"Grace Be With All Them That Love Our Lord Jesus Christ In Sincerity"

By W. C. Moore

    In sending forth the Herald of His Coming, month by month, and year after year, we have felt the leading of the Lord to avoid, in many respects, some of the controversial subjects. Some have censured us for not stressing this or that particular doctrine, but we do feel that, as our responsibility is unto the Lord Himself, we must get our leadings from Him directly, as we wait in prayer and as you out there pray earnestly for us (Romans 14:10-12; 15:30).

    Our study of the Scriptures convinces us that much of the striving over certain points of doctrine, and contentions and heated arguments over man-made terms used in expressions of creed and dogmas, indicate many times a condition of "carnality" rather than a condition of spiritual understanding.

    "Ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men? For while one saith, I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos; are ye not carnal?" (1 Cor. 3:3-4).

Meet at Jesus' Feet

    Let us all meet at the feet of Jesus, the Son of God, and worship and adore Him! Grace be with all them that love our Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity (Eph. 6:24). Let us pray earnestly for such a flood of the Holy Spirit to be poured forth that all our little, man-made, denominational "pens" shall be over-flooded, and we are all in one great, holy stream of His divine blessing and usefulness ministering in the power of the Spirit, to needy souls on the right hand and on the left!

Bible Emphasis!

    Let us emphasize the things that the Bible emphasizes! Love (Mark 12:28-31; 1 Cor. 13, etc.), humility, faith in God, faithfulness, obedience to God, uprightness, honesty, self-denial, zeal, patience, holiness, repentance when sin has been committed by either saint or sinner, meekness, wisdom, forgiveness, power for service (Acts 1:8), prayer, joy (Acts 13:52; Gal. 5:22-23).

    Let us also stress salvation, through repentance and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and His shed blood (Mark 1:14-15; John 3:16), the peace of God in our hearts and minds (Phil. 4:4-7), the command that we "be filled with the Spirit" (Eph. 5:18), and that we "walk in the Spirit" (Gal. 5:16), and the Lord's own direct commands that we "watch...and pray always," (Luke 21:34-36), and that we "be ready" for His second coming (Matt. 24:23-51).

    Did you ever notice that man-made phrases are used, generally, in stating creeds and dogmas? Why cannot we all just take the Bible as it stands, and all agree to abide by what the Bible says? And if someone in sincerity calls your attention to the fact that you are using a lot of man-made expressions to form your "creed," and that you are separating yourself from other Blood-washed children of God by these artificial, human word barriers, can you not humbly acknowledge that such is the case and seek with all your heart to love all who love the Lord Jesus Christ in sincerity?

Obedience – The Test of Love

    "If a man love Me, he will keep My words" (John 14:23). Do we love one another as Christ loves us? "A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.  By this shall all men know that ye are My disciples, if ye have love one to another" (John 13:34-35). Again in John 15:12, Jesus says, "This is My commandment, that ye love one another, as I have loved you."

    Are we humble enough to be used of the Lord in the last days? "The meek will He guide in judgment: and the meek will He teach His way" (Psa 25:9). Are we willing to give up our own preconceived ideas, man-made expressions, our own bigotry and pride – and humbly sit at Jesus' feet while He teaches us?

    "Whom shall He teach knowledge? and whom shall He make to understand doctrine?  them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts" (Isa. 28:9). Are we willing for God to draw us away from the breasts of our pet ideas, our habit of "adding to" the Word of God by using man-made expressions, in order to bolster up our dogmas? "Every word of God is pure: He is a shield unto them that put their trust in Him. Add thou not unto His words, lest He reprove thee, and thou be found a liar" (Prov.30:5-6).

"That They All May Be One" (John 17:21)

    The prayers of the Lord Jesus shall be answered! In His prayer to His Father in heaven as recorded in the 17th chapter of John, here are some of the things He prayed definitely for: "Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on Me through their word; that they all may be one; as Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be one in Us: that the world may believe that Thou hast sent Me" (John 17:20-21).

    In John 11:41-42, we read, "And Jesus lifted up His eyes, and said, Father, I thank Thee that Thou hast heard Me. And I knew that Thou hearest Me always."

    Let us all who love the Lord have faith in God and believe what Jesus says in John 10:16: "And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear My voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd."

    Even before the day of Pentecost, "These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication" (Acts 1:14). On the day of Pentecost, and before the mighty outpouring of the Holy Spirit, "they were all with one accord in one place" (Acts 2:1). After the outpouring of the Spirit, "The multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul" (Acts 4:32).

Christ – Not Creed the Rallying Call

    "Gather My saints together unto Me; those that have made a covenant with Me by sacrifice" (Psa. 50:5). "The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a lawgiver from between his feet, until Shiloh come; and unto Him shall the gathering of the people be" (Gen. 49:10).

    Shall we who love the Lord Jesus Christ with all our hearts, "endeavouring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace" (Eph. 4:3) meet, before Him, and seek, with persistent faith, for a mighty fresh outpouring of the Holy Spirit in these last days that, united as one, we may press the glorious Gospel cause around the world and see multitudes of soul saved, filled with the Spirit and ready for His glorious appearing!