Bible Doctrine

It has been said, “Every sinner has a past, and every saint has a future!”  I am no exception.  But part of my past is that I was “chosen in Him before the foundation of the world” (See Ephesians 1:4).  “But God has chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise and God has chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty, and base things of the world, and things which are despised has God chosen, yes, and things which are not (are of no reputation) to bring to nought things that are (highly regarded among men)” (See I Corinthians 1:27-28).

We are under apostolic command to forget the things of our past – the people we were and the lives we led while a part of this present evil world.  (See Philippians 3:13).  “If any man be in Christ, he is a new creation.  The old (former self) has passed away; behold the new has come” (See 2 Corinthians 5:17).  “Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect.  It is God who justifies” (See Romans 8:33).  God Himself says, “I will remember their sins no more!”  How dare a mere human do so???

It seems every congregation has within its ranks a spiritual grave robber – someone who wishes to dredge up the past of a redeemed son or daughter of the Most High.  In doing so, such set themselves against the will of God and become agents of the Adversary.  And God judges all such.  “Vengeance is mine.  I will repay,” says the Lord.

A brother in Christ recently said, “I am a teacher.  It is in my blood.”  I, too, am a teacher, and, as with Jeremiah the prophet, “there is in my heart as it were a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I am weary with holding it in, and I cannot!” (See Jeremiah 20:9).

God Himself has composed the body of Christ and has appointed each member their particular function in that body.  (See I Corinthians 12:24-28).  But God has decreed that one can only discern their particular niche or function in the body of Christ by presenting themselves as living sacrifices, holy and acceptable unto God, transformed by the renewing of their mind thereby discerning what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God for their lives.  (See Romans 12:1-2).  Many fail to do that and attempt to perform a function, or office, never intended for them to fulfill.  It is like trying to use your foot to do the work the hand was created to do.

I limit myself to no single congregation or denomination of God’s people.  I have been used by Him for decades among many differing congregations.  I suspect before my life course has ended I shall be used by Him among several other congregations.  I welcome the opportunity to so serve Him and the body of Christ again and again. 

Christ’s Faithful Servant (Galatians 1:10-12),

Donald Wiley

There is no excuse for a child of God, a follower of Jesus Christ, to be without uninterrupted peace of mind and contentment of heart each and every day of their life.  The apostle Paul wrote of how God was “the Father of mercies, and THE GOD OF ALL COMFORT.”  (2 Corinthians 1:3).  The prophet Isaiah wrote, “You (God) will keep him in perfect peace, whose mind is stayed (or, fixed) on you, because he trusts in you” (Isaiah 26:3).  Jesus Christ promised, “Come unto me, ALL ye that labor and are heavy laden (with troubles, frustrations, anxieties), and I WILL give you rest” (Matthew 11:28).  Jesus cannot lie or break a promise.  Those believers who have no peace of mind, who are continuously mentally depressed and frustrated bring reproach upon their Lord and give the ungodly and demons opportunity to mock and scorn Jesus Christ as a Savior who cannot save, a Comforter who cannot comfort, and a Promise-Maker who cannot deliver on His promises!

The Psalmist wrote, “I cried unto the Lord with my voice, and He heard me out of His holy hill” (Psalm 3:4).  God says, “I will hear you when you hear me !”  It is tit-for-tat with God.  “Therefore it has come to pass that as He cried, and they would not hear, so they cried, and I would not hear them, says the Lord of hosts” (Zechariah 7:13).  God changes not!  He is the same yesterday, today and forever.

The New Testament alone is filled with things the Lord commands us to do and things He commands us not to do.  When we ignore His commands, He ignores us when we pray.  Our prayers become nothing more than religious exercises never reaching the ear or mind of God.  We pray for peace and tranquility and find only frustration, bitterness and exasperation in our daily lives.  And that is utterly ridiculous.  It is as if we had a million dollars in the bank and yet go hungry and naked, forgetting completely that we are quite wealthy indeed.

The ball is in our court.  Are we going to take advantage of our tremendous blessings, or are we going to allow the thief and robber Satan to continue to steal from us what is rightfully ours if we will only be obedient and trust in our faithful Lord???  God help us all to understand is my prayer.

Christ’s Faithful Servant (Galatians 1:10-12),

Donald Wiley

If God imparted to you the spirit of Mozart or Beethoven, you would find yourself drawn to musical composition, wouldn’t you?  And if He imparted to you the spirit of a Rembrandt or Michelangelo you would find yourself possessed of artistic talent, right?  Well, what if He imparts to you His HOLY Spirit?  What kind of lifestyle do you think that Spirit would lead you to embrace and enjoy?

When you transpose two numbers when writing down a phone number, that is a mistake. When you drive the wrong way down a one-way street, that is a mistake.  When you put salt on your cereal instead of sugar, that is a mistake.  Sin is not a mistake.

It seems all too many seek to minimize their sins by calling them mistakes.  They say, “We all make mistakes.”  And, of course, we all do make mistakes, but we do not have to continue sinning.  Satan plants that thought in men’s minds, that sin is unavoidable even for the most dedicated, fully surrendered believer.  That’s a devil’s lie!

You sell God short when you say a believer cannot stop sinning.  “Greater is He that is in you than he that is in the world” (I John 4:4).  

Satan is a master at bringing to a struggling believer’s mind passages of scripture that “prove” one can never totally break with sin.  He distorts the true meaning of Romans 3:23, Romans 7, I John 1:8-10, I Kings 8:46 and Ecclesiastes 7:20.  In distorting these passages of scripture, Satan belittles God and seeks to convince the unsuspecting that God’s power is much overrated and that with God there definitely are some things that are impossible for Him to do.  Human lust and frailty are shown to be stronger than God’s Spirit.

Satan whispers, “Do you really think you can keep free from sin for the rest of your life???”  But that is not what our LORD asks us to do!  “Jesus said, “Therefore do not be anxious about tomorrow, for tomorrow will be anxious for itself.  Sufficient for the day is its own trouble” (Matthew 6:34, English Standard Version).  God cautions that our life is as a vapor, tenuous, and fleeting.  We might not have a tomorrow to be concerned about.  We are to focus only on today, and, since eight to ten hours of each day is spent in sleep, we need only ask ourselves “Is God powerful enough to keep me from all sin for ten to fifteen hours?”  And the only possible answer is, “YES!”  God help you to understand is my prayer.

God’s Faithful Servant (Galatians 1:10-12),

Donald Wiley

I am convinced that the overwhelming majority of believers are utterly unaware that Jesus Christ is both the Author AND FINISHER of our faith. Many seem certain once they believe and confess Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior their salvation is then complete, nothing more is to be added to it as that would then mean they are working for their salvation. Yet the apostle Paul plainly declares that there is much more required of us following our being justified by the shed blood of our Lord: “Much more then, being now justified by His blood, WE SHALL BE SAVED from wrath through Him (through Jesus continuing to work in and through us as our sanctifier). For, if when we were enemies (not yet saved, hostile toward God and His ways), we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, MUCH MORE, being reconciled, WE SHALL BE SAVED BY HIS LIFE” (See Romans 5:9).

Note well “we shall be saved” not that “we are saved” or that “we have been saved!” Also note that we shall be saved BY HIS LIFE – NOT BY CHRIST’S DEATH.

It takes a living Savior to save you or anyone else for “if Christ be not raised, your faith is vain, you are yet in your sins!” (See I Corinthians 15:17). Speaking of Jesus Christ’s mission, John the Baptist said “He will thoroughly purge His floor, and gather His wheat into the garner, but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire” (See Matthew 3:12). Jesus Christ will not leave you in your sins, but will deliver you from the power of the tempter and will root out anything and everything offensive and ungodly in your character. This is how He becomes the finisher of your faith.

“My son, despise not the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when you are rebuked by Him, for whom the Lord loves He chastens, and scourges every son whom He receives. If you endure chastening, God deals with you as with sons, for what son is he whom the father chastens not. But if you be without chastisement (when continuing in sin or exhibiting behavior condemned by God and His Word) whereof all (the truly redeemed) are partakers, then are you bastards (false converts), and not sons…be in subjection to the father of spirits (spirit sons and daughters) and live” (See Hebrews 12:5-9).

When some of the believers in Corinth continued in sin, Paul didn’t mince words but told them plainly, “for this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep (had died). For if we would judge ourselves (abandon our ungodly behavior), we should not be judged (the Lord would not need to discipline us Himself)” (See I Corinthians 11:30-31). “But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord that we should not be condemned with the world” (I Corinthians 11:32). God does not want His sons and daughters to be condemned with the world. He, therefore, will move against any and all disobedience in our lives. He will first grant us a window of time to repent and abandon our ungodly walk or actions. If we fail to do so, then the Lord will move to correct us Himself, this correction often being manifested through continued illness and physical distress. The truly wise take advantage of our Lord’s merciful reluctance to discipline us. The headstrong and foolish continue on their contrary course and often pay dearly for having done so. God help us to understand.

Christ’s Aged Servant (Galatians 1:10-12),

Donald Wiley

Some time ago I had a preacher contact me, telling me that I was too dogmatic and forceful in my speech and articles, that I needed to “tone down” my remarks. My reply to him was that I was not nearly dogmatic enough, or forceful enough in my language. Gross error has been embraced and taught by various and sundry preachers for so long as to be accepted totally and completely without question by the numberless congregations of believers. If I were to write in an easy-going, syrupy sweet style, most readers would easily and quickly pass over what has issued from my pen and as quickly forget what they had just read. It is when I make startling claims and question the reader’s comprehension of some scripture that their attention is arrested. They then must ponder more deeply what they are reading, what they believe, even what they are teaching.

Few spiritual errors are innocent errors. They are not mistakes or misunderstandings that have little consequence if accepted or believed. Most spiritual error is far reaching in its implications and can cost the hearer many blessings from God (including divine healing from God’s hand), many rewards in the hereafter, and even place their eternal inheritance of immortality at stake. That is WHY a minister’s office or function is a weighty one indeed. And if he is embracing and teaching spiritual error to others he needs to seek another occupation just as an alcoholic or drug addicted surgeon needs to cease attempting to perform surgery on unsuspecting patients.

Pastor so-and-so of a nearby church may very well be one of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet, a faithful husband, a good provider for his family, but if he does not know and understand the Word of God intimately well, and I mean ALL of God’s Word – from Genesis to Revelation – and if he is not teaching that word faithfully and accurately, he needs to retire from such employment immediately. Mormon bishops and Roman Catholic priests can be very effective speakers and can quote long passages of scripture verbatim extemporaneously, but that does not mean they are correct in what they say or anointed of the Lord to perform the function of a teacher of God’s Word. The same holds true for each and every Christian denomination one cares to name. Not one of us is infallible, including the author of this article, Donald Wiley.

Christ’s Servant (Galatians 1:10-12),

Donald Wiley

Have you ever noticed how those two terms – sleep and death – are used interchangeably throughout the entire Bible? All the prophets, all the apostles, and Jesus Christ when speaking of death, or the dead, say they sleep or are asleep. There are NO EXCEPTIONS – not one! Isn’t that strange? If in death one is more vibrantly alive than they ever were in this life why refer to the dead as being asleep? Wouldn’t that make God the author of confusion???

“After that (after Jesus was seen by Peter and the rest of the apostles following His resurrection), He was seen above five hundred brethren at once, of whom the greater part remain (alive) unto this present day (the day of Paul’s writing this letter to the Corinthian believers), BUT SOME ARE FALLEN ASLEEP!” (See I Corinthians 15:6).

“And if Christ be not raised (resurrected), your faith is vain, you are yet in your sins (they have thus not been forgiven). Then they also which ARE FALLEN ASLEEP in Christ are perished” (See I Corinthians 15:18). If there is to be no resurrection of the dead, then Christians who have already died are decaying and turning to dust and will never experience any manner of life again!

Paul then writes of how all the redeemed shall be made alive again when Christ returns. (See I Corinthians 15:22-23). We are not made alive at the moment we die. That’s an absurdity. That’s like saying, “Those who die are resurrected the moment they expel their last breath.”

Paul then asks what advantage is it to him to risk his life for Jesus Christ and the truth “if the dead rise not?” (See I Corinthians 15:32). He then argues, “Let us eat, drink and be merry” if there is to be no resurrection from the dead. (Same verse). Paul said he was WILLING to be absent from the body and present with the Lord, a far cry from saying “to be absent from the body IS to be present with the Lord.” One little tiny word, one little comma can change completely what someone has said. Paul was merely assuring the Greek converts that they need not fear the disintegration of their bodies. They would not need their fleshly bodies to enjoy immortality and eternal life with Jesus Christ.

Jesus uses the terms death and sleep interchangeably when speaking of the death of His friend Lazarus, saying, “Our friend Lazarus sleeps, but I go that I may awake him out of sleep…howbeit Jesus spoke of his death” (See John 11:11, 13). Someone who is asleep is in an unconscious state, knowing nothing. That is how Jesus spoke of the dead. “The dead know not anything” (Ecclesiastes 9:5). You can believe Pastor So-and-So. I will believe Solomon. I believe Solomon’s wisdom is probably a cut above that of Reverend Leroy’s.

Jesus’ promise to the thief on the cross that he would be with Him in paradise was NOT that they would both be together in paradise that same day, but that on the day they were dying still Jesus could make the promise to him that they would someday be together in a far better world, a world where Satan was bound and could deceive that thief no longer. Where one places the comma in that statement Jesus made to the thief makes all the difference in the world. The translators put the comma in the wrong place, making it appear that Jesus was telling the thief they would both be together in paradise that very same day. And, boy, what confusion that has caused for centuries. Had they placed the comma AFTER the word “today” then readers would have instantly seen that Jesus was merely assuring that thief that though dying together that day, still they would someday be joined together in a far better world! (See Luke 23:43).

THAT is rightly dividing the Word of God. Something few do. Do YOU?

Christ’s Faithful Servant (Galatians 1:10-12),

Donald Wiley

Just as all high school students, even those with all D’s, will graduate as long as they stay in school, likewise all believers, even carnal ones, will inherit eternal life as long as they remain in Christ.  Just as some high school students graduate with honors, so some believers graduate or depart from life with honors, granted an eternal glory far surpassing that of the carnal believer and granted rewards far surpassing other believers who exhibited little spiritual growth or character.

When one reads the opening chapters of the Book of Acts they will see that the early church had within its ranks, or membership, those who held widely differing beliefs and religious concepts.  Some were Sadducees, believing in neither angels or spirits as well as rejecting the belief in a resurrection, while Pharisee believers accepted both.  Some were temple priests while other were Gentiles fresh out of paganism.  You can well believe these folks did not come to see eye to eye in all their beliefs overnight.  In the body of Christ, the church, there are individuals holding and believing widely different doctrines and having differing religious practices.  Some worship on Sunday, some on the Sabbath.  Some believe you can’t lose your salvation, some believe you can.  Some are convinced a believer goes instantly to heaven when they die while others believe you remain dead until the day of resurrection.  One can be truly converted, actually have God’s Spirit imparted to them and yet be in error as to what the Bible teaches on a variety of subjects.  Thus, the body of Christ has within its ranks Baptists and Amish, Presbyterians and Lutherans, Mennonites and Pentecostals.  It is interesting to note that a voice from heaven cries out to Babylon the great, “Come out of her, my people!” (See Revelation 18:1-4).  God evidently has truly converted sons and daughters even in the great fallen church spoken of in Revelation chapters 17 and 18!

When God first enters a human life that person generally is far from the truth in their religious beliefs or understanding of the Bible.  Through process of time God, through the Holy Spirit, strives to bring that believer closer to truth, freeing them up from error and perfecting them in the faith.  Some remain spiritual infants all their days.  Others grow mightily into fully mature sons and daughters of God and will comprise the bride of Christ upon His return.

We have all done it at one time or another – thrown a pebble or a rock into a still body of water, a pond, a lake, even a puddle.  And what did we observe?  From where the stone entered the water at first a circular ripple appeared in the water.  Then a concentric circle with a greater circumference appeared, then another, and another, and another until the energy produced by the cast stone dissipated and no more concentric circles appeared.  One might liken that first circular ripple to the truth of God – all the truth, but when God first enters our conscious awareness and stirs our interest we are in the outermost concentric circle or nearly so.  You might say a non-religious, worldly-minded person would be found in the outermost circle.  An unconverted church-goer might be found in one of the circles nearer to the primary circular ripple that is the pure truth of God.  God is working in the lives of all those regardless of which circle they are in, wanting to draw them into the tiny first circle in the middle.  Keep this analogy in mind when looking at the next guy.  He might well be in a circle closer to the center than you yourself.

Christ’s Faithful Servant (Galatians 1:10-12),

Donald Wiley

Jesus said, “Whatsoever you shall ask in my name, that will I do…”  (See John 14:13).  Do you know when that becomes valid in a believer’s life?  Wen that believer can say the same to Jesus Christ and mean it: “Jesus, whatsoever you ask of me, that will I do.”

All too many believers are perplexed by the fact that there have been many petitions they have presented to God in prayer and quite obviously never got an answer, or the only possible answer to be discerned was that God said, “No!”

Remember how God told Israel long ago through His prophet Zechariah, “Therefore it is come to pass that as He (God) cried (through His prophets), and they (Israel) would not hear, so they cried (to God in prayer), and I would not hear, saith the Lord of hosts.” (See Zechariah 7:13).  Again, I repeat, it is tit-for-tat with God.  If we will listen to God, obeying what He tells us to do in His word, He will listen to us.  If we turn a deaf ear to God, living life on our own terms, then He will turn a deaf ear to us when we pray, asking for His help or assistance.  God is no chump.  No one can take advantage of God or “get over” on God.

Long ago God inspired the psalmist to write, “If I regard iniquity in my heart the Lord will not hear me” (See Psalm 66:18).  Cover your sin.  Keep on keeping on in your rebellion and refusal to obey God in all matters, and God will say, “I am not listening” when you pray.

Peter understood this truth quite well when he wrote: “For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and His ears are open unto their prayers, but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil.” (See I Peter 3:12).  If His face is against you, that means His back is turned on you.

Jesus said, “Many are called (to inherit salvation, eternal life), but few are chosen” (See Matthew 22:14), and to those chosen ones He says, “You have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you that you should go and bring forth fruit (be spiritually productive), and that your fruit should remain (continuously, day in and day out, producing tangible, obvious spiritual growth and productivity), that whatsoever you shall ask of the Father in my name, He may give it to you” (See John 15:16).

Yes, that is when your prayer life takes wings!  That is when you receive marvelous, and often speedy, answers to your prayers.  That’s when God becomes really and truly REAL to your mind and in your daily affairs.

Remember, it is impossible for God to lie.  But we must not lie to Him.  We must not say we have given Him our all when, in truth, we are withholding a great deal, or anything, from Him.  He not only sees the baby sparrow when it falls from its nest, He is observing you right now as you finish reading this sentence.  God is greater than the wildest human imagination can even begin to fathom or realize.  And that God wants you to enjoy His company and fellowship from here to eternity.

Christ’s Faithful Servant (Galatians 1:10-12),

Donald Wiley