Deny Love
No Compromise - No Excuse
This is Easter Week… A Time to Contemplate Love…
Jesus said, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.” Matthew 22:37
Jesus then said, “Love your neighbor as yourself” Matthew 22:39
1 John 4:7-8 says, “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.”
Denying Love…
…Christian do you love yourself enough to embrace God’s gift of salvation? If so, you need to love your neighbor enough to share it with them (there is plenty of salvation to go around). If you do not, you are denying love.
We have an order to love God and our neighbor. We have a duty, showing our love of God (by obedience) and our love of our neighbor to share the gospel. (Mark 16:15-16 , Matt. 28:18-20, Luke 24:46-47) Otherwise, we deny love.
IF we truly want to be ‘Christ-like’, if we are truly ‘Christian’ then we have to share the gospel boldly Romans 1:16. “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” 2 Timothy 1:7
Here it is.
No Compromise… No Excuses…
I love this verse John 14:6, “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”
That verse ends with a period. There is no conjunction. There is no ‘and’. There is no ‘or’. There is no ‘but’. Every time we (our churches, our denominations, our ‘leaders’) compromise that period, we deny love. That verse IS the “Gospel of Jesus Christ, the power of God for Salvation”.
If we do not tell people that, “for the wages of sin is death,” (Romans 6:23) we are denying love. However, notice in Romans 6:23 after the word death there is a comma.
The rest of the verse says, “but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
…Do you (Christian) really believe that you love someone by NOT telling him or her there is no other way? Do you (Christian) really believe you are committing a loving act to let someone believe he or she can earn his or her salvation? Do you (Christian) really believe it is love to let someone believe that there is another way into heaven?
What is it when ‘our’ “Christian Leaders” get on national television, and get the direct question, “Are devout followers of Islam (Buddhism & the Dali Lama, Hinduism, New Age Mysticism, or whatever-ism) going to hell?” Is it a loving act for them to say, “I do not know, it is not my place to judge.” [†]
Wake up, one is not judging. How hard is it for an obedient person filled with Christ’s love to say, ““Jesus said, I am the way, …” so if these people do not turn to Jesus Christ, no matter how devout they are to their ‘convictions’ or their ‘religion’, the Bible says, YES they are condemned to hell!” That is not judging that is obedience. That is Love.
How much Love does God have for you? Do you KNOW what Christ went through for you? In “Passion…” God’s love was a brief topic. Earlier, in the article, "The Back Door to Heaven" we talked about just the pain and agony of the Garden of Gethsemane. Loren at the L4C-T site POLD has an article, “The Sufferings and the Glory”. If you REALLY want to get an understanding of what Christ went through because He loved you - I dare you to read it. (I have read it numerous times, and I cannot get through it without balling my eyes out… This is not a Mel Gibson movie - this is the real deal - THE account of Christ’s Last Week before His resurrection and ascension to Glory - written in a way you have never read it before.)
How much love did God show us? How much love do WE show (our neighbors) the lost?
If we compromise the “Gospel of Christ the power of God for Salvation”, we deny love. If we remain silent - we deny love.
AT the "To Die Is Gain" blog is an article on Luke 1:39-45. ‘Risen Soul’ says in the ‘application’ section, “It’s one thing to believe God’s promises. It’s another thing to act on those promises and rejoice in them with others. When Jesus promises that "..whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life." It’s one thing to believe that for ourselves and be saved, it’s another to believe that and share that truth with others so that they might be saved also and rejoice with those who have believed in the truth already.”
How much love are we willing to show God by obedience? How much love are we willing to show our neighbors by sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ?
Think about that as you get dressed up to go to ‘Good Friday’ services, special music extravaganzas, and Easter Services.
-----
We are welcoming “To Die Is Gain” to the L4C-T Blog Ring. Risen Soul is an excellent expository teacher (he reads the Word. He explains the verses he reads. He gives a practical application from the verses - ‘old fashioned - out of vogue - expository teaching’)
Welcome to the L4C-T blog ring.
[†] ‘Christian Leaders’ on national television are not the only ‘guilty’ leaders. See the Comments section… For a LONG comment about our love, and committing MURDER.
Jesus said, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.” Matthew 22:37
Jesus then said, “Love your neighbor as yourself” Matthew 22:39
1 John 4:7-8 says, “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is of God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. He who does not love does not know God, for God is love.”
Denying Love…
…Christian do you love yourself enough to embrace God’s gift of salvation? If so, you need to love your neighbor enough to share it with them (there is plenty of salvation to go around). If you do not, you are denying love.
We have an order to love God and our neighbor. We have a duty, showing our love of God (by obedience) and our love of our neighbor to share the gospel. (Mark 16:15-16 , Matt. 28:18-20, Luke 24:46-47) Otherwise, we deny love.
IF we truly want to be ‘Christ-like’, if we are truly ‘Christian’ then we have to share the gospel boldly Romans 1:16. “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” 2 Timothy 1:7
Here it is.
No Compromise… No Excuses…
I love this verse John 14:6, “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”
That verse ends with a period. There is no conjunction. There is no ‘and’. There is no ‘or’. There is no ‘but’. Every time we (our churches, our denominations, our ‘leaders’) compromise that period, we deny love. That verse IS the “Gospel of Jesus Christ, the power of God for Salvation”.
If we do not tell people that, “for the wages of sin is death,” (Romans 6:23) we are denying love. However, notice in Romans 6:23 after the word death there is a comma.
The rest of the verse says, “but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”
…Do you (Christian) really believe that you love someone by NOT telling him or her there is no other way? Do you (Christian) really believe you are committing a loving act to let someone believe he or she can earn his or her salvation? Do you (Christian) really believe it is love to let someone believe that there is another way into heaven?
What is it when ‘our’ “Christian Leaders” get on national television, and get the direct question, “Are devout followers of Islam (Buddhism & the Dali Lama, Hinduism, New Age Mysticism, or whatever-ism) going to hell?” Is it a loving act for them to say, “I do not know, it is not my place to judge.” [†]
Wake up, one is not judging. How hard is it for an obedient person filled with Christ’s love to say, ““Jesus said, I am the way, …” so if these people do not turn to Jesus Christ, no matter how devout they are to their ‘convictions’ or their ‘religion’, the Bible says, YES they are condemned to hell!” That is not judging that is obedience. That is Love.
How much Love does God have for you? Do you KNOW what Christ went through for you? In “Passion…” God’s love was a brief topic. Earlier, in the article, "The Back Door to Heaven" we talked about just the pain and agony of the Garden of Gethsemane. Loren at the L4C-T site POLD has an article, “The Sufferings and the Glory”. If you REALLY want to get an understanding of what Christ went through because He loved you - I dare you to read it. (I have read it numerous times, and I cannot get through it without balling my eyes out… This is not a Mel Gibson movie - this is the real deal - THE account of Christ’s Last Week before His resurrection and ascension to Glory - written in a way you have never read it before.)
How much love did God show us? How much love do WE show (our neighbors) the lost?
If we compromise the “Gospel of Christ the power of God for Salvation”, we deny love. If we remain silent - we deny love.
AT the "To Die Is Gain" blog is an article on Luke 1:39-45. ‘Risen Soul’ says in the ‘application’ section, “It’s one thing to believe God’s promises. It’s another thing to act on those promises and rejoice in them with others. When Jesus promises that "..whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life." It’s one thing to believe that for ourselves and be saved, it’s another to believe that and share that truth with others so that they might be saved also and rejoice with those who have believed in the truth already.”
How much love are we willing to show God by obedience? How much love are we willing to show our neighbors by sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ?
Think about that as you get dressed up to go to ‘Good Friday’ services, special music extravaganzas, and Easter Services.
-----
We are welcoming “To Die Is Gain” to the L4C-T Blog Ring. Risen Soul is an excellent expository teacher (he reads the Word. He explains the verses he reads. He gives a practical application from the verses - ‘old fashioned - out of vogue - expository teaching’)
Welcome to the L4C-T blog ring.
[†] ‘Christian Leaders’ on national television are not the only ‘guilty’ leaders. See the Comments section… For a LONG comment about our love, and committing MURDER.
posted by Unchained Slave at 10:56 AM
4 Comments:
I am very angry at complacency. This is Easter Week… In Christian Love, the gloves are off. This is a hard hitting exhortation given to Christians with very little tact here are the facts.
Commit Murder?
Commit Murder…
IF we do not share the gospel, we are not only denying love, we are committing murder.
‘Murder’ is such a strong word. We ask, what is it when one knows a danger exists, knows the danger is lethal, and fails to tell a person encountering the danger of its existence? Murder is defined as, “The crime of unlawfully killing a person especially with malice aforethought.” Being gentler, the sub-class of murder, manslaughter is, “The unlawful killing of a human being resulting from the failure to perform a legal duty expressly required to safeguard human life, from the commission of a lawful act in a negligent or improper manner.”
We have a legal duty to share the gospel(Mark 16:15-16 , Matt. 28:18-20, Luke 24:46-47). If we fail in our duty, we are failing to safeguard human life for eternity!
IF we truly want to be ‘Christ-like’, if we are truly ‘Christian’ then we have to share the gospel, otherwise we are guilty of ‘murder’. If we fail to confront sin for what it is, death, we are committing murder. Rev. 20:13-15
Think of it this way: IF you were standing in a Court of Law and you tell the Judge, “I am not guilty - I loved my child so much I wanted them to feel safe. I did not teach them that the stove was hot, I’m really sorry that they got third degree burns and died, but I loved them and I did not want to frighten them.” Alternatively, how about, “I wanted my spouse to feel safe driving the car. Even though we live at the top of hill with a cliff at the bottom, I did not want to concern them so I did not tell them the brakes in the car did not work. I am really sorry they drove off the cliff and died.” Alternatively, again, “I knew there was a covered mineshaft, but I did not tell that stranger I saw walking towards it. It is not my fault they fell in and died.”
How long would you last in a human court?
[†] We have seen ‘Christian Leaders’ on national television dissemble in telling the truth about salvation. They are not the only ones ‘committing murder’.
Every time a ‘Seeker Friendly’ church waters down the Gospel, with ‘feel good’ “messages designed to uplift” without preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ, they are ‘committing murder’*.
Every time a ‘Prosperity Preacher’ teaches that God wants everyone to have a Mercedes in their garage without preaching the Gospel of Jesus Christ, they are ‘committing murder’*.
I recently read a book by a ‘prosperity preacher’. At the end of the book, the author said, “We want you to be saved.” Saved from what? Not once in the entire book did the author mention eternal life, much less damnation.
Every time we see ‘Christian leaders’ “going along, to get along” in an effort to ‘combine efforts’ for social reform with those that ‘preach another gospel’ we see them encouraging ‘murder’.
“Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth. But shun profane and idle babblings, for they will increase to more ungodliness. And their message will spread like cancer.” 2 Timothy 2:15-17b
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek.” Romans 1:16
“For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind.” 2 Timothy 1:7
What if I Don’t, What if I Do?
If I do not show love and share the Gospel of Jesus Christ? First, I am disobedient. Second, I am not showing love. Third, there are those that may never hear it.
What if I do share the Gospel of Jesus Christ? The absolute worst thing that could happen is I could be ‘persecuted unto death for righteousness sake’ (resulting in treasure in heaven, a crown!). The best thing that could happen is a new member in the family! What a joy that would be.
*We can honestly say that some ‘prosperity’ and ‘seeker friendly’ teachers are not guilty of committing ‘murder’, they themselves, known by their ‘fruit’ appear to be still dead themselves.
Hi David,
There is only so much a person can grow into the image of Christ before bumping up against that part of His nature that came into this world to save sinners. And when is that threshold reached?
I think a person who has just gotten saved shows us this threshold. They may not yet know very much, but at least they know how to get saved, and that's enough to show someone else the Way. Plus, new converts are usually zealous evangelists anyway. They all want to see their friends and loved ones saved.
So this brings up an interesting question. What is it that happens as they keep on 'growing' that changes, and causes them to retreat from this zeal later on? That's the answer the devil never wants us to find.
Oh yes, and welcome to 'To Die is Gain' in the L4C-T blog ring!
Cleopas,
What an excellent (and revealing) comment, and a scary question.
I think part of it is complacency - apathy. "I'm saved, now I'm getting on with and getting distracted BY my life..."
donsands also 'hit the nail on the head' with his Joe Ehrman quote in the first comment at "Camp on This":A preacher visited my church, his name is Joe Ehrman, and he started off his sermon with a simple phrase: "Everything you own is either a tool, or an idol."
We have too many idols... Just ask this scary question: "How many hours a week do I spend watching TV compared to how many hours a week I spend in The Word?"
I remember a "Chick Tact" with a kid initially complacent, then saved, then 'on fire' for the Lord, and how Satan was really upset about it...
Parts of the answers are 'hidden' in that tract. 1. Satan is VERY PROACTIVE, while we for the most part are inactive - we kind of expect someone to ask us 'how do I get saved' - the only reason they would ask is if they SEE something different in us! 2. Satan counts every soul lost a victory, but we do not count every soul lost a loss...
Just some musings...
[I am not endorsing Chick publications - I just remember having seen that particular tract.]
In Christ,
David, Thanks for the welcome and generous compliment. I'll be adding a link to your site as well.
- Jacob
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