Reformation celebration
My Church celebrated Reformation Sunday with this bulletin cover......... The cross of Christ was where Jesus paid the sin debt for all that are redeemed by this amazing grace.
There is but one way to salvation and eternal life: By Grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone by way of the cross alone. This is a grace that saves with power by regenerating and bringing to life people who are spiritually dead, and it is a grace that sanctifies and empowers born again believers to desire and willingly follow Jesus Christ. It is a grace that convicts redeemed sinners of their sin and brings about a godly repentance. It is a grace that will inspire and produce good works and discipleship in Christians by the indwelling Spirit of God. It is a grace that produces love and the other fruits of the Spirit. It is a grace that does not fail because the Power of God does not fail. Jesus came full of grace and truth. He did not just come with a little grace, a little truth and a little promise that may or may not change sinners. No, He came full of grace and truth. But most of all He came with POWER to save, change, and sanctify sinners to be conformed to himself and be disciples of Christ! In His own words He said, "Mt. 28:19-20 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, (20) teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Brethren we are living in an age where these truths are being denied by many who claim to be Christians. Some deny faith in the atonement of Jesus Christ for the sins of believers and we are being attacked for our stand and belief in Christ and him crucified. Others of the so-called Free Grace theology routinely attack us for doing exactly what Jesus commanded us to do in the above passage. They claim we are adding works to justification when we teach and proclaim that people should observe all that Jesus commanded. All that Jesus commanded most certainly involves good works. Yet if we even mention good works or committing our lives to Christian service, they claim the gospel is under siege. How dare we mention repentance in a gospel presentation as they claim repentance is a work and not necessary for salvation.
Fellow believers, we must not be intimidated by these attacks and our charge is to encourage sound doctrine and refute those who oppose it. We may err from time to time and be over zealous, but to err by tolerating the error of those who have orthodox Christianity in their cross hairs is unacceptable. We simply must stand for sound doctrine!
7 comments:
"We may err from time to time and be over zealous..."
Hmmm.
I don't think one can be over zealous when dealing with those who have been corrected time and again and still spew lies. My wife saw nothing wrong with how I dealt with those people, all things considered.
My thoughts.
Great post, though.
Mark,
"We may err from time to time and be over zealous"
I was referring in general to anyone who may hold back out of a fear of being too outspoken. It was meant to be an encouragment for us not to worry about offending false teachers. Therefore, the rest of the sentence says, "but to err by tolerating the error of those who have orthodox Christianity in their cross hairs is unacceptable."
I believe orthodox Christian Churches have allowed false teachers to go unchallenged and unconfronted for too long. For example, While it is beginning to change, many in my church and denomination are unaware of how the doctrine and beliefs they hold dear are under attack by false teachers.
The internet will be a major source of doctrinal information and creditability in the years to come, and I feel it is our duty to engage in the battle for the grace and truth that came through Jesus Christ.
Wayne
Now I see your point. Sorry for the misunderstanding. Sorry too that I missed your phone call. Perhaps, depending on my work schedule, we can talk Saturday at 11:00 PM, eastern. We in the eastern zone will fall back one hour this Saturday (err, I mean Sunday, at 2:00 AM).
Mark
Trust you are aware of our son and daughter-in-love's salvation :o) We are re-joyce-ing greatly!!!!
Susan
Mark,
Thanks. I would love to chat. Is your e-mail working?
Susan,
Thanks for stopping by. I will rejoice with you. May God continue to bless your family.
wayne
What would one say to an unbeliever, after sharing the Gospel, if he says I am living in sinful relationships of immoral sexual behavior?
How about: "You need to repent. You need to stop doing what you're doing, and cry out to God for mercy. You need to trsut Christ, and find a church that preaches and teaches the Bible."
That's what i tell people. And I like to give them my phone number, and tell them to call me if they need anything.
Basically we need to simply tell others about Christ, and to repent of their sinful ways, even if they are a Mormon, and are living a moral life, they need to turn from the false jesus, and false idol.
Thanks Wayne for such a good post. We do need to encourage one another in the Word.
Your last paragraph is a must-read. Thanks.
When doctrine is neglected things come apart. And it is easier to keep things together than to re-assemble broken pieces.
Great post.
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