I still believe that standing up for the truth of God is the greatest thing in the world. This is the end of life. The end of life is not to be happy. The end of life is not to achieve pleasure and avoid pain. The end of life is to do the will of God, come what may.
Theology 101: The question should never be, “Is this action leftist or right wing, liberal or conservative, socialist or capitalist?” The question should be, “Does this action love my neighbor, look out for their interest more than my own, and manifest the fruit of the spirit?”
At a time when people are encouraged to “find your truth,” the church is called to hold fast to the enduring truth of the Christian faith. At the core of our community is not a shared hobby, political view, or culture. It is a shared commitment to and belief in the truth of the Christian faith. A bound set of doctrines that we as Christians confess and submit to as authoritative for our lives. In fact, Jesus reminds us that he is the way, truth, and life. We do not define truth but find it in the person and work of Christ.
When asked by a group of theologians about his opinion about a debate going around certain Christian circles, Reinhard Bonnke responded. “I will split hairs in heaven when I am done breaking chains here on earth.”
I’m not satisfied when somebody tells me, ‘I just know in my heart that this is the right answer.’ We have to line up our beliefs with what the Bible actually says. If the Bible says I’m supposed to do something, then I’m supposed to do it. If the Bible says, I’m supposed to believe something, I’m supposed to believe it. If the Bible says act or think this way, then that’s how I should act and think. And so, I will not write off verses because I don’t like them, or they don’t suit the way I see the world.
When does heresy become orthodoxy? When we believe a lie long enough that it becomes so natural that it seems like the truth.
Jesus is the centre of our faith. I keep returning to the centre because I want to be centred. Here, clinging closer to Jesus, we are safe, protected, shielded from the storms of life. The storms will come; we will still be challenged, stretched, wrung out. But we will be anchored in Him. Secure, unshaken.
One moment of prayer, of weak worship, confused contrition, tepid thanksgiving, or pitiful petition will bring us closer to God than all the books of theology in the world.
The aim, as in all theological and biblical exploration, is not to replace love with knowledge. Rather, it is to keep love focused upon its true object. We must not make the overwhelming experience of God’s love revealed in the cross of Jesus an excuse for mere muddle. As in a marriage, love doesn’t stand still. A passionately devoted young couple needs to learn the long-term skills of mutual understanding, not to replace love, but to deepen it.
Any time the people of God become preoccupied with concepts and ideologies instead of a Christlike expression of life and power, they are set up to fail, no matter how good those ideas are. Christianity is not a philosophy; it is a relationship.