Washington, DC International Christian Church

“Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.” 1 Timothy 4:16

What is more important?  Life or doctrine?  The bible clearly states both.  An analogy that always comes to my mind is that of an airplane.  What wing of an airplane is more important to the success of a flight?  The left wing or the right wing?  The answer is obvious – both are equally important.  The railings of a bridge can also apply to this analogy as well.  If we are not walking a straight path, we can fall off if one of the railings is not present.  In the same way, we must keep God’s standards in both our “life and doctrine” in order to successfully walk the narrow path.  As Jesus states in Matthew 7:13-14, “Enter through the narrow gate.  For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it.  But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” What is Jesus saying here?  That the majority of people who claim to “religious” will not be with Him?  Consider what Jesus says later in verse 21, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” Only by paying close attention to our “life and doctrine” will we be sure of what God’s will is.

In 1 Timothy 4:16, the apostle Paul gives specific instructions to Timothy, his protégé and leader of the church in Ephesus.  Paul speaks in very definite terms that both life and doctrine are essential to salvation, and the perseverance of such values is crucial not only for the individual, but also for the people that hear their message.   As disciples of Christ, we are aware that the doctrine of the apostles (and Jesus) is very clear:  We must believe that Jesus is the Son of God (John 20:31; Acts 9:20), make the decision to make him Lord of our lives (Acts 2:36; Acts 10:36), repent and be baptized for the forgiveness of our sins, thereby receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:38; John 3:1-5), and live a life of making disciples, baptizing them and teaching them to obey as well (Matthew 28:18-20, 1 Corinthians 5:11-13).

The “Christianity” of today debates even these fundamental issues through various “denominations” (definition: a group of the name) and factions of churches whose disunity are clearly in violation of the scriptures (1 Corinthians 1:10; John 17:20-23).  While this disunity is obvious to all, what is more frightening is the lack of standards in regards to their way of life.  If doctrine, or the authoritative beliefs of the church, are the source of confusion, how much more so must the standards of discipleship in their lives be?  In order to curtail any naiveté, I believe it is important to faithfully address these issues in order to discern what is best as we follow Jesus.

In Philippians 1:9-11, this goal of discerning what is best by God is made very clear.  Paul writes, “And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight, so that you may be able to discern what is best and may be pure and blameless until the day of Christ, filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ—to the glory and praise of God.” With issues such as life, we must be able to ascertain what is best in our walk as disciples.   It is not only important for our own salvation, but our example also influences others in their discipleship as well.

So what is this “life” that we speak of?  What are the issues we need to determine?  First we must look at our authoritative beliefs, or doctrine.  Our life must coincide with what we believe.  The lordship of Jesus, repentance of sin, and Jesus’ mission of seeking and saving the lost are key directives that we have been entrusted with by God as we walk daily with Him.

With all the confusion circulating in the former ICOC churches about who’s right instead of what’s right, I feel the need to make the issues very clear for disciples who may be unaware of the key issues between the Sold-Out Discipling Movement, the former ICOC movement of churches, and those who are watching the action from afar.  While the following is not an exhaustive argument, through examining the controversy I see five clear issues of contention:

1.  Being part of a unified movement of God

The issue of a unified, geographic church is very clear in the Bible.  In 1 Corinthians 4:17, Paul speaks to the church in Corinth and states, “For this reason I am sending to you Timothy, my son whom I love, who is faithful in the Lord. He will remind you of my way of life in Christ Jesus, which agrees with what I teach everywhere in every church.” It is clear from this passage that the same standards of “life” were being promoted by Paul in all the churches that had been planted.  There was no “autonomy” of churches that determined their own standards.  1 Peter 2:17 refers to the “brotherhood of believers” and Acts 15:22-27 refers to the fact that when church members spoke to other churches, they needed the authorization from the leadership of the main church body in order to avoid confusion because of differing requirements / standards.  Paul was an “overseeing evangelist”, as he mentored Timothy and Titus as they led the churches in Ephesus (1 Timothy 1:3) and Crete (Titus 1:5).  In Acts 16:4-5, Paul took Timothy from town to town and delivered the decisions reached by the apostles and elders from the Council at Jerusalem to obey.  As a result, the churches were strengthened and grew daily in numbers.  There was no fear in having one man as leader, as long as he followed Christ!  I pray for the day when our churches can be reunited and come under the direction leadership of evangelists and elders once again.  As Hosea 1:11 states, “The people of Judah and the people of Israel will be reunited, and they will appoint one leader and will come out of the land, for great will be the day of Jezreel.” Jesus prayed for this “complete unity” in John 17:20-23 as well, so that the world would know that Jesus was sent by God and loves Him and us!  Our disunity and lack of a unified standard is disparaging to God!

1 Corinthians 1:10 states, “I appeal to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another so that there may be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly unified in mind and thought.” Once again the Scriptures call us to be perfectly united, not just on doctrine, or even our lives, but our minds and hearts as well.  What is the cause for such a lack of unity?  Consider the following…

2.  Being totally committed to God and His church

Being a disciple of Christ is a commitment first to God.  Every disciple in God’s Kingdom is called to the same standard.  In Acts 2:42-44, the Scriptures read, “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer. Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. All the believers were together and had everything in common.” Everyone in the 1st century church was devoted.  There wasn’t a “church within a church.”  Everyone had the same standards, the same commitment because of their love and awe of God.  Sadly, there are churches where the commitment is not enforced or expected.  Correct instruction is preached, but not with the expectation of obedience, unlike Jesus’ direction given in Matthew 28:20, “teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.” As a result, there are churches where people are professing obedience, but their actions do not justify their claim.  Consider Ezekiel 33:30-32: “As for you, son of man, your countrymen are talking together about you by the walls and at the doors of the houses, saying to each other, ‘Come and hear the message that has come from the LORD.’  My people come to you, as they usually do, and sit before you to listen to your words, but they do not put them into practice. With their mouths they express devotion, but their hearts are greedy for unjust gain.  Indeed, to them you are nothing more than one who sings love songs with a beautiful voice and plays an instrument well, for they hear your words but do not put them into practice.”

When people haphazardly miss meetings of the body (Hebrews 10:25) or do not want correction and the call of repentance in their lives (Proverbs 12:1), they become lukewarm, which does not please God (Revelations 3:16).  As a result, they drift, and if they continue to lack repentance and resist working out their salvation with fear and trembling, they can eventually wander away from God (1 Peter 2:20-22; Philippians 1:12-13).   Sadly, this unfortunate example can lead to others to think that this behavior is accepted if the leadership does not protect the flock and call such uncommitted members to repentance.   Ezekiel condemns these “false prophets” in chapter 13, verse 22, where he states, “Because you disheartened the righteous with your lies, when I had brought them no grief, and because you encouraged the wicked not to turn from their evil ways and so save their lives…I (the Lord) will save my people from your hands.” If we can have total commitment in our marriages, why should we, the bride and body of Christ (Ephesians 5:22-33), have any less commitment to each other (the church) and to God?  Paul himself stated that the decision to repent was a necessity:  “I have declared to both Jews and Greeks that they must turn to God in repentance and have faith in our Lord Jesus.” (Acts 20:21).  These issues are not optional.  They are a necessity.  Otherwise we are in danger of turning to a different gospel – which is really no gospel at all (Galatians 1:6-7).  How can we encourage each other to stay committed, and to “obey everything that I (Jesus) commanded?” This leads us to point number 3…

3.  Discipling relationships are essential for all disciples of Christ

In Matthew 28:18-20, Jesus states, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.  Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always to the very end of the age.” This is the Great Commission of God.  In Matthew 22:37-39, we see the Greatest Commandment, which states, “’Love the Lord you God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all you mind.’  This is the first and greatest commandment.  And the second is like it:  ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” The two of scriptures work hand in hand.  We cannot make disciples, baptize them and teach them to obey without love.  Yet “discipling” relationships, or accountability relationships, with the goal of helping another disciple to become more like Jesus have become non-existent or optional in many churches.  Colossians 1:28 states, “We proclaim him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ.” (i.d.)  Where in any of the above scriptures does God state that this is optional?  Does Jesus state that we are to “obey everything I have commanded you” when the person feels like asking for help?  If we are to love our neighbor as ourselves, we need to take care of others’ needs!  We are to encourage, admonish (to warn) and teach everyone to become more like Christ!   Is this a job only for the ministry staff of the church?  Surely not!  Consider Paul’s admonishment in Romans 15:14, “I myself am convinced, my brothers, that you yourselves are full of goodness, complete in knowledge and competent to instruct one another.” Where has all the discipling in our churches gone?  What has happened to the love that we should have for each other?  It is only through our love for each other that the world will know that we are Jesus’ disciples! (John 13:34-35).  How can we win the world if we cannot even take the time to love and take care of each other?  This leads me to point #4…

4.  Evangelizing the world in our generation

What a tremendous task!  To think that the world can be evangelized in our lifetime is quite a faithful feat, yet this is the goal Jesus had for his disciples!  Consider Jesus’ comments in Acts 1:8, “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Paul states the good news of this victory in Colossians 1:6,23.  “All over the world this gospel is bearing fruit and growing, just as it has been doing among you since the day you heard it and understood God’s grace in all its truth…This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant.” Paul’s message to the church in Colosse is dated by scholars to be present around AD 60.  That means that after the church began in AD 30, the world was evangelized in approximately 30 years!  A generation of faith, work and love enabled the disciples to preach the gospel of Jesus Christ to a lost world.  What of our world today?  Are we not urgent to spread the gospel?  What if it was our families that needed the saving?  Our sisters, brothers, mothers, fathers?  What of them?  Are we not to have to have an urgency to win souls?  Paul states his heart in 1 Corinthians 9:19,22: “Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible…I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some.” World evangelism does not mean that everyone is going to make the decision to become disciples of Christ.  Rather, it means that every man and woman on earth would have had the opportunity to have the gospel proclaimed to them.  If one disciple were to help make another disciple through the power of God in a year, and if they were to continue Jesus’ plan of discipleship and evangelism, the world could be evangelized in 32 years, with over 5 billion people hearing the message of Jesus.  If our convictions are compromised however, and other priorities become more important than to “seek first His Kingdom and his righteousness” (Matthew 6:33), Jesus’ dream for making true disciples of all nations might not be realized in our world today.  We must be convinced that Jesus’ dream, Jesus’ plan, and Jesus’ methods will win the world, not our own.  Only then will we have the conviction and build the courage to see the world won for Jesus.  If we are not convinced, our convictions will continue to drift, leading to compromising even the most obvious of biblical standards, and especially one that can tug on our hearts.  My final point will discuss how far some churches have compromised in regards to dating and marital relationships, a compromise that deceived and misled even the wisest man to ever walk the Earth besides Jesus – King Solomon.

5.  Date & Marry only disciples of Jesus

While the topic of dating is not clearly stated in the bible, marriage is.  The principles of being “yoked” are clear, as well are relations with those who are “unbelievers” or not baptized disciples of Christ.   Consider 2 Corinthians 6:14-7:1:
“Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?  What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? What does a believer have in common with an unbeliever?  What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols?  For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: ‘I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.  Therefore come out from them and be separate, says the Lord.  Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you.  I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.’ Since we have these promises, dear friends, let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.”

“Do not.” So clear.  It’s not an option.  “Come out from them and be separate.” Again, very clear.  This is not an opinion, but a practice out of reverence for God.  But this is not just a New Testament principle.  It is also very clear from the Old Testament as well.  King Solomon was led astray by compromising his relationships with women who did not have the God of Israel as their Lord.  (1 Kings 11:1-6).  Similarly in Ezra chapter 10 and Nehemiah 13:23-27, the Israelites weep and confess their sins of unfaithfulness to God by the compromise of their actions.  In Ezra 10:2, an Israelite by the name of Shecaniah said to Ezra, “We have been unfaithful to our God by marrying foreign women from the peoples around us.” In verse 10, Ezra spoke to the entire assembly of exiles and said, “’You have been unfaithful; you have married foreign women, added to Israel’s guilt.  Now make confession to the Lord, the God of your fathers, and do his will.  Separate yourselves from the peoples around you and from your foreign wives.’  The whole assembly responded with a loud voice:  ‘You are right!  We must do as you say.’” There was no discussion.  Ezra ordered that the separation should happen, and the people responded.  In our churches today, some ministers may preach from the pulpit that non-Christian dating is wrong, yet they do not expect obedience to God’s standard.  They do not see that such a practice is against God’s will, and therefore allow this to continue.  They say they do not want to “force” people to obey God.  My answer to that is simple.  People do not have to follow God’s word.   They have to make the decision to be disciples.  Luke 14:33 states, “Any of you who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple.” If we are not willing to give up worldly relationships, we cannot be a disciple of Jesus, or a part of his church.

How can we be faithful shepherds if we allow the people to take precedence over God’s word?  Where have all the evangelists gone?  Did not Jesus state that “From the days of John the Baptist until now, the kingdom of heaven is forcefully advancing, and forceful men lay hold of it” (Matthew 11:12)?  One viewpoint of the above Scripture from a commentary states that entering God’s Kingdom will take courage, unwavering faith, determination, and endurance because of the growing opposition leveled at Jesus’ followers.  Where have all the forceful men of God gone?  Have the mistakes of the past discouraged us to remain unflinching and uncompromising to the word of God?  I pray the next generation of evangelists and teachers will strive to teach the unadulterated word of God so that the world will once again see a movement of God in the 21st century!  I pray that we can be inspired to watch both our lives and doctrine closely so we may save both ourselves and our hearers.  And to God be the Glory!

Andrew Smellie
Evangelist