I'm a little leery of guest speakers at church anyway, mostly because I'm noticing a trend towards only having speakers of the Master's College kind, and while that doesn't mean they're bad, I sense a fear of anything BUT Master's people. Just a little hint, people that go to those "inferior" places like Fuller and Talbot have some pretty good things to say, but I think that may be lost on this crowd.
So, last night was on the rapture, using the last chapter of 1 Thessalonians as home base. I was hanging in there until I was given the distinct impression that if I have any sin in my life that is being worked on, if it isn't resolved than I am not ready for the rapture.
And it was at this moment that I shut my Bible and crossed the arms. I was done after that.
I recognize that if I have a sin in my life, like, oh say, my IMPATIENCE, and I was not actively bringing it before God and eliminating it from my life, then yes, I agree. But to tell me or anybody that if they have something that they struggle against and bring it before God and do daily that if this is a problem then they are not "ready" for the rapture... I have to disagree. And I don't like it.
I thought I was alone until I mentioned it to a friend tonight and she let me know how she felt on that. It felt good not to be alone on it. Sometimes, I think my misgivings on some of these sermons is me being convicted of things in my own life and I'm just fighting it. But not on this one.
I've been feeling very rebellious (for lack of a better term) when it comes to things that are being said at this church sometimes. I chalk it up to me being slightly rebellious in all things and that this is just yet another item in a long list of things I need to work on. But I can't shake this. Not this one.
This church is awesome and I really, really enjoy the lead pastor. It's the "other" speakers that make me do the "golden retriever". You know, that look goldies give you where they prick their ears up, look at you all serious and cock their heads to one side.
If I'm way off base, somebody please tell me. And show me where in the Bible, because I need to know. But after all my years of Christian school, church and youth group, this just isn't resonating as familiar.
I go to church to learn, drink it in and occasionally get a butt kicking. I don't like walking away wondering if I heard something right.
What if that was my first night? What then?
2 comments:
Hi SIL!
Just sitting emailing and thought I'd check your ever-refreshing blog and read this newest post.
Ok-- so since you asked if anyone agrees/disagrees, I thought I'd chime in, since I'm never at a lack for words. ;)
We went to church yesterday too, heard the same sermon, only I had a TOTALLY different understanding of what Pastor Bobby was preaching. I just grabbed my notes, b/c after reading your blog I'm thinking, "Huh?? How did I miss that??" So let me share with you from my notes and what I took from the sermon...
The first point of the three points he gave was "Make Sure Your Hope is in the Gospel" and this laid the foundation for the rest of his sermon. He presented the Gospel, and from the context of 1 Thes 4:13-18 showed that Paul was writing to the church in Thessalonica-- to believers-- to Christians.
So then when he got to point #2 which was "Always Be Ready" we can be confident in knowing he is still speaking to Christians. So from this we see straight away that by "being ready" he's encouraging us to keep busy 1) Serving God (1 Cor 15:58; 1 Pet 4:10-11; Luke 12:35)
and 2) Keep Pursuing Holiness. And it sounds like this is where the confusion was??
Since it's written to Christians, we know it's not a salvation issue, and Pastor Bobby was clear on that. There is NOTHING we can do to earn or lose our salvation. We can never be more perfect before God than we were right at the moment we repented of our sins and put our faith in Christ's perfect life, death and resurrection. If we are IN Christ, we are perfect. BUT, all that to say, as you also openly shared, that we ALL still sin. Every day. And maybe even the same sin issue cropping up, day after day after day. But, we should be sinning less.
So it's not a matter of our sin keeping us from being ready for the rapture in the salvation sense, but more in the sense of being ready when Christ returns because we don't want to be doing something foolish when Christ does come. NOT because we wouldn't be caught up in the air with him, but because we'd want to save ourselves the embarrassment of doing something dumb and getting "caught in the act."
His point, as I understood it, was to practically help us look at "What Getting Ready" looks like, and that since we have no idea when Christ could return, we want to expect him to come at any moment and we should be busy doing what we have already been called to do (serve & pursue holiness).
So if we are in Christ, have repented of our sins and put our full trust in Christ, then we can have full confidence that we are READY for the rapture. But as Pastor Bobby preached, we can be even MORE ready-- not an issue of salvation, but like a secondary "ready" to be busy with what He has called us to do... Serving God and Pursuing Holiness (which will manifest in us as sinning less).
I am so thankful for you and your transparency-- if it was actually being preached that we cannot be saved if we have sin in our lives, then it would be a FALSE Gospel for sure. So, good for you for questioning, and let's encourage each other to continue to be good Bereans and always look to scripture.
PS Pastor Bobby is our High School Youth Pastor... :)
Jenny! Thank you for typing that because I guarantee that probably took a long time!
And thanks for giving me how you saw and interpreted his message, another point of view and fresh perspective is so helpful in clearing up things when we think we've heard something wrong. Your explanation cleared up a lot. I know that CBC constantly, almost to the point of paranoia of sorts, reiterates salvation by grace alone and not works, which was why I was confused by what he said and how I was interpreting it.
And I know he's a good guy and the HS pastor- he just seems a little... intense. Like, he kinda makes me go, whoaa- OK. But a good teacher! :)
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