7-31-21 Biblical Christianity: The Essentials, Not the Excesses

Biblical Christianity: The Essentials, Not the Excesses :: By Dr. Donald Whitchard Published on: July 23, 2021 by RRadmin7 Category:General Articles Summary: There is nothing complicated about what it means to be a follower of Jesus Christ. This message is basic and can be used by anyone who needs to share their faith in Christ with someone or to turn to Him yourself. I recently got in contact with a brother in Christ living outside of London. He was asking for assistance in developing a website dedicated to Christian apologetics and evangelism for the UK, which is in just as bad a shape, if not worse, than here in America when it comes to the knowledge of God and the need for the Gospel message. Great Britain is awash in skepticism, indifference, and rank hostility towards the things of God and the urgency to come to Jesus Christ for salvation. We are as well, which is pretty obvious. However, there are still embers of spiritual fire in a remnant of believers who will not be intimidated or silenced by the world and its evil. Instead, they choose to undergo ridicule, ostracism, and persecution of varied means to see that the message of salvation in and only through the Lord Jesus Christ continues to be told and spread. Any alert Christian will see that time is running out and that we should not hold on to anything this world offers us at the expense of our walk with the LORD and the compromise of our testimony. Like Paul, we desire to be with the LORD, but we are also in the world at this time to serve Him and to accomplish His will for our lives (Philippians 1:23-26). Until that day when the LORD appears in the air to deliver us from the wrath to come (John 14:1-3; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18), or we go the way of all humanity (Psalm 116:15; 1 Corinthians 2:8-9; Hebrews 9:27), He will sovereignly keep us in the place where He wants us and will protect us until the appointed time to go home. This British brother (who will remain anonymous) asked me for the names of reputable Christian websites here in America that he could put on his site for anyone interested in knowing something about authentic Bible-based Christianity without all of the nonsense and bad teaching that seems to fill the internet lately and is, unfortunately, gaining more traction and popularity among those wanting a taste of religion and having their ears tickled and their souls put at ease (2 Timothy 4:1-5). There are not that many people today who want to hear the truth about our stand before God and what He expects of us (Romans 3:4), but we who take the call of Jesus seriously enough (Mark 16:15; Acts 1:8) to tell others need to do so in love but also with a firmness and dedication that will not wither or grow weary. Just to let you know, my webpage (www.realitycityreverend.com) has a long list of solid Biblical material. I am not here to promote myself but to present to you a summary of the article sent to the attention of the brethren in London putting his proposed apologetics website together. It deals with what Biblical Christianity is and is not, and the decision you and all people need to make concerning Jesus. The article is as follows: “So, what exactly is Biblical Christianity? I am not referring to robes, regalia, ritual, recitations, rote repetition of verses, creeds, confessions, and prayers that you either do not understand or mean when you say them. Neither is Biblical Christianity the tedious chore of listening to sermons that are nothing more than “pep talks” or dull presentations of topics and theological disputes that really affect no one in terms of drawing them nearer to the LORD and the true worship He desires. Biblical Christianity has absolutely NOTHING TO DO with the ridiculous and outlandish performances, bad preaching, gaudy appearances, and slick presentation of what is referred to as the “name it and claim it” blasphemy that religious hucksters are using to make the Sovereign LORD into some kind of “wish-granter” who has to give in to your demands for wealth, health, and prosperity. These “prosperity pimps,” as one preacher has described them, tend to sell the gullible and desperate the idea that if they send a “Seed-faith” gift to their “ministry,” they will receive blessings, healings, and the whole shebang. Meanwhile, when their promises do not come to pass, and they run off to purchase the latest jet or luxury car after using the LORD Jesus as a “cash cow,” they leave a trail of skeptics and angry, disillusioned people who end up wanting nothing to do with God or faith, which is just the way the devil wants it. Little wonder that authentic Christianity does not get a fair shot and the name of Christ is dragged through the mud (Isaiah 1:1-7, 3:12, 56:11, John 10:12; Acts 20:28-31; 2 Peter 2:12-22; Jude 1-25). I do hope that you will continue to read what I have written, for it is done with the intention of showing that real Christianity is not a series of complex ideas, formulas, not anything we can do in our own strength or effort to make ourselves somehow “good” enough for God’s standards, because we are unable to do so (Romans 1:18-32, 3:10-18; Ephesians 2:8-10). It is not merely having some kind of knowledge about Jesus that sounds decent to you, or going along with most of the world’s mindset and believing He was a “good teacher,” a “man of high moral character,” a “noble peasant sage,” or a host of other theories that are nowhere found in the Scriptures (1 Corinthians 15:1-8). Christianity is founded on the Bible’s claims and records of eyewitness collaboration and testimony (that was never retracted or denied by the apostles of Jesus or His real disciples even under torture and the threat of death) that Jesus Christ was and is God Almighty who came to Earth in the flesh to live among us as a man. His purpose was placing our sins and wickedness throughout the course of history upon Himself as a total, complete, and finished sacrifice by dying on the cross and being resurrected from death on the third day, as He told His apostles (Matthew 28:1-10; Mark 16:1-8; Luke 24:1-12; John 3:16, 14:6, 20:1-10; 2 Peter 1:16-21; Acts 1:1-8, 4:12, 20; 1 Corinthians 15:1-8). The resurrection of Jesus Christ is a fact backed by eyewitnesses as well as resources outside of the Scriptures from men such as Pliny the Younger, Suetonius, Thallus, Tacitus, Josephus, the Babylonian Talmud, Lucian, Phlegon, and Celsus. Allow me to present a basic layout of God’s plan to rescue us from our sins, as well as the coming judgment that is to fall upon this world soon (Acts 17:30-31). 1) It is an undeniable fact – despite everything and anything you may have said, done, or thought throughout your life, even your unbelief itself – that the Sovereign of the Universe, the LORD God Almighty, your Creator, DOES love you (Jeremiah 31:3; John 3:16). 2) Swallow your pride and any thought you might have that you can somehow – by your own methods, plans, or ideas – make yourself righteous before a holy God who will not allow sin into His presence or His heaven. You are a sinner, and you know it; just admit it here and now. If you do not repent and seek God’s way of salvation and reject it altogether, you will come before Him for judgment (Romans 3:23; Hebrews 9:27; Revelation 20:11-15). 3) There are ONLY two places you can go after you die, either heaven or hell (1 Corinthians 2:8-9; Luke 16:19-31). You don’t get any third options, and you don’t merely end up as a worm feast and fertilizer, either (Luke 12:13-21). You are going to be held accountable for your life, like it or not, and nothing will be hidden (Ezekiel 18:1-32; Matthew 25:14-30; Romans 2:12-16; 1 Corinthians 8:1-13). If you die without being redeemed for your sins, you will be paying your sins’ debt for eternity in hell, and you are never getting out (Revelation 20:11-15). Not good. 4) Without salvation in and only through Jesus Christ, you are dead in your sins, and you stink spiritually (Romans 6:23) as would a corpse. When you are dead, you cannot bring yourself back to life. I served as a trauma chaplain for many years, and I never once saw a dead person getting up from the slab, grabbing the paddles, placing them on his chest and yelling “CLEAR!” as the electrical current went to his stiff and corroding heart. That might happen in a grade “B” zombie movie, but not in real life. Unless the LORD intervenes on your behalf, you are helpless (John 6:44). 5) It is ONLY by the merciful and gracious act of Jesus Christ’s death on the cross on YOUR behalf that will ever save you (Romans 5:6-11). Read the Scriptures and look at the times where Jesus showed His compassion and love for people (Matthew 11:28-30), bringing them back to the loving arms of God the Father. Take the time to get with your friends or relatives who are believers (who should have told you anyway), and have them tell their story of how they came to faith in Christ. (For those of you reading this and using the excuse of “I don’t want to be a Christian because the ones I’ve seen are all hypocrites,” or something to that effect, may I offer a suggestion? Why don’t you repent of your sins, ask Christ to save you, then live and act like a true believer should, and be a role model for those of us who need to be corrected?) 6) You CAN be saved, and do not let ANYONE nor your current circumstances tell you otherwise. Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved (Acts 16:30-31; Romans 10:9-10; 1 John 5:10-13). Repent (turn) from your sins, ask Jesus to forgive you and save you. That’s it, nothing complicated or detailed. If you meant what you said and asked in faith, you are now a real child of God. Submit to His guidance and care from this time on (Acts 5:29). After you have surrendered your life to Christ, be sure to tell someone and never stay silent when it comes to sharing your faith (Acts 4:20). Find a Bible-centered, Christ-honoring group of believers who meet regularly for fellowship and study of the Word, and get a copy of the Bible for yourself. I would recommend a version where the language has been updated, such as the New King James Bible. I always instruct new believers to begin reading the Gospel of Luke and then proceed to the book of Acts for an overall view of the life of Jesus and the start of the church. Welcome to the family of God, and I look forward to meeting you the day when we are all gathered around the throne of the LORD in the new heaven and earth.” I encourage every follower of the Lord Jesus Christ reading this message to use what has been presented as a tool in making the case for why you trust in Him for real life, truth, and peace, and to see the fruit of your witness take bloom. Win souls for the LORD, brethren. The time is almost at hand, and the harvest still needs to be gathered. donaldwhitchard@gmail.com www.realitycityreverend.com