Homer Hailey
06/09/19
The plea for the church of Christ is a plea for Christ and for His divine will. The church of Christ has no creed but Christ; it recognizes no law but the law of Christ; and no way but the way of Christ. The plea of the church is a plea for:
THE DEITY OF CHRIST
The deity of Christ is summed up in the confession of Peter who said, “Thou are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matt. 16:16), and of Thomas who said unto Him, “My Lord and my God” (Jno. 20:18). Faith in the deity of Jesus Christ includes belief in the virgin birth, the special Sonship of God, death on the cross for remission of sins, and the bodily resurrection of Jesus from the dead. It is also a plea for:
THE AUTHORITY OF CHRIST
After He was raised from the dead, Jesus declared, “All authority hath been given to me in heaven and on earth” (Matt. 28:19). The leaves none for any man or group of men, on earth or in heaven. God has given all authority to Christ. He has put all things in subjection under his feet, and has given Him “to be head over all things to the church” (Eph. 1:22). The authority of Christ is absolute, therefore every religious question must be answered by an appeal to the authority of Christ. He is the sole and supreme head of the church. Further, a plea for Christ is a plea for:
THE NAME OF CHRIST
Paul said of Christ, “Wherefore also God highly exalted him, and gave unto him the name which is above every name; that in the name of Jesus every knee should bow…and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is the Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Phil. 2:9-11). This is the greatest of names, which is His, He has bestowed upon his disciples, when the Holy Spirit called them “Christians” (I Pet. 4:16). The plea is also a plea for:
THE BLOOD OF CHRIST
Jesus said, “This is my blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for many unto remission of sins” (Matt. 26:28). His blood cleanses from all sin, and apart from that blood there is no remission. Men must have a sacrifice sufficient to cleanse from the guilt of sin; God provided that sacrifice in His only begotten Son. Also it is a plea for:
THE LAW OF CHRIST
The Law of Moses was a law of works; the law of Christ is a law of grace and faith. The law of Christ contains the will of God as revealed in Him; God’s commandments for men under Christ, His promises to those who keep the law of Christ, and the penalties for those who reject or violate it. This law of Christ contains the terms on which God promised to remit sins, Christ’s law cannot with impunity be ignored. The plea also includes a plea for:
THE CHURCH OF CHRIST
Christ declared He would build His church (Matt. 16:18). That church was built, and to it God added the saved (Acts 2:47). It has never been destroyed, for it was to have been and has been, perpetuated by an indestructible seed, the Word of God (Lk. 8:11; Matt. 24:35). The plea for Christ in not a plea for sectarianism or denominationalism, but for the divine institution built on the deity of Christ, ruled over by Christ, and to be presented unto Christ. Lastly, it is a plea for:
A LIFE AFTER CHRIST
Christ calls upon men to follow Him, to show forth His excellencies. This life is one “not after the flesh,” but “after the Spirit” (Rom. 8:12, 17). The Holy Spirit said, “Be ye therefore imitators of God as beloved children” (Eph. 5:1); and again, “For hereunto were you called; because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, that ye should follow his steps” (I Pet. 2: 12).
It is this plea for Christ and those things that pertain to Him that the church of Christ strives in this age of skepticism and uncertainty.
Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash