We, the people of Christianity, seek the restoration of the Church to the glory once experienced by the 1st century believers. But the Church will not experience this glory, nor the power of the 1st century church, until we restore two things to church life; defending the truth, and holding one another accountable to living the truth. We see this example when Paul confronted Peter for being insincere in his faith, not eating with the Gentile believers (Gal 2:11-14). Paul defended and held Peter accountable for the truth Peter himself had established in the church; the Gentiles were also granted an entrance into salvation (Acts 11:15-17). I firmly believe we have a pure gospel to preach because men like Peter and Paul made themselves accountable to the truth.
There are many reasons that we in our present time have allowed a great latitude in what we call “truth” amongst believers. First, we do not want to misjudge others, and second, we do not see ourselves individually as knowing exactly what the truth is in its totality. Yet, there is a way we can establish that which we should defend, and that by which we should live.
Clearly, the Lord left us in good hands when He left this earth. Jesus left us the Holy Spirit, calling Him the Spirit of Truth (Jn 14:17). He told His disciples that the Holy Spirit would “teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.” (Jn 14:26). We do not read that, before His death and resurrection, Jesus established how the church should be formed and what its function was. Knowing He would be absent, Jesus left this important matter to the ministry of the Holy Spirit who revealed and taught faithful believers the truth.
We are saved through the sanctification of the Holy Spirit, and by our belief in the truth (2 Thess 2:14). We escape the corruption which condemns us by walking in the Holy Spirit and being daily sanctified. The Holy Spirit not only teaches us the truth, but He exposes our sin to us personally so that we can be cleansed of it. This is to be loved as much as we love life itself, for the inner work of the Holy Spirit, if followed, loved and obeyed, gives us life in Christ.
Those who are not being saved do not love the truth of sanctification, and what they delight in is wickedness (2 Thess 2:10-12). It is not just ignorance about the truth or some doctrinal issues that they differ on. The fearful thing is that they reject the relationship of the Holy Spirit wherein they are cleansed of their corrupt fleshly nature.
Though we do not want to be harsh in our dealings with one another, we are still admonished to mix our mercy-giving with “snatch”-ing. Jude writes “Be merciful to those who doubt; snatch others from the fire and save them; to others show mercy, mixed with fear – hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh.” (Jd :22-23) We know that our brethren need encouragement, nurturing, kindness, patience, and much more to make their way successfully through this life. But there is a fear mentioned here that underscores the importance of being accountable to one another for following the truth.
The brethren who walk in the corruption of their flesh and do not obey the scriptures are the ones whom we should “snatch” from the fire. Will that make some of us unpopular? Yes. Will that return the Church of God to the standard of truth that others shed their blood to establish? Yes. The love of the truth and living according to the truth must be more important than the coziness of our relationships. It was more important for Jesus. It was more important for Peter, Paul, and all the apostles. If we truly want the Church to return to its former glory and power, let us live and speak as a people in love with the truth. Then God will confirm His Words with signs and wonders (Mk 16:20) and we will walk alongside Jesus as His glorious Bride Amen.
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