Have you ever had to study for a doctrinal purity test? Getting re-certified for what is certifiably unnecessary is a tedious exercise but an impromptu inspection or a supposed quality controlled analysis is to be expected from time to time. When asked for the reason for the hope that is in us we are to have an answer or as Peter says; a defense. (1 Pe 3:15) As of late a brother has asked for a definitive layout for presenting the Gospel so as to meet his class criteria developed from a lengthy methodology associated with his understanding. I’m guessing no amount of reason, resource or scripture from any other perspective will satisfy him but I will make an attempt.
I admit I have no apparent notches on my gospel gun & have impressed very few by using the Four Spiritual Laws or Chick tract hermeneutics. A repeat after me prefab prayer without genuine repentance after being presented an incomplete or inadequate gospel holds little hope for salvation let alone a right understanding of spiritual matters. To convince a perspective convert that he can be saved by perusing a Cliffs Notes works based participation is at least the first stage of a potentially authentic deception. You’ll remember Jesus scolding the religious elitists for their worldwide evangelistic fervor, to bring a person to God (Matt 23:15) only to then make him into twice the child of hell that they themselves were. Promoting salvation via misapplication of truth procures a false conversion in its truest sense. I dare not compare myself to Jesus in any regard but the situation calls for at least an examination of the spirit of certain passages. Jesus was persistently challenged to the point of frustration as seen in Mark 8. We will believe you ‘if.’
“And the Pharisees came forth, and began to question with him, seeking of him a sign from heaven, tempting him. And he sighed deeply in his spirit, and saith, Why doth this generation seek after a sign? verily I say unto you, There shall no sign be given unto this generation.” Mk 8:11-12
A new generation of religious elitists (which in essence is of the same generation mentioned above) is with us today & often makes the same selective demands that Jesus refers to in Matthew 11. I say this to warn my readers that we eventually will have to know what hoop to avoid or choose when jumping is inevitable. Jesus elaborates further on such expectation manipulation in Matthew 11.
“But whereunto shall I liken this generation? It is like unto children sitting in the markets, and calling unto their fellows, And saying, We have piped unto you, and ye have not danced; we have mourned unto you, and ye have not lamented. For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, He hath a devil. The Son of man came eating and drinking, and they say, Behold a man gluttonous, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners. But wisdom is justified of her children.” Matt 11:16-19
My brother, who requires a sign, has not been satisfied with the one I’m calling attention to. He played a tune & I would not dance; I’m expected to professionally weep at the funeral proceedings but I have no tears to manufacture. John the baptizer abstained from worldly comfort & was said to have a demon while Jesus drank wine & was called a drunken glutton. In other words… there may be no satisfactory response. Having butchered scripture in the past to prop up my then developing understanding I eventually learned to refrain from exhausting every arguable proof because scripture is alive to anyone who actively searches the whole counsel of God for himself. Entering a potentially diabolical exegesis can be avoided by remaining silent. I should do it more often.
Anyone who wants to know the Lord in America today is without excuse & could find salvation in any scrap of scripture, hymn or life’s story & testimony. My friend says no; I must employ a method of systematically choosing verses (I too have picked a few cherries that apply) in the right order; a supposed one size fits all mechanism as it were. Torturing scripture into submission & beating the text into subjection relating to any given subject is not my mission… anymore. Since I have refused to apply the ‘correct’ combination it’s assumed I can’t open the lock. The point is there is no lock.
First of all… very few come to the Lord via advanced scholastic methods. If we are sensitive to the moment & are being led of His Spirit, the words will come & applicable verses recalled as needed. If I should miss or mess up a witnessing opportunity with a stranger then God will present another agent equipped to correct or repair any mistakes. No man’s salvation is contingent on how precise another man’s presentation is & it’s definitely not the crux of closing the eternal deal on any man’s soul. Cookie cutter conflict resolution & rehabilitation techniques have dominated the conversion scene as of late while inspiring a potentially spurious born again experience. Where do the catch & release converted of today’s ever enlarging numbers go & what becomes of them? Many of them are being assimilated into the void of a subtle apostasy. The attempt to lead a man to Christ sometimes takes years or minutes but the Lord is capable of bringing the gifted representative & the target of salvation together. It seems the fields are no longer as white for harvest as they once were & although God is capable of saving people with or without human contact we merely reinforce what God is germinating in the initiate by His Spirit. We’re well into that darkness that Jesus says will come when no man’s efforts will be fruitful. I would admonish anyone to continue to be a witness & preach if given opportunity but don’t stay in the dark about too many things for too long.
Rarely if ever did Jesus use the same tactic twice & no duplicated power points were used as teaching aids. Each new birth is unique too & treated individually as each disciple experiences the regenerating power of mercy, the grace of God & forgiveness of sin. One thing I know for sure is that cultural relevance is culturally irrelevant in the eternal perspective. No societal adjustments are needed; the gospel is the same throughout the entirety of scripture since the days of Able on down to those who are alive & remain when Jesus returns. Repent (upon notification of the righteous requirement of God’s law) & believe. Psalm 38 describes the totality of a sinner’s prayer & the beginning of an understanding of the gospel. The audio visuals of Psalm 19 state plainly that it’s the law of the Lord that converts the soul & His testimony makes the simplest person wise enough to recognize truth & everything after that is plain enough for salvation. Read, believe & obey.
I don’t expect every presentation to produce spontaneous comprehension & the ideal response, because unless the Lord prepares the heart of the recipient to the gospel prior to the salvation encounter, it could result in endless chatter; often leading to nothing more than initiation non grata. As for what to say to every person I meet, I will not know which direction the encounter goes until words are exchanged & hearts are opened to the moment. Besides; very few encounters ever go like the how to books describe.
We all know what it’s like to be half heard & then find what’s repeated is not
accurate. Look at Jn 20: 21-23. Some of us do the same thing when passing along what we think is important & whatever we take literally can get inadvertently redefined & even become our exclusive mission; to the exclusion of other aspects of the overall commands of Mark 16:15f. Please indulge (my commentary parenthesis) in this observation of the commission.
“Go (leave the starting point) into all the world (simple to profound, elementary yet reasonably intelligent; computer communication friendly spheres included) & preach the gospel (the whole counsel of God) to every creature. (No not butterflies & fruit bats) He that believes (His word & your testimony) & is baptized (water optional in a few cases but the baptism referred to here is the Holy Spirit which is the power of God & comes with its own set of evidences) shall be saved; (from then forward & on many levels in this life) but he that believeth not (even after a lifetime of hearing & being witnessed to; unless maybe our presentation was a key factor) shall be damned. (Let’s not go there)
And these signs shall follow them that believe: (believers do not seek for or follow after a sign) In my name (by power of intimacy through relationship) shall they cast out devils; (not meant to be an exclusive focus either) they shall speak with new tongues; (one application of that relates to developing a vocabulary obtained from absorbing scripture) They shall take up serpents; (Paul experienced this literally but a deeper application is obvious) and if they drink any deadly thing, (insert New Apostolic Reformation propaganda, new 501c3 mandates, Catholic mysticism & ecumenical occultism) it shall not hurt them; (another obvious meaning) they shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover.” Mark 16:15-18 Sample 2 Tim 4:20 for an interesting perspective; I witnessed the instantaneous & the miraculous but I have also agreed in faith while watching with many prayers, no cure & a long illness that ended in death with no literal recovery)
I haven’t personally done right by every single aspect of this extensive yet elementary process as laid out above; none of us have. Incorporated into the bottom line is the making of disciples by teaching them to observe “all things” according to Matt 28:19-20. When sin is in remission after repentance (Lk 24:47) that is the ‘sign’ that the gospel is alive & active. We know that according to Cor 12 there is as much diversity of gifts & callings as there are species of stars in space & we each have a place in the process. Paul said it best in my defense if I may make the comparison in 1 Cor 1:17. “For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect…” He went on to say he only water baptized a few in his career & I’m guessing that those were expedient to the moment. Did the water baptismal mandate not apply to him? Of course it did. This is an example of a liberty that systematic factory outlet store evangelism will never comprehend; God is sovereign & he has His true emissaries in play everywhere. Since the theological landscape is as dark as it’s ever been I only have enough light for one more step, the next encounter & the next comment expressed in public. If I had to accommodate an answer on demand I would default to applying the following: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe in the gospel.” Mk 1:15
I hope to appease my new friend by the absence of my company as it would be consistent with the scriptures that apply specifically to this situation. We actually disagree on many other points & I don’t see us enjoying a true fellowship until I become accommodating. What does Amos 3:3 say? It says we are separate from one another by disagreement. Paul & Barnabas had a quarrel too & separated company. I hope this goes that well. Forgiveness of any offence should be easy as my brother has not caused any undue stress. I only pray his understanding will be renewed daily. Because he also is in the position of leadership I confronted him with a warning that I hope would be taken seriously as scripture prescribed in James 3:1. You the reader & I also must give an account of our own professorships. Amen?
In closing on a lighter note & to show a modem of taste, I chuckled when I first saw the verse below as it compares urinating to starting needless arguments so I will leave it there as there is nowhere else to go (no pun intended) & there’s nothing else to add but I’m sure that my attempt to clarify my understanding still needs work I’ll admit. Some write better than they talk but that’s a God given expression that is proportionately appropriate for the situation at hand. Having never been a gifted speaker as many can attest to, I hope to never fail to direct my written admonitions to those who think, are given to checking every reference & holding only to what is good & worth retaining. 1 Th 5:21
“The beginning of strife is as when one letteth out water: therefore leave off contention, before it be meddled with.” Pro 17:14.
twl
