By Marvin Duncan
First Corinthians 4:16
Until recently, I never noticed how often the Apostle Paul beseeches the Saints to do something. When I began to put these Scriptures together, I found an interesting pattern of Scriptures that call the Christian to walk as he should, now that he is a Saint of God. We’ll not look at every verse in which Paul beseeches the saints to do something, but let us consider some passages in which Paul beseeches the saints to conduct themselves as responsible members of the Body of Christ. Let us notice some important truths Paul beseeches the saints to incorporate into their daily lives. We’ll start our study in the natural progression of things that should be a part of every saint’s life from the moment he is saved.
Why Paul Beseeches Saints
.At first, when considering Paul’s attitude of beseeching the saints to live as they ought to live, I thought it rather strange that God’s Apostle for this dispensation would beg individuals to do what they should automatically do now that they are the redeemed of God. Then, considering the rebellious nature of man, it became evident that man will not automatically do what he should do. Even with the indwelling Holy Spirit to direct the believer’s actions, and to convict him when he goes astray from God’s instructions, most Christians will not yield their will to the will of God. Paul had the authority, as God’s Apostle to the Gentiles (Rom. 11:13), to command the saints of this dispensation to walk in a prescribed manner but he knew God wanted His Saints to walk uprightly out of a willing heart. Therefore, Paul appeals to the saints to respond to God’s will out of a heart of love. It isn’t strange at all for Paul to beseech individuals to respond to the will of God when we recognize that God Himself beseeches men to respond to His call for salvation. In his Second Corinthian letter, Paul writes:
“Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us, we pray in Christ’s stead, be ye reconciled to God” (2 Cor. 5:20).
A Living Sacrifice
The first thing any saint of God should do after his salvation is to surrender his will to the will of God. There is a need for the Christian to recognize that he has been bought with a price (1 Pet. 1:18-19) and he belongs to God (1 Cor. 6:19-20). As the redeemed of God, our life is no longer our own to do with as we please. We need to recognize that God saved us for a purpose and has given each of us a special gift (Eph. 4:7) that He wants us to use for the edification of the Body of Christ (Eph. 4:12). To fit perfectly into God’s plan, we must die to our selfish desires and give ourself to Christ to live His life in our body. Paul beseeches the saints to recognize this need and take the necessary steps to accomplish it. We find Paul’s plea to the saints to die to self in his Roman letter. Paul entreats the Saints at Rome by saying:
“I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service” (Romans 12:1).
Isn’t it interesting that Paul speaks of this dying to self as “your reasonable service”? God never asks anything of His Saints that is unreasonable. It is only reasonable that since Christ died for us, we should live for Him. It is reasonable that since Christ gave His life for us, we should give our life to Him. It is only reasonable that since Christ offered His Body as a dead sacrifice, we| should offer our body as a living sacrifice.
Throughout the Scriptures we see a sacrifice as something that was put to death for the sins of others. But, in Romans 12:1, Paul beseeches the saints to be living sacrifices, when you think of this, it becomes evident that Christ never asks anyone to die for Him. He only asks the Saints to live for Him. But, by calling the saints to be a sacrifice, Paul is speaking of their dying to self so they can live for Christ. This is the first thing any saint of God should do as he begins his Christian life. Yet, seldom will any individual do this automatically. This is why Paul beseeches the saints to do what they should automatically do, now that they are the redeemed of God.
Be Followers Of Me
Because Paul is God’s appointed Apostle for the dispensation of the Grace of God, it would seem natural that every member of the Body of Christ would seek out and follow the teachings of the Apostle Paul. But, because the saint of God still has his old rebellious heart and stubborn will, many Christians will not submit to the authority of God’s Apostle for today. The average Christian wants to follow his own will instead of-God’s will. This attitude causes him to seek those teachings that fit his own personal desires. This mixture of directions being followed by members of the Body of Christ caused Paul to write this next plea. In First Corinthians 4:16, Paul writes:
“Wherefore I beseech you, be ye followers of me.”
There are some saints of God who object to following Paul. They insist the Christian should only follow Christ. They believe God became a man in the person of Jesus Christ in order to set an example for man to follow. Yet, a moment’s reflection upon the ministry of Christ will dispel this myth. Christ did not come to be man’s example; He came to be man’s Savior. No one was ever instructed to follow Christ as his example because no man could do what Christ did. How could any man live a sinless life or die for another man’s sins? Yet, God has given us a man who lived exactly as God wanted the members of the Body of Christ to live in this sin-cursed world and has set him to be our example. This man is Paul. Notice that God called Paul to be “a pattern” for those who would- later believe on Christ for everlasting life (1 Tim. 1:16). Paul was instructed as to how he was to live and walk as a member of the Body of Christ and he faithfully obeyed God’s instructions, as we see in Second Timothy 4:7-8. Because of his faithfulness in following God’s instructions for living the Christian life in this dispensation of the Grace of God, he is the perfect pattern for all members of the “Body” to follow. This is why the Holy Spirit inspired him to write First Corinthians 11:1 in which he says:
“Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.”
Paul is not exalting himself when he admonishes the saints to follow him. It is God’s desire that the saints today recognize that it is possible for a man to walk pleasingly before his God. Paul has shown us that it is possible. If we will follow Paul in his attitude, in his dedication, in his worship,(in his doctrine, and in his service, we will also have the “Crown of Righteousness” Paul speaks of in Second Timothy 4:8. Needless to say, if we do not follow Paul as our “pattern,” we will not be walking pleasingly before our Lord and will not have that Crown of Righteousness presented to us when we stand before the BEMA of Christ to answer for our Christian walk in this physical life (2 Cor. 5:10).
Mark Those Who Cause Divisions
God has never had but one program in operation at any given time. You will never find God offering one means of salvation and hope to the Jews while at the same time offering the Gentiles a different means of salvation and a different hope for their eternity. Nor do we find God giving a number of different instructions for the walk of the Christian today. Yet, there are a multitude of voices today all claiming they speak for God and each of these voices are saying a different thing. God is not the author of the confusion we find in Christendom today (1 Cor. 14:33). There is only one plan and one message for God’s saints in this dispensation of the Grace of God. That one plan and message was revealed to Paul, the Apostle to the Gentiles, (Rom. 11:13). Any other message man might present is a false doctrine, regardless of how sincere, or religious, the man might be, or what mixture of Scriptures this teaching might come from. Paul makes this clear in his letter to the Galatians. Notice the strong language Paul uses in Galatians 1:8. He tells these Galatian Saints, who had been deceived by some Jews who encouraged them to add parts of the Law of Moses to their lives:
“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” (Gal. 1:8).
Not only was this error of teaching a different Gospel found in Paul’s day, it is still going on today. Any deviation from what Paul preached falls: under this curse. Any mixing of God’s program for Israel and the earth with God’s secret program for the Gentiles and heaven is a false doctrine. Such teaching causes confusion within the Body of Christ and divides the saints into ,many factions, which is contrary to God’s desire for the church today (Notice what Paul says in First Corinthians 1:10). Because there are many who teach a doctrine that is different from that which Paul preached, our Apostle tells the Roman Saints:
“Now I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learnedand avoid them” (Rom. 16:17).
It should be an automatic response for the saint of God to depart from all false doctrine. Yet, there are many today who are sitting under, and supporting, men who are not teaching the message of the Mystery as it was revealed to Paul. Because of these false teachers, there are some saints of God today who will not fellowship with anyone who stands for the security the saints have in Christ; others do not know their hope is in heaven. All such teaching is contrary to the clear message preached by Paul and falls under the curse of Galatians 1:8. To the saints who want to be walking pleasingly before our Lord, Paul begs them to “Mark those who cause divisions and offences contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned (of me); and avoid them.”
Be Not Shaken In Your Hope
The final truth we want to notice in this study is found in Paul’s second letter to the Thessalonians. Someone desired to disrupt the faith and unity of the saints at Thessalonica so they wrote a letter under Paul’s name in which they wrote that the Rapture of the Church had already taken place and these saints were left behind to go through the Tribulation period. This letter shook the faith of some. Others questioned Paul’s Apostleship and honesty. When Paul heard of this letter, he quickly writes these Saints and comforts them by saying:
“Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, that ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand” (2 Thes. 1:1-2).
There are those today who would rob the saints of their “Blessed Hope” (Tit. 2:13) by preaching the Rapture is not for the Saints today, or that the saints have their hope in the earthly kingdom. The saints today need not be shaken in mind or troubled that the Rapture is past, or that they will go through the Tribulation. This dispensation will not end until our Lord returns to the clouds to call His saints unto Himself (1 Thes. 4:13-18). At that time every member of the Body of Christ will be caught up and no saints will be left here on earth to go through the Tribulation. Our Hope is sure!