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The Importance of preaching a steadfast Gospel
this week i have thinking alot about the gravity of the state of the culture in the church. we seem to have put a huge emphasis on things that sound good, or that may be of some importance in the kingdom but that arent biblicaly mandated to be the center of our lives. say for instance putting something like fellowship over prayer. fellowship is biblicaly mandated, and is very benificial and important, but to put it on a level higher than prayer is not biblical. i have begun to notice that peoples attitudes and strongholds in their lives are directly related to how much effort and time they put into prayer and seeking after the Lord. if you spend the majority of your time praying and seeking the Lord and then fellowship is birthed out of that, then that fellowship tends to be way more pure and God focused then if it had been focused on fellowship before prayer.
prayer is something that directly births other works and fruits of the spirit that striving after good things (even biblical things) cannot produce on their own. you dont hear about a true revival that breaks out because of a church or person that strives after works, fellowship, or other good things. revival is birthed out of a place of seeking after God wholeheartedly with prayer and fasting, and through that the other biblical works are birthed. thats what we have to long after. its not pretty and it doesnt sound great, and it will probably offend people and cause them to leave, but thats what Jesus’s ministry was all about. He didnt make it pretty, and He certainly didnt try to make it easy for people to follow. He commanded to take up your cross and die for Him every single day. He looked into the heart of people and spoke words that cut them in the most vulnerable of places. Jesus isnt in the buisness of making converts, Hes in the buiseness of finding people that are desperate enough to leave everything behind, and lay their lives compleatly on the alter. if you werent up to that then He would turn you away!
i think thats why most churches have such an imbalance with what they focus on, they are looking for what best retains their flock, or what will bring “salvation” to the most people, instead of focusing on the biblical aplication of the church. retaining a flock, or pursuing people for Jesus are necesities, but not at the cost of comprimising the Word of God.
we are not called to modify the Gospel to fit what people will be receptive to. we are called to preach the Gospel for what it is and to minnister to the hungry people that come out of that. we cant put a face on christianity that sounds good, or that makes people comfortable, because those converts are not going to be able to stand through the fire when the “comfort” is gone. there is no worldly comfort in laying down your life and denying your flesh. there is no worldly wisdom for giving up your life for something unseen. the unhungry are not going to be satisfied with that. if you have to lure somebody into living for Christ, then are they really living for Him at all? its not a light thing, its not something that the “normal” (by the worlds standards) are going to run with.
Jesus picked few and taught them to focus on Him above all else, so why are we so focused on bringing in the masses and teaching them works?
