thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16-17)

If in the Bible God has given us “everything we need” so that we are “thoroughly equipped”, then no other information is necessary.

Another reason we look to the Bible is because we understand that it will be used as God’s standard on Judgment Day. Note the following verse:

“There is a judge for the one who rejects me and does not accept my words; that very word which I spoke will condemn him at the last day.” (John 12:48)

Since Jesus’ words will be used to judge us at the last day, it only makes sense to turn to His word now to find out what we must do. Furthermore, we should want to focus our study and draw our answers principally from the New Testament since it was written to Christians to help them know how to live and follow Christ. The Old Testament was written to Jews to help them understand their religion. Note the following verse:

“These things happened to them as examples and were written down as warnings for us, on whom the fulfillment of the ages has come.” (1 Corinthians 10:11)

The primary purpose of the Old Testament is to exemplify what is taught in the New, and also to warn us not to make the same mistakes as those in the past. When we look at the state of Christianity today, one cannot help but note the different (and often conflicting) ideas on how to become a Christian or how to worship God acceptably. How can one know for sure that he is a Christian in God’s eyes? How can one know for sure that he has done all that God has commanded? The only way is to go to Scripture and search with an open heart and an open mind. Please read the following New Testament passages which describe how a person became a Christian in the days of the apostles: Acts 2:36-41 and Acts 8:30-39.

You will note that there are certain similarities in each account. In each account, the people involved believed in Jesus and were baptized into His name. Each account also includes at least one step the other does not. In Acts 2, the people on the day of Pentecost were told to “repent” (2:38). In Acts 8, we see the Ethiopian Eunuch “confess” Christ (8:37). If we look at all the passages in the Book of Acts which describe the conversion process, a pattern emerges.

According to the New Testament record, there are four steps which lead to salvation. In order, they are belief, repentance, confession and baptism. At baptism, a person’s sins are washed away (Acts 22:16) and they become a part of God’s family, the church (Acts 2:41), whose members are simply known as “Christians” (Acts 11:26).

There is little disagreement in Christianity regarding most of these steps. The exception is baptism about which there is wide disagreement as to its purpose and the method by which it is accomplished. Please consider the following points which answer the question, “What is baptism according to the Bible’s teaching?”

What is the Restoration Movement?

To understand the Restoration Movement and its purpose, we must first go to John 17 and take note of Jesus’ plea for unity. In John 17 Jesus spoke these words to the Father:

“My prayer is not for them alone. I pray also for those who will believe in me through their message, that all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.” (John 17:20, 21)

The most fervent prayer of Christ on the night before His crucifixion was that all believers might be “one.” In other words, He prayed for our unity. It should be evident to those who have even a minimal knowledge of history that Christians have not always heeded the call of Christ to be united. Even today there is much division among those who wear the name of Christ. While some are comfortable with the current situation of Christianity wherein there exists many “denominations”, we believe that denominationalism is foreign to Scripture and contrary to the will of God (1 Corinthians 1:10; Ephesians 4:3, 13). We believe that God has called us to pursue unity (2 Corinthians 13:11, 1 Peter 3:8).

Many “unity” movements have come and gone. Some of them have tried to unite Christians together around a certain issue (e.g. the abolition of slavery, prohibition, suffrage, etc.) or a certain doctrine (e.g. the Holy Spirit, faith, miracles, etc.). Other movements have tried to attain unity through a compromise of Christian beliefs (i.e. to pare down the list of what are considered essential doctrines until a common denominator is found all can agree upon). This approach, however, is wrong, even sinful, because we have been commanded by God to defend the faith (Jude 3, Philippians 1:27), not compromise it.

We believe that the only way mankind will ever achieve unity in Christ (while still being pleasing to God) is to find common ground in the New Testament pattern. To drop all man-made creeds, traditions, doctrines and approaches, and simply conform to the pattern of first century Christianity. This is the goal of the Restoration Movement.

The Restoration Movement began some time in the early 1800s in this country. It began as different men from various religious groups began calling for a return to the ancient order of things; to get back to the Bible as the sole source for authority in religious matters. Men like James O’Kelly from the Methodist Church, Abner Jones and Elias Smith from the Baptists, Barton W. Stone from the Presbyterians and later, from both the Presbyterian and Baptist ranks, Alexander Campbell.

These men had seen firsthand how religious division had harmed the cause of Christ. How bickering and fighting over creeds and traditions had torn apart families and communities, and caused many to become indifferent to religion. So they resolved to see all Christians united – just as Jesus prayed they would be. The means for bringing about this unity was to get rid of the divisive creeds and man-made traditions and go back to the Bible. To be Christians nothing less. Their “Back to the Bible” approach was based on the belief that there is an authoritative pattern revealed in Scripture – a pattern for the organization and leadership of the church, a pattern for worship, a pattern for making disciples, a pattern showing us how to become a Christian. We can see this pattern clearly when we look at the example of the early church and take note of their practices. We can also see that Scripture clearly commands us to observe the will of God and not depart from it. Note the following passages: only. And to do only what the Bible says – nothing more,

“Do not add to what I have commanded you and do not subtract from it, but keep the commands of the Lord your God that I give you.” (Deuteronomy 4:2)

“See that you do all I command you; do not add to it or take away from it.” (Deuteronomy 12:32)

“Do not add to his words, or he will rebuke you and prove you a liar.” (Proverbs 30:6)

“I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book. And if anyone takes words away from this book of prophecy, God will take away from him his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.” (Revelation 22:18, 19)

It is therefore our goal to seek out the Lord’s will and to follow that will exactly. We believe it is a sin to do otherwise. And we believe that disunity is a direct result of departing from the Biblical pattern. Our desire to be like the first century church has led us to a style of worship that is very different from what one might experience in most churches. For one thing, we partake of the Lord’s Supper each Lord’s Day, rather than once a quarter or at various times during the year. We find the authority for this in Acts 20:7. We also enjoy vocal music rather than instrumental music. This is because such was the practice of the first century church. We have no authority in the New Testament to do otherwise. [Note: Please refer to the previous verses which caution us not to “add” anything to God’s Word.] We also take up an offering each Lord’s Day, but only on the Lord’s Day (1 Corinthians 16:1-2). We listen to the preaching and teaching of God’s Word, and join together in prayer.

Perhaps one of the biggest differences between our style of worship and what is often seen today, is that we believe worship is primarily for God (1 Chronicles 16:29, Psalm 95:1-7). When we gather together, our primary purpose is to honor God by worshipping Him in the manner He has prescribed (John 4:24). Any benefits we receive personally are secondary to that purpose. In a day when most worship services are primarily designed to entertain the audience and elicit an emotional response, we choose a simple style of worship modeled after that of the first century church.