2 Peter 1 v 16 T
I want to turn with you to words of Peter,. For we have not followed cleverly invented
myths when we told you about the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
As we reflect on
the life of the Church we think of the numbers of people who have passed
through doors over the years. There was
a time when the church stood as a beacon of light in a dark world; a place
where hope, inspiration and encouragement were given. Sadly to-day’s world thinks it can provide
such things for themselves without any help from the Almighty.
These are dark
days for the Church in this
country. We live in a society which
largely rejects God, and regards Church and Christianity as totally irrelevant
to their lives.
Many of us here
grew up when it was the natural thing as a child to be sent to Sunday school,
sing in the church choir, and accompany parents to Church. People may not have known the Bible
thoroughly, but they knew the main stories and understood what the major
festivals meant.
The Church was
held in general respect, and the Vicar was a prominent member of the community.
Politicians were supportive of the Church and were Christian in belief.
Now that has all
changed. Generations have grown up without having had any religious education
and know nothing about the Church or the faith.
Politicians have
enacted legislation which is offensive to Christian belief and teaching, and
which is supported by all parties. The
judiciary seems intent on suppressing every expression of Christian faith by
word or symbol.
What people fail
to realise is that if Christianity is erased from public life it will create a
vacuum which will be filled by something else less pleasant.
Our faith is
mocked as being fairy tale stuff, fantasy, pie in the sky, and these are just
the polite epithets.
But we do not
follow myths of any kind. One day people
will regret such attitudes. Jesus came into the world to save and we as His
disciples must try to do His work for Him now.
I have taken
services in many villages over the last few years, and see the same small
congregations, which is so sad.
Residents have so much to be thankful for; beautiful homes in idyllic
surroundings, without any of the social ills of the towns and cities. We seem to have lost Middle England.
Yet when I journey
home this morning, I will pass a Church where they have to put on two services
each Sunday because there is not enough room to accommodate at one. So things
can happen if we are doing what is right by God.
We must all
examine our witness and consider how we can get our message across.
The greatest
revival of Christianity in this country came during the ministry of
John/Charles Wesley If they were alive
today they would have much to say at the way the Church has failed to proclaim
the message they left, that salvation was through Christ alone, the value of a
person’s life was measured by their faith, and the doctrine of heaven and
hell. They would be horrified to view the preaching of ther great Church and the doctrines now adopted.
For many preachers
these are forbidden subjects fearing they may upset people, yet they are
essential biblical doctrine and were not forbidden by our Lord. Today people are being drawn away from the
doctrines of the Bible as judgement is becoming a censored word.
Jesus made it
patently clear that there will come a day of judgement, and in parable after
parable warned that we face one of two destinies, one He called heaven and the
other hell. He spoke of two roads, two gates. People say God would never send
anyone to hell, and that is right; but people may choose for themselves by
their lives.
The Bible states,
‘salvation is found in no other name under heaven except Jesus Christ’. It is hard to quote the Bible without someone
saying ‘Oh you shouldn’t say that.
The Bible states’
Jesus said no one can come to the Father except through me’, yet many preachers
are dodging quoting this. If we avoid
telling these verses how are people ever to come to know the gospel.
This tells us our
faith is not like other faiths which someone has made up, but rather comes from
God.
This is
a startling declaration! It says that there is no other who can fulfill the
place of being the cornerstone of authority in the world. No other name! None
of the religious leaders, none of the political leaders of all time could
possibly do this work. You take all the religious names of history -- Buddha,
Mohammed, Confucius, whoever and whatever. The most that can be said of these
men and women is that they are moral teachers. The best we can say of them is
that they taught what is right. Many of them did.
Christians are often accused of being
bigoted, of being intolerant of other faiths. There is a sense in which that
accusation is perfectly just. We are intolerant of other faiths, in the final
analysis. But this does not mean that Christians do not recognize that there is
much truth in other religions. Other great religious leaders have uttered fine
moral teachings and precepts which have helped people. But there is one thing
they could not do: They could tell us what was right; but they could not enable
us to do it. That is the difference between Jesus of Nazareth and any other
name that can be named in this world. That is why we can never consent to
considering any other name to be equal with that of Jesus of Nazareth. No other
has solved the problem of death. There is no other name by which we can be
saved.
The
life of Jesus Christ is never against government; but it is against oppressive
government such as we have recently seen. It is the foundation of Christian
liberties, everywhere. There has never been a force more powerful and more
vital to assure the liberation of men and women from oppression and immorality than
this dramatic power of the resurrection. This is why it is hated by the political
forces of the day, wherever they may be.
Everywhere God is inviting men and women
to become a part of it, by sharing in the risen life of Jesus Christ, and
experiencing now the glory of a life of peace and joy and rest and strength and
adequacy and power and meaning and fullness -- now. This is what the
resurrection means.
What however must be a major concern is false teaching within
the Church. Unfortunately as society has
turned its back on Biblical teaching, so an increasing number within the Church
consider we should re-interpret the Bible to meet their modern ideas of
morality. This suggests that God has got
it wrong and He should be prepared to adjust to the age There is a reluctance
by clergy to speak out for fear of being labelled as a bigot or being
discriminatory.
It is fair to say
Christian preachers tend to modify teaching of traditional values to appeal to
contemporary thinking, and for fear of offending one of the many discrimination
laws promoted equally vigorously by vociferous minorities, so falling foul of
the law, which is not enforced against other faiths with the same enthusiasm as
against Christian preachers
There is the
danger of substituting political correctness for biblical correctness.
Under the guise of
equality and human rights, such legislation has only made for the inequitable,
in that Christians have been deprived of their
human rights, and a situation created which is ripe for entrapment of
Christians.
We have gone along
with the incredulous acceptance that marriage, (that is m/w) is no longer the
bedrock of society, but is no more acceptable than any other relationship.
We are told minority groups have to be protected, but this does not
apply to the minority group that is called Christian
If ever the Word
of God was needed it is never more so than now.
It calls for people to turn back to God who is ready and able to meet
the needs of everyone who turns to Him.
The message we have for the world is centred upon the person of Jesus
Christ and provides for a stable and well balanced society.
The world’s
greatest need is to hear about Jesus Christ. All Christians, not simply all
ministers, are commanded in Scripture to share their faith
We put a lot of
energy into fairs, fetes and garden parties, but treat them as just that
without trying to reach out to the people who attend
We have parish
magazines and newsletters, which mostly tell what HAS happened, and contains
articles about gardening or other hobbies, pieces about where people have been,
or of memories. There needs to be also a
stimulating, provocative writing on a biblical theme. For 17 years I edited a
parish magazine, which always included bible teaching, and I know it was read
and appreciated, even when views differed.
The country is in
spiritual death throes and in need of intensive care. This is why we must contend for the
faith. How God must weep when He sees
the Church singing His praise, pretending to be holy, whilst countenancing and
failing to speak out on moral issues which totally ignore His written Word.
My friends, we are
not to be blown by every new spiritual wind so that we drift from our
moorings. We are not to be superficial
believers. Hold fast to the gospel once given by the Apostles who were taught
by the Master Himself.
It is so easy in
the times we live in to opt out, saying, ‘there is no point in fighting
them.’ Can you imagine what would have
happened if Winston Churchill had have said in 1940, ‘there is no use in us
fighting, the enemy is too powerful.’ We
must stand firm by the Cross.
Let us remember
there are Christians being persecuted in non Christian lands with violence,
arson, and yes even murder. Hundreds
have been killed in the last few months in
Today, no less
than in any other age, it is intense biblical integrity that is needed.
Fearless courage and conviction, to stand for the truth --that Jesus Christ is
the only name that saves.
Be in Church on Sunday and
God bless you
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