IN THE CHURCH, BUT GOING TO HELL
John
Bunyan said, “For
some the entrance to hell is from the portals of heaven”. His words could not
more accurately depict the sad plight of many who believe they are Christians! They are at the
very gates of heaven as it were, but will never enter because they are under a
terrible delusion.The church is filled with people who are not really saved, but think
they are. They have been lulled into a false sense of security about their future state.
The church I speak of is that entire body which holds to the basic tenets of
the Christian faith, as set out in the Nicene Creed, not the numerous
pseudo-Christian groups or cults masquerading under the Christian umbrella.
Those I speak of fall into two distinct groups.
The
first group comprises those who lay claim to Christianity by natural descent.
Their parents or grandparents were Christians and so they are naturally
Christians too! It’s as though Christianity, once received, can be passed on
genetically. In this they are not unlike the Pharisees who claimed salvation by
direct physical descent from Abraham. Like the Pharisees, they remain
blissfully ignorant that God has no grandchildren! But that’s only the beginning of their
delusion. They legitimise their Christianity by subscribing to a religious
system. This system lays claim to infallibility whilst it promulgates the
traditions of men, and teachings contrary to scripture. Sadly, this group forms
the major percentage of ‘Christians’ in the world. By their own undertaking
they have submitted to the lie that they are either saved or condemned in
accordance with the rules of the religious institution they belong to! To be
‘born-again’, which is the absolute requirement for anyone to enter into the kingdom of heaven, is something alien to
them. The term ‘born again’, which in biblical language refers to an unnatural birth, a birth by the Spirit
of God, without the machinations of men, is something they are uncomfortable
with. These diehards faithfully hold to the error that salvation is through the
mediation of duly appointed priests, and made more certain by sacramentalism
and sombre ritualism. Since they will not surrender to the supremacy of
scripture over the teachings of men, they remain just like the Pharisees whom
Paul commented about when he said: “But their minds were made dull, for to this
day the same veil remains when the old Covenant is read. It has not been
removed, because only in Christ is it taken away. Even to this day when Moses
is read, a veil covers their hearts. But whenever anyone turns to the Lord, the
veil is taken away” (2 Cor.3:14, 15). And so they continue blindly in their
church attendance, religious systems, sacrifices, and dead works, fully
convinced that they are justified through them, despite access to the truth in
the written word of God. Such is the power of the lie into which they have been
indoctrinated! The enemy has made it difficult for the unsaved churchgoer to
receive the truth. As scripture says, “The god of this age (Satan) has blinded
the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of
the glory of Christ” (2 Cor.4:4 - word in brackets added by me).
Then
there is another group of professing ‘Christians’. Unlike the first, these have
been ‘converted’. Nevertheless, the whole process was painless. This lot
received a simple formula – just invite Jesus into your heart and say the
‘sinner’s prayer’ and presto! You’re in the kingdom. No doubt they were told of
Gods’ love, but never of their total depravity; of God’s desire that none
should perish, but not about God’s wrath against sin; of eternal life in heaven
for the righteous but not of eternal damnation in hell for the wicked. The word
they heard was full of promise, but failed to arouse even the slightest
uneasiness about their utter filthiness in the presence of a Holy and Righteous
God. They were never really convicted of sin. Neither did they see their
disastrous condition and their desperate need to be delivered from it.
Therefore accepting Christ was just a good and beneficial thing for them to do
– the acquisition of a ‘passport’ that would come in handy at the right time. Their decision to
accept Christ never involved renouncing their sinful
lifestyles. Neither did they hear that ‘giving their lives to Christ’
involved making an immediate choice between obedience and disobedience to
God’s word. So, they eagerly subscribed to what I call ‘easy Christianity’.
This group lives happily in the delusion that church membership and rigorous involvement
in religious activities is all the assurance they need of their true
Christianity. Becoming a disciple of Christ, which is at the very heart of
one’s conversion to Christ, was never on their agenda and never will be if they
can help it. They view discipleship as nothing more than an option, as something over and above the call to
being a Christian. They were never truly born again in the first place; even
though they could probably name the day, place, and the very minute, they were
‘converted’. Therefore, it is not surprising that they continually defend their
sinful lifestyles, twisting God’s word as they see fit to suit their lustful
habits. Continual self-examination and confession of sin – the distinguishing
characteristic of the regenerated person - are an unwarranted inconvenience to
them. To use a worldly analogy, they are like those who rush to scoop up a good
shopping bargain when they see one. It is as though they saw a sign saying
‘this way to heaven – in one easy installment’ and they rushed headlong towards
it for fear of missing out. They were enticed by ‘easy believism’. They will
die to satisfy their needs. In stark contrast, the true Christian is called to
a different type of dying – one of self-denial! In fact, we cannot come to Christ
without a willingness to die to self.
As the saying goes, ’fools rush in where angels fear to tread’. What is
heartrending about this group is that they came through deceptive ‘come to
Christ’ invitations! The invitation to accept salvation in Christ was stripped
of all the ‘hard sayings’. They were presented with an easy and comfortable
Christianity and a different Jesus to the Jesus of the bible. The invitation
they received was to come ‘just as they are’ (which is scripturally true). But
that they did not come through a conviction
of sin and true repentance is
evident from their resolute decision to live in sin. There is no doubt that
there was some sort of blanket repentance - a formula - a standard ‘sinner’s
prayer’ that was involved in the call to Christianity. However, it was a mere
formality. It was not a point of
decision, a point of making hard choices! Yet biblical repentance involves a
mental affirmation and heart acknowledgment of sin, together with a deliberate
choosing to turn around, with God’s help!
Who would refuse the offer of such an ‘easy gospel’? Therefore, they
clamber eagerly onto the Jesus bandwagon.
Once on it they devote themselves to attracting the most attention. They
get involved up to the hilt in church activities, in leadership, and on church
boards and committees, in seminars and conferences, on television shows and the
like. Many build impressive portfolios and public profiles. Nevertheless, they are still deceived and
lost, the blind leading the blind! For all that frenzied activity ‘in the name
of Jesus’, they might very well hear from his lips on that day,” Depart from
me. I never knew you”. So these hapless ‘converts’, rushing madly through what
Jesus described as the ‘broad gate’ (what I call ‘the easy Christianity gate’)
add to the swelling throng of deceived churchgoers. Jesus said quite clearly
that this ‘broad’ gate leads to destruction and that many would
enter through it! In contrast, only a few would find the narrow gate, which is
the only means of entry into the kingdom!
Now, that is something to think about seriously.
My allegation that the church is
full of unsaved people raises three important questions. Firstly, is it true?
Secondly, does it call for self-examination of our personal position? Thirdly,
what, if anything, can we do about the situation? Let me answer each briefly.
The first question:
Is it true? - The fact of such an admixture of saved and
unsaved, or if you like of believers and professors, is abundantly recognized
in both the Old and the New Testaments. In the OT for example, when the
Israelites left
The apostle Paul also
recognized the mixture of believers and unbelievers in the one institution. In
chapter 10 of Romans, speaking about the Jews, Paul says:” Brethren, my heart’s
desire and prayer to God for
The second
question: Does it call for self-examination of our personal positions?
- Every single person falls into one of only two categories, either
‘saved’ or ‘not saved’. There is no intermediate position. There is no such
thing as a third category of ‘fence sitters’ who have the option of deciding
either way. The choice could not be simpler or clearer. Either you are in or
out; it is black or white, this side or the other side, heaven or hell.
Therefore, if you console yourself that you are OK whilst considering which
choice to make, let me assure you that you are, without doubt, unsaved right
now! On the other hand, you might be sincere but deceived, like those in the
two groups of unsaved people in the church whom I referred to at the beginning.
If so, reading this article may well be your god given opportunity to come into
the truth and receive salvation. Do not
put it off. Your eternity rests on it. Perhaps you have friends or family from
either or both these groups and you are anxious for them. The apostle Paul too
agonized over his brother Israelites. Is there anything you can do? Yes! Introduce them to the true gospel message of
salvation, encapsulated beautifully in the catch cry of the Reformers - By
Christ alone; By Faith alone; By Scripture alone!
The third question:
What can we do about the situation? - Those that preach
and teach have a great responsibility. They will be judged more sternly than
others will, because they purportedly declare God’s word. Therefore, they must
not contaminate the invitation to ‘come as you are’ by the implication ‘no
change is required’. To do so is to
pervert the truth of the gospel message and make a mockery of the death of
God’s Son. Those who seek to swell the numbers of their congregations would do
well to establish as their priority the salvation of souls, not the filling of
pews or the raising of revenues for their ministries. This means genuine
conversions. It is nothing short of blasphemy to encourage a prospective
believer to feel comfortable about sin instead of uncomfortable. Let us not
forget that what Jesus had to say about those who would lead children into sin
applies also to those who are babes in the faith. What does Christ have in
common with Belial? Fear the Lord,
because we will all give account. Woe to those who preach a watered down
gospel!
© Preach The word-with Pastor Joseph
Rodrigues – www.kerysso.org