Solomon Stoddard had a problem. Like other pastors in 17th century New England, he wanted every citizen in town to belong to the church. But many of the Puritan children were not interested in following Jesus, so Stoddard relaxed the rules for church membership. Anyone who assented to the church’s teachings and avoided immorality could join the church, whether or not they showed signs of conversion.
Stoddard’s innovation enlarged the church’s reach, but significantly reduced its spiritual grasp. The church could boast that it included everyone in town, but what did church membership mean when the bar was set so low? Stoddard’s grandson, Jonathan Edwards, recognized the problem. But he was fired by the congregation when he demanded that church members produce credible confessions of faith.
A similar situation exists today. We want everyone to belong to the kingdom of God, but many people are not interested in following Jesus. Some pastors respond by relaxing the rules for membership. They say that we don’t need to believe in Jesus to enter the kingdom. We don’t even need to enter, for everyone is already in.
But Jesus said that He is the door and only “those who come in through Me will be saved” (John 10:9). If Jesus is the only door, then anyone who denies his or her need to believe in Him is shutting the door to the kingdom (Matthew 23:13-14). Worse, like Stoddard’s church-membership experiment, lowering the bar for belonging to the kingdom eliminates the very idea of the kingdom. A kingdom that includes everyone and asks nothing from anyone is no longer a meaningful concept. If it is everything, it is also nothing. So the kingdom would no longer exist, and you can’t enter what isn’t there.
If you want your friends to enter the kingdom, don’t knock down the walls. Show them the door.
NLT 365-day reading plan passage for today: 1 Samuel 28:1-25
More:
Compare Matthew 1:21 with John 3:18,36 to learn why we must believe in Jesus to be saved. Read John 6:29 to see what God requires from us.
Next:
Is it more loving to tell people that they must repent and believe in Jesus (Mark 1:15) or that they were born inside the kingdom? Why is it vital that we believe in Jesus?
Soldier4Christ on April 2, 2011 at 4:49 am
Well said Chileshe, many churches today and in times past water down the Word in order to build numbers but God’s Word must never be watered down. And we must not soften our testimony just to appease others. The Holy Bible is the Word of God and what it says is what it means, God gave us those instructions to benefit us and we must not change one word in order to draw others in. I believe that Jesus is going to return soon and we must be totally honest in dealing with sin and calling others to the Kingdom of God. We are called to love the sinner but hate the sin, but we are also called to live honest, transparent lives so that others will see Christ in us.
GChoo on April 2, 2011 at 8:14 am
I cannot believe how some pastors would say such things that people do not need to believe in Jesus to enter the kingdom of God and everyone is already in. How unbelieveable!
I wonder where in the Bible that says we do not need to? All i know in particular is in Revelation 22:18-19 of God’s warning to all who adds or takes away anything will be punished. I suppose those people who believe in these ‘pastors’ are also ‘wolf in sheep’s skin’, and as in Matthew 23: 15 says, ‘Woe to you, teachers of the law … travel over land and sea to win a single convert, … you make im twice as much a son of hell as you are.’
Thank you for all your sharing. It is a reminder for us to keep focusing on God’s Word and to pray for discernment so that we are not easily misled.
mike wittmer on April 2, 2011 at 8:56 am
Something else I’ve learned–pay close attention when Christian leaders say the important thing is to follow in the “way of Jesus.” Of course that’s true, but increasingly some Christians use that phrase as a replacement for believing in Jesus. As long as we follow Jesus’ way–which usually cashes out as inclusiveness–then we are following Jesus, even if we don’t know about or believe in him.
lak on April 2, 2011 at 9:48 am
Mike,
I have just finished a small book that I recommend to you. It is entitled, “We Would See Jesus,” and was authored by Roy and Revel Hession. It is out of print I believe but you can obtain a used copy from places like AbeBooks.com.
I recommend this excellent book to you because the authors address this very subject of Jesus being the Way. He is not the way to the Way. He is the Way.
In this season of my discipleship, I am increasingly desiring a lifestyle of repentance. Too many in the church are making Almighty God in the image of man. We are living in an age that I call, “Suffer’n Succotash.” An age of a mixture of the world with the kingdom of God which is producing all manner of suffering indeed.
I believe the Lord is calling those who have ears to hear and hearts that are truly inclined to Him to come out from any mixture with the world. There is a cost for taking such a stand in the world and worldly church. A cost that says with Paul, to live is Christ and to die is gain.
Hallelujah!
Thank you for writing such an important message. May our Lord bless you for your faithfulness.
Paul t on April 2, 2011 at 11:39 am
Zero_g brings up a point and a thought provoking one at that. True, we shouldn’t lower the bar to build up a congregation, but should allow the entrance to God loving people. Romans 7:2-3 states if a womans husband lives and she marries…she’s an adulteress. If she loves the Lord, can she have eternal life? The discussion continues
daisymarygoldr on April 2, 2011 at 2:56 pm
Awesome post and good discussion! I liked how unclegene showed the door without knocking down the walls 🙂
Just like Stoddard, Bell’s hell may be based on good intentions. But in opening the kingdom of God for everyone to enter he has shut the door to heaven and is leading his followers to hell.
Let us not knock down walls and water down the truth about eternal torment of God’s wrath in order to make hell tolerable for people. Instead we can point our friends to God’s loving grace in sending His Son to save us from eternal damnation.
Jesus Christ went down to the depths of hell and suffered God’s fiery judgment on our behalf. By defeating hell and death He is the only open door to enter heaven for anyone who chooses to believe and follow Him into eternal life.
winn collier on April 2, 2011 at 6:25 pm
the kingdom-path is wide and narrow at the same time. I think there is much to explore — and much to walk — there.
cuddles on April 2, 2011 at 6:58 pm
I am not knowledgeable on the bible but what passage says that nothing will separate us from God,doesn’t it say not hell itself so ultimately do you really believe God will leave the wicked to be tortured for eternity, I would think God’s plan is to separate the wicked but I do not believe it is conceivable that God will leave anyone in some form of eternal agony. God is good remember. In this world there is the good, the bad and the ugly, I believe God will separate the good and the bad from the ugly as only he can as he planned from the beginning and is in the process of doing., There is so much we do not see yet!
Soldier4Christ on April 3, 2011 at 6:54 am
When I came back on this Sunday morning to see what was written in response to this devotional I was amazed to see some of the responses.
One that sticks out for me is that of Zero_g, God does operate the same today as yesterday and will continue to do so tomorrow as well. It is we humans that change things to fit our liking and understanding and to justify the things that we want to do or have happen. God’s word is very clear on what is and isn’t sin, you first have to pray, read it and study it in order to gain understanding of the Word. We need to pray that God will open our eyes to the things in His Word that He has for each of us.
Homosexuality is a sin plain and simple, in fact God says in the Bible that it is an abomination in His site. Marriage is to be between a man and a woman, period. The Bible clearly states that a man shall not lay with another man or woman with another woman.
We in the church today must love the sinner but hate the sin. Just as much as we must hate the sin in our own lives. We all need to repent of our sins, and then we need to turn and run from them.
As to what you were saying “cuddles”
I don’t have the verse that your referring to in front of me nor am I a Bible scholar but any part of scripture must be taken in context in order to be correctly used, I do believe that the ones that cannot be separated from God are His children. Those who have given their lives to Jesus as Lord and Savior. The is only one way into Heaven and that is through Jesus who paid the price for our sins on the cross.
If anyone reading these comments today doesn’t know Jesus as Lord then I would urge you to find a Bible believing, Bible preaching church and give your life to Christ. For those that are Christians that may be confused by Satan and His lies I would say that you need to get on your knees and ask the Holy Spirit for guidance. Get into God’s word on a daily basis and pray that God will open your eyes. He will change your life if you let Him.
zero_g on April 3, 2011 at 8:40 am
God works through this web site, which did not exist when the Bible was written. In fact technology, mainly the internet has allowed God to reveal Himself through the outpouring of relief and compassion for those suffering disasters on the otherside of the world, like the recent tsunami in Japan. This was not possible in the time of the Bible.
The way God works even changed through the short time of the Bible as in Acts 10:15. Remember, the Bible is not the word of God, but God ‘breathed’ or inspired. It was written by men.
Soldier4Christ on April 4, 2011 at 8:37 am
Things change and the way things are done change but God never changes.
The Bible is the Word of God and Jesus is the only way to salvation.
zero_g on April 4, 2011 at 12:11 pm
Thanks for the suggestion GChoo. It looks like that book is writtern for homosexuals. I am not gay. For those of you who, like me, feel uncomfortable with how Christianity has dealt with homosexuality, I suggest “When Christians get it Wrong” by Adam Hamilton.
GChoo on April 6, 2011 at 11:26 am
zero_g, sorry i did not assume you are gay. I feel a concern you have for homosexual. I have read it and i find that it had helped me to have a better understanding about homosexuality and God’s view about it. It is not doubt this book was written for those who think and are confused about their sex identity and seeking more understanding from the writer who was a homosexual before. Thanks for the recommended book.
zero_g on April 2, 2011 at 8:34 am
In reading Romans 28, did they suffer because of what they did (homosexuality) or because they didn’t acknowledge God? When you have a gay couple wanting to get married in a church, they *are* acknowledging God in this request. We do not admit gays into the church because Romans 26-27 says it is a sin.
Why does the Bible say it is a sin, because it is sex for a purpose other than pro-creation. If you agree with this reason, then I think it would be safe to say a majority of the heterosexuals which make up our churches commit this same sin with their partner of the opposite sex regularly. Most people would not call sex with their spouse a sin, but we call homosexuality a sin and deny admitted homosexuals access to the church.
Of course you can go to far and just let everyone in, believers or not, and dilute the church. However, when you have gay people who acknowledge God, want to praise him and grow in His spirit, wanting to be accepted by the church, you are faced with a different decision. A decision based more on what you think is sin, instead of decision which will grow a kingdom of true believers.
unclegene on April 2, 2011 at 12:52 pm
Zero. If you start at verse Rom.1:28 you can be absolutely sure they would suffer because of their sins which were many (See vs26-31) which starts with homosexuality and continues with dozens of other sins. “Marriage should be honored by all, and the marriage bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all the sexually immoral” (Hebrews 13:4). Therefore any sexual activity other than that between a married man and woman is a sin whether done for any reason by homosexuals or heterosexuals. Abraham spent decades married to Sarah having sex but not having children. He did not sin until he had sex with Hagar. Having sex without procreation by a married man and woman is not a sin. It is a God’s way of married couples sharing a true love for each other as well as for procreation.
The only reason that a homosexual or any other sinner should be denied entrance into churches is the same reason that Jesus denies anyone entrance to His Kingdom which is because they have not repented. “I tell you, Nay: but, except ye repent, ye shall all likewise perish.” Luke 13:3 This word repent, if you go back to the greek, means to turn your mind against all sin not just homosexuality. Zero I will pray for you to accept the truth.
zero_g on April 2, 2011 at 11:58 pm
Acts 10:15 “What God has made clean you must not call profane or unclean.”
What is and isn’t a sin is not very clear in the Bible. Is it the Ten Commandments or is it everything mentioned? Eating pork was a sin, but is not generally considered a sin today. It is surely not a basis for being accepted to a Christian church.
It was not my intention to debate what is and isn’t sin, but rather to perhaps clarify a distinction between letting anyone into a the church to help the numbers, versus growing the church with fellow believers in Christ.
God is working in 2011, differently than He was when the Bible was written. We need to be open minded and look for Gods message in 2011. Is a man gay because of his environment, or because he was made that way? We will never know unless we get out of His way let them into the loving arms of His church.
GChoo on April 3, 2011 at 11:49 am
zero-g, thank you for your sharing. May i recommend you to read this book ‘Setting Love in Order’ by Mario Bergner. This is about homosexuality and healing, you will find more understanding about it and about God.
You are right about letting all kinds of people into the church so that they will know more about God and His truth. His Word will set us free from the world’s way and thinking. Only when we are willing to submit to the guidance of His Holy Spirit will we see the truth with the eyes of our heart.
Pray that God will help you to find your way to His Truth and His Great Love.