Del Norte Baptist Church is a united body of believers committed to grow in Christ and to reach others for Christ.
What are we committed to? To grow in Christ—to reach others for Christ. Why are we so committed? Because we know the purpose for which Jesus put us here. And we absolutely refuse to compromise the absolutes of who we are, what we believe, and what we teach.
In our lives we always face pressure to compromise our faith. The same is true of the church. We must constantly ask ourselves, “Are we going to obey God or give into the world?”
In Acts 4, after the miracle of the healing of the crippled man authenticated the apostles’ claim to represent Christ, the Sanhedrin felt compelled to “stop this thing from spreading any further” (4:17). So they had Peter and John arrested.
But the disciples couldn’t be silenced. Why not? Why didn’t they just agree and then get on with their lives? Because they were witnesses to the resurrected, living Christ. They understood that the Old Testament scriptures and prophecies pointed to Jesus. They knew without a doubt that Jesus was the promised Messiah.
Acts 4:19-20 19But Peter and John replied, "Judge for yourselves whether it is right in God's sight to obey you rather than God. 20For we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard."
For a few seconds there must have been silence in the courtroom. The Sanhedrin couldn’t believe what these illiterate men said to them.
Think for a minute about the significance of this. The Sanhedrin had executed Jesus for claiming to be the Messiah. Now, undaunted, Jesus’ disciples were going everywhere with the same claim, and with irrefutable proof that Jesus was alive.
Can these be the same apostles who ran away in terror when Jesus was arrested? Can this be the same Peter who denied even knowing Jesus? Could this be the same John who, with the other disciples, went into hiding, jumping at every knock on the door?
Yet from the day of Pentecost on, the followers of Christ burst out of hiding, and began to boldly share their faith in Jesus Christ. Something monumental had happened in their lives.
Now they were spreading the Good News of Jesus to everyone they met. It was an amazing transformation. And their message was that they were eye witnesses to Jesus’ life, His death, and, especially, His resurrection.
Don’t read this lightly. This was an important crossroads in the history of the church. Had the apostles acquiesced to the Sanhedrin’s demand, church history would have been radically different. Everything hinged on their willingness to obey God at all costs.
Peter and John did not vacillate. Not only would they not obey the Sanhedrin, their obedience was to God. We too are witness to the risen, living Christ. We too must be obedient to our Lord rather than the world.
Again in Acts 5 the apostles were arrested because they wouldn’t shut up about the resurrected Christ. The ruling council said, “We gave you strict orders not to teach in this name, yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching…” (Acts 5:28).
Acts 5:29 Peter and the other apostles replied: "We must obey God rather than men!" Notice in 4:20 they said, “We cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.”
They were willing to live, and die, for their convictions. According to church tradition, all the Apostles except for John died violent deaths because of their unswerving faith and devotion to proclaiming the Gospel.
Many people throughout history have died for their convictions . . . but maybe the true test of our faith is what are we willing to live for. In our culture we exalt ourselves rather than God. We live under the mistaken belief that truth is relative, and that all religions lead to God.
The reason for our mission statement is that there are three convictions we must never waver from. These convictions direct our expressions of faith. These are what we believe! Our mission statement is the vervy purpose for our being.
This truth is so clearly stated in John 3:16 (NIV) 16For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
From beginning to end the Bible tells us about the greatest love story of all time. It’s about God’s love for you and me. God created us because he wanted to fellowship with us and to share Himself with us.
A young man said to his girlfriend, “I’m not rich like Johnny Green, but I sure do love you.” Then he said, “I don’t have a brand new Lexus like Johnny Green, but I sure do love you.” He paused, then said, “I don’t have a brand new 5000 sq. ft house like Johnny Green, but I sure do love you.” His girlfriend replied, “I love you too, but tell me more about this Johnny Green.”
God’s love never changes. His love for us doesn’t depend on how we treat him. God’s love is constant. He is never fickle. One of the great verses of the Bible that so clearly states this is Romans 5:8.
Romans 5:8 8But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
God’s love doesn’t change even when we ignore Him, or abuse Him, or take His name in vain. His love didn’t change for us even when we crucified Jesus Christ. Even though we sin terribly against Him, He still loves us. The sacrifice of Jesus Christ proves God’s love. Because of His divine love, God gave Himself as our sacrifice. When you doubt His love, remember the cross.
The second uncompromising conviction is that there is only one Savior, Jesus Christ. There is only one way of salvation, belief in Jesus Christ. There can be no room for uncertainty. Yet this may be the greatest place of compromise.
More and more people think there are many ways of salvation—many ways to God. As long as someone is sincere in what they believe, a good God will reward them with salvation.
But the Bible says, Acts 4:12 12Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved.”
If there were other ways of salvation, then Jesus would not have had to die that terrible death on the cross. The sins of the world would not have been put on His shoulders. His life and death would have been unnecessary. So what is it that you must believe about Jesus Christ?
You must believe that His birth was miraculous, that He was born of the virgin Mary, and that God through the Spirit was the Father. You must believe that He lived a perfect life, a life without sin.
You must believe that He somehow paid the penalty we deserve for our sins when He was crucified. You don’t have to understand it, just believe.
You must believe that Jesus was resurrected three days later. You must believe that the resurrected Jesus appeared to many witness and then ascended back into heaven. And that the living Savior wants to be your Savior.
Belief in Jesus Christ is trusting Him with your life. It is believing that you will spend eternity in heaven. It’s giving yourself to Him to be used in His service. It understands that He has a plan and purpose for your life.
If it took intelligence to be saved, some of us would miss out. If it took money to be saved, most of us wouldn’t make it. If it took goodness to be saved, none of us would qualify because none of us are good enough.
But not any of those things is what it takes to be saved. The only way to be saved is to believe in Jesus Christ. Jesus himself said, John 14:6 6“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
God doesn’t exclude anyone in His invitation. His salvation is available to every person who personally and willingly believes. Remember John 3:16, “ that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.”
The third non-compromising truth is that the Bible is God’s word. It is in the Bible that we learn of God love for us and Christ’s sacrifice.
When Peter and John were preaching, they were using the Old Testament. The New Testament wasn’t written yet. They preached from the Psalms, Daniel, Joel, and Jeremiah when they got into trouble with the religious leaders.
From the Scriptures they were proving that God’s prophecies were being fulfilled. When Stephen was stoned to death in Acts 7, he used the Old Testament Scriptures to show that God had worked throughout history for our salvation. The Bible claims to be God’s Word, and it has proven to be true.
I wasn’t ever exposed to controversial teachings concerning creation and the validity of the Bible until I went to college. Was I ever shocked!
Today, everywhere you turn—schools, in the media, even in the government—there are people who are contradicting whatever we teach our children about the Bible.
There are people who take great pleasure in telling us the Bible is scientifically inaccurate, or historically muddled, or full of errors, or that it is full of myths and legends.
These have been so successful and so permeated society with their teachings, that even in the Christian community there is uncertainty and anxiety.
Don’t be afraid to trust what you read in the Bible. 2 Timothy 3:16 - 17 16All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
There isn’t anything in this book contrary to true science. The story of creation tells us God created everything. Science has not been able to prove differently, and it never will.
Not only does the Bible tell us that God created everything, but that He ordered everything . . . He put everything into place and motion. He gave reason and purpose to all that is. He sustains everything. Science has never come up with a better explanation.
Certainly there are theories about our beginnings, theories that constantly change from generation to generation. But the Bible is unchanging. Let it be your anchor in a world full of confused and changing ideas.
It is sad that even Baptists become confused with the world’s teachings. Polls say that 95% of Baptists believe the Bible is the word of God. But only 34% say they read it every day, only 9% read it once a week, and 1% read it once a month.
And 45% of those who call themselves Baptists said they had not attended a Sunday School or Bible study in the previous six months. It’s no wonder we become confused.
Let God’s Word speak to you. It is his love story to us. It is an adventure story, full of romance and intrigue. In the Bible you can read about betrayal and sex, about friendships and marriages, spies and intrigue, wars and battles and great adventures, good and bad people, and beautiful love stories.
In the Bible you read about people just like us, with emotions, feelings, and doubts in their lives. As we read the Bible stories we begin to understand God’s divine plan for our lives. Since He created everything and knows everything, I would think people would like to know that plan.
The Bible reassures us when we are full of doubts, and it lifts us up when we are down. It encourages us when we are lonely and afraid. The Bible speaks to us in every area of our life. The Bible is the anchor of our faith.
1 Peter 1:24 - 25 24For, “All men are like grass, and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the flowers fall, 25but the word of the Lord stands forever.” (Peter quoting from Isa. 40:6-8)
Hang on to these convictions. Be unshakable, they will see you through this life and into eternity. These were the convictions of the early church. Because of these convictions, a small group of people changed forever the world, and we continue with their work and are why we are here today.