But what about this idea of being saved by Jesus, not doctrine. As mentioned before, doctrine has become an unwelcome visitor in many congregations. To quote Roger Chambers again, "Doctrine is an embarrassed intruder in many modern congregations. Barely tolerated, it cowers on the back pew; the territory around the pulpit has long since been claimed by commanding personality, practical mysticism, professional music, and pop psychology."
First, this is a false dichotomy. There is no choice of Jesus on the one hand or doctrine on the other. Those who make such claims are, once again, trying to wrestle the authority of Jesus away from Him. It may sound "spiritual"; "We're saved by Jesus!" But think about it. Which Jesus? Any Jesus? Does my belief in someone named Jesus save me? In Acts 16 the Philippian Jailer asked, "Sirs, What must I do to be saved?" In verse 31 the reply was, "Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and your household.‟" But as any Bible School drop-out knows, that was not a complete answer. They had not yet taught him (indoctrinated) about who Jesus was. Imagine that this pagan jailer had said, "Alright, I will!" without any knowledge of who Jesus is or what He did. Talk about blind faith. Instead, the Scriptures tell us in verses 32 and 33, "And they spoke the word of the Lord to him together with all who were in his house. And he took them that very hour of the night and washed their wounds, and immediately he was baptized, he and all his household."
Without a proper knowledge (doctrine) of who Jesus is, then a person places his faith in anything. You may call it Jesus, but what's to keep us from calling it the boogey man, Fred Flintstone, or Elvis? Nothing, except the proper understanding of who the Person is. Many will push doctrine aside to promote their own agendas. Salvation is a relationship, but it is one built upon a series of propositions. If a person believes, repents, confesses, is baptized, lives faithfully under grace, then there is the hope of salvation. Jesus comes to us with a set of propositions, called doctrine, that we are to abide by. Many would try to sidestep that a little.
Rick Warren, in his book, The Purpose Driven Life, tries to do just that. He writes: p. 21, "The phrase "Accept Jesus" is not a Scriptural phrase. The Bible never asks us to "accept" Jesus. We are to Abide in, Obey, Submit, Honor, Love, Believe, et al. But it never tells us to "accept" Jesus. One day you will stand before God, and he will do an audit of your life, a final exam, before you enter eternity. The Bible says, "Remember, each of us will stand personally before the judgment seat of God.... Yes, each of us will have to give a personal account to God." Fortunately, God wants us to pass this test, so he has given us the questions in advance. From the Bible we can surmise that God will ask us two crucial questions: First, "What did you do with my Son, Jesus Christ?" God won't ask about your religious background or doctrinal views. The only thing that will matter is, did you accept what Jesus did for you and did you learn to love and trust him? Jesus said, 'I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." Second, "What did you do with what I gave you?" What did you do with your life-all the gifts, talents, opportunities, energy, relationships, and resources God gave you? Did you spend them on yourself, or did you use them for the purposes God made you for?" Preparing you for these two questions is the goal of this book."
However, the Scriptures teach us that there is more than just whether or not we "accept" Jesus. In Matthew 7:21ff give clear warning that even doing many things in the name of Jesus, even good things, is not what saves us. Rick Warren is wrong, God's Word is correct. It is putting into practice the doctrine of Jesus Christ - Mat 7:24 "Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock." In our next time together, we will take a small survey of Timothy. God Bless until then...
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