United Pentecostal Church of Burlington

The Word Of God?

The Bible tells us that every person on the face of the earth—past, present and future—will stand before the throne of God one day in judgment. The criteria for judging, it states, will be the Word of God.

REVELATION 20:12: And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.

This being the case, it is imperative that we know God’s Word for ourselves. Our eternal salvation is much too important to depend upon the theories, doctrines and teachings of man or religious organizations that do not strictly adhere to the Word of God.

Many people today are following a multiple choice salvation plan—choosing a religious pathway that merely fits their lifestyle or concurs with their family traditions. This is a very sad thing, as only our obedience to what God has written, exactly as He has written it, will bring salvation to the lost. It is not the way of the masses, but rather the way of those who seek out the truth of God’s Word.

MATTHEW 7:13-14: Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.

God says in Ephesians 4:4-5: that there is only one Lord, only one faith, and only one baptism. The world says there are many faiths, but God says there is only one. This does not mean that only one particular church or denomination is going to make heaven. It does mean that everyone who does things the Bible way is doing it God’s way. What Jesus taught His early church about salvation is the same thing it takes to be saved today. God’s Word has not changed. It is established. It is settled.

PSALMS 119:89: For ever, O LORD, thy word is settled in heaven.

What did the disciples say about any deviation of what they had been instructed to teach and preach? What did they say about the teachings of men?

GALATIANS 1:8: But 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. It takes more than being a good person to enter into heaven.

It takes more than believing on the Lord or accepting him as Saviour. We must be obedient to His Word—all of it.

MATTHEW 7:21: Not everyone that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in heaven.

The Will of the Father is His Holy Word, and it is so very important for us to realize that additions to, and/or deletions from the Word cause it to cease being God’s Word.

REVELATION 22:18-19: For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.

If we do things any differently than is outlined IN the Word, then we have not been obedient TO the Word, and partial obedience is really DIS-obedience. If God says “seven,” then six is not enough. If God says “yellow,” then red just won’t do. If God says “baptism by immersion in the Name of Jesus Christ,” then sprinkling in the titles Father, Son and Holy Ghost is not sufficient. We will be judged BY THE WORD. Man may say it doesn’t matter how these things are done, but God says it does.

LUKE 6:46: And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?

The Bible is God’s book to man, all of it, just as it is, and it is not for man to pick and choose the verses he wants to adhere to; nor is it given to man for private interpretation or individual response depending upon personal viewpoint.

II PETER 1:20: Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.

God is purposefully explicit. Throughout the Holy Scriptures, He tells us what we must do to make heaven and what we must not do to escape hell. For God to allow what we call good people to slip on in the back door of heaven even though they have not heeded these instructions would make God a double-crosser of his own Word. It would make Him a liar, and the Bible says it is impossible for God to lie. He cannot let the disobedient enter into heaven, no matter how much He loves them. God loves everyone and He wants us all to make heaven, but He cannot and will not let people enter in who have not adhered to His Word.

Truth and deception cannot dwell in the same heart. One will always push out the other, just as light dispels the darkness the moment we flip on the light-switch. Accordingly, God’s truth cannot reside in a heart full of traditions and manmade doctrines.

ROMANS 3:4: Let GOD be true, but every man a liar.

ACTS 5:29: We ought to obey GOD rather than men.

MATTHEW 15:9: In vain they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.

MATTHEW 15:6: Thus have ye made the commandment of God of none effect by your tradition. What about all the different churches all around us, all the different faiths and traditions? First of all, we need to understand that the church did not begin with some man’s denominational revelation. Jesus, nor his disciples, knew anything about denominations. The true church began on the day of Pentecost in an upper room in Jerusalem in 33 A.D. What Jesus taught His disciples is the same thing we should adhere to today, no deviations. His Word has not changed. What it took to be saved back then is the same thing it takes to be saved today, and everything that was required back then is still required today. Thus, anyone and everyone following these same teachings are a continuation of the church Jesus started, the church He is coming back for. Anyone who is doing things any differently than the church Jesus started is not part of His church, but rather a part of another organization.

So, my friend, the choice is ours. We can follow the traditions, faiths, and doctrines of men, or we can be obedient to the Pure Word of God. According to Matthew 7:13-14, only a few will find that straight and narrow road that leads to heaven, while the majority will take the broad road which leads to death and destruction.

We, at the United Pentecostal Church of Burlington, have no doctrine to share with you other than the pure Word of God. It truly does matter what you believe and how you respond to it. God’s Holy Word is not a book of generalities, but absolutes, and our abiding by His words is not our works, but our obedience. It is imperative that we do things God’s way rather than man’s. There is no plan A, plan B, plan C or D. God has “A” way—HIS way.

We will be judged by the Word.