Make the Message Clear and Plain
Barbara Henderson
It was an interesting day in Jerusalem
to say the least. In recent weeks Jesus Christ had been crucified, buried, and
rose up from the grave. He was seen by
many. There was no doubt that Christ was
risen from the dead. He ascended to
heaven. His Apostles were gathered in
Jerusalem waiting for the time to come to preach! The crowds gathered, also waiting. THEN Peter, the Apostle of Jesus Christ,
stood up to preach the good news – salvation by grace alone, through faith
alone, through Christ alone.
In the crowd listening to Peter preach
there were people from all over the place! Most languages and cultures were
represented right there in Jerusalem listening to the fisherman tell every
individual how to be reconciled to God Almighty and obtain citizenship in
heaven through Jesus Christ. Peter made
the message clear and plain. He did not
turn aside to avoid hurting the feelings of those who worshipped false
gods. He did not attempt to entertain in
order to get people’s attention. He did
not dress like the most popular culture. He did not care what celebrities were
doing at the moment. He did not have a
praise band playing pop music disguised as music designed to please Almighty
God. Peter simply opened his mouth and
proclaimed the gospel. He made it as
clear and plain as possible. He told the
truth. Were some people offended? Most likely.
Were some converted? Definitely! The church exploded with true converts. Peter made the message clear and plain. There was no confusion regarding exactly what
the message was. The message was REPENT! You are walking down a road that leads to
hell. You don’t have to go there. Turn from the things of this world and look
to the gift of eternal life offered through Jesus Christ alone!
If you have been following the news in
the United States you know that headline news was the story of the Duck Dynasty
star Phil Robertson clearly saying homosexuality is a sin. He got suspended from his job as a television
star on a reality show. The network –
A&E – thought because of the money involved that they would be able to get
an apology out of the bearded icon. It
didn’t work! A&E thought America
would rise up and condemn the man for not accepting homosexuality as a
legitimate lifestyle. They got a big
surprise. In the end – there was a lot
of money on the line, and A&E reinstated the Duck Dynasty patriarch. Personally, I don’t watch the show. Having relatives in Arkansas and Oklahoma who
could match the Duck Dynasty stars homespun humor and lack of any bending to
peer pressure, the show may be just a tad too close to home for me. However, I am pleased to see a show that
represents Christian family values. I
just don’t watch it. I don’t watch a lot
of television period. I applaud the
family values in the show, and their refusal to bend to the forced tolerance
that is rampant in the current political, cultural, and social setting in the
USA and in the world. I have been
thinking about how to go forward in stopping the sort of evil treatment
Christians and conservatives get for simply speaking the truth. This is what I came up with.
Today
I am calling for national rebellion against forced tolerance of anything and
everything that is not right according to God. There is no one
person or even half the population of any nation that has the authority to
change into ‘good’ what God has clearly called ‘bad’. End of story.
Do not let the world silence you!
You don’t have to go looking for a fight. Just be ready to tell the truth when the opportunity
arises. You don’t have to say it in a
hateful manner. On the homosexuality
issue simply quoting scripture is enough. Tell those who don’t like the message
in the Bible to take it up with God.
We are at war, and this war is far
more than a culture war. This is a war
for the truth. The truth is clearly
stated in the Bible on every important subject.
Truth is unchanging. It is not
affected by time, culture, social agendas, acceptable morals in any particular
culture or social environment, or quantum leaps in pseudo-science.
First, there is a personal decision to
simply speak the truth when called on regardless of the social or political
fallout. If you wind up facing the
giants, remember that you are just a lowly messenger. You don’t have any authority to change the
truth. Do what is right. Don’t waste your time trying to fit into the
current culture. Don’t waste your time
trying to stay in touch with the current politically correct hot buttons or the
social agenda’s making headlines. If you
make a real effort to do what is right according to God Almighty you will make
one major effort each and every day. You
will work to treat others the way you want to be treated. That means treat others with kindness and
tell them the truth. Remember that very
often things that are social acceptable or politically correct are not based on
truth.
Second, there is the church. The duty of every church is to tell the truth
without deviations. That’s it. When the truth of God is mixed in with pop
culture, political correctness, attempts to reach different cultures, or
anything else that distracts from the gospel the message is NOT clear and
plain. Listeners have to sort through
all sorts of gobbled-gook in order to find the truth. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou
shalt be saved. It doesn’t matter if you
live in a shack or a palace. The message is the same. It doesn’t matter if you are young or old,
rich or poor, smart of not so smart, the message is the same. It doesn’t matter if you are from central
Africa or Scandanavia. The message is
the same. It doesn’t matter if your
culture is Southern American or Yankee American. It doesn’t matter if you live in a nation
where freedom of choice of religion is allowed or in a nation where accepting
Jesus Christ may get you murdered. The
message is the same. Jesus says come
unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden and I will give you rest. That is the message.
There is no better message than the
message of salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ – the only begotten
Son of God. You can, however, confuse
the message drastically by dumbing it down, applying worldly tactics for
business growth to church growth, pop culture, social agendas, political correctness,
or any other distraction.
The motto of Christians could be ‘Make
the message Clear and Plain’. Christ
receiveth sinful men!
Christ Receiveth Sinful Men
Sinners Jesus will receive;
Sound this word of grace to all
Who the heavenly pathway leave,
All who linger, all who fall.
Sound this word of grace to all
Who the heavenly pathway leave,
All who linger, all who fall.
Refrain
Sing it o’er and over again;
Christ receiveth sinful men;
Make the message clear and plain:
Christ receiveth sinful men.
Christ receiveth sinful men;
Make the message clear and plain:
Christ receiveth sinful men.
Come, and He will give you rest;
Trust Him, for His Word is plain;
He will take the sinfulest;
Christ receiveth sinful men.
Trust Him, for His Word is plain;
He will take the sinfulest;
Christ receiveth sinful men.
Refrain
Now my heart condemns me not,
Pure before the law I stand;
He who cleansed me from all spot,
Satisfied its last demand.
Pure before the law I stand;
He who cleansed me from all spot,
Satisfied its last demand.
Refrain
Christ receiveth sinful men,
Even me with all my sin;
Purged from every spot and stain,
Heaven with Him I enter in.
Even me with all my sin;
Purged from every spot and stain,
Heaven with Him I enter in.
Refrain
