These days, as long as a group is labeled Christian, it doesn't to matter to many professing Christians what beliefs are espoused within the group. In their eyes, the only requirement for being a Christian is to accept the fact that Jesus existed, not that He is the Son of God, but that he was an actual historical figure. As nearly as I can tell, in today's post-modern Church, doctrine has been given over to tolerance. It seems as though doctrine should not be contested, because that might disrupt "unity." That concerns me.

It seems as though drawing any definitive doctrinal line is equated with drawing battle lines, and heaven forbid one should ever declare a Biblical absolute. Doctrinal and moral declarations even straight from the Scriptures (and perfectly in context) are no longer black and white, but shades of gray. Paul warned Timothy about such things when he told him;

"3 For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; 4 and they will turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside to fables." 2 Timothy 4:3-4

Paul then went on in verse 5 to encourage Timothy to; "be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry."

My home church is a non-denominational fellowship. We aren't opposed to denominations as such, only their overemphasis of the doctrinal differences that have led the Body of Christ to be divided. I know there are people in my own church that disagree with me about this or that little thing, but as a whole, since the Bible is the final word in all matters of truth and doctrine, what we might disagree on doesn't matter much. We believe that the only true basis of Christian fellowship is His (Agape) love, which is greater than any differences we possess and without which we have no right to claim ourselves Christians.

So what makes what my church believes, different than what I've stated is becoming a Biblically unsound, common practice among many churches these days? The fact that we actually are a part of the Body of Christ. If that sounds harsh, well some of the truths that Jesus told people were disturbing too, but absolutely necessary. People were comfortable with where they were at spiritually, and His truth often jerked them out of it.

John, Chapter 6 says a lot about how hard the truth of God can be to hear when listeners aren't comfortable hearing it. Jesus told them that He was the Bread of Life Who had come down from heaven, and that if they didn't partake of the flesh of the Messiah they had no hope of heaven. He told them that if they didn't partake of Him that they would die even as their own forefathers had, even though they had eaten the bread (manna) from heaven. That was the distinction. Jesus isn't just "bread from heaven," He is the Bread of Heaven, and when some of those following Him were murmuring complaints about what He had told them, he repeated emphatically that, "....no one can come to me unless it has been granted to him by My Father."

Many Galileans who had been following Jesus up unto that point found His statements harsh and turned away from Him. His truth was completely unacceptable to them. They were banking on their own "goodness" or their works to gain them entrance into heaven one day. In verse 63 Jesus told those who were offended by Him that only the Holy Spirit gives life and those people who had only been born once, physically, didn't have life, and He explained to them that this "hard saying" was quite spiritual, and would lead them to spiritual and eternal life.

But Peter hit the nail on the head when he confirmed that he and the twelve would be staying around. He said, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life." One cannot Biblically claim to be a Christian if one just believes that Jesus was just the greatest guy ever, or if one thinks He was a very wise man, but certainly not the Son of God. One is not a Christian if one is not trusting in Him, believing that He is the Son of God, and that He alone is the mediator between God and one's self, one's soul. Where has the world gone for their teaching?

When Christians and those with just a historical perspective on Jesus turn to popular teachers who comfort them with messages on self-improvement and self-esteem, they're turning away from the Word of God. Focusing on one's self without a steady diet of Scripture will cause a person to lose their ability to hear and discern whether a doctrine is biblically sound or not. They can get to the point where they aren't conscious of who they are following, Jesus or the enemy.

Without the ability to spiritually discern such things, the Church of this century is barreling down the road in a syncretistic vehicle, crossing a spiritual centerline that will lead to disaster and the shattering of many lives. The enemies of the Gospel are much more deceptive and The Body of Christ needs those who are unafraid of people's rejection of the truth. The truth and what it can do for a dying world is more valuable than anyone's fear of being un-liked, and truly, the list of consequences for spiritual compromise in the Bible is very long, and very painful. The enemies of the truth are more cunning and deceptive than we are and we should entrust nothing to them. After all, the devil murdered all of mankind in a single encounter, and if you think you're a lot smarter than Adam was, or stronger, you very likely have a fat head. (laughing here)

If you are not in a church where the pastor teaches the whole counsel of God, I suggest you pray and re-evaluate with the Lord, your long term commitment to attendance there. Churches that teach the Bible verse by verse are getting harder and harder to find. Churches need to grow because people need Jesus, but church growth due to "popularity," methodological practices, psychology and meeting "felt needs" are less important than standing up for the Word and for Biblical doctrine.

When Jesus if lifted up and taught, when He is always put first, all of the things that are truly necessary and important to believers will fall into place, and the church becomes a missionary sending unit, starting in believers homes and outward to the immediate community and beyond, reaching people with Jesus, for Jesus. The body of believers is one who is devoted to the approval of God, and not the approval of men.

The Holy Spirit will be using teachers yielded to Him to reach believers hearts, convicting them, cleansing them and building them up. Those teachers who attempt to always please everybody are dangerous, not because of what they have to say, but because of what they are afraid to say. They avoid the "offense" of the Gospel because they're afraid it will cause their listeners some discomfort, when that may be exactly what they need from the Holy Spirit.

If an unbelieving world hears nothing but a profoundly "sinner-friendly" message, the Gospel of Christ is being cloaked to make seekers more comfortable with where they are, and they don't worry about where they should be. Some Christian leaders these days are moving to adapt to this emerging generation by eliminating Biblical absolutes. They're saying that absolute truth can no longer be proclaimed. "Truth" is treated with a dose of relativism and viewed as subjective, but ultimately shared by everyone.

Tolerance is now a very well-established policy within major denominations of the Christian Church, and even the acceptance of other faiths. Only absolute truth seems to be beyond the bounds of tolerance. Such tolerance is being used as a platform upon which unity is founded within even many evangelical churches today, and anyone who touts absolute Biblical truth is either viewed as divisive and radical, or is condescended to as an "amateur" theologian or a non-intellectual.

I could care less if anyone regards me as an intellectual. I could care less if anyone looks down their nose at what I have to say. Oh, I have been disappointed when those in whom I've invested my heart and time sharing Christ decide to reject Him, but it's their choice to make and I am not ashamed of the one I've made myself. We can't allow the schemes of the enemy to permeate and weaken the Church. We need to stand on the firm foundation of Christ and His sound doctrine and heed His warnings. We need to be passionately devoted to the truth so that Christ will be glorified and so also that His Church will grow in His strength and His holiness.