A prominent Bible teacher and preacher in the Churches of Christ writes: "You said, 'It is time for change in doctrines created by our deductions and not by the Word of God; . . . for change in the passing over, ignoring, and sometimes explaining away of biblical teachings, doctrines and experiences which others found before we did . . .' Would you give some examples of each?" * * * Doctrines created by our deductions would include the teaching that the Bible not only approves taking the Lord's Supper each Sunday but that it also requires taking it every Sunday and forbids doing so on any … [Read more...]

A concerned writer warns, "If some among us don't believe that the church is essentially distinctive, but believe that we're just another denomination, then the call for change will be loud and clear. We should rather hear God say, 'Ask for the old paths, where is the good way; and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls' (Jer. 6:16)." [The same concern about change occurs in many other fellowships as well, to which the following remarks may be adapted.] * * * It is time for those who do not study the Bible to get busy doing it. It is time for those who have studied, but who have … [Read more...]

A concerned writer warns, "If some among us don't believe that the church is essentially distinctive, but believe that we're just another denomination, then the call for change will be loud and clear. We should rather hear God say, 'Ask for the old paths, where is the good way; and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls' (Jer. 6:16)." [The same concern about change occurs in many other fellowships as well, to which the following remarks may be adapted.] * * * When he speaks of "the church," this brother refers to the non-instrumental fellowship of Churches of Christ, a subgroup … [Read more...]

Part 1 One of many blessings that come from reading church history is a perspective sufficiently distant to see the larger picture with all its harmony and its diversity. Blessed with such perspective, we see God continually at work among his people: now turning, then correcting, sometimes simply allowing, the course of his church through the centuries. No believer and no Christian group can afford to believe or think or live in isolation. We all -- individuals and groups -- can and need to learn from each other. The undivided church of the first several centuries gave us the "rule of faith" … [Read more...]