Learning and Living

This is a re-post of something that I wrote earlier this year. As I move closer to teaching a class on the basic doctrines of the Bible my heart is being stirred greatly by the LORD. As you can see by my article below, one can't teach doctrine in the midst of the calamity it must be learned beforehand. Oh that we in the church would get back to the cry of the Reformation which said "We will only believe and do what the Bible says."

Nancy and I have been privileged to invest the last 10 years in full time ministry. It has given me an opportunity to interview, talk to at length and train a number of people within the church. I am very concerned with a lack of understanding of the gospel. Several months ago I received a call from someone who has been in the church 30 plus years and they told me they were close to recanting their faith. This person went on to express their deep disappointment and frustration with God. The dialog went something like this "all that I have done for God and this is now what I get from God." This particular person has been through some significant suffering both emotionally and physically. What have we been preaching for the last 30 years in America? And what are people in the pews hearing from the pulpit and in Sunday School class when others teach the Bible? Well I can tell you what I think from these last few years as a pastor. They are being taught and buying into a "Burger King" theology. You can have the Christian life and the Lord Jesus your way! All you need to do is pray this prayer, or sign this card, walk the aisle, join the church or get baptized. In essence just write the date down in your Bible and if you ever question as to whether or not you are saved go back to the date and claim it.

Brothers and sisters in Christ what are we doing and what are we thinking! How about some teaching about the sovereignty of God who declares from Old to New Testament "I am God and there is no one like Me." How about your sin, that has offended this holy and just God and His wrath is on you and one day will be poured out in full measure against you. All this namby pamby, milk toast, get around the fire and sing kum-by-ya until someone has a spiritual thought makes me sick! How about the gospel which means in the Greek good news. But before a man can hear the good news he must recognize and take responsibility for the bad news. In our thoughts, words and actions we, yes we have sinned against a holy God who is also a just God. I mean what would we think if a judge in Charlotte, NC had a man in his courtroom who had raped an 8 year old girl and the judge let the man go free. We would yell at the loudest possible level and declare that judge was not fit to serve in that capacity and must be removed immediately. Well move the analogy to God who is just in all things. How can God possibly deal with our sinful, hateful and rebellious behavior that we have displayed toward Him? Surely if He is just, we deserve to be punished - right? The answer is yes and if you think deeply on this issue than your heart will confirm that the answer to that question is yes. But do you know that God in His great mercy and grace has made a provision for us through His son Jesus Christ to take away our sin past, present and future through His shedding of blood and death on the cross. And not only does He pay the full penalty for our sin (the just punishment that we deserved) but He also imputes His righteousness to our account! The gospel is good news in that it means we get God!

The person I was talking to several months ago did not understand this at all. They thought that when they became a Christian it meant in essence a blessing bank in which flowed out of that was health, wealth and prosperity. Wake up folks, this is a marketing of the gospel in a way where people want the blessings but not the Blessor, and all the gifts but not the Giver. And what they find out when the hard times come or some persecution arise that their spiritual house has been build on sand and not rock. What are we teaching people about God, about themselves, about Christ and about faith? Unfortunately and I say this we a great burden in my heart the church today for the most part is not preaching and teaching these great truths from Scripture. If you could hear these conversations, and see where people really are in relationship to information as opposed to transformation, I believe it would break your heart. Oh, that we would get back to the cry of the Reformation "we will only believe and do what the Bible says."