Book details

  • Genre:religion
  • Sub-genre:Biblical Studies / General
  • Language:English
  • Pages:59
  • eBook ISBN:9781934782422

The Seven Pillars of the Gospel

The Unifying Bond of Peace

By John D. Clark, Sr.

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Overview

"One body, and one Spirit, just as you were also called to one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all." These seven pillars are "the unifying bond of peace" of which Paul spoke in Ephesians 4:3, and any doctrine that is not based on these is false. If all God's children would base their lives and their worship upon these Seven Pillars, adding and omitting nothing, they would enjoy perfect peace and unity and be bound together in the love of God. When we are born of God, these seven fundamentals of the Faith are engraved in our hearts by the Spirit. The challenge then is for us to listen to the Spirit and grow in Christ to understand them.
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Description

In his letter to the Ephesians, Paul listed what I call the Seven Pillars of the gospel, for upon them rests everything that is in the gospel of Christ: Ephesians 4 1. I, the prisoner of the Lord, exhort you to walk worthy of the calling to which you were called, 2. with all humility and meekness, with long-suffering, forbearing one another in love, 3. making every effort to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the unifying bond of peace: 4. one body, and one Spirit, just as you were also called to one hope of your calling; 5. one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6. one God and Father of all, who is over all, and through all, and in us all. These Seven Pillars are "the unifying bond of peace" of which Paul spoke in verse 3, and any doctrine that is not based on these is false. If all God's children would base their lives and their worship upon these Seven Pillars, adding and omitting nothing, they would enjoy perfect peace and unity and be bound together in the love of God. Whenever the Seven Pillars are neglected or anything is added to them, strife, confusion, and competition always follow, for they are unshakable, being "built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Jesus Christ himself being the cornerstone" (Eph. 2:20). When we are born of God, these seven fundamentals of the Faith are engraved in our hearts by the Spirit. The challenge then is for us to listen to the Spirit and grow in Christ to understand them. They are the immovable supports of the household of faith, which was instituted by God on the day of Pentecost when He poured out His Spirit on Jesus' followers.
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About The Author

My wife and I married in 1975. We have four children and nine grandchildren. I have ministered for five decades now in a home fellowship setting. Among the books I have written are Suffering and the Saints, Marriage and Divorce: What does the Bible really say?, Is the Bible the Word of God, Revelation, Tithes and Offerings, and After Jesus Died. I have also written about 100 songs that you can find online at songsofrest.com. And you can hear some of my sermons and bible teachings on our YouTube channel: TheSpiritisthewitness.com. The home of my youth was devoted to Jesus; at the same time, our lives were unconnected with church religion. Without my realizing it, that setting made me an alien to the religious world that most believers know. Twice a month, on Sunday afternoons, my parents would gather in a home to worship with a few others, while we children played outside or sat with the adults in the prayer meeting, as we chose. Beyond that, every Sunday morning, my father read the Bible with the family, sang a song or two, and finally, knelt with us to pray. That was the extent of my boyhood corporate worship experience. In daily life, faith in Jesus sustained and preserved us, and godliness was the expected standard. So foreign to me was the Christian religious system that after I graduated from college, when my father suggested that I attend a seminary, I had no idea what a seminary was. Being "led into all truth" by the Spirit was the only education in spiritual matters that I was aware of, but my father felt the seminary experience would benefit me. And it did. Still, my elders' way of living and of worship taught me to look to Jesus to guide my heart and shape my thoughts. How well I learned that lesson, I leave to the judgment of others.
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