Posted on 05/14/2013 3:08:38 PM PDT by rhema
Yes, all that hard and dangerous work such as is in reasoning of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come, and calling souls to (Acts 24:25) the lost to "turn from these vanities unto the living God" (Acts 14:15) - and the persecution that resulted - could have been avoided. But today the 1st commandment for some is "thou shalt not be rejected" and thus the "focus on God's love" and that they are already forgiven while those who reason as Paul did are made out to be Pharisees!
Such would surely Jesus for telling people to cut their arm off if it caused them to sin, and warning of judgment if they did not repent, for how loving and politically incorrect is that?
But the cry today is "speak unto us smooth things." (Isaiah 30:10) And i need more of a heart for holiness reproof.
Actually, it’s a pretty good time to explain that Jesus was the ONLY one in the world who hadn’t sinned.
But I don’t think Salvavida was referring to using that as a witnessing tool. The way I read it was that it was a response to Kevmo’s comment about showing people the love of God as opposed to focusing on God’s judgment.
Other people DO need to be shown they need the Savior. The thief did not need to be convicted of God’s judgment for his sin at that point. His being on the cross already covered that ground.
Pointing out to people what God's standards are is NOT judging them.
God has already judged what they did as sin.
They NEED to know that, otherwise they do not see their sinful state, they do not see that they are already under God's judgment for it, and they do not see their need for a savior.
Telling people of God's mercy is irrelevant if they don't see that they need it. Mercy can only be extended if there's something to be judged for.
It’s always the Holy Spirit’s job to convict of sin, but unless someone is told that what they are doing is sin and what the consequences are, they’re not going to see their need for God.
Our responsibility is to share that information.
Read Peter’s sermon in Acts 2.
If you don’t inform them that what they are doing is a sin, then the whole conversation becomes pointless.
Yes, that is true. Forgiveness is available to and offered to all, but is not automatically imputed onto everyone.
It is a gift that must be accepted.
John 1:12-13 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.
While most people are willing to admit that they aren't perfect, most of them don't think they need a savior for it. They think they're good enough, that their good works will outweigh the bad.
Without that internal conviction of sin, which only the Holy Spirit can give, they won't see their need for Him.
And they need to be told the righteous requirements of the Law. And they need to be told of the consequences of breaking it.
THEN the Holy Spirit can convict them.
Really.
Then people don’t think they have anything they need to be saved from.
You know, as I was reflecting on this thread and the judgment of God and the love of God, it occurred to me that as much as people hear that God doesn’t like sin, the message is more than out there that God is love.
Sometimes, saying that is just not the thing people need to to hear again. When people are looking at divorce, loss of job, a bad diagnosis, death of a family member, whatever, they look at that situation and question *If God is love, why do things like this happen? Why does God allow it? If this is an example of the love of God, who needs it?*
The reasoning being that if they were God, they wouldn’t do that to someone or let that happen to someone. The enemy can get a lot of mileage out of questioning the very concept that God is love with that.
What people need to hear, and perhaps this is what you’re referring to, is that God CARES for them. The concept that God cares for them, for every personal intimate detail of their lives is something very few people seem to grasp or accept when they hear it. It’s a foreign concept to them. I mean, really, God is so big. There’s a whole universe to run and a planet full of almost 7 billion people. Who am I that God should notice me?
The concept of a personal, intimate God who WANTS a relationship with His created just never occurs to them.
It comes across different to say that God cares, as opposed to *God is love*. Instead of being able to question even God’s goodness in the midst of trials, it portrays more of a concept of God in which we can go to Him and He will help us through the situation, not merely deliver us.
I visited a church in Sarasota while on vacation there and the pastor was just starting a great sermon series about the topic of evil and suffering, etc. It’s called “Hey God.... I was just wondering.....”
Here’s a link to it.
South Shore Community Church
Pastor Frank Burns
http://www.southshorechurch.com/pages/currentseries.cfm
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