ABOUT CHRISTADELPHIANS
courtesy www.macgregorministries.org
The Christadelphians have been with us since about 1848.
They rose up after the Mormons, but prior to the Jehovah's Witnesses and the
Seventh Day Adventists. A man named John Thomas founded the group. The Disciples
of Christ denomination attempted to discipline this man for his "strange
doctrines," but the discipline was not accepted by him. John Thomas drew off his
own followers under their original name, "The Royal Association of Believers in
New York", now known as the "Christadelphians".
John Thomas' book, "Elpis Israel" (Hope of Israel), and his
successor's book, "Christendom Astray from the Bible", by Robert Roberts form
the basis for the group's beliefs.
View On The Godhead
The Christadelphian publication, "Key to Understanding the
Bible", page 13, reads under "The Godhead"....
"God is one, not three. He has revealed Himself as the
Father of the Lord Jesus Christ and of all who are related to Him in Faith."
God is therefore believed to be ONLY God the FATHER.
Christians do believe there is only one God. However, whereas we agree that the
Father is called God...., we also believe the Son, Jesus Christ, is also called God. Therefore
He is likewise a manifestation of the One God of Scripture.
Prophecy calls Jesus God - Matthew 1:23
The Disciples called Jesus God - John 20:25-28
The Father called Jesus God - Hebrews 1:8
Christadelphian View Of Jesus
Again, we quote from "Key to
Understanding the Bible", page 14.
"Jesus Christ is not God the Son, but is the Son of God,
begotten of the virgin Mary by the Holy Spirit. He was a man of our race,
identical in nature with all mankind."
Jesus Christ is therefore presented by the Christadelphians
as being the son of God ONLY, having no existence prior to his birth to Mary and
being only a man by nature. However, the Bible plainly teaches the pre-existence
and eternal nature of Jesus Christ. For example, John 1:1 states,
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God,
and the word was God." (NAS)
Verse 14 continues, regarding Jesus,
"And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we
beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace
and truth." (NAS, c.f. Revelation 19:13)
The Word, Jesus Christ, was plainly there "in the
beginning". In fact, He is "before all things" according to Colossians 1:17,
which chapter of the Bible portrays Him as Creator of all.
The prophecy in Micah is of special interest. Micah 5:2
reads,
"But as for you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, too little to be
among the clans of Judah, From you One will go forth for Me to be ruler in
Israel. His goings forth are from long ago, from the days of eternity."
The key word here is "eternity", also translated
"everlasting". This is the Hebrew word "olam." This word was never used for any
creature, or product of creation. It is ONLY used for GOD. This same Hebrew word
is used of the Father in Psalm 90:2,
"...Even from everlasting to everlasting, Thou art God."
The eternal nature of Jesus Christ is also evident from 1
Timothy 1:17,
"Now to the King ETERNAL, immortal, invisible, THE ONLY
GOD, be honour and glory forever and ever, Amen."
Jesus Christ did function on this earth as a man to
perfectly redeem us, but this did not detract from His eternal Deity. Colossians
2:9 says of Christ, "For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily
form."
All is all, full is full. Jesus Christ, even in the flesh
never ceased to be truly and fully God.
Christadelphian View Of Satan The Devil
Under the heading "Devil" and "Satan" in the
Christadelphian publication, "Key to Understanding the Bible", on page 15, we
find,
"Devil.....Its general meaning is sin or lawlessness,
whether manifested individually or politically. It is also applied to the
unlawful lusts and tendencies of human nature which invariably lead to sin. It
is not a supernatural being. Satan is a Hebrew word signifying "adversary",
"enemy", or "accuser"."
Christadelphians therefore reduce the Devil to our own
sinful lusts, and make every adversary in the Bible a "Satan". Both views are in
error, as we shall see.
In Zechariah 3:1,2, we see Satan standing before the angel
of the Lord, and God Himself speaks to Satan, rebuking him. Was God rebuking His
own lustful thoughts? Ridiculous. Likewise Jesus carried on quite a conversation
with the person of Satan the Devil in Matthew 4, verses 1 through 11. Jesus, who
was perfect, certainly did not have a sinful nature talking to Him! He was
speaking to a real personage, Satan the Devil. Jesus went on to call him, the
"father of lies" and a "Murderer" in John 8:44. These are titles for a real
person, not abstract feelings.
Christadelphians need to know that there is a real person
in the world called "Satan the Devil" and he delights in having people deny his
existence, for then they never gain the mastery over him.
Christadelphian View Of Salvation
According to the booklet, "Christadelphians" by L.
Hutchins, a Christadelphian gains salvation by...
Accepting the gospel preached by Jesus Christ and His
apostles, as interpreted by Christadelphians.
Being baptized by total immersion.
Obeying the commandments of Christ.
The Bible, on the other hand, promises us salvation by
GRACE alone. Ephesians 2:8,9 puts it this way
"For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that
not of yourselves, it is the GIFT of God, NOT AS A RESULT OF WORKS, that no one
should boast."
We as Christians should have good works, but they are a
RESULT of our salvation, not a CONDITION for our salvation.
A Parting Thought
No doubt there will be sincere Christadelphians reading
this, as well as Christians, so I want to add this personal note.
I understand so well how many hours you have given to your
faith, always striving to improve, for I was once in a group similar to yours. I
was a Jehovah's Witness for 15 years before the Lord set me free. Friends,
please do not stumble over salvation by grace alone, because it seems too easy.
First off, begin by praying an honest prayer to God, asking Him to reveal the
truth to you through the pages of the Bible alone.
Set aside your Christadelphian publications for a time and
really seek Jesus Christ through the pages of the Bible, and personally in
prayer. You will find out that He is far different from what you have been
taught. Nevertheless do not stop seeking until you find Him.
After all, if you have the right Jesus Christ, you are
right for all eternity, but if you have the wrong Jesus Christ, you are wrong
for all eternity.
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