Return Ticket

 Return ticket

Much is spoken and discussed about the path the Church in general is taking. Whilst there is much church activity and direction to rejoice about, sadly, there is much we need to repent over too.  There are great moves, for example, to take the church out of buildings and into the streets and homes of the people. There are great moves among younger people and great excitement with much new energy that the church has long needed. However, there are also roads and directions the church is taking which, for whatever reason, are leading much of the church into heresy against its own professed beliefs.

For far too long, the various sections of the church have elected to ignore God’s Word and what it says about Israel, homosexuality, and abortion. For too long the church has ignored what God says about Satan, the Holy Spirit, and even Jesus Himself. Parts of the church have abandoned true Christianity so as to embrace other religions and explore the ‘many’ ways to God. The Church, to me, has invested in a one-way ticket to Hell. They need a return ticket as soon as possible.

It is time for the Church to publicly condemn those popular causes so beloved of the liberals. We must speak out against homosexuality and same sex marriage. I am not homophobic by the way. I love the sinner but I hate their sin. We must speak out fearlessly against the branch of child murder called abortion. We must speak out fearlessly against those who continue to oppose Israel – including many within the church itself. We must return to Biblical values and definitions of hell, Satan, and sin. We need to re-affirm our belief that Jesus is who the Bible says He is and the Holy Spirit still works today in the ways the Bible says He works.

We need to return to the Gospel - to repentance, redemption, sanctification, and grace. What is wrong with the Gospel of the Bible that so many have abandoned it in the effort to make it more acceptable to today’s non-believing man in the street.

The cry to repentance, once the hall-mark of John the Baptists preaching and ministry, leads to forgiveness. We are baptised to signify forgiveness of our sins and as an outward expression of our death and rebirth in Christ.

Jesus completed the transaction of redemption on the cross at Calvary. He paid the price and redeemed us from hell and purchased our salvation at the cost of His own Blood.

The Holy Spirit continues the work of sanctification by leading us to Christ-likeness. This is a continuing process which will not cease until we are finally redeemed ready for eternal life.

What carries us through all of this? It is Grace which is best described as God’s undeserved favour towards us and it covers just about everything we can think of.

Do all of this and maybe the Church will return to the Narrow Gate and the Narrow Way. Ignore it, and we will be in danger of joining great swathes of the world and some of the church in Hell.