Is The Church Chasing The World Away From Christ? Part 1

The book of Proverbs 25:26 it reads, "A righteous man falling down before the wicked is as a troubled fountain, and a corrupt spring."

I use that verse of scripture to show that those of us in the Church must be careful how we present ourselves to the world - that is the fallen world. For how are we to reach them if we are doing the same things they are doing? Answer? We will not reach them. We MUST be lights in a dark world that has no hope and without God in the world (Ephesians 2:12).

We have to lovingly and firmly stand our ground for truth no matter what. We do not have to resort to gimmicks or tricks to draw the lost into the kingdom. God is adding daily to His Church those that will be saved (Acts 2:47). Our blessed role is to be the seed planters - preach the gospel.

Now, back to the original question. Are we in the Church running away the lost? Sadly and perhaps often, yes. How? When someone who is a faithful church attendee does or says something ungodly, the accuser will make sure your sin(s) are exposed to everyone. The accuser will then stereotype all Christians and label them hypocrites. Often times they're right. We do act hypocritically. 

At this point for the person that had put their trust in you as an example of a virtuous person, you most likely have blown your witness to them. Their view of God, the Church, and the Bible is distorted because in their mind you have burned them. Many people that have a bad Church experience now despise Christians and the God they serve. 

Our role as ambassadors of God in the earth cannot be underestimated. How we represent Jesus is how they view Him. So, we must all ask ourselves, "how am I representing God in my life?"

Sadly for many, they see God as a cosmic genie. This represents the prosperity gospel. They see gain as godliness. If one presents this view as gospel to those they know and these people do not prosper financially and materially, they will conclude that God is not real because they are not rich and prosperous. You see many televangelists spew financial gain as godliness. The word of God declares exactly the opposite, "Godliness with contentment is great gain" (1 Timothy 6:6). 

For others, they view God strictly as a healer. If God does not heal them of their sickness and or disease, they determine that God is not real. Why? Because someone else misrepresented God to them perhaps at some healing crusade from a fake healer. And for someone who has been paralyzed all their life, this is the hope they have been waiting for. When they find out they have been scammed, many walk away from the Church - never to return again.

Now, let me come to the defense of those of us who are truly in Christ. True believers have the Spirit of God dwelling on the inside of them. It's a spiritual reality that we cannot see. The Christian life is an ongoing, developmental growth process. None of us mature overnight, or in a few days. Just like it takes years for a newborn to become an adult, it takes our whole life long to become more and more Christlike. Based on our gifting and our commitment to truth will determine our rate of growth. As in the natural world some mature and develop faster than others, it is the same dynamic in our Christian lives. And just like a natural person often stumbles and falls, we do that in our redeemed lives too.

Yes, Christians sin too (1 John 1:8-10).

But, what is so important to remember is that sin can no longer be the hallmark of our lives like it used to be prior to our conversion. We have been delivered from our sins through Christ so we no longer have to serve sin anymore (Romans 6:1).

In 2 Peter 3:18 we are commanded to grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. When we do this, we will be more careful about how we represent Christ to the world. Peter also said this in chapter one of  2 Peter 1:5-9, "And besides this, giving all diligence, add to your faith virtue, and to virtue knowledge; and to knowledge temperance; and to temperance patience; and to patience godliness; and to godliness brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness charity. For if these things be in you, and abound (italics mine. Italics not in original text), they make you that you shall neither be barren or unfruitful in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But he that lacks these things is blind, and cannot see afar off, and has forgotten that he was purged from old sins. 

The last sentence is why so many Christians do not experience victory in their lives. They are selling themselves short in disobedience. They are also unfortunately knowingly or unknowingly merchandising their blindness-shortsighted ways to others who are getting hurt and running away from the Church.

It's time for us to grow up Church and get serious and do what we have been commissioned to do. We do not have a lot of time left before Jesus returns.