|
Of Faith . . .
Of Judgement
by Michael Pelc
In the church today great
concern is expressed in regards to the application of faith,
judgment and condemnation, and love. I had received a letter, from
someone we will call A.M., that typifies these concerns, and will
share a part of this letter which is the impetus for this article.
Why? Because of the commonality of such thoughts, such beliefs, and
such understandings as portrayed in this letter. These beliefs are
so broad-based and pervasive within society, that they have now
crept in and are practiced ‘within’ the Christian church as well.
Dear Michael,
. .
. it shouldn’t matter as a Christian if you
agree with the choices others make for their life. [We] weren’t put
here to judge. If you know that your beliefs are right for you that
is wonderful. But I have never heard of a faith that says, ‘Condemn
those who don’t believe as I do.’ This is scary thinking.
From A.M.
The implied definitions in
A.M.’s letter mirror those held by a great majority of those that
are Christian, as well as the so-called-brethren, today. There are
also great disparities between A.M.’s implied definitions and the
scriptural applications of such definitions and beliefs.
A.M.’s implied definitions
to the terms of faith, judgment, and condemnation are not
unique . . . nor is the application that A.M. gives to these
definitions. This letter may be a sample of what you may have heard
from well meaning, but misinformed Christians. Similar statements
are also popular ‘slogans’ of the secular world; often directed
towards those that are practitioners of the Christian faith. How
important is our application of biblical faith, judgment and
condemnation, and love in our daily lives? Scripturally, it is
vital. The survivability of the church rests upon how we define and
then apply these biblical mandates.
It is pertinent to know
that A.M. is not outside of what most would call Christian today.
The writer of this letter has been active within the Lutheran church
for many years, coming from a Catholic background. Why do I share
this? As stated earlier, because of the commonality and strength of
convictions to such understandings that are held by so many within
what is understood as the Christian church.
Does this letter ring a
familiar chord? Do you find yourself in agreement or disagreement
with what is implied? Can you give a solid, biblically contextual
defense of your position? When we prayerfully study what the Word of
God gives us concerning these areas, we can better align ourselves
under the definitions that our Lord applies.
Religious Beliefs
Called ‘Faith’
I would like to address the
specific area of faith first, which is foundational in A.M.’s
letter, in a general way. I pray I do not do a disservice to the
wholeness of the faith of Christians with a brief treatise of it.
When discussing areas of
faith or religious beliefs, a foundation for discussion must be
established . . .
that foundation being
the basis for one’s beliefs or ‘faith’…is this basis upon the
teachings of man…upon the teachings of Scripture through His Word .
. . or
a combination of the two? If it be of man’s, then anything would be
acceptable as there would be no absolute foundation for specific
truth to base this faith upon . . . hence what is true for
me may not be true for you, and vice versa. If faith is based upon
both man’s understanding and Scripture, then again, truth would be
no more than an illusion by those attempting to define it because of
man’s involvement in the defining. Hence, even scriptural
understanding could and would be a distortion of what God had
actually stated or implied.
A second question that
would then arise if we are to hold to Scripture is, "Whose
interpretation of Scripture do we rely upon or use if man’s may be
invalid?" The answer is a simple one, let Scripture interpret
Scripture . . . let it speak for itself. Allow the promise of the Holy
Spirit to guide you in scriptural understanding (John 14:26).
To Hear
is to Understand
To hear the Holy Spirit, we
must come to the Lord with a pure and genuine heart . . . anything less
and He will not hear us; "for the LORD
searches all hearts, and understands every intent of the thoughts.
If you seek Him, He will let you find Him; but if you forsake Him,
He will reject you forever"
(I Chronicles 28:9).
Judah, in the book of
Jeremiah chapter eleven, would not ‘hear’ the words of the Lord and
serve Him only. The Lord states in verse eleven and fourteen, "though
they will cry to Me, yet I will not listen to them .
. . . Therefore, do not pray for this people, nor lift up a cry or
prayer for them; for I will not listen when they call to Me . . . ."
Many other verses state similar warnings.
We must understand what it
means to listen, to hear Him. It is not just having words enter our
ears, but is the hearing and responding to those words as He
requires . . . it is not responding as we may deem appropriate, but how He
mandates us to respond.
Those that are not true
believers in Christ, including many that call themselves Christian
(as I did for many years but was not), cannot understand Scripture
from a spiritual perspective. Many of the revealed truths of the
Scriptures will be hidden from those that do not come to Christ as
He mandates. He states this numerous times in the Gospels and
throughout His Word.
Those areas of Scripture
that may be difficult to understand for the genuine Christian, may
need to be set aside until we have a greater wisdom and
understanding regarding the Word of God. If our heart and mind are
seeking His truth, a greater maturation will result through our
faith and obedience.
With greater maturation, it
may then be possible to see and hear what is being stated without
interference by our own personal biases and prejudices . . . a
contextual interpretation vs. a pretextual interpretation . . . exegesis
vs. eisegesis.
If we do not come to the
Lord with a pure heart and godly motives, the Lord may very well be
silent in responding to our petitions for greater knowledge and
understanding. If our path through the Scriptures is built upon
selfish motives and unrighteousness, our biases and prejudices will
be our ‘contextual’ approach to the Bible. In lieu of proper
exegesis, eisegesis will be our platform.
To Love the World
is to Deny Christ
We must also understand
what God desires our relationship with the world to be. In the book
of Revelation, chapters two and three, Christ makes promises to each
of the seven churches written to . . . if they are "overcomers."
To understand who and what an overcomer is, is defined in the book
of 1 John.
Whoever believes that
Jesus is the Christ is born of God, and whoever loves the Father
loves the child born of Him. By this we know that we love the
children of God, when we love God and observe His commandments.
For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments; and
His commandments are not burdensome. For whatever is born of God
overcomes the world; and this is the victory that has
overcome the world
. . .
our
faith. Who is the one who overcomes the world, but he
who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?
(1 John 5:1-5).
(emphasis added)
The one that is an
overcomer will inherit all that our Christ has to offer (Revelation
21:1-7). Revelation 21:7 states, "He who overcomes will inherit
these things, and I will be his God and he will be My son." What
a tremendous promise this is from our Lord.
Why is it important to
overcome the world? Because the world is in conflict with the Divine
Nature of God. The world is in this conflict because of who the
prince, or ruler, of this world is.
Who is he, this prince,
this ruler of the world? He is none other than Satan himself (John
14:30). He is also the god of this world (2 Corinthians 4:4). We are
not to be conformed to the world (Romans 12:2) because being so is
in opposition to our Lord, and in essence, is aligning ourselves
with the forces of darkness.
To love the world, to
desire what the world has to offer, will keep you separated from
God. To love the world is to deny God," . . . do you not
know that friendship with the world is hostility toward God?
Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself
an enemy of God"
(James 4:4).
If any of us took an honest look into our
lives, we should find significant evidence to where our allegiances
lie. If we examined the actions and heart of the church assembly we
participate in, it would be revealing. Let me pose a few questions
that may assist in an examination: Do Christians have a good
reputation for honesty? Are they a moral people? Are they ones that
exude trustworthiness? Have they rejected those things that God
hates, seeking only His guidance for the manner in which to live?
Are Christians known for godly love and a forgiving spirit? Do they
adhere to the commandments of God, not because they must, but to
please Him? Answering these types of questions honestly, will reveal much about who
and what we are. Who we truly love and desire to please gives
evidence to the nature of our allegiance . . . whether it be to the
world and self . . . or whether it be to God.
Many "profess to know God, but by their deeds
they deny Him, being detestable and disobedient and worthless for
any good deed" (Titus 1:16). If my deeds, if my heart . . . if your
deeds, if your heart . . . "deny Him, He also will deny us" (2
Timothy 2:12.
We are to be insulated from the world, but not
isolated . . . meaning, that which guides us, where our eyes are
focused, is none other than God and His Word (Deuteronomy 6:4-9).
This is the evidence of our faith, portrayed by our fruit which
is evidential of all that are His (Matthew 7:20).
This evidence, this fruit, is not as man
perceives it to be, but that which is clearly outlined in Scripture
to those that possess a true and seeking heart to understand as
described earlier. It is a sign worn upon our very being that
distinguishes the genuine love we have for our God.
We must know and believe that even good external
actions, sincerity or religious behavior have no value in seeking
and knowing God if our hearts are not coming to Him as He requires,
casting self, our desires and our motives to the side.
A disturbing fact is that many do not want to
acknowledge that there are many sincere and religious people in the
world today that are condemned to the judgment of the wicked. These
men and women sincerely believe that they have this relationship
with God that He desires.
As one individual had shared during a teaching I
was giving on discernment and the deceptions of false prophets and
teachers, "I know what I believe. If there is anything I disagree
with, I just ignore it or turn and walk away. I can tell what is
right and what isn’t." How are we to know that the belief we
possess, as this person holds to, is actually truth? How are we to
know "what is right and what isn’t"? Being sincere is not enough as
we may be sincerely wrong . . . and will suffer the consequences.
Christ is very clear when he warns us that, "Not
everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of
heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will
enter" (Matthew 7:21). Simply knowing of God will never be
enough . . . knowing
about who He is will be insufficient in coming to Him. We must come
to know His will, and not assume His will. We must come to Him in
obedience and in subjection to His will. It is His will that you and
I are to strive for...there is none other than Christ that is able
to bring man to the Father.
We must study His Word. We must examine
Scripture, discerning if what we are being taught by others is true
and of God’s Word. If what we are being taught is not truth, we are
independently accountable for our response to this non-truth. We
cannot lay this responsibility upon another . . . no matter how
convincing they may make their words sound . . . no matter how appealing
their message.
Many will say to Me on that day, "Lord,
Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in your name cast out
demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?" And then I will
declare to them, "I never knew you; DEPART FROM
ME, YOU WHO PRACTICE INIQUITY." (Matthew
7:22-23)
We must be practitioners of His Word as it states
in James 1:22 "But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not
merely hearers who delude themselves." And James 2:26 – "For
just as the body without the spirit [breath of life] is dead,
so also faith without works is dead." We are to be doers of the
word because we are His; we are not His because we are doers of the
word. A strong caution must be applied here in understanding that
this is not salvation through works (i.e. being and doing ‘good’),
which is an unbiblical doctrine and is an antigospel.
Go to Page
1
2 3
4
5
6
|
