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Constitutes Restoration?
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Several years ago,
my father-in-law bought a hunk of metal that at one time was a
brand-spanking-new 1930 Model A. After much time and effort,
he completed the restoration of that Model A to its original
state. After all, that’s what restoration is...restoring
something back to its original condition, using original
parts, original upholstery, original paint colors, etc.
So if restoration means to bring something back to its
original condition, how does that apply to religion? There is
certainly no argument that what you see in the religious world
today is not what would have been seen in the 1st century
church. That’s an undeniable fact. So, why should we be
concerned about restoration? And what constitutes restoration?
The first question I’ll answer very briefly. We should be
concerned about restoring the church to its original state
because this is the Lord’s church, not ours (Matt. 16:18).
That means we need to have a church that is exactly as He
designed and authorized. If a church today does not match up
in doctrine and practice to the New Testament church, then
it’s no longer the Lord’s church. Since the church was
established on the Day of Pentecost, man has tried to change
the Lord’s design, and over the years, this has resulted in
many apostasies and thousands of denominations.
Restoration is necessary, but what is necessary for
restoration? Part of the answer lies in what I just said as to
the reason for restoration. Restoration requires a careful
examination of the Scriptures to see just what God had in mind
for His church. He was very specific in authorizing what the
church taught and practiced, and through a diligent search of
the Bible, we can come to know exactly what He desires.
He promised His apostles that He would send the Holy Spirit to
them to guide them into all truth (John 16:13). They didn’t
speak or write of their own will, but “spoke as they were
moved by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:21). Therefore, what
the apostles taught came straight from God and should be
followed and obeyed. Man has no right to alter it.
All of this demands humility on our part. It necessitates a
willingness to submit to God’s will, regardless of what we
want or how we think we’d like it to be. Without this
humility, even if we search the Scriptures and discover
discrepancies in our practices and the Scriptures, change will
not take place. Restoration will not take place. Humility is
at the heart of it all, and our heart must be attuned to
God’s will.
When we have the humility to subjugate ourselves to God’s
word and designs for the church, then we will diligently
search the Scripture to see if what we are doing here at
Southside and what we are teaching is what the 1st Century
Christians did and what the apostles taught. If not, then we
need to change to fit the pattern.
Is our worship music the same as in the pattern? Do we gather
money for the same purposes? Is purchasing our own building in
which to meet consistent with scriptural authority? Is our
teaching on the necessity of salvation and how one is saved
the same as what the apostles taught? Every one of these
questions, as well as many more, should be asked in the spirit
of restoration. This is the attitude necessary to achieve the
restoration of the Lord’s church.
An instance of restoration in Nehemiah 8 illustrates two of
these principles of restoration: humility and the lasting
nature of God’s laws. In this story, when the Israelites
read the Law, they found how the Lord had commanded “that
the children of Israel should dwell in booths during the feast
of the seventh month” (Neh. 8:14). When they read this and
realized they had not been following God’s commandment since
the days of Joshua (about 1000 years prior!), they immediately
obeyed his statute and made the booths in which to dwell and
keep the feast.
They had the humility to accept what God had said and to admit
that they had been wrong for 1000 years. They also understood
that even though this law had been given 1000 years earlier,
it was still valid. Just because that much time had passed
didn’t invalidate the commandment. Today, there are many who
feel as if the Bible is antiquated and that many of its
teachings are outdated. The Israelites understood otherwise.
So should we when it comes to the teachings of the New
Testament.
Restoration, however, does not apply only to the local church.
In fact, it must start with our own individual lives. The
principles are the same. We must have the humility to submit
ourselves to the rule of King Jesus. It is imperative that we
search the Scriptures to find what kind of life He expects us
to live. When we find discrepancies with the Word in our
behavior, attitude, speech, and lifestyle, we must change to
fit the pattern. When we do, then we will restore ourselves to
the man God created and intended us to be.
One final observation that is critical. Restoration, unlike
with a car, is an ongoing process that is never finished. Why?
Because people sin. Because people have pride. There is always
something to restore in the church and in the individual.
People will always drift away from the pattern and will always
need to work on being restored back to the original pattern.
Let us make it our constant effort to restore ourselves and
the church of which we are members to the original design God
gave.
Marshall Reid
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Copyright (C)
2008
Southside Church of Christ
All rights reserved.
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