Mission Statement
"Go…and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age."
Why did I choose Matthew 29:19-20 for a mission statement? The reason is simple. There are many Web sites that reach out to people in the UPC and other Oneness organizations, but most of those Web sites specialize in bringing people out of the UPC. I think that bringing people out of the UPC is a very noble objective (because the longer that I stay out of the UPC the more that I see how damaging it is to people mentally, emotionally, and spiritually), but I want to do more than provide resources that tell people what is wrong with the UPC. I want to help people find out what to do once they’ve left!
This does not mean that I am promoting any denomination or organization (far from it!). What I desire to do is to help people understand what it means to be a Christian. Yes, I want to help people undo what the UPC did to them, but I also want to help rebuild people into the Christians that God wants them to be.
With that in mind, let’s break down Matthew 28:19-20, and you will see why I chose it for a mission statement.
Go
The beauty of the Internet is that it can go almost anywhere.
Make disciples of all nations
I will write more on discipleship and on what it means to be a Christian in the future. For now I am going to give the definition of a disciple from Easton’s Bible Dictionary, since his definition is the best I have ever read: A disciple of Christ is one who 1) believes His doctrine, 2) rests on His sacrifice, 3) imbibes [soaks up, drinks] His Spirit, and 4) imitates His example1.
Baptizing them in the Name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit
I have several articles planned on baptism. For now suffice it to say that I do not care if a person is baptized in the Name of Jesus or in the Name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. We have limited knowledge on how the early Church baptized, but presuming they baptized the same way that we do today (which is a historical stretch at best) then they apparently baptized people in the Name of Jesus. However, I doubt that Jesus is going to send people to hell for obeying Him when He commanded people to be baptized in the Name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. The UPC and other Oneness organizations have turned a non-issue into a heaven-or-hell issue. Again, I plan to write more on baptism in the future. For now I recommend reading these five articles in my "Frequently Misinterpreted Scriptures" section of this Web site:
Teaching them to observe all that I commanded you
Discipleship involves more than head knowledge. It involves heart knowledge as well. The UPC and other holiness organizations try to force holiness in from the outside. That just doesn’t work. One of the missions of WhyILeft.org is to help people learn the commands of Jesus and internalize them so that holiness flows out from the inside. (Also see my article "What does the Bible say about holiness?")
And lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age
The UPC (and all Pentecostal and charismatic groups) put people on an emotional and spiritual roller coaster ride. They have taught people to have faith in an experience instead of having faith in Christ. When Pentecostals have a "feeling" then everything’s OK. But when the feeling is gone then they often feel that they are not good enough for Christ. Pentecostalism (especially holiness Pentecostalism) is a constant struggle to "do more." People are never good enough for God when they are in Pentecost. One of the goals of this site is to help people understand that they really are never good enough for God–at least, not on their own. But in Christ they are always good enough for God. This does not mean that people can go out and do whatever they want and still be saved, of course! What it means is that their right-standing with God is based on the work of Christ, not on an emotional experience or a feeling.
References:
- Easton’s Bible Dictionary, "Disciple" [↩]