"OUR APOSTOLIC FATHER'S VOICES, LET'S REMEMBER" As ministers of Christ, we have these scriptural obligations to do as apart of our calling and purpose in God’s choosing of us. In that we, “cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins (Isaiah 58:1). And to establish this biblical principle, “according to the grace of God which is given unto me, as a wise master builder, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth there upon. (The Warning) But let every man take heed how he buildeth there upon. (11) For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ (1 Cor 3:10-11).” Assuring this fact, “nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure, having this seal, the Lord knoweth them that are his; and, let everyone that nameth the name of Christ depart from iniquity (2 Tim 2:19).” These are some of our ministerial duty that must be kept and taught, if a true Apostolic Church is to be established in these latter times. What’s occurring today is a church which neglects to hold on to true (Holiness) foundational teaching, which permeated in the early (Azusa Street Mission Church) our beginning. Fading are the voices of our Apostolic Fathers from the past and present. Names like, Smith Wigglesworth (the man of faith), Charles H. Spurger, Minister Parham, William Seymore (father of the Azusa Street Mission revival), also these modern voices of our past, Bishop G.T. Heywood, Bishop Samuel Hancock, Bishop Carl Smith, Bishop W. Elzie Young, and currently Bishop Paul A. Bowers even my own Pastor Bishop Donald Sorrells still is holding the standard of holiness. These Apostolic leaders taught pure Holiness without compromising its standard. They knew and understood; Holiness without no man can see the Lord. For God is Holy, He has always instructed his people to become likewise. God be not mocked what so ever a person sow that is what they shall reap. Many of today’s Christians want to bury and forget those voices of the past. This spoke with the voice of triumph over sin. People of these latter times are moving more towards the false spiritual manifestations, which Paul addressed in (1 Tim 4:1-2) were he says, “Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; (2) Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron.” Apostasy is running rapid in the so called church of the living God. People are saying all the time; they are believers and followers of Christ, but their lives expressive something other than Holiness when they’re out and about. That denounces the fact Holiness is the righteousness of God. I ask the question. Why is the church accepting this “water down” Christianity life style? One of the reason is the teaching of inclusiveness (where everybody is “ok” no matter what they are and what they’re doing), and for the church to be more tolerance in their thinking of others. This type of teaching will ultimately diminish the effect of sound doctrinal teaching within the holiness church of God. Sinner are not “ok” as they are, a change must take place in their lives once Christ has been accepted in to their hearts. You can not continue your worldly ways and ideas and continue to say you love God (See James 4:4). Christ cannot and shall not dwell in an unclean temple (See 1 Cor 3:16-17). Christ spoke these words to Nicodemus on his eve of conversion, “verily, verily, I say unto thee, except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God (John 3:3).” The Apostolic Voices of the past preached, a person must make a change in their life style, in order for them to call a real child of Christ. There is a difference between holy and unholy, righteousness and unrighteousness, light and dark. Some leader are guilty of in teaching a soften type doctrine, to facilitate in this ideology of “inclusiveness”. They teach hard under the “God is Love”banner, and that God has no respect of person, and God loves everybody. All though these statements are true, God is also a God of judgment. If an individual take not heed to Christ’s teaching and continues to walk after the lust of his or her only heart, the Bible states there remains no sacrifice for them in Christ. If you cater to your flesh, you shall reap corruption, but if on cater to the spiritual things, you shall achieve eternal life.
Why are the voices of the churches apostolic past fading away in these latter times? We need to look no farther then the church’s history raw start. The Bible tells us there’s nothing new under the sun. Surely this is the case when it comes to attacks of apostasy within the church. History should teach the Saints of the Most High God, be alert to Satan demonic device and attacks against the house of God. The same problems we are experiencing today in and against the Church, the early church faced these same issues and overcame them through faith in Christ. Defending biblical truth has always been of the utmost importance in church history. As the church moved into the late second century, this need (defending the Faith) was especially heighten, from both inside and outside the church, because false teaching and error abounded. To stop this from getting out of control, God raised up a group of individual leaders called the Apologist, the defenders of the faith. The attacks were coming from multiple groups, Gnostics, Manicheanism, Neo-Platonism, and Marcionism, and Ebionitism. We can see the attacks were coming from many sources, just as they are today. The Apostolic Father of the early Church, Clement of Rome, Ignatius, Polycarp, Didache, came to be around 95-150 A.D. time period. The Apologists around A.D. 150-300 time period, and the Theologians sect around A.D. 300-600 time period. Many of them defend the truth of God’s word to the death. The Apostolic Fathers of that day wrote what was generally devotional and edifying letters to the Church, because of the heavy dose of persecution going on during that time. The role of the ApOur ologist was to produce literature that defended the faith and countered erroneous teaching from outsiders. Finally the roles of the Theologians were to begin systematical theological studies to confirm correctness of doctrine within the Church’s manuscripts. In closing, the Apostolic Fathers of the early church, continue steadfast in the truth of God’s holy word. Not being influence by outside forces, they often glorified martyrdom (gave up their life for defenses of the truth), and celibacy and stressed the importance of baptism in ways that make modern churches teaching quite uncomfortable, when its compare to what the original Apostolic Father taught and stood for. Paul wrote these words about them who would attempt to change God’s word. “But though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed. (9) As we said before, so say I now again, If any man preach any other gospel un to you than that ye have received, let him be accursed (Gal 1:8-9).” There are today many accursed church leaders, because they will not teach the whole truth of God’s Word. |