One may ask, how can the Gospel of Jesus Christ be improved upon? The answer: it can't! The Bible is perfect, it is the inspired Word of God written for mankind to show that the only way to God is through Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son of God.
I am just an old fashioned gal; more precisely, I am a traditional, orthodox Christian who still believes that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is just as powerful to save as it ever was without adding any new and relevant interpretations. No tweeks or paraphrased versions of the "Gospel" are needed. The true Gospel is impervious to the age that we now live in and remains unchanged because there is nothing new under the sun. People are still born sinners the last I checked. We still try to get our own way and will justify it. By golly, we will not bat an eyelash at the opportunity to pervert and change the Gospel to fit our current day lives.
One example that comes to mind is the mega-church, Hillsong, in Australia and the one also in America in New York. Regarding a new film coming out about their church, a worship leader of the band says, "My hope is that the film gives people a "new perspective" of what it actually looks like to believe in who Jesus is, and what it means to live a life that reflects His acceptance and love." What exactly is this new perspective? It is none other than the watered down message of so many churches now-a-days. These seeker-friendly churches emphasize the love of Jesus without any qualifications on how the love of Jesus is shown and appropriated. Theirs is a gospel devoid of power and conviction. Did Jesus come JUST to show love? Didn't He also come to show us who we are...a people lost and driven from the love of Jesus? And then how does the love of Jesus transform us? Does the love of Jesus convict us of our sin and drive us to our knees? Of course it does, but this message is no longer relevant. In addition to Hillsong's "new perspective", it was recently noted that Pastor Brian Houston removed from their college student handbook the word "homosexuality" as being one of those sinful practices to abstain from. They are now realizing that everyone is on a "journey" and that conversation is a must regarding this topic. Oh, the rubbish! It's their way of saying homosexuality is now on the list of acceptable behaviors for a regenerated Christian! Gay Christian. That is an oxymoron. And for the record, any church that has the name, Journey, well...stay away from it! Just my thought.
And just an FYI - any church that preaches a distorted gospel, e.g., one that eliminates the truth about sin, justification and holiness, it can be said that without a doubt, underneath the seductive layer of feel-good or legalistic teaching lurks the unmistakable reality of sexual sin in one form or another being practiced by both the leaders/pastors and/or their congregations -- freely and without rebuke.
Now, I am not saying that sexual sin, or ANY sin, for that matter, is not being committed in any normal, healthy church, however, it should not be condoned, rather it should be shown for what it is and the members of these churches must know that sin leads to death and that it must be dealt with. A healthy church will reveal it's members to be on the road to sanctification, moving away from sin, not toward it.
We are living in fantastic times. Fantastic in that what we see taking place in this day and age as far as Christianity goes is nothing short of truth-twisting! Did we ever think that sexual sin would be acceptable in our churches? Did we ever think that it would be acceptable to coddle the sinner in our churches? I sure didn't think it would happen in my lifetime. But it is here and it is gaining momentum. We as the true church of Jesus Christ must stand firm in our convictions that are rooted in biblical orthodoxy. We are living in the end times, people. It is a fact. We must especially be on guard, for our enemy goes about like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. Devour means to consume recklessly, wantonly or destructively; to engulf or swallow up, etc.
Here is what makes Christianity so beautiful -- Jesus never, ever condoned sin; as we know, He told those to whom He ministered to go and sin no more. His message of love can be summed up this way...1) We are sinners on a direct route to hell. 2) He came to give His life as a ransom for our sin. 3) We accept His unfathomable gift of forgiveness and repent of our sin and place our trust in Christ as Savior. 4) Indescribably, He credits us with His righteousness. Simply put, He gives us His righteousness as a robe to cover our unrighteousness. It doesn't just cover, it takes it away completely! I do not recommend RC Sproul, but he worded this truthfully, "we are just (righteous) without being just (righteous)." At the moment we receive Christ, at the moment of conversion, we are wrapped in the love of God, wrapped in robes of righteousness, cleansed by the blood of the Lamb. In His sight we are now holy and just, and then begins the process of sanctification. The price was paid in full by the death and sacrifice of the spotless Son of God. This is reason to rejoice!!
In the words of Matthew Henry, "Grace despised is grace forfeited." And, "Those that persist in sin make war against God." Which side are you on? Are you on the side of the obstinate or the side of the humbled?
Today is the day of salvation. Today Jesus is saying to you, "Go and sin no more".
I am just an old fashioned gal; more precisely, I am a traditional, orthodox Christian who still believes that the Gospel of Jesus Christ is just as powerful to save as it ever was without adding any new and relevant interpretations. No tweeks or paraphrased versions of the "Gospel" are needed. The true Gospel is impervious to the age that we now live in and remains unchanged because there is nothing new under the sun. People are still born sinners the last I checked. We still try to get our own way and will justify it. By golly, we will not bat an eyelash at the opportunity to pervert and change the Gospel to fit our current day lives.
One example that comes to mind is the mega-church, Hillsong, in Australia and the one also in America in New York. Regarding a new film coming out about their church, a worship leader of the band says, "My hope is that the film gives people a "new perspective" of what it actually looks like to believe in who Jesus is, and what it means to live a life that reflects His acceptance and love." What exactly is this new perspective? It is none other than the watered down message of so many churches now-a-days. These seeker-friendly churches emphasize the love of Jesus without any qualifications on how the love of Jesus is shown and appropriated. Theirs is a gospel devoid of power and conviction. Did Jesus come JUST to show love? Didn't He also come to show us who we are...a people lost and driven from the love of Jesus? And then how does the love of Jesus transform us? Does the love of Jesus convict us of our sin and drive us to our knees? Of course it does, but this message is no longer relevant. In addition to Hillsong's "new perspective", it was recently noted that Pastor Brian Houston removed from their college student handbook the word "homosexuality" as being one of those sinful practices to abstain from. They are now realizing that everyone is on a "journey" and that conversation is a must regarding this topic. Oh, the rubbish! It's their way of saying homosexuality is now on the list of acceptable behaviors for a regenerated Christian! Gay Christian. That is an oxymoron. And for the record, any church that has the name, Journey, well...stay away from it! Just my thought.
And just an FYI - any church that preaches a distorted gospel, e.g., one that eliminates the truth about sin, justification and holiness, it can be said that without a doubt, underneath the seductive layer of feel-good or legalistic teaching lurks the unmistakable reality of sexual sin in one form or another being practiced by both the leaders/pastors and/or their congregations -- freely and without rebuke.
Now, I am not saying that sexual sin, or ANY sin, for that matter, is not being committed in any normal, healthy church, however, it should not be condoned, rather it should be shown for what it is and the members of these churches must know that sin leads to death and that it must be dealt with. A healthy church will reveal it's members to be on the road to sanctification, moving away from sin, not toward it.
We are living in fantastic times. Fantastic in that what we see taking place in this day and age as far as Christianity goes is nothing short of truth-twisting! Did we ever think that sexual sin would be acceptable in our churches? Did we ever think that it would be acceptable to coddle the sinner in our churches? I sure didn't think it would happen in my lifetime. But it is here and it is gaining momentum. We as the true church of Jesus Christ must stand firm in our convictions that are rooted in biblical orthodoxy. We are living in the end times, people. It is a fact. We must especially be on guard, for our enemy goes about like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. Devour means to consume recklessly, wantonly or destructively; to engulf or swallow up, etc.
Here is what makes Christianity so beautiful -- Jesus never, ever condoned sin; as we know, He told those to whom He ministered to go and sin no more. His message of love can be summed up this way...1) We are sinners on a direct route to hell. 2) He came to give His life as a ransom for our sin. 3) We accept His unfathomable gift of forgiveness and repent of our sin and place our trust in Christ as Savior. 4) Indescribably, He credits us with His righteousness. Simply put, He gives us His righteousness as a robe to cover our unrighteousness. It doesn't just cover, it takes it away completely! I do not recommend RC Sproul, but he worded this truthfully, "we are just (righteous) without being just (righteous)." At the moment we receive Christ, at the moment of conversion, we are wrapped in the love of God, wrapped in robes of righteousness, cleansed by the blood of the Lamb. In His sight we are now holy and just, and then begins the process of sanctification. The price was paid in full by the death and sacrifice of the spotless Son of God. This is reason to rejoice!!
In the words of Matthew Henry, "Grace despised is grace forfeited." And, "Those that persist in sin make war against God." Which side are you on? Are you on the side of the obstinate or the side of the humbled?
Today is the day of salvation. Today Jesus is saying to you, "Go and sin no more".
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