Truth & Grace

Is it wrong to call someone out in sin? After all, if Christ gives grace to us, shouldn't we give grace to others? If we have all fallen short, then who are we to judge?

These are good questions! Everyone who desires to know the truth should ask such questions in their grasp to understand what God has revealed in His Word. Sadly, we live in a world today where truth seems to be an elusive concept; that God's Word is merely a matter of one's own interpretation. But if this is the case, then how can God's children learn to agree upon anything? Is not Christ our standard to which we should conform? His light has come into the world in order to lead us out of darkness. Therefore, we must approach the Scriptures as God's special revelation of truth; seeking unity as the Holy Spirit enables us with understanding and wisdom.

Let us first consider the nature of sin as it is found in the Bible. In a word, sin is a cause of error. But error according to what or whom? Generally, the concept is widely used in reference to God as a violation of His established authority and prescribed commands. Those who sin are in violation of God's holy standards.

The Scriptures reveal the consequences of sin are nothing to be taken lightly. The apostle Paul in the New Testament, an established teacher of the written law, says in Romans 6:23 that the wages of sin is death... In fact, it was for this very reason that Jesus Christ came into the world - in order to pay the debt for the sins of mankind. Paul also explains that all have sinned and fallen short of the glory [standards] of God. In other words, sin has so greatly affected humanity that only God Himself was qualified to properly deal with it.

What does the Bible consider to be sin? A short list of categories can be found in Paul's letter to the Galatians: "The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God."

So how does this all relate to the question, "is it wrong to call someone out in sin?" Well, let me answer a question with another question: Is it wrong to ignore someone committing error if it leads them toward death? Jesus' half-brother James tells us, "If anyone, then, knows the good they ought to do and doesn't do it, it is sin for them." It appears James is saying that ignoring those who are living in sin - is a sin in itself! Why would we not want to help others turn away from behavior that injures our relationship with God and others?

But what about grace? Didn't Christ forgive our sins? and doesn't He command us to forgive others the same way? Well, who does God forgive? Throughout the Scriptures, those who are forgiven from sin have one thing in common. Repentance. Consider what the scribe Ezra wrote in 2 Chronicles 7:14, "If my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land." Why should a just and holy God give grace to anyone who has openly violated His will if they do not recognize their faults before Him and bear the sense of guilt from having acted against Him?

Jesus gave a parable to help us understand the nature of God's grace and justice. In Matthew 18:21-35 he tells of a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. One servant owed 10,000 bags of gold and since he was unable to pay, he was ordered to be sold into slavery until the debt was repaid. The servant pleaded with the king that he would repay everything. So the king forgave his entire debt (grace). However, upon his release, he found a fellow servant who owed him a mere 100 silver coins and demanded to be repaid. But rather than showing mercy as he was shown, he ordered the man be thrown into prison until the debt could be repaid. When the king learned of the servant's wicked behavior, he scolded him and had him thrown into prison to be tortured until his original debt of 10,000 bags of gold could be repaid.

Both men showed signs of humility. But the unmerciful servant did not walk with the attitude of grace he had received from the king. Jesus indeed offers us mercy and grace, but the will of God is for us to walk in humble obedience and recognize the enormity of our offense toward him with regard to our sins. If someone has sinned against us, or against God, we must approach them in light of the reality that we too are indebted to God for our own sins. We mustn't condemn them, but rather call their attention to the Word of God and what He has directed all of us to live by.

1 John 1:6-7 explains, "If we claim to have fellowship with him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not live out the truth. But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus, his Son, purifies us from all sin."

It is possible to live by the standard of truth while cherishing the beauty of His amazing grace. This we must do with sincere humility and a divine passion to uphold the standards of God's will, in hopes that He may use us as instruments of righteousness to lead others from darkness into His glorious light. May God bless you in your journey of faith.

Aggressive Christianity

There are many beloved characters of the Salvation Army's historical narrative, renown for their bold witness and deeply rooted convictions. But among those who have most captivated me is the one whom they call "the Army Mother," Catherine Booth. She was a prolific writer and a compelling voice for the cause for women's rights and the condemnation of alcohol. Her fiery spirit revealed the depravity of men's souls and their desperate need for salvation through faith and obedience to Christ.

One of Catherine's most treasured works among the Salvation Army's collection of inspiring writings was titled, "Aggressive Christianity"; a composite of writings which confronted the pathetic nature of our human depravity, the notorious scheming of the devil and his fallen angels, as well as the unspeakable joy of deliverance that comes through the light of our salvation, Jesus Christ!

But I am afraid the Salvation Army has lost much of its understanding in what kind of holy fire it once possessed in tearing down the gates of hell stationed upon the earth in its day. In a certain light it has tragically become something of a passive remnant of its former glory under the guise of a materialistic charity. But I should like to share some of the words of the Army Mother as a hopeful reminder of our glorious beginnings in the march to make war against hell in the mission to rescue the perishing from eternal damnation.

This is what she said:

"Satan knew what was the secret of the great success of those early disciples. It was their whole-hearted devotion, their absorbing love to Christ, their utter abnegation of the world. It was their entire absorption in the salvation of their fellow men and the glory of their God. It was an enthusiastic religion that swallowed them up, and made them willing to become wanderers and vagabonds on the face of the earth--for His sake to dwell in dens and caves, to be torn asunder, and to be persecuted in every form.

It was this degree of devotion, before which Satan saw he had no chance. Such people as these, he knew, must ultimately subdue the world. It is not in human nature to stand before that kind of spirit, that amount of love and zeal, and if Christians had only gone on as they began long since, the glorious prophecy would have been fulfilled, "The kingdoms of this world" would have "become the kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ."

Therefore, the arch-enemy said, `What must I do? I shall be defeated after all. I shall lose my supremacy as the god of this world. What shall I do?' No use to bring in a gigantic system of error, which everybody will see to be error. Oh, dear no! That has never been Satan's way; but his plan has been to get hold of a good man here and there, who shall creep in, as the Apostle said, unawares, and preach another doctrine, and who shall deceive, if it were possible, the very elect. And he did it. He accomplished his design. He gradually lowered the standard of Christian life and character, and though, in every revival, God has raised it again to a certain extent, we have never got back thoroughly to the simplicity, purity, and devotion set before us in these Acts of the Apostles and in the Epistles. And just in the degree that it has approximated thereto, in every age, Satan has got somebody to oppose and to show that this was too high a standard for human nature, altogether beyond us, and that, therefore, Christians must sit down and just be content to be "Oh wretched man that I am" people to the end of their days. He has got the Church into a condition that makes one, sometimes, positively ashamed to hear professing Christians talk, and ashamed also, that the world should hear them talk. I do not wonder at thoughtful, intelligent men being driven from such Christianity as this. It would have driven me off, if I had not known the power of godliness. I believe
this kind of Christianity has made more infidels than all the infidel books ever written."

Satan has found the formula that works in driving men mad and sick with rebellion. With each generation that has managed to survive, he has tweaked his strategy and brought about the installation of a massive and powerful delivery system of godlessness through the modern convenience of our computer technology. Endless waves of evil are deposited through the convenient access of social media and entertainment across the globe. If ever there was a time mankind has been enslaved, he has become a slave today in his own lusts for pleasure and comfort.

But let us not lose hope. God is faithful and has called His children out from darkness. In these last days, God is raising up His messengers once again to sound the trumpet in Zion! He has called them to lay down their lives and put on His armor fitted with fearless resolve to charge into the battlefield with the Sword of the Spirit blazing with holy fire! The Word of the LORD is flawless and it cannot be ignored for long before His rebuke is found on the lips of His messengers - warning those who defy Him of His imminent wrath. God's children have been called out as the Light of the World to expose the deeds of darkness wherever they lie.

These are the days of great trial; both for the faithful and for the wicked. Those who ignore His Word will be given over to a hardened heart so they might do what ought not to be done, lest they turn and be forgiven. They have come to put their faith in a false gospel that will lead them to their damnation. They have become coals for the fires of hell that burn with a vengeance from the Eternal God.

Likewise, those who hold firm to the Word of the Lord will be tested by the wicked and their deceptive arts; lashing out in hatred, discord and jealousy because they will not put up with sound doctrine. The irons from the fire will test the hearts of God's children with firebrands of chastisement, hardship, lawsuits, seizures, slander, imprisonment, brutality, and even slaughter. Today is not a day for comfortable Christianity, for what era of human history was there ever a time for such nonsense? No - today is a day for Aggressive Christianity for we have no other option available for our survival! A spirit of revival that tears after the souls of men who wander down the path of destruction, compelling them to turn from sin and learn of the peace God offers only to the penitent heart. These are the days where the faithful will be equally tried by the fire of the Holy Spirit. The passivity of complacent Christianity has only added to the fires that should try the hearts of God's people. But to those who overcome, they will be given the crown of life. Make no mistake!

Loving Sinners with the Truth

There are times when conversations of debate are really more like two people speaking two different languages while neither of them understand what the other is saying. The ongoing debate of homosexuality and how the Church should address this matter is one such example of this kind of conversation.

With respect to the Church, those in support of same-sex marriage often accuse those who are against it as bigots, haters, intolerant and exclusive. While those who oppose same-sex marriage will accuse those in favor of it as false teachers, divisive and worldly. The firing of accusations back and forth reminds me of combat tactics of opposing forces standing in formation on opposite ends of an open field. The guns and cannons would be locked and loaded then raised and fired at the command of the officer. Each side would seemingly take turns exchanging fire while those in the front-lines of battle would fall to their death. I can't help but wonder how many wounded souls have come about from this battlefield of redefining marriage in our culture today.

While I cannot speak on behalf of the side in favor of gay-marriage, I am more than willing to present my view in hopes to squelch the accusations that many, who are opposed to gay-marriage in the Church, are guilty of bigotry, hatred, intolerance and exclusivity as their accusers insist.

First let me start by saying, I believe God indeed "so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life" (John 3:16). I believe "God is love" as the beloved apostle describes in 1 John 4:8 and that "those who do not love do not know God." Therefore it is the duty of all who belong to God to love others, regardless of their color, their race or creed. We are called by Christ to love not just those who love us, but even our enemies. Jesus lead by example in this great virtue - to the effect that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us (Rom 5:8). Our greatest mark of belonging to God is found in the witness of our love.

But what is love? What does it look like? Is love an emotion? Is it an action? Does it give without limits? Does it accept all things? To answer these questions I think its fair for us to consider what Paul had to say about love in his letter to the Corinthians:
"Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails." (1 Cor 13:4-8a)

Indeed, love is an incredible gift that breathes life into the souls of others! Love is an emotion, but the kind of love that comes from God isn't fickle and fleeting in the face of trouble. It isn't disrespectful or arrogant, and it does not dishonor others. It is a virtue which aspires to the good of all things because God is love and God is good.

But notice what Paul says in verse 6 - "Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth." Love has terms - it has limits on what it is willing to accept because love cannot aspire to the good of all things if not all things are good. A woman who loves her man, according to God's definition of it, will continue to show him support and encouragement even if he has developed an addictive problem with alcohol. Her love for him does not mean she loves what he does. Rather, her love for him is demonstrated by her opposition to the substance and behavior that is trying to destroy him. She watches over him, she sets boundaries for him, she gathers resources and accountability for him; she's willing to sacrifice her time, money, energy and in some cases her own reputation for the sake of saving her man from an intruder that is trying to divide and destroy them.

This is the mindset of those who oppose the open practice of homosexuality in the Church today - or any sin for that matter. The love that is given as a command to God's children is demonstrated by their opposition of the practice of what the Bible defines as sin. Why? Because such behavior is destructive to the soul, to the Church and to the cause of Christ (the Gospel). The same beloved apostle who told us that "anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love," is the same apostle who also wrote (in the same letter) that anyone who is born of God does not maintain a lifestyle of sin (1 John 5:8).

Just as the man who struggles with his addiction to alcohol needs to find sobriety in order for his relationship with his wife to be restored, so do those who struggle with a behavior that God considers sin according to His Word. God loves us. And God's children are called to love others just as He demonstrated for us. Love does not advocate for behavior that destroys, rather it stands resolute against it with arms wide open, inviting sinners to find freedom from their sins through repentance.

Paul tells us in his letter to the Romans, "the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Christ Jesus our Lord" (Rom 6:23). Peter tells us, "It is not God's will that any should perish but that all should come to repentance" (2 Pet 3:9). Sin is a terrible thing. It has separated us from God ever since that fateful day in the Garden of Eden (Gen 3). And it was because of sin that our world was cursed with tragedy and a desperate need for salvation.

In the final moments before His ascension, Jesus told His disciples, "This is what is written: The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high” (Luke 24:46-49). Repentance is an essential part of the work of salvation, without it there can be no forgiveness of sins; God's children were told to proclaim this to the world.

In conclusion, the many who believe they are right in accusing those who oppose the practice of homosexuality in the Church, are not justified in their accusation of being bigoted and haters, intolerant and exclusive. According to the terms I've just highlighted in the Scriptures, I believe those who oppose homosexuality are only demonstrating love as it is rightly defined by the Word of God; loving sinners with the truth that might set them free. It is my sincere hope that those who are quick to judge those who oppose homosexuality in the Church as bigots and haters, would consider the reasons that this is simply not true. God's children have all been called to repentance from sin, and to put their faith in the Word and Will of God as He prescribed. Loving sinners with the truth is the only kind of love that brings about true liberty, lasting peace and the unity of the Spirit.