When Jesus called the first disciples to follow him, he called them away from their work as fishermen. He said, “Come, follow me, and I will send you out to fish for people.” Mathew 4:19. He never promised an easy life of health, wealth and happiness but rather, quite the opposite. “You will be hated by everyone because of me, but the one who stands firm to the end will be saved.” Mathew 10:22
Jesus calls the Church to action. Not just a one day a week worship service followed by six days of secular living with no yield of fruit. There are many people who identify as Christians who will be greatly disappointed one day for their lukewarm faith and doublemindedness, having fallen for the deception that grace is free, therefore its value is cheap and doesn’t require us to alter the way we live in response to the gift of salvation.
I am not speaking of salvation by works so don’t get me wrong here. I am simply saying that unless believers have taken up their cross daily in pursuit of Christ, there is a good chance they will not have developed the kind of strength and endurance in their faith to remain faithful to the end. They will not have ensured there is enough oil in their lamps in case the bridegroom is slow in coming.
James warns that “Faith without deeds is dead.” James 2:26. What he means is that unless your faith compels you to action, it has no power. It will fizzle out and not last. The scripture of James 2:14-26, explains the difference between words and action, Even demons believe in God, and tremble, but Christians are called to a higher standard. We are called to service. To be ambassadors for Christ in a foreign land (no longer citizens of this world but citizens of heaven), sojourning here temporarily.
Yet how many church goers continue to live a life contrary to obedience to God? Even church leaders and pastors are guilty of carnality and reveling in sin. Many churches have compromised the gospel of Christ to sound more inclusive and tolerant of LGBTQ or alternative lifestyles and preach that love is love and God is love. They cherry pick scripture to promote verses that speak of love and forgiveness and avoid passages that preach repentance.
They miss the target that God loves the sinner but hates the sin. There is no room for sin next to God’s holiness. None whatsoever! They conveniently forget the words of Jesus, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord, ’will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” Mathew 7:21.
The apostle John wrote, “No one who lives in him keeps on sinning. No one who continues to sin has either seen him or known him.” 1 John 3:6. If you don’t have the resolve to overcome sin perhaps you truly don’t have faith in Christ. No one can have a genuine encounter with the risen Jesus and remain unchanged. He will rock you to the core. He will convict you to your innermost being. He will not only knock on your door, he will enter your house and dine with you and have an intense fellowship with you that will forever change you. That is what being born again means. That is a profound and earth shattering revelation that you have been in the presence of the name above all names!
If you haven’t met the risen Lord yet, keep pursuing him. Chase him with everything you’ve got, holding nothing back, as he held nothing back when he laid his life down for you. Don’t settle for half way. Can someone be only partially saved? No. They are either fully saved or they aren’t saved at all. Don’t buy into the garbage gospel that says you don’t need to go all the way. That if you go half way God will come the other half. That repentance is only a change of mindset. Nothing can be further from the truth. A half hearted response to the sacrifice on the cross is of no value.
Progressive Christianity doesn’t seem to comprehend the sovereignty of God. If God didn’t spare Sodom and Gomorrah, he will surely not spare the progressive church. Rather than endeavoring to imitate Christ, they aspire to make Christ more human or more secular. The tail doesn’t wag the dog. The created being is in no position to make demands of the Creator. Jesus said, “Whoever is not with me is against me and whoever does not gather with me scatters.” Mathew 12:30.
When your hour of testing arrives will you stand for Jesus and be willing to die for him? When the man of lawlessness says, “worship me and receive my mark or die,” will you choose death? You may say, “Well, we’re not there yet.” But I am telling you that for many, that hour has already arrived. Many Christians in China, Africa, Pakistan, Iran and around the globe have already come to their hour of testing and were killed for their faith in Christ. Don’t say it can’t happen here or we’re not there yet. None of us are guaranteed tomorrow so I want to convey a sense of urgency when I say that we must repent because the kingdom of God is at hand.
John the Baptist preached repentance. Jesus preached repentance (Mathew 4:17). The gospel is a gospel of repentance. It is a call to action. When Jesus spoke to his disciples, “He called a little child to him, and placed the child among them. And he said: ‘Truly I tell you, unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever takes the lowly position of this child is greatest in the kingdom of heaven.’” Mathew 18:2-4. Jesus was saying, humble yourself and repent before you can enter heaven. Leave your ego. Leave your worldly values. Leave your carnal mind and change the way you think and live.
All worldly things are temporal and all worldly values fall far short of holy values. Set your mind on the things of heaven and turn your back on the things of this world. “Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal. But store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moths and vermin do not destroy and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” Mathew 6:19-21.
Repent and be saved!
