Below you will find articles written by Pastor David Webb
with a doctrinal stand on today's issues.
Articles From The Pastor
The Deity of Jesus Christ
2 Tim 4:3 uses the phraseology ….endure sound doctrine.
Doctrine is not always the most interesting but is most necessary!
John Stott said … “Good conduct arises out of good doctrine”!
As Samuel Marinus Zwimer (Great missionary to the Islamist) said …
“There is no mystery in heaven or earth so great as this; a suffering deity and an almighty savior nailed to a cross”!
John R.W. Stott said “There is evidence for the deity of Jesus -- good, strong, historical , cumulative evidence; evidence to which an honest
person can subscribe… without committing intellectual suicide.”
Colossians 2:9 "For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily."
Sadly there is a lingering debate among Christendom about wither Jesus Christ was Deity or a created being to fulfill a role as the “Only Begotten Son”!
Two points of view -
1. If we say Christ is deity we are saying – Jesus was God the Son and that His essential nature was God as divinity!
2. If we say Christ was created - then by the God the Father at a point and time in eternity Christ was berated and is therefore a subordinate to the Father.
NOTE; this is called Arianism - these teachings were first attributed to Arius (c. AD 250–336), a Christian presbyter in Alexandria, Egypt. The teachings of Arius and his supporters were opposed to the prevailing theological views held by proto-orthodox Christians, regarding the nature of the Trinity and the nature of Christ. The Arian concept of Christ is that the Son of God did not always exist but was created by God the Father.
With certainty I can tell you, “Arianism is Heresy”!
Bro Spurlock said – “I believe it is blasphemy to diminish Christ to the level as a product of creation just as humans, angles and animals”!
Mark Conelly a missionary Baptist preacher said … “If Jesus is something less than God, he has no right and no power to forgive our sins. If Jesus can't forgive our sins, we have no hope.”
As outlined in scripture … “Christ was not created … He was “The Creator”!
Col 1: – Christ the Creator - 16 For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: 17 And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.
He is …
- Very God
- Everlasting to Everlasting
- He is Deity
- He Is God
Question has been asked …. Wasn’t the God the Father jealous?
19 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell;
Christ was 100% God and 100% man!
• Jesus is the Son of God but He is also God the Son!
The humanity of Christ does not negate the deity of Christ anymore than Jesus being the sin offering negates Him being our High Priest or Jesus being the Lamb of God negates Him being the great Shepherd!
Genesis 1:1 In the beginning GOD…
English Language – the Noun “God” would come across as singular form.
Hebrew – (Elohim) - Plural Noun -
(By the way … Elohim --- the “im” on the end of Elohim makes it in the masculine)
1 John 5:7 For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.
Turn with me...
John 1:1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
Notice...
- The word “Word” is capitalized each time mentioned in this verse making us aware that it is speaking of a Proper noun!
- The Word was made flesh ….Greek words Logo’s (The Word) ……. Jesus the Word!!!!!!!
Those who follow and embrace Arianism - John 3:16 For God so loved the World that He gave his “Only Begotten Son” that whosoever believeth in Him should … (the deceived use this phrase for grounds that Christ was created)
This phrase “Only Begotton” in the Greek is a compound word …
• Mono – Only/unique
• Genese – Born/offspring … Uniquely Born!!!!!!!
“Only Begotten” is not saying Jesus was less than God, It’s pointing to the virgin birth … or the “Unique Birth” of Jesus Christ! It is not diminishing His deity … it is defining … His delivery!
Sometime I feel like Thomas …Right after Jesus died and was seen of the disciples … there was a doubting Thomas … I won’t believe it till I touch Him …
John 20: 28 And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and My God.
- He was saying “My Lord” and “My God” …
This was his way of saying The God of my Fathers … Jehovah … Not just a prophet … but GOD!
1739 Charles Wesley (The great hymn writer and brother to John Wesley) wrote the words …
Christ, by highest Heav’n adored;
Christ the everlasting Lord;
Late in time, behold Him come,
Offspring of a virgin’s womb.
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see;
Hail th’incarnate Deity,
Pleased with us in flesh to dwell,
Jesus our Emmanuel.
Matthew 1:20
But while he thought on these things, behold, the angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Ghost. (Unique birth) 21 And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins. 22 Now all this was done, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, 23 Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.
Jesus was …. GOD WITH US!!!!!
Social Media - a connection or a curse
In our culture, the term “follow” is used to indicate how one person monitors another’s activity on social media. For example, “Suzy follows Sarah on Twitter”. 30 years ago the only way you “followed” someone in this context was to have close contact with them via personal interaction, exchange of written notes or letters, or phone calls.
Allow me to offer to you a quote told me by a successful business man with a degree from a public university. He said “I feel that someone should condemn being involved in Twitter, Facebook, or other up and coming social sites. As far as I am concerned they have little or no use for anyone, much less the Child of God. I hate to think that people in our church can identify with this. Before I cancelled my Facebook account a few years ago, I had already been contacted and had interaction with old girlfriends, and all manner of people that I had no business interacting with in this manner. It is a hotbed of trouble”
Public society used to call a man who followed a woman who was not his wife or family member …a “stalker”.
Now it is commonly accepted, even in the church, for married men to be following single young women, only now they call them a “friend”.
We now have married women, following single young men and under the auspice of being a “friends”. Is it Friend or Foe?
Ethical boundaries are being ignored and obliterated.
Moral values are being thrown to the wind by insecure individuals who need to build a personal following to make them feel important. They judge their importance by how many” Followers “or “Likes” they accumulate.
Comments are posted about the men of God, the things of God, and the preaching of the Word of God that would never be said face to face. Simply because there is a screen to hide behind, they spew their negativity, proving they have replaced God with themselves upon the throne of their heart. These comment in any way they see fit because of the false anonymity they feel by being disconnected by a screen from the person or events they are commenting upon.
There are so-called “Christians” following Hollywood Stars who oppose the very mention of the name of Christ and openly promote the sins that He shed his precious blood to remedy.
Some so-called “Dedicated followers of Christ” are following secular Music Icons that spread their wicked blasphemy though the ear buds of this godless generation.
We have individuals who boast themselves of being “Holiness” yet following fitness experts and justify their following of them because it promotes a healthy lifestyle, ignoring the fact that the promotional photos displayed are indecent, lustful and sensual.
Others are posing as “Concerned Christians” who are gossipmongers following backsliders, who make a mockery of everything they once stood for, lived and preached.
And we are following them?
John Piper said, “One of the great uses of Twitter and Facebook will be to prove at the Last Day that prayerlessness was not from lack of time.”
Pete Cashmore (founder of Mashable) said, “We are living at a time when attention is the new currency: With hundreds of TV channels, billions of websites, podcast, radio shows, music downloads and social networking, our attention is more fragmented than ever.”
And we wonder why there is no revival!
- Young adults, sitting in pews, pretending to “use their Bible on their phone or iPad” all the while surfing the web or checking social media updates.
- Middle age mothers who are more worried about if their “bathroom mirror selfie” makes them look fat, than why their marriage is on the rocks.
- Teenagers posting photos of themselves, lips puckered, presenting themselves in some provocative pose, at the same time claiming to be dedicated to representing Christ to this lost generation
- Homes in disarray.
- Husbands who engage in a virtual gaming world all hours of the night while their family sleeps.
- Intimacy between husbands and wives wane.
Why? All because they are consumed with their own lust in a virtual world that will leave them old, cold, empty & alone. One preacher recently scolded a group he was talking to for “drooling over this world”.
Some may entertain the thought that I have an out of date opinion on this issue. However, my basis for believing this way is anchored in the words of Jesus found in Luke 9:23 And he said to them all, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow me.
We must stop following people and start following God again!
Sincerely submitted,
Bro David Webb