April 6, 2012
When Jesus had tasted it, he said, "It is finished!" Then he bowed his head and released his spirit. -- John 19:30 (NLT)
The Apostle Paul warned us about the times we now live in. People are no longer putting up with sound doctrine. Instead, they are gathering around them teachers to tell them what their itching ears want to hear. The concept is not really all that new as man has been recreating God in his own image since the dawn of time. It is just accelerated and heightened in these, the last days. As we celebrate Resurrection Weekend let us stop and reflect on the most crucial of doctrines which are largely ignored in today's modern church. They are in fact the lynchpins of our faith. But they do not sell well in a seeker friendly theology.
I know that I am the wretch the song sings about. We are sinful beings by nature. Our flesh is in constant rebellion to God ever since Eve took the fruit and Adam disobeyed His Creator. The world does a masterful job of convincing us that we aren't that bad. Then we get saved and the light of Christ shines into our souls and we realize we were never that good actually. That is because the world compares our righteousness to other humans and there is always someone worse than we are. But when we compare ourselves to a holy God, we start to see how short of the mark we fall. Despite how uncomfortable it may make us feel, sin and repentance need to be preached. Sin is what separates us from a holy God.
There is a consequence for sin. Despite the watering down of the Gospel, there is a heaven to gain and a hell to shun. Hell is described throughout the Bible. Realize that God does not consign anyone to hell, they choose to go willingly. They choose to live their life without God and that simply continues in the next life. But like sin, hell doesn't preach well for large churches and large offerings. Remember the itching ears. Hell doesn't scratch that itch. We must recognize the damage done when we remove these key doctrines from our churches. There are entire denominations that claim to believe and follow God that preach a sinless gospel and thus, a hell-less gospel. When there is no consequence for sin there is no need for a Savior. Jesus Christ becomes a philosopher or a prophet but not the Son of God. His work on the cross becomes empty and His purpose becomes meaningless. That is how you end up with mega-church pastors advocating for the Easter Bunny during Passion Week! When you minimize sin and hell, you render the blood of Christ powerless.
And that is the other fading doctrine in the church. A bloodless Christianity is being propagated, even if it is unintended. The Bible clearly says that there is no remission of sin without a blood sacrifice. Jesus Christ was the spotless Lamb of God -- sent to take away the sins of the world. Your sins and my sins. Before Jesus, we were doomed for an eternal separation from God because when He looked upon us all He would see was our sin. But because of the redeeming work of Christ on Calvary's cross, now all the Father sees is the blood of His son, covering our sin.
So much of modern Christianity has become about man and not about God. Worship has lost its reverence. The altar has lost its holiness. The preaching has lost the blood, sin, and hell. The end result is that we start to feel much better about ourselves instead of God. That leads to a lost sense of awe and fear of the Lord. Heaven forbid.
This weekend remembers the sacrifice of God sending His only Son to die for our sins. His blood was shed for our sins. His sacrifice on the cross was so that I would not have to pay for my sins and spend an eternity in hell. It remembers the victory Christ appropriated for us over death through His resurrection. Let us never compromise the doctrines of our faith and diminish our Lord and Savior! It is only because of Him that we can truly say to sin; "it is finished!"
Rev. Anthony
