I received a disconcerting email the other day. It arrived in my inbox courtesy of Lifeway, the subject declaring, "Christianity is not about Following the Rules!" It seems they want to make apparent via clickbait their continued descent into liberality, as if changing their name from Berean wasn't enough. Now, some of you may think that I'm being a little bit harsh. After all, there's some element of truth to it, right? Christianity isn't just about following rules, right? Wasn't that the whole point of the Reformation? Justification is by faith and not by works, right? Well, here's what bothers me about this email:
1) Christianity is about following rules. You know why Jesus came to die on the cross? Because Adam, along with all of his descendants, broke the rules. Rules are a pretty big part of our religion. Any version of Christianity that doesn't include rules is a bastardization of the Faith. There was never anything bad about the Law of God. Rather, man's inability to keep it moved God to provide an alternative form of righteousness.
We have to get away from this postmodernist, relativistic, and hedonistic concept that rules are bad. When did rule become a four-letter word? The modern Church has imbibed this idea that rules and sincerity of faith are somehow contradictory and cannot coexist, but that is not at all what the Bible teaches. Instead, the Bible tells us that obedience to the objective commands of God gives expression to our love for Him and offers evidence of the work of God in our hearts.
Not only do God's rules provide the opportunity to prove the genuineness of our confession of faith and, therefore, personal assurance of our salvation, but they also keep us safe. "Moreover, by them your servant is warned," declares David, "in keeping them there is great reward." His son, Solomon, reflects this attitude when he says of wisdom, "Do not forsake her, and she will keep you; love her, and she will guard you."
Don't misunderstand my meaning here--Christianity is not all about rules. We do not save ourselves by keeping the rules, but are saved by grace through faith apart from any merit that can be attributed to our works. Rules, however, those objective moral commands given by God in His Word, guide our lives and guard our hearts through the power of the Holy Spirit.
2) Christianity is not about compromise. While Christianity is not exclusively about rules, it is also not about compromise. Making concise moral judgments regarding social issues is beginning to be construed as the unforgivable sin. The principled man seems to be respected more by the world, which can at least appreciate his commitment to his faith, than by liberal Christianity. Why, I ask, are we so eager to compromise in the Church today? Why do we want the world to think we're "woke" and "tolerant"? Why do we value the world's opinion more than God's?
The Bible is pretty clear that we have to choose between the love of God and the love of the world. 1 John 2:15 says unequivocally, "Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him." Additionally, Paul reminds Timothy that "all who desire to live a Godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted." The Apostles, much like our Savior, expected that there would be friction between the world and Christians living their faith out faithfully. Accordingly, they frowned upon attempts to render oneself palatable to the world at the expense of faithfulness to God's will. God does not think compromising your principles is cool. God does call us to have grace with each other and with nonbelievers, but He does not call us to pander to the world, not even as a means of evangelism.
Maybe I am overreacting. Maybe I'm reading something into this email that isn't there. I doubt it. Seemingly-innocuous things like "hip" church names and overly-seeker friendly attitudes are small symptoms of a deadly disease that is infecting the Church. When we compromise the truth to seem more affable to those who hate God, we lose our identity. If your Christianity doesn't affect how you live your life, it doesn't deserve to go by that name.
1) Christianity is about following rules. You know why Jesus came to die on the cross? Because Adam, along with all of his descendants, broke the rules. Rules are a pretty big part of our religion. Any version of Christianity that doesn't include rules is a bastardization of the Faith. There was never anything bad about the Law of God. Rather, man's inability to keep it moved God to provide an alternative form of righteousness.
We have to get away from this postmodernist, relativistic, and hedonistic concept that rules are bad. When did rule become a four-letter word? The modern Church has imbibed this idea that rules and sincerity of faith are somehow contradictory and cannot coexist, but that is not at all what the Bible teaches. Instead, the Bible tells us that obedience to the objective commands of God gives expression to our love for Him and offers evidence of the work of God in our hearts.
Not only do God's rules provide the opportunity to prove the genuineness of our confession of faith and, therefore, personal assurance of our salvation, but they also keep us safe. "Moreover, by them your servant is warned," declares David, "in keeping them there is great reward." His son, Solomon, reflects this attitude when he says of wisdom, "Do not forsake her, and she will keep you; love her, and she will guard you."
Don't misunderstand my meaning here--Christianity is not all about rules. We do not save ourselves by keeping the rules, but are saved by grace through faith apart from any merit that can be attributed to our works. Rules, however, those objective moral commands given by God in His Word, guide our lives and guard our hearts through the power of the Holy Spirit.
2) Christianity is not about compromise. While Christianity is not exclusively about rules, it is also not about compromise. Making concise moral judgments regarding social issues is beginning to be construed as the unforgivable sin. The principled man seems to be respected more by the world, which can at least appreciate his commitment to his faith, than by liberal Christianity. Why, I ask, are we so eager to compromise in the Church today? Why do we want the world to think we're "woke" and "tolerant"? Why do we value the world's opinion more than God's?
The Bible is pretty clear that we have to choose between the love of God and the love of the world. 1 John 2:15 says unequivocally, "Do not love the world or the things in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him." Additionally, Paul reminds Timothy that "all who desire to live a Godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted." The Apostles, much like our Savior, expected that there would be friction between the world and Christians living their faith out faithfully. Accordingly, they frowned upon attempts to render oneself palatable to the world at the expense of faithfulness to God's will. God does not think compromising your principles is cool. God does call us to have grace with each other and with nonbelievers, but He does not call us to pander to the world, not even as a means of evangelism.
Maybe I am overreacting. Maybe I'm reading something into this email that isn't there. I doubt it. Seemingly-innocuous things like "hip" church names and overly-seeker friendly attitudes are small symptoms of a deadly disease that is infecting the Church. When we compromise the truth to seem more affable to those who hate God, we lose our identity. If your Christianity doesn't affect how you live your life, it doesn't deserve to go by that name.
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