This blog
offends some people and I wish it did not. Maybe if I could shine the love of Christ more, my words would be better received by others. Trust me, few know more about the life changing power of the gospel
than I do, because I had a lot to change when it
came to how I treated my husband. Yet it was this same Truth that offended me, that has set me free.
Unfortunately,
the gospel offends many people and that part I can do nothing about. Just
saying the name of God or worse yet, the name of Jesus, greatly offends many. David
Wilkerson wrote a sermon against the "seeker-friendly"
churches and I thought I would share a piece of it ~
I listened
in horror to a man, who attended one of the largest seeker-friendly churches,
being interviewed by CBS. He said, "I come to this church because I'm
comfortable. I'm never made to feel uneasy. I bring my Jewish friends and my
business friends, and I know nothing will ever be said that will offend them.
The best part of it is, the whole thing only lasts an hour." Take it from
me: You can get your big church and be one of the big boys, but it's going to
cost you your soul if you preach with a focus only on earthly things, rather
than on the things of God.
I am the
type who likes to hear hard words. I like to be challenged. I read comments on
other blogs like, "I
love your blog. You never make me feel guilty for working full-time." You won't like my blog then. If
you are working full-time and neglecting your husband, children, or home, I
don't believe you should be working full-time if you truly don't need to. Maybe
there are a few women who can be godly help meets to their husband, train their
children to walk in Truth, fix nutritious food, and care for the home while
working full-time, but not many. When a few work out of necessity, I know God’s
grace surrounds them, but God’s Word does call Christian mothers to be keepers
at home.
If you don't
want to hear that you are to be submissive to your husband, even if you do not
think he is worthy, you will not like reading my blog. I am called by God to
teach the younger women to be subject to their husbands and if God’s Word
teaches it, I will also. I don't like being comfortable where I am. I always
want to grow in the wisdom and in the knowledge of God, especially knowing who I
am in Christ.
My purpose in writing this blog is not to offend, but to encourage my readers to begin pondering their ways to see if they line up with the ways of God. I see the seeker-friendly church that has thousands of attendees, makes loads of money, and makes people feel good about life, but
endangers their soul. God warns strongly against being lukewarm Christians. Lukewarm means compromising God's Word for the pleasures of this world. Jesus
warns against calling Him "Lord, Lord," then not doing what He says.
This is why
it is so important to be in His Word every day seeking Truth, knowing God, and
the power of the Gospel. Find a church that isn't afraid to teach all of God’s
Word systematically, isn't afraid to call sin "sin" and encourages
their congregation to walk in obedience to God, in the newness of life. Find a
church that teaches who we are in Christ often and encourages you in this way. One
that loves the Lord Jesus Christ and desires more than anything to please Him
and be like Him.
I pray I can
continue to teach the Truth of God's Word boldly and without compromise, yet with
much grace. Pray for me that my personality and writing style will not hinder the
gospel but will be used by God to touch lives. Please forgive me when my words get in
the way of God’s most important message of the Good News, salvation in Christ alone.
So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold,
I will spit you out of My mouth.
Revelation 3:16
helen · 574 weeks ago
Wow, what a great post, bless you!, I immediately thought of the John 6, where Jesus was teaching the people but they found his teachings too hard, and many who had followed him up to that point, turned away.........
John Chapter 6
' From this time many of his disciples turned back and no longer followed him.
‘You do not want to leave too, do you?’ Jesus asked the Twelve.
Simon Peter answered him, ‘Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe and to know that you are the Holy One of God.’
Teaching can be hard to hear, but a faithful church will preach even the difficult stuff, and as you say in this post, I think we would echo Simon Peters words
'Lord.to whom shall we go?, YOU have the words of eternal life'
Blessings
Helen UK
Mbb · 574 weeks ago
Courtney · 574 weeks ago
Ken · 574 weeks ago
elspethbreathinggrace 46p · 574 weeks ago
-Elspeth
Tiffany · 574 weeks ago
Lori Alexander 122p · 574 weeks ago
Brittany · 574 weeks ago
Lori Alexander 122p · 574 weeks ago
Megan · 574 weeks ago
Just because someone is offended doesn't mean that what you are saying is wrong... sometimes it is a flesh reaction to a new truth.
Lori Alexander 122p · 574 weeks ago
Amanda · 574 weeks ago
Lori Alexander 122p · 574 weeks ago
S.J · 573 weeks ago
Ken · 574 weeks ago
I try not to get offended at much of what non-christians do or say unless it is illegal or meant to be offensive. I see people's sensibilities offended far too easily, especially with the issue of spanking and submission. It is the loudest outcry's that tend to shape and form our society. Yell fire loud enough and some legislation will be written, not because its truly necessary, but because a small group wants to control others. They know better, and thus they get offended each time someone writes or says something with which they disagree.
Our freedoms are eroding as the voice of the majority often stays silent as the yelling of the offended is so loud that no one wants to get in their cross hairs. Then we wake up one day and wonder what happened to our country, its freedom of religion, and the right to privacy in how one raises their children.
Amy · 574 weeks ago
I have noticed a couple of trends (at least on blogs!) lately about being offended.
1. As long as I'm saying something that is true, it doesn't matter how I say it or why I say it. People shouldn't be offended because it's the truth, and if they are offended it's not my fault.
2. People SHOULD be offended because what I'm saying is the truth. They're only offended because they're being convicted.
3. If you speak out about what I'm saying or present another point of view, it's only because you're offended. In which case, refer to #1 or #2!
Now I am not saying that you are doing any of that, but I have certainly seen it in the past few weeks. Obviously, we cannot be so worried about offending someone that we neglect to teach the truth or that we water down the message of the Gospel, but we should realize that our words and the way we present them to others do matter.
I enjoy reading your blog (even on days I disagree, however slightly!), and I think it would be so interesting to have a face to face conversation with you sometime!
Lori Alexander 122p · 574 weeks ago
I am sure other bloggers experience the same thing. Look at some of the comments Matt Walsh gets and I do not see him trying to be offensive, but he is speaking the Truth. Some ardent feminists, anti-spankers, God haters, have an agenda to try to frustrate and punish those with whom they disagree by the nastiness of their comments.
Amy · 573 weeks ago
Amelie · 574 weeks ago
Paula · 574 weeks ago
Lori Alexander 122p · 574 weeks ago
Kim · 573 weeks ago
lauraboggess 49p · 573 weeks ago