The Necessity of Doctrine

The Doctrines of The Christian Faith

 Mark 7:6-9 “And He said to them, “Rightly did Isaiah prophesy about you hypocrites, as it is written, ‘This people honours Me with their lips but their heart is far from Me. And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.  Having left behind the commandment of God, you hold on to the tradition of men.” He was also telling them, “You set aside the commands of God, in order that you may validate your own tradition.”

          These harsh words from the lips of Jesus, shine a light on an important truth: they speak of ‘doctrines’. There is a contrast between the doctrines of men and the doctrines of God. For the Jewish people, God’s commands were vital for their holiness and separation from the influences of foreign cultures and foreign gods. However, unfortunately they continually disobeyed the commands of God, especially ignoring their own Shema - Deuteronomy 6:4-5 HEAR, O ISRAEL: THE LORD OUR GOD, THE LORD IS ONE. And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.” 

            Doctrines are the instructions, the guidelines as the Torah means, for living a faithful life that honours God, the Creator. For Jesus, He found that many had begun to follow the instructions and behaviour of men. They held on to traditions that had been concocted by their rulers to ‘get around’ the commands of God. One is cited by Jesus; 

Mark 7:11-13 “.. but you say, 'If a man tells his father or his mother, what you would have gained from me is Corban' [that is, given to God] -- then you no longer permit him to do anything for his father or mother, thus making void the word of God through your tradition which you hand on. And many such things you do." 

For those who believe in Jesus, we are not absolved from keeping Gods commands. Keeping them does not save us, but it enables us to live in the Power of the Holy Spirit, in the way that He leads us. 

1 John 3:23-24 “Now this is His commandment—that we should believe in the name of His Son, Yeshua the Messiah, and love one another, just as He commanded us. The one who keeps His commandments abides in God, and God in him. We know that He abides in us by this—by the Spirit He has given us.” 

This brings us back to doctrine. The doctrines taught throughout the Scriptures, especially those concerning the person and work of the Lord Jesus the Christ, cannot be ignored or discarded. There are many false religions, even some parading under the guise of being christian, who are no more than satanic inspired deceptions, to draw many away from the truth.  

Let this blog not end without reference to some of the essential doctrines that we are commanded to accept and respond to

Monotheism - the single unity of the Triune God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

         The deity of Jesus the Christ.

        The death, burial and resurrection of Jesus.

     Salvation by grace.

      Salvation through Jesus the Christ alone

     The Gospel - that there is only one Way to be reconciled with God the Father – that is through faith in the death, burial and resurrection, as the entrance to life in the Christ.