When to say Stop God!

Many Christians these days have a distorted idea of who or what God is. If you are smart about it, any concepts you gain about the God of the Bible should be drawn from the Bible itself and the Christian tradition. When you run into problems about the nature of God, and you will if you live long enough, lets say that your life sort of starts to resemble the life of Job, you can turn to the nature of salvation in times in your life to comfort you. Doctrine about salvation says that there is a Hell that mankind must avoid, but living in the 21st century talk about Hell is non-existent now, which it is my desire to see more and more people start to fear this reality of the afterlife. I cannot remember the last sermon I heard, which the preacher instilled a healthy fear of God in their hearers. In fact I am listening to Christian teachers as I am writing this, and evangelical Christians these days think that because they are saved, they have already escaped the judgements of God that take place after death.

This is a different kind of Christianity that I grew up in my 20's, where there was a real fear of hell even among Christians, after death and even those who were alive in Christ had a healthy fear of hell and took their salvation more seriously. Today hell has become a joke among believers and unbelievers, and now born again Christians laugh at the fact that there is a real possibility that they too could end up in hell, if they don't persevere in goodness, Romans 2:6-11 NIV God “will repay each person according to what they have done.”^a 7To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor and immortality, he will give eternal life. 8But for those who are self-seeking and who reject the truth and follow evil, there will be wrath and anger. 9There will be trouble and distress for every human being who does evil: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile; 10but glory, honor and peace for everyone who does good: first for the Jew, then for the Gentile. 11For God does not show favoritism.

The Bible clearly shows that we cannot live the way we want, we must obey the voice of Christ in the gospels. Christ has been called a good teacher and that is true, but he was more than that, he was the Lord. To say that you are saved and going to Heaven, yet living with no love for humanity makes you unsaved. The teaching of Christianity teaches that if you don't show love for you fellow man you will be judged in Hell. People who use Doctrine to assure themselves should read a large portion of scripture in the book of James 2:14-26 NIV:

What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save them? 15Suppose a brother or a sister is without clothes and daily food. 16If one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and well fed,” but does nothing about their physical needs, what good is it? 17In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.

18But someone will say, “You have faith; I have deeds.”

Show me your faith without deeds, and I will show you my faith by my deeds. 19You believe that there is one God. Good! Even the demons believe that—and shudder.

20You foolish person, do you want evidence that faith without deeds is useless^d ? 21Was not our father Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? 22You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. 23And the scripture was fulfilled that says, “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness,”^e and he was called God’s friend. 24You see that a person is considered righteous by what they do and not by faith alone.

25In the same way, was not even Rahab the prostitute considered righteous for what she did when she gave lodging to the spies and sent them off in a different direction? 26As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.

It is very clear what the above is saying, you cannot say you are a Christian because you have right doctrine and believe the right things, (you may be a Christian in name only!) go to the right church, have a famous Pastor, you are a member of your church and serve and attend small group. Being saved means that you do all these things, but you also practise your faith by living out what the Bible teaches, practically. I have heard it said that if your faith hasn't changed you, it hasn't saved you. I would like to change that and say "Your faith isn't saving you unless you are allowing it to change you and practically loving other people through deeds just not words." This is Mike.