Jude 1:22-23 22 Be merciful to those who doubt; 23 save others by snatching them from the fire; to others show mercy, mixed with fear—hating even the clothing stained by corrupted flesh.
The Unexpected Adventure- A Time for Urgency- Jude 1:22-23
Mark recounts the story of his great uncle, Maurice, who, while being a good person, had always been "vaguely" religious and viewed church as an opportunity for social interaction and influence. Many in the family were worried about Maurice's eternal destination. Maurice's health began to fail, and he was nearing the end of his life. During one visit to his parents' home, Mark spent some time with Maurice. He confronted Maurice directly about his spiritual state. Maruice listened politely, but told Mark "I'll be okay." Later Mark followed up with a letter encouraging Maurice to make a personal decision to accept Christ as Lord and Savior.
This is not one of the happy ending stories. As far as Mark knows, Maurice died never having made that personal decision to accept Jesus Christ. Mark writes, "I realized that I would never know this side of eternity how he (Maurice) had responded to what I had said."
Action Principle- "We're not merely trying to help people improve their lives. We're pointing them to Jesus, who unambiguously declared, "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (John 14:6) At times we need to screw up the courage to speak the truth in a loving, yet urgent manner.
Fine line time- Where is the line between the "social" gospel of food kitchens, earthquake relief and homeless assistance and the Jesus-only salvation message. Standing on a corner of the square with a sign saying, "Trust Jesus or burn in hell" might be theologically accurate, but won't draw many to Christ. However, if all today's church becomes just another assistance organization, we have deviated from the Great Commission.
Should all food baskets be accompanied with a Roman Road pamphlet? Do we write out John 3:16 on the back of all dollar bills we give to panhandlers? (It is not illegal to write on money unless it makes it unfit for use or you are attempting to defraud.)
The main point of today's reading is that we must have the courage and wisdom to clearly speak the eternal Gospel truth when led to do so by the Holy Spirit.
I have not read your blog for a couple of days, so some of what follows may be a little our of date. In today's (23) paper Roger Ray scolds the modern church for not taking a stronger stand on social issues. And your comments on the advisabiity of adding a gospel message to donated food baskets touch the heart of the issue.
ReplyDelete"Good" athiests, agnostics, Muslims and Buddhists help feed the poor and allievate earthly suffering, but only Christians have a cure for eternal sin-sickness. Maybe a direct "If you died tonight, would you go to heaven or hell" question is not appropriate, but some sort of "We are doing this, giving this, for you because we are Christians" should be included with each humanitarian effort.