"Him We Preach"
A guest post by Chad Ramsey.
The religious world is characterized by confusion. Hundreds of different groups claim allegiance to Jesus but teach conflicting doctrines. Nevertheless, Scripture calls for unity.
This was the apostle Paul’s point when he wrote:
“Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment” (1 Corinthians 1:10).
Christian unity is not empty; it is based upon truth. We unite by teaching and following God’s plan, and not ideas or traditions of man. But how do we do it?
We must focus on Jesus.
Stressing this idea, Paul told the Colossians:
“Him we preach, warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus” (Colossians 1:28).
Notice two key thoughts from this verse.
We must preach Jesus.
Rather than basing our religion upon man, we must focus upon Jesus.
He is the one who died for our sins; He is the one who makes forgiveness possible. We must never become so focused upon the messenger that we forget the message.
As the writer of Hebrews emphasized, we must “see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone” (Hebrews 2:9).
We must warn men and teach all men about Jesus.
Paul’s reference to warning men must not be taken lightly. We will all stand before the judgment seat of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:10).
And it is remains “a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Hebrews 10:31).
Therefore, we must point men to the only hope of the world—Jesus Christ—by preaching Him and Him alone. If we do this, we can enjoy the unity prescribed by the apostle Paul.
Chad Ramsey preaches for the Gloster Street Church of Christ in Tupelo, Mississippi. You can access their Bible classes and Chad’s sermons on Gloster Street’s YouTube page.
Chad was - and still is - “my preacher” from when I spent my high school and early college years at Gloster Street. I’m thankful to be able to share some of his writings with you.
