The Principles of the Doctrine of Christ

By Tim Sullivan

An easy-to-read exposition on the fundamental doctrines of the Christian faith as set forth in Hebrews 6:1-2.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Jun 19, 2014
• ISBN: 9781312287785

Tim Sullivan

Tim Sullivan is a crime writer, screenwriter and director who has worked on major feature films such as the fourth Shrek, Flushed Away, Letters to Juliet, A Handful of Dust, Jack and Sarah, and the TV series Cold Feet. His crime series featuring DS George Cross has topped the book charts and been widely acclaimed. Tim lives in North London with his wife Rachel, the Emmy Award-winning producer of The Barefoot Contessa and Pioneer Woman. To find out more about the author, please visit TimSullivan.co.uk.

Book preview

The Principles of the Doctrine of Christ

THE PRINCIPLES OF THE DOCTRINE OF CHRIST

The Principles of the Doctrine of Christ by Reverend Tim Sullivan

© 2010 Workers Together With Him, Inc.

ISBN 978-1-312-28778-5

All Scripture is from the King James Version of the Bible

For information about the ministry of Workers Together With Him,

please visit our website at www.wtwh.org

Lesson 1: The Doctrine of Christ

Whosoever transgresseth, and abideth not in the doctrine of Christ,

hath not God. (2 John 1:9)

Ever since God blessed Adam and Eve, saying, Be fruitful, and multiply, the Lord has promised man a fruitful life in exchange for his obedience. Being fruitful in every good work is one of the blessings of living in harmony with God.

That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God...  (Colossians 1:10) 

Living in harmony with God is an ongoing affair achieved  through conscientious pursuit. A fruitful life does not occur by happenstance; it is, if you will, the difference between singing on key and merely talking. It requires training, effort, and discipline.

For Christians each waking moment presents two distinct opportunities. We can use the time to glorify God and enhance our lives or we can squander it away in meaningless activity. Jesus made known these options in one of his great I AM statements:

I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.  (John 15:5)

Here is our menu of choice: We can bring forth much fruit or nothing at all. To bring forth much fruit we must abide in Christ. Conversely we can live according to our own rules, thereby producing nothing of lasting significance or value.

Of course, the Lord’s promise of much fruit is only a blessing because the fruit is good. Quantity is nothing without quality. Not all fruit is pleasing to God or beneficial to man.

Say ye to the righteous, that it shall be well with him: for they shall eat the fruit of their doings.  Woe unto the wicked! it shall be ill with him: for the reward of his hands shall be given him. (Isaiah 3:10–11)

All men bear fruit, though all fruit is not good.

A good man out of the good treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is good; and an evil man out of the evil treasure of his heart bringeth forth that which is evil: for of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaketh.  (Luke 6:45)

And for good or bad, all men are known by their fruits.

Ye shall know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes of thorns, or figs of thistles?  Even so every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit.  A good tree cannot bring forth evil fruit, neither can a corrupt tree bring forth good fruit.  (Matthew 7:16–18)

The good fruit of the good tree is the fruit of the Spirit, manifestations of holiness that spring forth from the vine of Christ.

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,  Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law.  (Galatians 5:22–23)

The fruit of the Spirit overrules the selfish desires of carnal man. He who bears the fruit of the Spirit glorifies God and makes the world a better place. This is the privilege and duty of every true disciple of Christ.

Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.  (John 15:8)

Every benevolent religion under heaven exists to attain love, joy, and peace. No sane person can deny the desirability of such fruit. But despite the myriad of alternative ways that have been proposed to achieve such an end, the only way to bear the fruit of the Spirit is to be grafted into the spiritual vine. We must abide in Christ.

Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me.  (John 15:4)

To abide in Christ is to abide in his love. We abide in his love when we keep his commandments.

If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father’s commandments, and abide in his love. (John 15:10)

To keep the Lord’s commandments is to hear and do his sayings. Jesus likened keeping his commandments to building a house upon a sure foundation:

Whosoever cometh to me, and heareth my sayings, and doeth them, I will shew you to whom he is like: He is like a man which built an house, and digged deep, and laid the foundation on a rock: and when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently upon that house, and could not shake it: for it was founded upon a rock.  (Luke 6:47–48)

The strongest edifice will collapse if the ground beneath it gives way. This is the danger of building a house without a proper foundation.

But he that heareth, and doeth not, is like a man that without a foundation built an house upon the earth; against which the stream did beat vehemently, and immediately it fell; and the ruin of that house was great.  (v. 49)

Building your life on a strong foundation starts with hearing the Word of God. The more you hear, the more you can believe.

So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.  (Romans 10:17)

But even a fool can quote words of wisdom. We must obey the Word, lest we forsake what we learned.

But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass: For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was.  (James 1:22–24)

The Word of God is like food; it does us no good if we only look at it. In order to serve its purpose, food must be ingested into our innermost being. The Word of God that we have both heard and obeyed is the engrafted word that will change our lives and save our souls.

Wherefore lay apart all filthiness and superfluity of naughtiness, and receive with meekness the engrafted word, which is able to save your souls.  (James 1:21)

Our Rock, Foundation, and Chief Cornerstone

Too many Christians are more concerned with the attractiveness of their doctrinal house than the surety of the ground upon which it is built. Wisdom dictates that our doctrine be founded on