Four Mysteries of the Christian Faith

Four Mysteries of the Christian Faith (Part 1)

Four pillars of the faith that are fundamental to the Christian religion.

EDWIN W. REINER, M.D., San Diego, California

The bible contains four amazing mysteries that are fundamental to the Christian religion. These basic subjects extend through the Scriptures. A recognition of these pillars of the Christian faith will reveal to the student a knowledge of the grand central themes of the Bible. He will be able to view the Word as a whole and to see the relation of its parts.

The Christian religion is composed of a combination of mysticism and dogma. It is the mysteries of our religion that inspire reverence and keep people true to their faith. Mysticism, because it is a mystery, must be accepted by faith. Finite human beings cannot fully understand these sub­jects, but if they are accepted they will sup­port the doctrines in such a way that they will not be a burden.

These four mysteries, because they are fundamental, serve to make the Bible story more connected and reasonable. Such pri­mary pillars of truth can be compared with the warp of a piece of cloth, which runs lengthwise throughout the bolt. It is the warp that gives strength to material. The basic colors are found in the warp. Durabil­ity is a characteristic of the warp. Con­trasted with the warp is the woof, or cross­wise threads, which the weaver uses to give luster, brilliance, and support to the fin­ished product. The latter are the doctrines of religion.

The Master Weaver has used important, though secondary subjects, to lend support to the four central themes of the Scriptures. However, putting first things first, it is vital for the seeker of truth to recog­nize primary Bible subjects, and then the important supporting doctrines. There is a danger in stressing secondary and lesser doctrines first, for basic truth might then be overlooked.

God.—Very early in the Scriptures the first basic subject is introduced. It is found in Genesis 1:1: "In the beginning God." Readily it is seen that God is a fundamen­tal subject extending from the beginning to the end of the Bible. As finite beings we cannot fully comprehend the greatness and glory of God. Profound mysteries surround this subject, which we are obliged to accept by faith. No Christian will doubt the ex­istence of God, for the heavens declare His glory. Only the fool has said, "There is no God." The Holy Scriptures proclaim that God has existed from eternity, and will exist into eternity. He is the Supporter of the universe and of all the life therein. It is further proposed that the Godhead con­sists of three distinct Beings, one in pur­pose. Deity comprises no secondary beings. All are original, self-existent, uncreated, underived. Of this Triad, Christ was the Son of God in purpose from the "founda­tion of the world." He came to earth, in fact, as the sinless, spotless Son of God, tak­ing up the work of the first Adam where he began (not where he failed).

He is called the second Adam, for He took the first Adam's place. Nearly two-thousand years ago a voice of mysterious im­port was heard in heaven from the throne of God, saying, "Lo, I come." "Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me. . . . Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, 0 God" (Heb. 10:5-7). "In these words is announced the fulfillment of the purpose that had been hidden from eternal ages. Christ [the Second Person of the Godhead] was about to visit our world, and to become incarnate. He says, 'A body hast Thou prepared Me.' Had He ap­peared with the glory that was His with the Father before the world was, we could not have endured the light of His presence. That we might behold it and not be de­stroyed, the manifestation of His glory was shrouded. His divinity was veiled with hu­manity,—the invisible glory in the visible human form."—The Desire of Ages, p. 23.

In correctly interpreting the Bible story, it is important to see that Christ was the only human being equal to the Law. He lived a perfect, sinless life as our substitute and surety, and so could be the Saviour of mankind.

Creation.—The second great mystery is also introduced in Genesis 1:1: "In the be­ginning God created the heaven and the earth." This simple statement lays the very foundation for the Bible story, for here is where the Bible begins. Creation is indeed a mystery, as are God and the other basic principles of the Christian faith. Who can fully comprehend the mystery of Creation: Man cannot create in the manner depicted in the Scriptures. Neither can he under­stand the God of Creation. So we tend to limit God because we do not see how He could possibly have done it. This is the rea­son man has doubted this fundamental Christian belief, and substituted as truth a doctrine of men.

Creation has been under fire for centu­ries, yet it is the only logical explanation for the world and its contents that has borne the test of time. If doubted, every belief in God and the Bible would be done away with. Should God not be the Creator of the universe, He is not God. Disbelief in one part of the Scriptures tends to cause disbelief in another. Soon one does not know what to believe, and confidence is lost in God's Holy Word.

The inspired writers of the Scriptures were agreed upon Creation. In Genesis the record states, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness." This theme was followed by Luke as he recorded the gen­ealogy of Christ in unmistakable terms (Luke 3:23-38). "The son of Mathusala, . . . the son of Enoch, . . . the son of Seth,. .. the son of Adam, which was the son of God." This passage leaves no room for speculation as to what he felt about the ori­gin of mankind. If Adam was the earthly father of Christ, it is also logical to believe that he was the father of the human race. Reference to the creation of man as re­corded in Genesis forms part of a quota­tion by Christ found in Mark 10:6: "From the beginning of the creation God made them male and female." Paul. who more than any other one man has had a tre­mendous impact upon the thinking and philosophy of the early Christian church, also brings out the fact that the human race originated with one man, namely Adam (Rom. 1:20, 25; 5:12, 19; 1 Cor. 15: 45). Additional evidence among apostolic writers is found in James 3:9 and Jude 14. Approximately twenty of the fifty Biblical references to Creation appear in the New Testament. We must conclude that these writers were in harmony with Luke. Not one of them maintained that humanity arose from a long line of germs, mollusks, and quadrupeds!



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EDWIN W. REINER, M.D., San Diego, California

February 1965

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