Sound Doctrine

"And they continued stedfastly in the apostles' doctrine and fellowship, and in breaking of bread, and in prayers." Acts 2 v 42.

Sound Doctrine in the New Testament - Ephesians

"This I say therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you henceforth walk not as other Gentiles walk, in the vanity of their mind, having the understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart: who being past feeling have given themselves over unto lasciviousness, to work all uncleanness with greediness"

"But you have not so learned Christ"

"If so be that you have heard Him, and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus: that you put off concerning the former way of life the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; and be renewed in the spirit of your mind; and that you put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness"

Now this doctrine of Ephesians 4 is based on the new man, which is to do with Jesus Christ. This is not a question of whether you have been able to reform your life. It is no good trying to compare yourself now with how you were last year, or five years ago, and thinking that you are a lot better than you used to be. It is not a matter of trying hard and giving yourself a pat on the back. It is the new man that is important. It is Jesus Christ in your life that is important.

"Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold all things are become new." II Corinthians 5 v 17.

Do not the problems persist because we listen also to the doctrines of men - teachings of our own or of others? Jesus warned again and again about the doctrines of men. He said to the Pharisees, and to the Jews that listened to them, that they followed the commandments of men and that they taught them as doctrines. Colossians 2 v 21/22 speaks about the same idea, that of teaching the doctrines of men - "Touch not, taste not, handle not" What does it mean? Oh, you know the attitude: "You mustn't touch that; you mustn't drink that; you mustn't eat that; you mustn't spend money on a Sunday!" and so on. These are matters of ritual and ceremony, not the holiness of living which the Bible has brought before us. These are the doctrines of men, compliance with which earn merit, in the minds of those that are bound by them. Where do you find it in the Scriptures that you must not drink wine, or must be a vegetarian, or must not spend money on a Sunday? You cannot. People in the Colossian church were plagued by these Judaisers whose approach was, "Now you are a Christian, this is what you have got to do." In our own days people have reduced Christian behaviour to the accepted norms of 'respectable' society - you ought to wear a shirt and tie, a decent suit and other such similar rules. The apostle Paul would not have got a look in. But then there are rules, which on the surface seem quite good. "Now that you are a Christian you must read your Bible every day; you must pray every day; you must tithe." I would heartily recommend each of these as Biblical principles to be enjoyed by every believer. I would underline each exercise as being based on sound doctrine BUT the moment you make any of these a rule, a regulation, it becomes the doctrine of man, part of man's religious system. It becomes a bondage. It becomes a chore. Feelings of guilt will be introduced, as you wonder whether you have done enough. At other times you might rush a reading just to satisfy that guilt feeling that you must read something, but what did you read? Many of the issues that we shall be looking at, whilst being sound doctrine, will, if applied as mere rules, become the doctrines of men.

However, if you know sound doctrine, you will know and do what is right and what is pleasing to God. I believe in giving; I believe in reading the Bible and praying at all times; I believe in using the Lord's Day for the Lord. That is between me and the Lord. I cannot impose that on someone else. We should be teaching the Lord Jesus, sound doctrine. After all, if you get thrilled with Jesus, ten per cent will not be enough. Do you remember when He healed ten lepers and one, ten per cent, returned to give thanks? Jesus asked where the other nine were. Ten per cent? He wants all. If you get thrilled with Jesus, five verses in the morning will not be enough. A quick prayer by your bed at night will not suffice. That is the trouble with rules and regulations: as mere duty they are done leaving you to carry on with what you really wanted to do. But when you get thrilled with Jesus, you do not need man to impose his rules; it is a new creation at work; it is Jesus in you. Paul pointed out that all these rules made by man are to perish; it is the new man in Christ Jesus that is important. What man does corrupts. When man gets hold of the Bible and starts making up rules and regulations, it corrupts. It brings people into bondage and leads them to corruption. Either they cannot keep the rules and in the end they give it all up, or they keep them after a fashion and then become judgmental towards others and restricted in their service towards God. Anything contrary to sound doctrine must go.