The Seeker-sensitive Church...

The church is "the pillar and ground of truth," not a safe haven for the lost and happy place for the sinner, who must become convicted and find the truth.  The church is not to be consumer-driven or aim to please everyone and become all things to all people. It can be sound in its doctrine and still miss the boat (it's necessary but not sufficient), for the most important goal is to have the heart in the right place, not to have one's doctrine impeccably correct, which can become a source of pride and faction.  Seekers are not to become comfortable in their sin, but not feel singled out and judged by the members. The church is always in a state of renewal and reform; hence, the slogan of the Reformers:  semper reformanda or always reforming.  Martin Luther said he had only begun his reforms when dying.

The marching orders of the church should always be front and center and the biblical evangel is never to be neglected, keeping the main thing the main thing--the fulfilling of the Great Commission.  The church has a duty to preach the Word and to disciple the family that gathers for spiritual renewal and checkups and to exercise their gifts.  The church should throw out the welcome mat to sinners and be ready to accept people for who they are, after all, it's a hospital for sinners, not a hotel for saints, and no perfect people need to apply.  Remembering that Christ loved us while we were yet sinners and enemies of the cross!  We learn to love by showing it to those in need of it and the most difficult recipients.  Christ is the friend of sinners and those who realize their sin are on the road to recovery and salvation.  But this doesn't mean the preaching ought to be watered down, dumbed down, nor its gospel domesticated and contextualized to suit the fancy of the listeners.  Let God do the convicting and He will!

The church is more than an organization; it's an organism of a body that functions in a synergistic manner as a family to fulfill the Great Commission. The body together can accomplish more than the individuals can solo.  The evangelical church has become The Church of What's Happening Now doing its own thing, trying to be popular and see how big a crowd it can amass.  What the latest thing is and seems to be the focus is being all things to all people, and not the gospel message. We don't go to church for socializing, but fellowshipping, worshiping, edification, discipling, and ministering--basically getting our spiritual batteries charged and our growth assessed and appraised as we examine ourselves and take a spiritual inventory.  We are there to prepare for the Lord's battle and get equipped for our mission to the lost.

The truly seeker-sensitive church is one where the truth is preached and defended, not where it's watered down and avoided. The sinner needs to hear the gospel which should be the consummation and finale of every sermon. The church is to be the hospital for saints and those who realize their sin.  Outreach starts with the truth being preached as the expository Word of God.  Preachers ought to be biblicists of the first order--men of the Book--who rely on the Word and the Spirit, not their own acumen, scholarship, talents, academic training, for many preachers have been effective without seminary training, e.g., Spurgeon, Moody.   God always honors the preaching of the Word which will not come back void and be used to God's glory to convict and edify (cf. Jer. 1:12; Isaiah 55:11).  Doctrine is important for vitality, but the church shouldn't be content just to be doctrinally correct and pure--orthopraxy (right actions) are just as important as orthodoxy (right belief).

Sinners ought not to be comfortable in their sin and realize they need salvation and came to the right place!  Remember, the church is a functioning family and builds relationships, missions, and ministries. Whenever the body gathers in the name of Jesus, each member should feel free to exercise their gift and feel like themselves in their comfort zone. The seeker is the one who is out of his element and should be convicted of this.  Megachurches often miss the point not seeing the church as a living, functioning body, and become some sort of a personality cult focusing on the preacher, who is more of an entrepreneur, and not the mission and gathering crowds, not families.  If there is no opportunity for the member to serve, then he's in a crowd, not a ministering body that meets members needs and exercises the gifts.  In a healthy church, there is a place for everyone and everyone feels welcome and part of the family!        Soli Deo Gloria!

The Obedience Of Faith...

"We have received grace and apostleship through Him to bring about the obedience of faith among all the nations on behalf of HIs name including yourselves who also belong to Jesus Christ by calling" (Rom. 1:5-6, HCSB). 
"...[T]o advance the obedience of faith among all nations" (Rom. 16:26, HCSB).
Salvation via repentance stressed: 
 "...[T]hat he might bring Israel to repentance and forgive their sins" (Acts 5:31, NIV).  
"...'So then, even to Gentiles God has granted repentance that leads to life'" (Acts 11:18, NIV).
"Produce fruit in keeping with repentance..." (Luke 3:8, NIV).  "... But unless you repent you too will perish" (Luke 13:5, NIV).  
"I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance" (Luke 5:32, HCSB).
".... Repent and believe in the good news!" (Mark 1:15, HCSB).
"... 'So God has granted repentance resulting in life even to the Gentiles'" (Acts 11:18, HCSB).
"God exalted this Man to His right hand as ruler and Savior, to grant repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins."  (Acts 5:31, HCSB).
"The best measure of a spiritual life is not its ecstasies but its obedience." --Oswald Chambers
NOTE:  ALL ITALICS MINE. 

The old controversy of Lordship-salvation, prevalent since days of the rise of Evangelicalism, is still unclear and unsettled in the dogma of some so-called evangelical churches.  Dietrich Bonhoeffer articulated it as far back as the Nazi era:  "Only he who believes is obedient; only he who is obedient believes."  Hebrews 11:8 says, "By faith Abraham  ... obeyed."  The two go hand in hand and might be considered two sides of the same coin--you can only distinguish them--they are inseparable!  Jesus said that if we love Him we will obey Him--obviously, believing in Him is to be obedient:  It is vain to serve God without faith, (cf. Heb. 11:6) for this is merely dead faith that cannot save (cf. James 2:26). 

Note that a tree is known by its fruit!  God looks for fruit, not foliage!  Good soil produces fruit!   Only faith pleases God and this must be real faith that produces works and we can do nothing apart from Christ--I repeat for emphasis:  Apart from Him, we can do nothing, not believe, not repent, not bear fruit!  (Cf. Heb. 11:6; John 15:5).

We must not only come to faith in Him but be obedient to the faith and that starts with being obedient to the gospel!  That entails a penitent faith! Repentance is a gift of God along with the faith that God grants the believer (cf. Acts 18:27, 2 Pet. 1:1; Phil. 1:29 with: 2 Tim. 2:25; Acts 5:31, 11:18; 2 Tim. 2:24-25).  Those are also two mindsets that go hand in hand.  We either are saved by penitent faith or believing repentance if you will.  The two works of grace are juxtaposed in Acts 20:21, HCSB, ("I testified to both Jews and Greeks about repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus" ) and used interchangeably in Scripture.  Salvation is often seen as from the point of view of repentance:  "...that they should repent and turn to God, and do works worthy of repentance" (Acts 26:20, HCSB).

In essence, Israel already believed in God and needed repentance concerning Christ; while the Gentiles needed to exercise faith!  But God commands all people everywhere to repent (cf. Acts 17:30).   "[A]nd repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name..." (Luke 24:47, HCSB).  And so obedient faith produces the fruit or works of repentance and good deeds as a witness!  In repentance, we are turning from our sin, and in our act of faith, we turn from self to God.

Faith and obedience are linked and juxtaposed in Scripture:  Hebrews 3:18-19 says they didn't enter His rest due to unbelief, and also due to disobedience in parallel.  Indeed, Christ is a Lord to be obeyed from servants.  He owns us as our Master and we are the slaves--we belong to Him; we don't merely serve Him.  We must not divorce faith and obedience! They can be distinguished but not separated!  God made this Jesus, who was crucified, both Lord and Christ according to Acts 2:36 and we must accept Him for who He is!

We must bow and bend the knee!  We must submit to His Lordship over us and unashamedly own Him as Lord.  The Father has granted Him all authority and He is Lord of all (cf. Matt. 28:18; Acts 10:36; Rom. 10:12).  We cannot dichotomize His offices and only accept a Savior without denying ourselves, taking up our cross, and following Him in discipleship (cf. Mark 8:34).  We either accept Him for who He is or we have rejected Him--this is the mistake of easy-believism that seems to be in vogue, that wants to domesticate the gospel in order to make it palatable to the sinner and requiring no sacrifice or commitment whatsoever.

The thing that qualifies Him to be Savior is that He's Lord, but we don't make Him Lord, He IS LORD!  We must acknowledge His authority over our lives and we must get in line with God's will and present ourselves to His sovereignty and plan over our lives as we become "living sacrifices" (cf. Rom. 12:1). In short, to accept His Lordship over our lives is to commit to following Him in discipleship and to obey Him! As Hosea puts it:  "Let us follow on to know the Lord" (Hos. 6:3)!        Soli Deo Gloria!

How Should We Then Live?

The title is taken from a book by Francis Schaeffer (founder of L'Abri Fellowship International in Switzerland), the late American theologian and renowned philosophical apologist who wrote A Christian Manifesto.  Christianity is about the so-called "good life" indeed, for Jesus promised a "more abundant life."  But few believers achieve this and fall short of God's best for them and never really prosper in God's will and calling.  We must not live for ourselves for even Jesus didn't please Himself (cf. Rom. 15:3).   The Christian has the Spirit to know God and to enjoy and delight in the Lord while the infidel is a slave to sin and held captive by the devil to do his will.  We must be rescued from the kingdom of darkness and brought into the light.

God indeed promises prosperity, but prosperity theology of "name and claim it!" is fallacious as commonly taught--it's not always financial but definitely in finding God's will. Financial prosperity is not a sign of God's favor or blessing because even the wicked prosper--but some people receive their portion and reward in this life (cf. Psalm 17:14).  We are not here to live for the here and now, but in light of eternity.  Our reward is in heaven and, per Lamentations 3:24,  "the Lord is [our] portion]; we are awaiting a reward that cannot perish!  The whole purpose we are here is to glorify God (cf. Isa. 43:7).  We do this by completing the purpose we are called to do and enjoying Him in praise, thanksgiving, and worship.  We really glorify God by enjoying Him!

Now to the title of how should we live:  Solomon, the Preacher in Ecclesiastes, said that the whole duty of man is to fear God (for the fear of the Lord is only the beginning of true knowledge and wisdom! as is written in Proverbs) and to keep His commandments!  Obedience and faith are equated!  (cf. Heb. 3:18-19).   To be happy in Jesus we must simply "Trust and Obey!"  For the Word says, "To obey is better than sacrifice," in 1 Sam. 15:22, NIV.  They both say the same thing. Jesus (cf. Matt. 23:23) condemned the Pharisees for neglecting the main point of the Law:  Justice, mercy, and faithfulness!

In the same vein, Bonhoeffer said, "Only he who believes is obedient; only he who is obedient believes."  Some people would tell you that the secret is to have faith for they believe in faith in faith, while others will tell you to believe in yourself, for self-esteem is vital.  We as Christians don't put stock in faith per se, but faith in the right object--Christ.  We also don't stress self-esteem as we rely on God-esteem.

It's also not how big our faith is, but its object that counts and how big our God is that matters!  God only requires faith as a mustard seed, but it must be in Him!  It is a key point that the phrase "Keep the faith!" is erroneous and misunderstood by many.  It matters what our faith is and what kind of faith, and in whom (cf. 2 Tim. 1:12)!  We are not believers in faith for its own sake!  Some will be defenders of faith per se, but not defenders of THE FAITH (cf. Jude v. 3)!

We ought to walk even as Enoch did with the Lord and be in step with the Spirit all the way through thick and thin, come what may, letting the chips fall where they may, and even when the chips are down!  "Noah was a just man, and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God"--therefore the Lord reckoned him as righteous (cf. Gen. 6:5)  We have more at our disposal than Noah (the complete canon of Scripture, the Holy Spirit, the fellowship of the church, and even a long tradition of sound doctrine and teaching of the Word).

Our faith is a walk; i.e., "we walk by faith, and not by sight" per 2 Cor. 5:7.  That means we may have to venture out of our comfort zones and go where the Lord calls us, but we cannot be qualified if we haven't bloomed where we are planted first.  The order of the day is not to look for an area of service, but to bloom where planted and let God do the calling into service.  The whole world is our domain of service and we are already at large, so to speak, in the mission field, our circle of influence!

No matter how important faith is, love is of paramount importance in all things; let all things be done in love!  It matters not what we do--even servile acts of kindness and mercy--but how much love we put into action.  Love is proved by our good deeds and it should not be a matter of words only but of deeds--we must turn our creeds into deeds!  For our faith is not a matter of knowing a creed but of knowing a person and proving this to the world, making Him known as our marching order.  As Paul said in Gal. 5:6, NIV, "[A]ll that counts is faith expressing itself through love," and in the love chapter that, if we have not the passion of love manifest in our hearts, we are nothing but a "sounding cymbal or clanging gong."

And in the final analysis, we ought not to live selfishly, but for others and to see ourselves on a mission to live solely for Christ's work and to do His will in everything, always to the glory of God and making Him known.  We are all here for a purpose or mission (cf. Acts 20:24):  As it says in Pss. 138:8; 57:2, that God will fulfill His purpose for us!  When David had completed God's purpose, He took him (cf. Acts 13:36).  He will never abandon the work of His hands and will never give up on us as lost causes, for God completes His work (cf. Phil. 1:6) and we are all works in progress!

The conclusion of the matter is that the good life is not to be sought in materialism (the American dream), seeking a higher standard of living, education, clout, power, riches, or even fame, but solely in realizing one's potential in Christ, in whom we are made complete (cf. Col. 2:10); for we died and our life is hidden with Christ in God (cf. Col. 3:3).       Soli Deo Gloria!

Is Jesus Authoritarian?

"When Jesus had finished this sermon, the crowds were astonished at His teaching, because He was teaching them like one who had authority, and not like their scribes"  (Matt. 7:29, HCSB).
"For the kingdom is the LORD's: and he is the governor among the nations"  (Psalms 22:28, KJV).  

Jesus not only reigns on High with all the authority granted from the Father (cf. Matt. 28:28) but He rules and is the sovereign over creation; this is His prerogative as Son of God, not His attribute--He's earned the right to rule (and not like the sovereign of the UK, who reigns but doesn't rule).  To disobey Christ is to disobey God.  Jesus said that if we love Him we will obey Him--those are His friends.  To disobey Christ's authority has consequences, which can even lead to eternal punitive measures in hell.

Christ's rule is by virtue of His office as Lord (RHIP or rank has its privileges--it comes with the territory!) referring to His position over all creation.  He is Lord of all (cf. Acts 10:36; Rom. 10:12). He is not a colleague to be befriended, but the Lord to be obeyed-we don't make Him Lord, He is Lord!  A. W. Tozer says He will not save those whom He cannot command, and He will not barter away His right to be Lord!  Note that a lord doesn't give suggestions, but commands!  In a sense, Christ is a micro-manager because everything is under His authority and the buck stops with Him.  He is authoritarian in the sense that He rules with an iron fist and is sovereign over all without exception.

Christ just has to say the words for His will to be accomplished:  When He said to the storm, "Peace, be still," there was an immediate slick and the sea obeyed.  Even the demons believe and tremble because they realize they must obey or be sent to the Pit. Christ expects full compliance.  When Christians disobey, there are consequences: They are divinely disciplined and brought back into line with God's will.

Now there is another aspect of Christ's authority that differs from His authority to give orders and enforce them.  He has the authority to induce, woo, convince, persuade, and to influence for His will.  We change our minds due to His power of persuasion and wisdom because we respect His counsel and person.  He's earned respect in this way that we heed His Word.  (He not only claimed the authority of the Word but claimed to be the very personification of the Word Himself, the Logos, as John termed it.)  The Christian obeys and does good deeds because he wants to not because he has to.  Works are not in order to gain the approbation but because we have it already--a "therefore."  We obey out of the motive of love, and it's this love that has authority over us, for it's the most persuasive force or influence of all.  We've learned to love, trust, and obey Jesus through our ongoing, daily experience and as we grow and mature in Christ.

During Jesus humiliation, He demonstrated all manner of authority:  over the laws of nature, all forms of diseases, demons, birth defects, sin, death, and even food!  His miracles were really signs proving His divinity and each showed an aspect of this.  He did not do them for the purposes of a show, or for personal gratification or pleasure, but to show mercy and kindness to the people in need.  He refused to do any biggy miracle that would've been to the pleasure of the skeptics and make them believe against their will, but His miracles were always sufficient for the willing.  Miracles never cause faith but only to bolster and confirm it; however, faith causes miracles.  In other words, Christ's authority and power were under great restraint during His days on earth with the disciples and He only proved what He was capable of, without actually doing it.

There is a great reward in obeying Christ and following Him; on the other hand, there are punitive measures for disobedience.  Either way, we must not ignore the authority of Christ, or it will be at great peril.  Jesus didn't teach by authority, as if someone had ordained Him, but with authority, and this was unlike any man had ever taught.  The rabbis and religious authorities, including the Pharisees, would quote the experts and teachers of the Law, and would never say something on their own authority; however, Jesus never footnoted His sermons, but would say, "You have been heard it said,  but I say unto you."  It's like a parent to a child say, "Because I said so!"  He was claiming greater authority than the authorities!  And this was an offense to the job security of the Pharisees!  Jesus never "footnoted" His sermons like the rabbis, or quoted anyone but the Scripture itself as the final word and rule of faith.  His methodology of quoting in speaking would be, "It is written," even to Satan.

The wonderful thing about Christ's authority is that He has commissioned us with authority to preach the gospel and we are His ambassadors who have a right to speak on His behalf.  Christ has earned authority via humiliation; however, we share in His spiritual authority, and when the Word is preached God anoints it with the unction of the Holy Spirit.  Christians are therefore the representatives of the King!  The good news is that He has given us authority in His Name!  Though we can rest assured He is in full control, He's no control freak!   Soli Deo Gloria!