The Word of God -- Preach No Other Doctrine - PART 92

THE GIFTS OF THE HOLY GHOST: God who at sundry times and in various manners has spoken to us by the prophets has in these last days spoken to us in His son. God sent His only begotten son, conceived by the Holy Ghost (the only begotten) to bring to man a message concerning His own pure spiritual humanity.


In order to expedite this mission to an outpost of God’s creation it would require a messenger. This is why God who is Spirit clothed Himself in flesh and became the Apostle to the world. For God so loved the world! Indeed, for God so loved the world that once the plan of salvation was created,  there would be no stopping God’s mission until all things necessary for mankind's redemption was fulfilled.


That is why at Calvary Jesus said, "IT IS FINISHED." The price paid in full by God Himself. Once and for all. But the cost was enormous and for many of us, really beyond our capacity to even slightly comprehend. God’s work as a son completed redemption even though still incomplete as far as God’s ordained plan for man was concerned. 


God no longer has a body like we have, for He had sacrificed His body as the price of our ransom from sin. So what did Jesus do? He did not walk away. No sir. Instead, He appoints 12 redeemed believing persons to continue on with what He had started. Disciples chosen by Jesus. Made apostles by Jesus.

He did not change His personally delivered message. He told the apostles to go preach the good news gospel message - the very Word that He had delivered to them. The reason for a succession plan of such magnitude? So that the gospel message would not stop with them but would circle the earth in a manner that whosoever heard and believed would be regenerated to a new life by His holy Spirit.

Jesus "through" the Holy Ghost continued commanding the apostles after He was taken up. (Acts 1:1-4)


This is why Paul would say if any one preaches to you another message other than the message that we delivered to you let them be cursed. This is also why we recognize that the Word of God is coming to us freely delivered through the cost of Jesus life. One may try to preach another gospel or one may want to be an apostle (messenger). However, this Word and only this Word must be preached in all the world as a witness to all people. 


So, if you want to be an apostle or messenger for God, make sure that the message you are delivering as the Word of God is truly the gospel message delivered to us and continuing to be preached unaltered by those who walked with Him. Fortunately, there will always be apostles (messengers) who will not preach any other message. They plain and simply would be unable to change the original message.

Sadly, however, at the same time there are others who are not so minded. These are the individuals that the scriptures classify as false apostles. (II Thessalonians 2; Matthew 24) No doubt you have noticed that Paul declared to be an Apostle of Jesus Christ, Jesus delivered to him the gospel that he preached. Many others who walked with him did not hang their shingle out as being apostles simply because to be an apostle one would have to be called into that gifted ministry.

It is the same today. If you claim to be a present day apostle then you will understand that an apostle holds back no scriptural teaching that might be profitable to the other members in the body of our Lord Jesus. In the end, the scriptures put it right.

The scriptures state, "try the spirits. If they speak not according to this Word, there is no light in them."  JESUS is God’s Apostle. It is He who preached and delivers the counsel of God to man. Jesus who is God Himself as a Son chose 12 +1 believers to continue steadfastly in His Word. They, the 12+1, preached the same Word to us as had been delivered to them by God’s Apostle JESUS. God confirms their Word as being His Word to us today and as a result we now have much consolation. The final message - true apostles will preach no other doctrine.

And yes, that means abiding in Jesus in all things, including water baptism in Jesus' name according to Peter, standing with the apostles on the day of Pentecost. (Acts 2:37-42)

Let him who hath ears to hear, hear. Stand in the offering plate.