Articles
What Is The Doctrine of Christ?
What Is The Doctrine of Christ?
Greg King
2 John verses 9-11 states, “Whoever transgresses and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have God. He who abides in the doctrine of Christ has both the Father and the Son. If anyone comes to you and does not bring this doctrine, do not receive him into your house nor greet him; for he who greets him shares in his evil deeds.” It is stated that our relationship with God and Christ depends upon whether we are living according to the “doctrine of Christ”. Other translations render this, “teachings of Christ”. Jesus says in Matthew 16:24, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me.” The gospel is the doctrine by which we live. We must live the gospel by obeying the doctrine that explains and applies it. Romans 6:17-18 states, “But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness.
Jesus stated in Matthew 28:18-20, “And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” Since Jesus has all authority, then we must listen to what He has said to us. We cannot be disciples if we are not taught by Jesus. One must be baptized in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. For some reason this is a big point of contention and conflict in the religious world. Is there a command of Jesus that we can willfully not obey and still be his disciple? Can we choose to not do something that we are directly told to do and still be considered a disciple? What commands of Jesus can we willfully ignore? Since Jesus has all authority then we must try to do all that he has commanded us. We cannot willfully choose to disobey and still think that we are followers of Jesus. We must do what he says to be his disciple. We must be taught by him and follow what he has told us to do. Are you abiding in the doctrine of Christ?
