Christians Hating the Gospel?

If you haven't been over to the Law Man Chronicles and read the post titled "They Loved The Darkness Rather Than The Light", prepare yourself for the unbelievable. Be sure to watch the video's that go along with this event... Shocking!

In light of what took place at this event, I too have noticed a trend with myself as it seems that I am spending more time witnessing to professing Christians than those who deny Christ? The sad thing is they both respond the same way, negatively.

What is Christianity?

"What is Christianity? Not metaphysics, not mysticism, not a compilation of guesses at truth. It is the history of the seed of the woman—that seed the Word made flesh—the Word made flesh, the revelation of the invisible Jehovah, the representative of the eternal God, the medium of communication between the Creator and the creature, between earth and heaven.

And of this Christianity, what is the essential characteristic, indispensable feature from first to last? Is it incarnation or blood-shedding? Is it the cradle or the cross? Is it the scene at Bethlehem or at Golgotha? Assuredly the latter! "Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani," is no mere outcry of suffering nature, the cross is no mere scene of human martyrdom, and the great sepulchre is no mere Hebrew tomb. It is only through blood-shedding that conscience is purged; it is only at the cross that the sinner can meet with God; it is the cross that knits heaven and earth together; it is the cross that bears up the collapsing universe; it is the pierced hand that holds the golden sceptre; it is at Calvary that we find the open gate of Paradise regained, and the gospel is good news to the sinner, of liberty to enter in.

Let men, with the newly sharpened axes of rationalism, do their utmost to hew down that cross, it will stand in spite of them. Let them apply their ecclesiastical paint-brush, and daub it all over with the most approved of mediaeval pigments to cover its nakedness, its glory will shine through all. Let them scoff at the legal transference of the sinner's guilt to a divine substitute, and of that Surety's righteousness to the sinner, as a Lutherean delusion, or a Puritan fiction, that mutual transference, that wondrous exchange, will be found to be wrapped up with Christianity itself. Let those who, like Cain of old, shrink from the touch of sacrificial blood, and mock the "religion of the shambles," purge their consciences with the idea of God's universal Fatherhood, and try to wash their robes and make them with in something else than the blood of the Lamb; to us, as the saints of other days, there is but one purging of the conscience, one reconciliation, one healing of our wounds, the death of Him on whom the chastisement of our peace was laid, and one everlasting song, "unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood." —Horatius Bonar (1808-1889)

Excerpt is taken from Christ Is All: The Piety of Horatius Bonar (Haykin & Brooker, Reformation Heritage Books, Grand Rapids, Michigan 2007) Chapter 13 titled The shd blood of Christ: The foundation of Christianity

The Reign of Grace

"Man's entire apostasy and death in sin, so that he cannot save himself, and God's entire supremacy, so that He saves whom He will, are doctrines exceedingly distasteful to human-pride. But they are Scriptural....

None have deserved salvation. No man is more fit for it than another. God was not bound to save any. God might have saved all. Yet He has only saved some. Is He, then, unjust in only saving some when He could have saved all? Objectors say, Oh, those who are lost, are lost because they rejected Christ. But unbelief of some give way? Was it because they willed it, or because God put forth His power in them? Surely the latter. Might He not, then, have put forth His power in all, and prevented any from rejecting the Saviour? Yet He did not. Why? Because so it seemed good in His sight.

Is it unjust of God to save only a few when all are equally doomed to die? If not, is there any injustice in His determining aforehand to save these few, and leave the rest unsaved? They could not save themselves, and was it unjust in Him to resolve, in His infinite wisdom to save them? Or, was it unjust in Him not to resolve to save all? Had all perished there would have been no injustice with Him. How is it possible that there can be injustice in His resolving to save some?

There can be no grace when there is no sovereignty. Deny God's right to choose whom He will and you deny His right to save whom He will. Deny His right to save whom He will, and you deny that salvation is of grace. If salvation is made to hinge upon any desert or fitness in man, seen or foreseen, grace is at an end....

Men may call these speculations. They may condemn them as unprofitable. To the law and to the testimony! Of such speculations, the Bible is full. There man is a helpless worm, and salvation from first to last, is of the Lord. God's will, and not man's, is the law of the universe. If we are to maintain the gospel—if we are to hold fast grace—if we are to preserve Jehovah's honour—we must grasp these truths with no feeble hand. For if there be not such a Being as a Supreme, pre—determining Jehovah, then the universe will soon be chaos: and if there be no such thing as a free electing love, every minister of Christ may close his lips, and every sinner upon earth sit down in mute despair." —Abraham Booth (1734-1806)

Excerpt taken from the preface to The Reign of Grace, by Abraham Booth (Edinburgh: Thomas Nelson, 1844 edition).

Quote of the Day

"This grace which God freely gives to the vessels of mercy, begins with illuminating the heart. It does not find man's will good, but makes it so. It chooses first, in order that it may be chosen; nor is it received unless it first work in the heart of man. Therefore, both the reception of grace and the desire for it are the work of grace itself." —Fulgentius (468-533)

Trying His Best?

"How different is the God of the Bible from the God of modern Christendom! The conception of Deity which prevails most widely today, even among those who profess to give heed to the Scriptures, is a miserable caricature, a blasphemous travesty of the Truth. The God of the twentieth century is a helpless, effeminate being who commands the respect of no really thoughtful man. The God of the popular mind is the creation of a maudlin sentimentality. The God of many a present-day pulpit is an object of pity rather than of awe-inspiring reverence. To say that God the Father has purposed the salvation of all mankind, that God the Son died with the express intention of saving the whole human race, and that God the Holy Spirit is now seeking to win the world to Christ; when, as a matter of common observation, it is apparent that the great majority of our fellow-men are dying in sin, and passing into a hopeless eternity: is to say that God the Father is disappointed, that God the Son is dissatisfied, and that God the Holy Spirit is defeated. We have stated the issue baldly, but there is no escaping the conclusion. To argue that God is “trying His best” to save all mankind, but that the majority of men will not let Him save them, is to insist that the will of the Creator is impotent, and that the will of the creature is omnipotent." —A. W. Pink (1886–1952)

Quote taken from The Sovereignty of God by A. W. Pink

Fresh Grace

"As a man does not make himself spiritually alive, so neither can he keep himself so. He can feed on spiritual food, and so preserve his spiritual strength; he can walk in the commandments of the Lord, and so enjoy rest and peace, but still the inner life is dependent upon the Spirit as much for its after existence as for its first begetting. I do verily believe that if it should ever be my lot to put my foot upon the golden threshold of Paradise, and put this thumb upon the pearly latch, I should never cross the threshold unless I had grace given me to take that last step whereby I might enter heaven. No man of himself, even when converted, hath any power, except as that power is daily, constantly, and perpetually infused into him by the Spirit. But Christians often set up for independent gentlemen; they get a little stock of grace in hand, and they say, "My mountain standeth firm, I shall never be moved." But ah! it is not long before the manna begins to be putrid. It was only meant to be the manna for the day, and we have kept it for the morrow, and therefore it fails us. We must have fresh grace." —C. H. Spurgeon (1834-1892)

Taken from a sermon titled "Salvation of the Lord" delivered on Sabbath Morning, May 10, 1857, by the Rev. C. H. Spurgeon at the Music Hall, Royal Surrey Gardens.

A Comfortable Endeavor

"The gospel of Satan is not a system of revolutionary principles, nor yet a program of anarchy. It does not promote strife and war, but aims at peace and unity. It seeks not to set the mother against her daughter nor the father against his son, but fosters the fraternal spirit whereby the human race is regarded as one great “brotherhood.” It does not seek to drag down the natural man, but to improve and uplift him. It advocates education and cultivation and appeals to “the best that is within - It aims to make this world such a comfortable and congenial habitat that Christ’s absence from it will not be felt and God will not be needed. It endeavors to occupy man so much with this world that he has no time or inclination to think of the world to come. It propagates the principles of self-sacrifice, charity and benevolence, and teaches us to live for the good of others, and to be kind to all. It appeals strongly to the carnal mind and is popular with the masses, because it ignores the solemn facts that by nature man is a fallen creature, alienated from the life of God, and dead in trespasses and sins, and that his only hope lies in being born again.

In contradistinction to the Gospel of Christ, the gospel of Satan teaches salvation by works. It inculcates justification before God on the ground of human merits. Its sacramental phrase is “Be good and do good”; but it fails to recognize that in the flesh there dwelleth no good thing. It announces salvation by character, which reverses the order of God’s Word—character by, as the fruit of, salvation. Its various ramifications and organizations are manifold. Temperance, Reform Movements, “Christian Socialist Leagues,” Ethical Culture Societies, “Peace Congresses” are all employed (perhaps unconsciously) in proclaiming this gospel of Satan—salvation by works." —A. W. Pink (1886–1952)

Taken from "Another Gospel" by A. W. Pink

Absolute Fallacy

"Churching the unchurched is an absolute fallacy – it is like purposing to let the tares in. It is absolutely bizarre to want to make unsaved people feel comfortable in a church. The church is not a building – the church is a group of worshiping, redeemed, and sanctified people among whom an unbeliever should feel either miserable, convicted and drawn to Christ, or else alienated and isolated. Only if the church hides its message and ceases to be what God designed the church to be, can it make an unbeliever comfortable." —John MacArthur

Lost Hymns

One Day

One day when Heaven was filled with His praises,
One day when sin was as black as could be,
Jesus came forth to be born of a virgin,
Dwelt among men, my Example is He!

Living, He loved me; dying, He saved me;
Buried, He carried my sins far away;
Rising, He justified freely forever;
One day He’s coming—O glorious day!

One day they led Him up Calvary’s mountain,
One day they nailed Him to die on the tree;
Suffering anguish, despised and rejected:
Bearing our sins, my Redeemer is He!

One day they left Him alone in the garden,
One day He rested, from suffering free;
Angels came down o’er His tomb to keep vigil;
Hope of the hopeless, my Savior is He!

One day the grave could conceal Him no longer,
One day the stone rolled away from the door;
Then He arose, over death He had conquered;
Now is ascended, my Lord evermore!

One day the trumpet will sound for His coming,
One day the skies with His glories will shine;
Wonderful day, my belovèd ones bringing;
Glorious Savior, this Jesus is mine!

by: John Wilbur Chapman (1859-1918)

Sensitiveness to Sin

"No upsurge of religious interest or excitement merits the name of revival if there is no profound sense of sin at its heart. God's coming, and the consequent impact of his word, makes Christians much more sensitive to sin than they previously were: consciences become tender and a profound humbling takes place. The perverseness, ugliness, uncleanness, and guilt of sin are seen and felt with new vividness. Under revival conditions consciences are so quickened that conviction of each person's own sinfulness becomes strong and terrible, inducing agonies of mind that are beyond imagining till they happen. The gospel of forgiveness through Christ's cross comes to be loved as never before, as people see their need of it so much more clearly" —J. I. Packer

Unnoticed Separation

Today I got a e-mail from a dear brother in Christ who I also happen to work with, it was a reply to a previous e-mail that I had sent him and I just wanted to share a little quote that I thought was very insightful as to what is taking place within the American church.

"I believe there is a major movement going on largely unnoticed by the rest of the so called churches in this country. It seems to me the wheat and the tares are being separated" —Greg McGuigan

You know with all the oddities that are taking place like the never ending Purpose Driven program, the Emergent Church Movement; and with the ever growing Ecumenical Movement advancing the acceptance of attacks on Biblical authority with great success, I believe Greg is right. It does seems like true Christians are being separated from the tares as they run to healthy church's.

Big Mac Attack

I am not the biggest fan of McDonald's but I do enjoy their big breakfast deal from time to time, and a quick stop in the morning on the way to work for a southern style chicken biscuit can't be beat and the fast service here in my town is second to none. But... I know it's terrible to hear that McDonald's is supporting the Homosexual agenda along with Ford, Disney World, Oprah and a whole slew of other corporations, but does that really shock you? If you answer yes then that shocks me, because Jeremiah 13:23 says "Can the Ethiopian change his skin Or the leopard his spots?" Of course they can't, so then how do you really expect fallen sinful man to behave like born-again regenerate Christians? They are lost and need a savior, they need to be made a "new creature" as Paul says or be "born again" as the Lord said.

So just because McDonald's is supporting the Homosexual agenda am I as a Christian now required to stop eating at the golden arches? Well the AFA seems to think so, a boycott of McDonald's may make some superficial dent in the promotion of a sinful lifestyle but will it have the power to change the eternal destiny of even one Homosexual? Has anyone else noticed how the AFA seems to be very selective as to the sins it attacks? So many Christians are quick to get on board any agenda that tries to stamp out REALLY BAD SINS, but I have never noticed any movement from the AFA to boycott the sins of materialism, divorce, greed, pride, adultery, fornication, etc. which are all worthy of eternal punishment, and which equally damage our society. Protesting the bad is not what we Christians are called to do, proclaim the Gospel is our call, for have you forgotten that we are all bad? Romans 3:10-12 "As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one." Do we not all fail to see our own sinfulness in our attempts to be good?

Now let's say that every Homosexual in this country stoped their lewd behavior because of the onslaught of boycotts by Christians and became good moral citizens, but still reject Jesus Christ as Lord what good would this boycott accomplish? This type of open attack on the Homosexual agenda and it's supporters make them out to be the enemy instead of the very mission field for whom we are sent as "ambassadors for Christ, as though God were making an appeal through us;" begging them "on behalf of Christ," that they should "be reconciled to God." 2 Corinthians 5:20

So dear brother and sister I would say use your own judgement as to weather you should stop eating at McDonald's just because the AFA says so, and pray "that God will grant them repentance leading them to a knowledge of the truth" 2 Timothy 2:25 so that they may "see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God." 2 Corinthians 4:4! Amen

Zoo Pic's

Yesterday I took my wife to the Nashville Zoo, it was a beautiful day as the weather was perfect. The Nashville Zoo has come along way and is really a nice visit. I was totally amazed at the giraffes, they are such graceful animals.