The Jews of Jesus‘ day regarded Jesus as a “powerful teacher”. Although he was much more than that, he really was that too. And for a teacher to have something to give to his listeners, he must have a doctrine to teach.
Jesus was the teacher of teachers
Jesus had a doctrine, which he consistently taught. He also told us where the doctrine he taught came from: “My teaching is not mine, but his who sent me” (John 7:16). So what Jesus taught was from God. Jesus was not a teacher like the others. It was said of him that he did not teach like the scribes, but like one who has authority (Mark 1:22). The interpretation was correct: Jesus had all authority, and therefore his teaching was also correct. It was the teaching of the only true doctrine, and should therefore be read with special care.
Jesus was not only the teacher of the true doctrine, but also a central part of the doctrine which he taught. The core of his teaching was his own role in the salvation of mankind. He taught and demonstrated by his actions how the scriptural prophecies about the Messiah were fulfilled in him and how people who believe in him will receive pardon for their crimes in the eyes of God.
Surely many of Jesus’ believers wished that he had stayed on earth forever to teach the only true doctrine. But that was not God’s will. After his resurrection, Jesus returned to his Father in heaven and left the teaching task to his followers. As long as Jesus was on earth, they were disciples, but when he returned to the Father, the disciples became teachers. Jesus gave them the task of teaching all men to keep what he himself had taught them (Matt 28:20). To help them in their teaching, he gave them the Holy Spirit (John 20:22-23).
How do I know if my faith is in line with the correct doctrine?
It is not irrelevant how you believe. When we read the Bible, it is important to ask God to open our understanding of what Jesus taught his disciples, what he told them to teach others, and what he told them to hold fast to. As we have said, Jesus’ teachings should be read with special care.
So what did he teach? Mark the Evangelist tells us: “Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel‘” (Mark. 1:15). Note that Jesus’ teaching began with a sermon on repentance and believing in the forgiveness of sins.
On the same theme he also concluded his teaching when, before he ascended into heaven, he appointed his followers as teachers: “Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, and said to them, ‘Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem’” (Luke 24:45-47).
So the Bible is the textbook of salvation. It is the answer to how man can become acceptable to God and enter into His eternal fellowship instead of the damnation he deserves – through the atonement of Jesus Christ. Furthermore, Jesus shows that the one who humbles himself to repentance and has his sins forgiven in His name and blood can then proclaim absolution to anyone. As Jesus put it in words, “Whoever believes in me, as the Scripture has said, ‘Out of his heart will flow rivers of living water’” (John 7:38).
Everything you need for salvation can be found in the Bible
The teachings of the evangelists and apostles were also based on the Bible and the teachings of Jesus. John taught: “Everyone who goes on ahead and does not abide in the teaching of Christ, does not have God. Whoever abides in the teaching has both the Father and the Son” (2 John 1:9). Paul, in turn, wrote to his colleagues: “But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 3:14-15).
As you can see, the Bible instructs you on how to become acceptable to God. So reading the Bible is a good starting point in the search for eternal life, but it is not the only solution. There is a path in the Bible that can be followed to find God and His grace. It begins with God’s demanding law, which requires man to be without blemish. If God wills, reading the Bible can make a person feel sinful and in need of His grace.
That is exactly what the law does. A man whose conscience is awakened begins to seek a merciful God, and if he perseveres he may find Him. Where then? In his kingdom, among the children of God living on earth. Jesus himself said: “Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matthew 6:33).
If a seeker finds the children of God and believes their teaching to be true, will he be saved? Not quite. Just as reading the Bible does not save, neither does doctrine itself. “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ” (Romans 10:17) So salvation is only possible by hearing and believing the forgiveness of all sins proclaimed by the children of God in the name and blood of Jesus. Then the seeker is born again as a child of God.
With true faith, a person also receives the Holy Spirit, which testifies of true faith. Paul wrote in Romans, “The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God” (Romans 8:16). Jesus also described how the Holy Spirit shows the believer the correct doctrine: “If anyone’s will is to do God’s will, he will know whether the teaching is from God or whether I am speaking on my own authority” (John 7:17).
Becoming a child of God
I described repentance above. Is it really the way of the true doctrine to become a child of God and receive his grace?
The requirement of repentance is actually the basis of God’s doctrine. It is also what Jesus repeatedly called people to do. Paul, for his part, summed it up this way: “The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent” (Acts 17:30).
But man cannot repent unless he hears the teaching of the true doctrine. Its core is how God takes sinful man as His child and heir to eternal life. Or, to put it more practically, it is about how man can receive forgiveness of sins, the gift of faith and the Holy Spirit. Without faith, as the Bible says, it is impossible to be accepted by God (Hebrews 11:6).
What does the Holy Spirit that comes with the gift of faith have to do with it? The Holy Spirit calls, enlightens and sanctifies believers into one congregation (also called church), which is the body of Christ on earth. Believers are members of the body, each with their own function, just as in the natural body (1 Cor 12:27). “And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers” (Acts 2:42).
Furthermore, when a person humbles himself to repentance and is forgiven of his sins, the Holy Spirit begins to teach him and he becomes part of the teaching of Jesus. The entirety of God’s Word will not unfold correctly without the Holy Spirit.
The right doctrine is not proclaimed indefinitely
In Matthew 24, Jesus lists the signs that tell us the end of the world is near. These are the signs he told us to watch for: “From the fig tree learn its lesson: as soon as its branch becomes tender and puts out its leaves, you know that summer is near. So also, when you see all these things, you know that he is near, at the very gates” (Matt 24:32-33).
The enemy of souls also knows that we are living in the end times. The reformer Martin Luther wrote emphatically that what the enemy of souls seeks most fervently is to wrest the grace of the forgiveness of sins from our hearts, for that very article of faith is a powerful weapon against his temptations. Therefore, we must unceasingly teach and demonstrate the righteousness of faith, so that this article of faith may be strengthened in our hearts, for without it we will sink back into darkness.
Paul also saw that before the second coming of Jesus, sin will increase, love will grow cold and apostasy will occur. The word of God is no longer given the authority it deserves, but people begin to believe in their own reason, or whoever they want. To his fellow traveller Timothy, Paul wrote: “For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths” (2 Timothy 4:3-4).
At the same time, there are also many in the world who fear death. People who feel unworthy of God and long for deliverance from their sins. People who long to come into the fellowship of God. People who have been awakened by God to seek Him. To them I want to say, in the words of Jesus, “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you” (Matt 7:7).
A deep understanding of doctrine is not a prerequisite for salvation; the true faith is a childish faith (Matt 18:3–4). Instead, the gospel of the kingdom of God on earth, proclaimed by the power of the Holy Spirit, contains the full doctrine of Christ. Whoever believes the gospel of the kingdom of God does not need anything else to be saved. He only needs to believe that God is merciful and that He will bestow perfect reconciliation and righteousness through the obedience of His beloved Son on anyone who will believe it – by faith alone, through grace alone.
Authors: Henry Aulakoski, Antti Halonen
Image: Päivi Martikainen, Credits: SRK