|
The visible Christian church
is no longer a sanctuary for the people of God. Instead, it
has become a huge mission field that needs to be evangelized.
Churches are now filled with professing Christians who say
they have faith but have never been born of God. This should
not surprise us because of the parable Jesus gave describing
the last days in Matthew 13:25-43. He spoke of a landowner
who sowed good seed [sons of the kingdom] in his field, but
while his men were sleeping, the enemy came and sowed tares
[sons of the devil]. Jesus said the landowner is the Son of
Man and the enemy is the devil.
Today we have many tares in
our churches because church leaders are not protecting the
fields. Many have been growing their churches man's way instead
of God's way. This self-serving strategy has produced some
tragic consequences - the most serious of which is the false
hope it gives to the unconverted tares. Some of the tares
are victims of unbiblical methods of evangelism; others are
victims of counterfeit gospels. These victims cannot tell
you the essential elements of the Gospel or what God requires
for entrance into heaven. Some know their eternal sin debt
must be forgiven, but very few know they also need the righteousness
of Jesus and to be born again of the Spirit.
The Necessity of the
New Birth
Jesus told Nicodemus "Truly,
truly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see
the kingdom of God." Only the triune God can bring forth
life. Jesus said: "just as the Father raises the dead
and gives them life, even so the Son also gives life to whom
He wishes" (John 5:21). "It is the Spirit that gives
life" (John 6:63). God calls the spiritually dead to
life through His Word. "In the exercise of His will He
brought us forth by the word of truth" (James 1: 18).
God's children are "born again not of seed which is perishable
but imperishable, that is, through the living and abiding
word of God" (1 Pet. 1:23).
Saving faith comes from hearing
the word of Christ. From it we learn the essential doctrines
of salvation: the attributes of God, the Gospel of grace and
the redemptive work of Jesus Christ. When people hear the
Word of God, enabled by the Spirit of God, to trust the Son
of God, they become a child of God, all for the glory of God.
Just as man could not initiate
his physical birth, he is unable to cause his spiritual birth.
Before any of us were born, we could not have pleaded with
our parents to conceive us. We did not exist! The same is
true in the spiritual realm (John 1: 12-13). Children of God
are not born of blood (spiritual life is not inherited
genetically), nor of the will of the flesh (physical
life cannot produce spiritual life, flesh can only produce
flesh), nor of the will of man (spiritual life cannot
be initiated by the desires of men).
So, how do we help the unconverted
tares see they have been misled or deceived? As believers,
we should encourage everyone to test their faith for their
own good as well as for the glory of Christ. Paul wrote: "Examine
yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves.
Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you - unless, of
course, you fail the test" (2 Cor 13:5). Peter exhorted
us: "Be all the more eager to make your calling and election
sure" (2 Pet. 1:10).
I always love to hear testimonies
of how our Sovereign Lord calls lost sinners to Himself. So,
whenever I meet Christians, I often ask them to describe the
events surrounding their conversion. A red flag goes up if
they say they became a Christian at the moment they were:
baptized, came forward in an altar call, repeated a prayer,
signed a commitment card, joined a local church, or were born
to Christian parents. Speaking the truth in love, I explain
to them that no one can become a Christian without repentance
and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ (Acts 20:21).
Many Believe A Counterfeit
Gospel
What about those who say they
have faith in Jesus but show no evidence of a changed life.
All of them may believe in the historical Jesus who lived
2000 years ago, but few believe what He taught, what he promises,
what He commands, what He accomplished and what He is doing
now. They may be victims of a counterfeit gospel, a watered
down version that is offered by a generic god of love. This
gospel offers "fire insurance" with no call to repentance
(Luke 24:47). It is a gospel of cheap grace which fails to
instruct people to say "no" to ungodliness and worldly
passions (Titus 2:12).
The other counterfeit gospel
which deceives people is the grace-killing gospel of works.
First introduced by the Judaizers, this gospel nullifies God's
grace by adding requirements for salvation such as circumcision,
baptism, sacraments, good works, law keeping, penance or indulgences
(Gal. 1:6-9).
If we do not lovingly confront
victims of unbiblical evangelism and counterfeit gospels,
they may one day hear the most terrifying words anyone could
ever hear when Jesus says: "I never knew you; depart
from Me." These horrifying words will be heard by many
professing Christians on the last day (Mat. 7:22-23).
Two Ways To Test Faith
Those who want to test their
faith now, before it is too late, can do it two ways - objectively
and subjectively. The objective test is this: Have you believed
the objective truths of God's word? Paul wrote: "after
listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation,
having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy
Spirit" (Eph. 1:13). The word of God is our supreme authority
for knowing objective truth. We must believe the eternal Gospel
as it is revealed in Scripture. It is the same Gospel today
as it was 6000 years ago.
The subjective test asks the
question: Is there evidence of saving faith? Genuine faith
results in good works but a faith without works is dead (Eph.
2:10; James 2:17). This second test is subjective because
there are different levels of maturity and growth as believers
walk with Christ. New babes in Christ may not show as much
evidence as those who have walked with Him for many years.
When we are first born into God's family we look nothing like
His Son. But as we grow in the grace and knowledge of God,
through the power of the Holy Spirit, we are conformed into
the image of Christ. We see this in the physical realm also.
When a baby is born, he may look nothing like his parents.
But as he grows, he begins to take on the physical characteristics
of his parents.
The Apostle John gives us a
portrait of what God's children look like in his first epistle.
They who are born of God are adopted into His eternal family
to walk in the light (_L6-7); keep His commandments (2:3-5);
love not the world system (2:15); yearn for the return of
Christ so they can be like Him (3:2-3); live to please Him
and avoid sin (3:7-8); love His other children (3:14) and
use apostolic doctrine for discernment (4_6). Each of us must
determine if this is a picture of how we look.
Two Kinds of Faith
The test of one's faith is
vital because the Bible speaks of two kinds of faith - a "Godgiven,
supernatural, saving faith" and a "dead" faith
that is found in the unconverted natural man. Paul wrote of
people who believed in vain because they did not hold to apostolic
teaching (I Cor. 15:2). Jesus spoke of others who believed
for the wrong reasons (John 2:23).
Dead faith is limited to what
the natural man can comprehend without divine help because
he has been blinded by Satan and cannot see the light of the
Gospel (2 Cor. 4:4). That is why Paul wrote: "your faith
should not rest on the wisdom of men, but on the power of
God" (I Cor. 2:5).
God-given faith is initiated
in the will of God and is a gift granted from the Father above
(Phil. 1:29: James 1:17). It will be perfected by the Son
of God as the recipient conforms it to the Word of God. Jesus
is the Author and Perfecter of this faith which is the assurance
of things hoped for and the conviction of things not seen
(Heb. 11:1: 12:2).
Those with God-given faith
enter the narrow gate bringing nothing but their sins to the
cross (Mat. 7:13). Those with dead faith enter through the
wide gate bringing their filthy rags of righteousness (Mat.
7:14).
Those with God-given faith
prove it by bearing much fruit to the glory of God (John 15:8).
Those with dead faith prove it by bearing bad fruit for the
glory of self (Mat. 7:15-17).
Those with God-given faith
desire to test and prove their faith with Scripture alone
(2 Cor. 13:5). Those with dead faith prove their faith by
denominational teachings and man's traditions (John 12:42-43:
Acts 15:5-10).
Those with God-given faith
will not habitually hear or follow a false teacher (John 10:5.8).
Those with dead faith will not habitually follow a true teacher
(John 10:19).
Those with God-given faith
trust God's power to protect and keep them (1 Peter 1:5).
Those with dead faith trust their own power to keep them from
falling away.
Dead faith touches only the
intellect. Godgiven faith involves the whole person. The mind
understands, the heart desires and the will acts upon the
Word of God.
In closing, there are several
probing questions we can ask those who desire to test their
faith. Have you renounced every false way that opposes the
Gospel of grace? Do you live in thanksgiving and praise for
being chosen and adopted into God's eternal family? Do you
prove to be Christ's disciple by abiding in His word? Do you
discipline yourself for godliness? Do your friends, neighbors
and co-workers know that Jesus Christ is your Lord and Savior?
Do you have a desire to share Jesus Christ with others or
are you ashamed of His Gospel?
God's children will know they
belong to Him because "The Spirit Himself bears witness
with our spirit that we are children of God" (Rom. 8:16).
The Spirit does this through the Scriptures that He inspired.
All of God's children take Him at his Word!
|
