04.04 - Is This Important?
4.4 IS THIS IMPORTANT?
We hardly believe that you would have read to this point if you did not believe that this is important. However, it is not the misunderstanding of God’s word that is the greatest enemy of the truth. It is the pure complacency that most people have for scriptural doctrine. They reason: "As long as I am a good person, isn’t that enough? The bible, after all, is just common sense. I am a loving person and that is what God really wants." This is not the reasoning of an evil person. But it is the reasoning of one who feels that he or she is justified by works. Being a good, loving person is not enough. We all need the blood of Christ for our justification. The terms and conditions for having that blood wash away our sins are set by God, not man. These are clearly presented in the scriptures referenced above. Those who think this is a skewed presentation should read the entire New Testament for themselves. Those who agree should also be skeptical and verify not only that truthful conclusions are being taught, but also that scriptures are being applied properly and truthfully.
Please review this chapter and as you do recognize that baptism is not the issue here! The issue is faith in God and His word. Do we believe what he said or don’t we? Are we going to take Him at His word, or aren’t we? Baptism is easy. It requires virtually no effort on our part. It is an arbitrary thing. Those who are going to associate with some church are going to be baptized at some time in some way and for some reason. Why not do it God’s way and for God’s reasons? If we cannot practice scriptural baptism in all of its simplicity, what can we practice? If we refuse to follow God’s will on this simple thing, what is going to happen in those moral issues which require tremendous faith on our part? When we look at the collective morality of our country, we must ask: Is our slide into immorality caused by the same refusal to obey God that leads us to accept this myth of denominationalism instead of regarding baptism with the importance that God gave it? In the next chapter we discuss another myth that so often diverts attention away from God’s word and toward subjective self-direction: the idea that love is all you need.