commonly take features of
well-known pagan myths and rework them in
order to present the truth of Israelite
monotheism.” (“The Seed of the Woman,” 2003 Florida
College lecture book)
Marty Pickup - 2003

21. • Question the text and context of the Bible
• Question the distinctiveness of the church
• Emphasize “ancient authorities” that dispute
the Bible account.
• Get in touch with the next generation and
indoctrinate them with questions about the
Bible.
• Allow that “our traditions” are not better than
denominational “traditions”
• Slowly introduce changes into the local church.
Ultimate End – Complete Apostasy

22. The Belmont Church of Christ is one of the oldest
in Nashville. According to a book written by
Paul D. Phillips, former Professor at David
Lipscomb University, the Belmont Church is
not longer to be considered a church of Christ.
He wrote: “The major battles with Church of
Christ traditionalism all ended in victory for
the Charismatic crusaders led by the Spirit-
energized Don Finto. [Claimed to be an apostle,
spoke in tongues and took over the church.]
(cont’d)
Example: Belmont of Nashville, TN

23. Many, but not all, of the old traditions went to the
scrap heap. …Phillips speaks of how “the
rebels at Belmont trampled on one sacred
tradition after another. In violation of the
apostolic injunction to be quiet, sisters
frequently shared their testimonies in the
public assemblies and even prayed audibly.
Communion was served…at special events on
week days…A procession of internal conflicts
emerged over matters of doctrine, faith and
tradition. The name of the church, hand
clapping at the assemblies, the role of women,
spiritual gifts, and instrumental music were
among the most divisive.”

24.  Of dedication to the word of God as theOf dedication to the word of God as the
absolute, infallible word of Godabsolute, infallible word of God 2 Tim 3:16-172 Tim 3:16-17
 Of Biblical soundness in preaching theOf Biblical soundness in preaching the
“whole counsel of God”“whole counsel of God” Acts 20:27Acts 20:27
Of concern about the lost in our family andOf concern about the lost in our family and
neighborhoodneighborhood Lk 15:1-24Lk 15:1-24
Of concern about the lost among ourOf concern about the lost among our
brethrenbrethren Gal 3:1; Rom 9:1-3Gal 3:1; Rom 9:1-3
Of dedication to the local churchOf dedication to the local church Col 1:9-12Col 1:9-12
We Need A Renewal Today…We Need A Renewal Today…