Saturday, April 25, 2009

# 276: Sharing Our Faith

There are several religious groups who are continually and actively sharing their faith with the world. The two that are best known are Jehovah’s Witnesses (JWs) and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (better known as the Mormons), who had the gall to incorporate our Savior’s name into the name of their church. The difference between the two is that the Mormons are so far from the truth of the gospel message that they are considered a large, highly sophisticated, well-organized cult by many mainstream denominations, along with this author. Whereas the JWs are well-trained, pleasant people who can’t think for themselves, they are closer to the truth than the Mormons. There is only one problem: being close to the gospel truth is not sufficient for salvation.

Either way, they are both doing a disservice to those like me who also go door-to-door representing the truth as displayed in the New Testament (NT) and through this Biblical blog. The disservice arises when we go about door-to-door, and are categorized as also being pushy cults.

Even though many others and I disagree with the belief systems of the above-mentioned cults, we have to give them credit for at least sharing what they believe as the truth. That is more than we can say for those who go to a comfy-cozy church building on Sunday morning, and when church service is over, they share their beliefs with no one. There may be several reasons they don’t share what they believe: 1) they are not asked or required to do so by their church pastors, etc. ; 2) they may not have anything to share of real spiritual value, other than empty words; 3) they may not be aware that it is part of the Christian life to share the importance of Jesus Christ with as many as possible; 4) they may have better things to do on their rest day than knocking on doors, especially when the response is often rude. They would rather eat a big meal at a restaurant or go to see a make-believe/fake highly-rated movie, etc.

Many years ago, I was studying with both above-mentioned groups. I was just a young 30-some-year-old whippersnapper fresh out of Catholicism. After studying with them just about six months or so, even though I was only a novice regarding spiritual matters, I thank God He made me realize both their religions were not in accordance with the NT. Concerning Catholicism, that religion is and has always been a disgrace to the name of Jesus Christ, and I am not only talking about not sharing their faith.

If a genuine Christian had something of great value (the life and love God Almighty has for us, along with our wholehearted love for Him), he/she would be inwardly compelled by the Spirit of God to share it with the whole world. He or she couldn’t keep from sharing it even if he or she wanted to. How could anyone keep from sharing it when a mutual love with God is at work?

Arguably, many changes occur in our lives when we start to share our faith with the lost and the “religious”. We are becoming involved in the most important work in the whole world: seeking the lost to share in a LIFE that will never end. What is more important than that? If we don’t share it that could be evidence that we don’t have anything worth sharing.

But before we can do that all-important work, we must make that spiritual work the main priority in our lives. This is not an easy task since there are multitudes of worldly activities continually vying for our attention and time.

Always remember this: there are millions of people who are lost in the world, and it is every genuine Christian’s duty to contact as many as humanly possible with the truth of God’s holy message, along with sharing the after-effects of unbelief according to the NT.

Many people don’t believe there will be a hell for all who do not believe in Jesus Christ in an active way. The important word in that sentence is the word ACTIVE. If by some chance a person is allowed to enter heaven by the skin of his/her teeth--which I personally doubt--and is allowed to see all the people in hell whom they didn’t bother to tell the truth of the gospel message, how can they live in heaven with that type of burden on their hearts? As one can quickly tell, that statement is an oxymoron.

The point I am attempting to make is that if our connection to God through Jesus Christ is of any importance--even though it should be our MOST important--how can anyone neglect this grace of actively sharing his or her faith?

There are two commands that are the foundation for all else in the Bible: Luke 10:27-28: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind; and, love your neighbor as yourself . . . Do this and you will live.” Those commands do not leave much room for any other types of love. Believe it or not, those two commands are the most important in the Bible and the most ignored. What does that tell us?

Are these commands important to the many bloggers who continually hit on this blog? Question: can God’s mercy, compassion, love and all else He freely gives us override disobedience to these commands? If He could, He would be making a fool of Himself. You see, the true Christian religion is not an easy thing to live by. As I said previously, our enemy the devil is continually bombarding us with fine-sounding lies.

That may be the reason Scripture teaches in Matthew 22:14: “For many are invited but few are chosen.” Are you and I chosen ones? We must be truthful to ourselves; a lie could be our death sentence. If our lives need change, it will take a wholehearted effort. Contrary to present-day teachings, there is no place for mediocrity in the Christian life. Revelation 3:16: “So because you are lukewarm--neither hot nor cold--I am about to spit you out of my mouth.”

In Philemon verse 6, the apostle Paul encourages us all to be active in sharing our faith: “I pray that you may be active in sharing your faith, so that you will have a full understanding of every good thing we have in Christ.”

Colossians 1:10: “And we pray this in order that you may live a life worthy of the Lord and please him in every way: bearing fruit in every good work, growing in the knowledge of God, being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might . . .”

Christianity is a life of continual growth in knowledge and love so that we will know and fully understand all that is required of us. No growth means either dormancy for a short while or death. Let us all make sure that we are not standing idle but continuing in our Christian work of sharing not only our faith but also our lives.

If, by some chance, some of you reading this post believe that it is not necessary to be active in Christian works after accepting Christ as your Savior (other than going to a church building once a week), the NT guarantees you are on the fast track to a place you don’t intend to go. Sharing one’s faith is an essential safeguard; it displays that you are eager to have everyone you meet be with you in heaven. Those who are not concerned with the eternal destiny of others indicate that they may not possess what they believe they possess.

2nd Peter 2:17-18: “. . . be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of lawless men and fall from your secure position. But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ.” There can be no growth without being active in Christian activities.

In conclusion, living the Christian life is by all means the most important work in the whole world, not only for our Salvation, but also for the Salvation of others. Please, take this message to heart because we are dealing with life-and-death matters. The problem in the world is that many have made little of the Christian religion. Don’t let this happen to you. God will greatly bless all who continue to share their faith, in more ways than we can imagine.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Catholicism is NOT a disgrace to Jesus Christ. The Catholic Church is the agency founded by JESUS CHRIST to teach all men what they must do and believe to be saved. The Catholic Church is infallible- a God-given endowment by which the Roman Catholic Church enjoys divine assistance in unerringly defining and teaching a divine doctrine.
Christ taught what all men must do and believe to be saved. His doctrines are valid for all ages but Christ did not "choose" to remain on earth for all time to teach them. He confided this task to a "teaching agency" called the ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH. It is clearly against the divine wisdom of Christ to be represented on earth by a Church which would or even could teach "false" doctrines. Christ "authorized" the Catholic Church to teach with exactly the same authority which He had while on earth-- Luke 10:16- Mark 16:15
This should clear-up your confusion.
Deacon Kudlak

JC said...

Thanks for telling us what you believe. Anyone who understands the New Testament knows how evil the Catholic really is. I could write a book on all the evil they have been doing for years. A perfect example is the sex scandal, which now has now been exposed, with your clergy. Even as a young boy, my friends and I knew what they were doing with boys and even a few girls, along with the pregnancies of many nuns by your priests. That church belongs to the devil. I don’t often write such strong words, but I did so because you were so adamant in how holy and good your church is. The Catholic Church doesn’t even resemble what the Bible teaches. I pray that God opens your eyes as to the filth they have produced for many years. jc