378. 9. There Is Faith That Is True, Faith That Is Illegitimate, and Faith That Is Hypocritical

From its cradle, the Christian church was attacked and torn apart by schisms and heresies. As time went on, it was lacerated and butchered by them, much like the person we read about who went down from Jerusalem to Jericho and was surrounded by robbers; after they stripped him and beat him up, the robbers left him half-dead (Luke 10:30).

The end result was what we read in Daniel about that church: "In the end desolation [will fly in] on a bird of abominations; even to the close and the cutting down, it will drip steadily upon the devastation" (Daniel 9:27); and the Lord's statement: The end will come when you see the abomination of desolation that Daniel the prophet foretold (Matthew 24:14-15).

What happened to the church could be compared to a ship loaded down with merchandise of the highest quality. It was battered by storm winds immediately upon leaving port and a little later was wrecked at sea and sank. Some of its cargo was spoiled by water and some was carried off by fish.

[2] Church history makes it clear that from its infancy the Christian church was assaulted and torn apart. For example, even in the time of the apostles it was assaulted by Simon, who was a Samaritan by birth and a sorcerer by trade (see Acts of the Apostles 8:9 and following). It was also assaulted by Hymenaeus and Philetus, whom Paul mentions in his Epistle to Timothy []; and by Nicolas, whose followers were the so-called Nicolaitans mentioned in Revelation 2:6 and Acts of the Apostles 6:5; not to mention Corinth.

Just after the time of the apostles, many others went into revolt. For example, the Marcionites, the Noetians, the Valentinians, the Encratites, the Cataphrygians, the Quartodecimans, the Alogians, the Catharans, the Origenists or Adamantines, the Sabellians, the Samosatenians, the Manicheans, the Meletians, and finally the Arians.

After that, armies of heretical movements invaded the church - the Donatists, the Photinians, the Acatians or Semi-Arians, the Eunomians, the Macedonians, the Nestorians, the Predestinarians, the Papists, the Zwinglians, the Anabaptists, the Schwenkfeldians, the Synergists, the Socinians, the Antitrinitarians, the Quakers, the Herrnhuters, and many others.

At length Luther, Melanchthon, and Calvin prevailed over them all. Their teachings are dominant today.

[3] There are three main reasons why there were so many disputes and rebellions in the church: (1) the divine Trinity was misunderstood; (2) there was no just concept of the Lord; (3) the suffering on the cross was taken to be redemption itself.

The truth about these three things is essential to the faith the church is based on, the faith from which it is called a church. If people did not know the truth about these three things, it was inevitable that everything about the church would be dragged first off course and finally in the opposite direction. It was also inevitable that when the church arrived at that stage it would still believe that it had a true faith in God and a belief in all God's truths.

This situation among these people in the church is like people who put a blindfold over their eyes and believe they are walking in a straight line, although step after step they are actually veering off course and eventually heading in the opposite direction, where there is a pit into which they fall.

The only way the wandering people of the church can be redirected onto the road of truth is by their knowing what true faith is, what illegitimate faith is, and what hypocritical faith is. Therefore this will be demonstrated.

a. There is only one true faith; it is faith in the Lord God our Savior Jesus Christ. It exists in people who believe that he is the Son of God, that he is the God of heaven and earth, and that he is one with the Father.

b. Illegitimate faith is all faith that departs from the one and only true faith. Illegitimate faith exists in people who climb up some other way and view the Lord not as God but only as a human being.

c. Hypocritical faith is no faith at all.

643. There Is an Assigning of Spiritual Credit, but in Addition to Whether We Have Faith, It Also Takes into Account Whether Our Actions Have Been Good or Evil

We are assigned spiritual credit or blame [after death] depending on whether our actions have been good or evil. The Word teaches this in countless passages. Some such passages have indeed been quoted earlier, but to show for certain that no other "assigning" than this is meant, some passages like this will also be given here, as follows.

The Son of Humankind is going to come. Then he will repay all according to their deeds. (Matthew 16:27)

Those who have done good things will depart into a resurrection of life; those who have done evil things will depart into a resurrection of judgment. (John 5:29)

A book is opened, which is the book of life, and all are judged according to their works. (Revelation 20:12-13)

Behold, I am coming quickly, and my reward is with me to give to all according to their work. (Revelation 22:12)

I will bring judgment upon them according to their ways and will reward them for their works. (Hosea 4:9; Zechariah 1:6; Jeremiah 25:14; 32:19)

In the day of his anger and just judgment, God will repay all according to their works. (Romans 2:5-6)

It is right for us all to appear before Christ's judgment seat, so that each of us may carry away what we have done through our body in regard to those things, whether good or evil. (2 Corinthians 5:10)

[2] When the church first began, this was the only principle governing the assignment of spiritual credit or blame. When the church comes to an end, this will still be the only principle. We see from the story of Adam and his wife that this was the principle operative when the church first began. Adam and Eve were condemned because they did something evil: they ate from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (Genesis 2-3). We see from the following words of the Lord that exactly the same principle will still be in effect at the end of the church:

When the Son of Humankind comes in the glory of his Father, then he will sit on the throne of his glory and say to the sheep on the right, "Come, you who are blessed, and possess as your inheritance the kingdom prepared for you since the founding of the world; because I was hungry and you gave me something to eat. I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink. I was a stranger and you took me in. I was naked and you clothed me. I was sick and you visited me. I was in prison and you came to me. " But to the goats on the left, who had not done good things, he said, "Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the Devil and his angels. " (Matthew 25:31 and following)

From this statement, anyone with open eyes can see that we are assigned spiritual credit or blame [after death] based on whether our actions were good or evil.

[3] We are indeed assigned credit for having faith, provided genuine goodwill and true faith work together in us to produce good actions. As we have seen, if our actions are not the result of both goodwill and faith, they are not actually good; see 373-377 above. Therefore James says:

Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered his son on the altar? Do you see that faith was working together with works, and because of its works faith was recognized as perfect? And the Scripture was fulfilled, which says, "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as something just. " (James 2:21-23)