Not so long ago someone said to this effect: "The church can be identified by her doctrine but not by her practice." This was said, I think, to excuse some of their unscriptural practices while trying to teach a free and sovereign grace.

I cannot, exactly, understand how one would maintain doctrine and disregard practice, and at the same time claim to have the gospel. The first gospel preacher went preaching: Repent, bring forth fruits meet for repentance. At the same time refusing to baptize those who had a zeal to go along with the right crowd but no desire to change their practice.

"You have no right to refuse us," they must have cried. "We are Abraham's children."

Jesus, in His sermon on the mount, described His church as the salt of the earth. He declared that if the salt had lost its savour (strength or virtue of good works or practice) it was good for nothing but to be trodden under the feet of men. Jesus certainly would not recognize His disciples for their loss of good practice!

Later on, when our Lord went up to Jerusalem, He cast out those who had brought unorthodox practices into the temple. He found them selling oxen, sheep and doves and changing money in the Lord's house. How they, too, must have excused themselves! It seems we could hear them say: "What is wrong with this? Here we have gifts (the doves, oxen and sheep) to sell to them that have not; thus giving them the privilege and opportunity to make an offering to the Lord;" or, "See, here are people whose money will not buy these gifts. We will exchange money with them that they, too, may buy and sacrifice."

These money-changers, I am sure, trafficked among the foreign nations about Judea to accumulate a trade with them and brought foreign money into the temple--nothing but unscriptural practice in the church.

The Pharisees fairly bent over backwards maintaining the doctrine of Moses. Jesus declared to the multitude and His disciples: "The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses seat. All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not." So the Pharisees had the doctrine but not the practice!

The Apostle James wrote that a man's faith might be identified by his works. Jesus said: "and why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?" Why? Why do you hold my truths and keep not my practices?

Depart from Scriptural practice and you'll soon depart from truth. God will take away your understanding

. E. B. Watts

The Primitive Baptist January 17, 1952