S.B.C. House
on the Sand?
by David O.
Beale
Appendix
Three
What
Fundamentalists Mean by the Term Separation or
Holiness
The
term biblical fellowship is the positive side of
the separation coin. Fundamentalists believe that the Scriptures
clearly teach certain criteria for true Christian fellowship.
The Scriptural
Criteria for Fellowship
Fundamentalists
believe that the scriptural bases for fellowship are genuine
belief in and consistent obedience to Christ and the Bible.
They regard the doctrine of biblical fellowship as fundamental.
It is inherently part of the scriptural doctrine of God's
absolute holiness—separation (sanctification) from the world,
from false religion, and from every practice of disobedience
to God's Word. Key Bible passages teaching separation from
the world include I John 2:15-17, II Corinthians 6:15-7:1,
and James 4:4. Key passages teaching separation from false
teachers include Galatians 1:8-9, II John 9-11, and I Timothy
6:20-21. Key passages teaching separation from disobedient
Christians include I Corinthians 5:1-13, II Thessalonians
3:6, 14-15, and Matthew 18:15-18.
The Scriptural
Attitude Toward Disobedient Brethren
There
is a basic difference between separation from religious
apostates and separation from erring Christian brethren:
separation from a brother is not irrevocable. Separation
from a Christian brother should never be a total rejection
which allows no place for repentance. Allowance should be
made for ignorance, errors of judgment, and momentary weakness.
Nevertheless, when Christian leaders begin to steer God's
people into disobedience and compromise, they must be scripturally
rebuked and their error exposed. This principle of rebuke
and correction is often illustrated in the Bible: Leviticus
19:17; Joshua 22:11-20; Proverbs 25:12; Ezra 9-10; Nehemiah
13:13-29; Matthew 18:15-18; I Corinthians 5:1-13; II Thessalonians
3:6, 14-15; Titus 3:9-10; and in many other passages.
S.B.C.
House on the Sand? ©1985. BJU Press. Reproduction prohibited.
This work is currently out of print and is not available
for purchase.
Permission
must be obtained from www.itib.org to link to this page.
|
