A common Christian-speak question: “If you were arrested for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict you?” Going by the number of Google searches, it seems the question is still relevant to preachers and writers as it was when I was first challenged with it 30-plus years ago. But much has happened in that time throughout the Western church and much of it not good, sad to say. The biblical teaching that once lifted millions out from spiritual, mental and physical slavery, the same teaching that once sent multitudes to the stake, the stocks and the prisons has been so watered down it is barely recognizable today.
Take the teaching on Repentance for example: Although God overlooked the ignorance of earlier times, He now commands all men (people) everywhere to repent. Acts 17:30 BSB. Do you see it? He now commands…. Why such a command? For He has set a day when He will judge the world with justice by the Man He has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising Him from the dead Acts 17:31 BSB. If you step into most Western churches today you won’t hear this preached in such a forthright manner. If it is “preached” at all, it will likely be in a shallow, wishy-washy, apologetic, “I’m-sorry-to-tell-you-this”-type manner. Certainly, He now commands, will not come through; more likely it will be, You are invited…… or He would like……
In other words, the core message received by the hearers will be one that impresses upon them they’ll be doing Jesus a favor if they turn to Him. Rarely is it preached that it is God Almighty Himself who’s doing us a favor! This is a primary explanation as to why Western-world culture permeates most churches and Christian groups today. Sin is not viewed from the biblical perspective, it’s viewed from the human perspective. For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, the Bible declares in Romans 3:23. “All have messed up,” the preacher declares. Big difference! What is sin? Sin is lawlessness 1 John 3:4. Sin is the transgression of the law of God; it is turning aside from God’s commandments and ordinances. The essence of all sin is to be against God and His authority.
That’s what makes human-centered religious practice so popular. The biblical command to repent gets by-passed because the people believe they’re already good enough. In fact, all the commands of God get by-passed; that’s the trade mark of man’s religion. That’s why Jesus calls them, Hypocrites!…… These people draw near to Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me. And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men Matthew 15:7-9. This is the crowd that crucified the Lord; their offspring sent His dedicated followers to the stake, the stocks and the prisons. The offspring of the latter are doing similar today and they’ll step it up once the biblical church is off the earth.
Without Repentance there can be no Holiness for one can only be made holy before God through trusting in Jesus Christ and the blood He shed to the death for one’s sins. Without holiness no one will see the Lord Hebrews 12:14. God is holy, Christ is holy, the Spirit of God is holy and heaven is holy. This is what makes human-centered religious practice such blasphemy; non-repentant, unholy people believing they’ll get to God by doing it their way. Again, in vain (to no purpose) they worship Me…… The opposite of holiness then? Unholiness! So how are we going so far? If any of these were arrested for being a Christian would there be enough evidence to convict them? Not by a long shot. Yet, the institutional church system has more of these within by far, than the real deal!
Without Repentance there can be no Holiness therefore, no Righteousness. Quote: “Dictionaries define righteousness as “behavior that is morally justifiable or right.” Such behavior is characterized by accepted standards of morality, justice, virtue, or uprightness. The Bible’s standard of human righteousness is God’s own perfection in every attribute, every attitude, every behavior, and every word. Thus, God’s laws, as given in the Bible, both describe His own character and constitute the plumb line by which He measures human righteousness.” Charles R. Swindoll. (Underlines mine). As it is written: There is none righteous, no, not one Romans3:10. Are you getting a handle on the futility of engaging in human-centered religious practice?
God told Old Testament Judah and Israel, the days were coming when He would raise up a Branch of righteousness;……… Now this is His name by which He will be called: THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS Jeremiah 23:5-6. It was the Messiah He was referring to. The Messiah came in Jesus Christ and all but a few rejected Him. Those who did not and do not reject but receive Him instead, are made righteous in Him. For He (God) made Him (Jesus) who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him 2 Corinthians 5:21. That means then, if we repent, Jesus will exchange our sin for His righteousness – a divine exchange! That, is exactly what He totally accomplished once for all when He went to the cross as our substitute.
No wonder the denial in both church and secular society that the entire Bible is the word of God. No wonder the denial of the Virgin birth and Deity of Christ. No wonder the denial of Creation. No wonder the denial of Jesus’ Death and Resurrection. No wonder the denial of Judgment and Hell. When no biblical Repentance, no biblical Holiness and no biblical Righteousness are called for and or demonstrated in Christianity, what else should one expect? Worse: Jesus taught all those things; He confirmed everything the Old Testament declared about them from Genesis to Malachi. “Jesus was a very good man,” say the same denying people. Well then, either Jesus was deceived or a deceiver or He spoke the truth. Which is it, denying people?
The apostle Paul told us, the time will come when they (church people) will not endure sound doctrine (teaching), but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables (fictions, myths) 2 Timothy 4:3-4. When no biblical Repentance, no biblical Holiness and no biblical Righteousness are called for, and or demonstrated in Christianity, fictions and myths will certainly replace them, as will error, lies and deception … like the rebellious of old, who said to the seers, “Do not see.” And to the prophets, “Do not prophesy to us right things; speak to us smooth things, prophesy deceits.” Isaiah 30:10.
As a natural consequence, “fictions and myths” has increasingly become the charge against the teachings of the Bible by the religious and non-religious, the educated and uneducated, the certificated and non-certificated alike. This explains the embracing of abortion, euthanasia, same-sex marriage, man-made climate change, transgenderism and every other ism known to society. So where are we at now? If any among these were arrested for being a Christian, would there be enough evidence to convict them? Definitely not. Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the Kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven Matthew 7:21. To embrace any or every one of those things is to slap the face of the Father!
What then, is Repentance? It is a 180 degree turning from sin to God, as a result of having a profound change of heart and mind about one’s sin and about God. Repentance is the first response God commands of us if we are to respond to the biblical gospel of Jesus Christ. Repentance is necessary for the forgiveness of sin and for being cleansed by the blood of Jesus. Repentance is a condition of salvation, of entry into heaven, of eternal life with Christ and for escaping the judgment of God for sin. Repentance means the charge of sin against us is withdrawn. Repentance means, “Not Guilty!” Repentance means a separation with the past from everything that displeases God. Repentance is whole-hearted, not half-hearted. Above all, Repentance is a work and gift of God.
Now how are we going? If one was arrested for being a Christian as described in the Repentance paragraph above, would there be enough evidence to convict him or her? Yes, most certainly. Evidence he or she had been lifted out from spiritual, mental and physical slavery would be indisputable. Such evidence might even land him or her on the stake, in the stocks or in the prison should the Lord’s return not be in our lifetime as we expect it could be. Yes, Jesus Christ will return; first He comes for His followers and later to rule the world from Jerusalem. He will be on time for each occasion, not a minute early or a minute late. The Lord is not slack (slow) concerning His promise, as some count slackness, but is long-suffering towards us, not willing that any should perish but that all should come to repentance 2 Peter 3:9.