A Sincere Faith

Bill Petite                                                                                                                         March 4 2017

Where is the line which tells us we, as Christians, have crossed over and back into the world. Well, that can be a tricky question for many of us but the simple answer is this: If we have to be concerned about where that line is, we are already in danger of crossing it. Another way of answering this is to simply stay in the word of God, allow it to play out in our lives and pray. Prayer is the key to our Christian lives at any time, any place or any situation. If we have to constantly be concerned about our status as a follower of Jesus, then maybe we are sliding backward and headed toward that line. If our eyes are on the Lord and we are seeking Him each day, these concerns will never be present.

I say all that to bring up this point. There is definitely blurred lines within the Church these days. Many, who claim to be followers of Jesus, have compromised their faith and either don't realize it or don't really care. In many of the local churches in this country, the gospel has been so watered down and weakened, many wouldn't recognize the truth of the gospel if they heard it.

In the past twenty-five years (and many before that) the truth of the gospel has been under a serious frontal attack. What I mean by this is there have been so many feel good sermons and messages taught in so many local churches that people have come to the point where they think that message is the truth. There have been various church planting programs introduced which is basically centered around how many people can be seated for an individual service. In other words, it is all about numbers (and the money) and not necessarily reaching lost souls. The bottom line on all of this is the fact that the gospel message, when even attempted to be presented, has been reduced to something which is not an offense to anyone. There are pastors in pulpits who won't even mention the word blood because it is considered to be offensive to some. I can just hear it now, "Oh, please don't use that word, blood, it is just so gory and offensive." But, that same evening they might be watching people shoot and blow each other up on some crazy TV show.

Now, what I writing might be offensive to some but I'm not making this stuff up. You can go to any number of local churches in any area and hear a variety of feel good sermons, bloodless gospel presentations (although I'm not sure how that would be done) or any other distortion of the truth.

I believe, and it is just my opinion, this is what has led to the large number of self proclaimed Christians to flock out to see the latest attempt by Hollywood to present their version of God. The book turned movie, The Shack, is a mockery of the triune God. Here's what Paul said as he warned the church in Galatia about this kind of stuff.

Do not be deceived, God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, that he will also reap.  Gal. 6:7  NKJV

I marvel that you are turning away so soon from Him who called you in the grace of Christ, to a different gospel,  which is not another; but there are some who trouble you and want to pervert the gospel of Christ. Gal. 1:6-7  NKJV

Paul, in these verses was referring to the Galatians being so easily deceived into believing they need to be circumcised to be saved. But, it can apply to any type of lie concerning the way to salvation and the truth about Jesus. These are the verses that popped into my mind as I read the many articles concerning "The Shack." I was very outspoken about the book back in 2007 and now it has been produced as a movie which many, claiming to be Christian and followers of Christ, are flocking to see. This is between them and God. It is not for me to judge those who don't see the flaws in this representation of the triune God. But, it does give us an indication of the state of the Church....at least in this country. I don't think we, as sincere, dedicated followers of Christ, can turn a blind eye to this and many other situations occurring inside the Church body in our current time. God has called us to a sincere faith and I believe that includes no wavering, no straddling the line between Jesus and the world and no compromise in general. We are not to beat these people up over their decision to see this misrepresentation of God. But, if the discussion arises, we need to be ready to point out the reasons why this is a misrepresentation of God or the triune God. We need not swing a heavy sledge hammer at them but gently explain the truth. Hollywood is great at distorting the truth of the Bible and who Jesus really is. We need to be students of the word and pray that the Lord would give us discernment in all things. Then we can be equipped to serve God when the world distorts the truth. We need to have a sincere faith in serving God. We need to allow Him to equip us and prepare us for the battles we will face. After all, I never heard of anyone going to battle without ammo for their weapons.