ARE WE IN THE FAITH?

This is a question that only God can answer,

But it is one that all of us

Who claim the name of Christ Jesus must answer for ourselves.

The apostle Paul said this:

EXAMINE yourselves to see whether your are in the Faith;

TEST yourselves.

Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is In You--

UNLESS, of course, you Fail the Test.

(2 Corinthians 13:5)

The apostle Paul goes on to say:

I Trust that you will discover that we have not Failed the Test.

Now we Pray to God that you will not do anything wrong.

Not that people will see that we have Stood the Test

But that you will do what is right

Even though we may seem to have Failed.

FOR WE CANNOT DO ANYTHING AGAINST THE TRUTH,

But only for the TRUTH.

We are glad whenever we are weak by you are strong;

And our Prayer is for your PERFECTION.

This is why I write these things when I am absent,

That when I come I may not have to be harsh in my use of Authority--

The Authority the Lord gave me for building you up,

Not for tearing you down.

Finally brothers, good-by.

Aim for Perfection, listen to my appeal, be of one mind, live in Peace.

And the God of Peace will be with you.

(2 Corinthians 13:6-11)

I just read an article that mentioned

That today, many Pastors were reluctant to Preach the Truth

Because of the Johnson Amendment,

And that doing so might Jeopardize their Tax Exempt Status.

Realize, that no Pastor will Stand before Christ Jesus

And tell Him that he did not Preach the Truth

Because he thought he might loose his Tax Exempt Status.

The Truth is that many Pastors do not Preach the Truth

Because they do not want to Offend the Culture;

The Community that they live in;

To appear Not To Be Inclusive—The Mantra of the Day.

Christ Jesus Invites Everyone

To come to Faith in Him and His Word which are One.

However, only those who do so are Included IN HIM.

If we are Saved, we are Save Out Of This World;

We are no long Included as Of This World,

Any more than Christ Jesus is Of This World [John 17:14].

The Unbelieving World Stands Condemned before the Holy God.

(John 3:18)

Their Lack of Faith EXCLUDES them from the Kingdom of God.

It is This Reality that Separates Christians from the World.

We are Commanded to make Disciples of All Nations

And to do that we must tell them the TRUTH;

That the only way to Eternal Life is Through Faith in Christ Jesus;

EXCLUSIVELY SO!

AMERICAN CULTURE TODAY HATES THIS MESSAGE;

THE MESSAGE OF CHRIST JESUS.

He tells the Culture that what they do is Evil [John 7:7];

That they Must REPENT and turn to God and His Word.

Pastors and Every Christian have a Duty to tell Everyone the TRUTH;

It is the Command of Christ Jesus.

The Larger part of the Culture Rejects this Message;

They Reject the TRUTH.

Christ Jesus was Rejected by the Culture of His Day

Because he told them the TRUTH.

Today, we will be Rejected by the Culture when we tell the TRUTH.

It is the Unwillingness of Christians to tell the TRUTH

That produces The Great Apostasy;

When the Pressure from the Culture becomes Overwhelming

As it is becoming today, many Christians will Capitulate to the Culture

And become part of The Great Apostasy,

That is well underway today.

The Apostle Paul told us this would happen:

For a time is coming when [people] will Not Tolerate (endure)

Sound and Wholesome Instruction,

But having Itching Ears [for something pleasing and gratifying],

They will Gather to Themselves one Teacher after another

To a Considerable number,

Chosen to Satisfy their own liking and to Foster the Errors they hold,

And will Turn Aside from hearing the Truth

And Wander off into Myths and Man-made Fictions.

(2 Timothy 4:3, 4, AMP)

Realize, that people who do this Are Not Christians,

They are Apostates.

It was instructive to me to understand

That when Christ Jesus wrote the Seven Letters to the Seven Churches

He never mentions the word SAVED.

Rather He says:

He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the Churches.

TO HIM WHO OVERCOMES,

I will give the Right to Eat from the Tree Of LIFE,

Which is in the Paradise of God.

(Revelation 2:7)

Who is there to OVERCOME?

It is the Accuser of our Brothers [Revelation 12:10]. Listen:

And they [the Saints of God] have OVERCOME (conquered) him [Satan]

By means of the Blood of the Lamb

And by the Utterance of their Testimony,

For they did not love and cling to life even when faced with Death--

Holding their lives Cheap till they had to Die [for their witnessing].

(Revelation 12:11, AMP)

The Whole Purpose of this Life is a TEST,

To determine who will OVERCOME this Wicked World

And Satan who Rules it.