Offence

Does the gospel offend you?  This is something that cannot be avoided in some cases because there are some people that are ready to hear the truth and change and then there are others that are not.  Read John 5:43-48, “I am come in my Father's name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive. How can ye believe, which receive honour one of another, and seek not the honour that cometh from God only? Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father: there is one that accuseth you, even Moses, in whom ye trust. For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me; for he wrote of me. But if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye believe my words?”

There are many pastors that don’t want to offend anyone but it is impossible to preach the real true gospel without offending someone because the gospel brings offence to those that are not ready to hear it.  If you don’t tell a sinner his or her true condition before the Lord, then you are not preaching the true gospel.  The true gospel is confronting sinners with their condition and their sin before a holy God, if not you have nothing to preach.  

Many churches are what I have heard of as user-friendly churches, giving people what they want to hear but not what they need to hear.  It seems that in many churches people are more worried about what the church looks like and the sound system and the lighting and the furnishings than they are the message itself.  

There are people that come into the church with all kinds of baggage, laden down with all kinds of sin and guilt, perplexity and shame.  They don’t need to hear just that the Lord loves them, they need to hear about how holy God is and how wretched they are, and how they can never be right with Him without having a personal relationship with Him, which we call being born-again.  They also need to hear about God’s amazing grace and how they can be set free of their sin and shame, and their sinful habits by what God’s Son did when He laid His life down for their sin; that he was crucified and died a horrible death and was buried in a tomb for their sin and that He rose again and through godly sorrow and the work of the Holy Spirit, which brings forth repentance, they could have Him as their Lord and Savior if they ask Him into their hearts.

What about the poor people in the congregation that hear about how rich the Lord wants to make them?  Read Matthew 19:23-24 for a start, “Then said Jesus unto his disciples, Verily I say unto you, That a rich man shall hardly enter into the kingdom of heaven. And again I say unto you, It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter into the kingdom of God.”  I believe the Lord wants to bless each and every one of His people but this doesn’t mean that He wants all of His people to be rich in material things and money.  It is far better to be rich in faith and have the anointing of the Lord on our lives and His presence with us daily as well as His peace, love, joy and His precious grace to forgive us if we fall into temptation!!  

Read some of the warnings in the Bible about being rich and pray about that and let the Lord speak to your heart.  What about the rich young ruler who came to Jesus in Matthew 19:16-26, read that story plus there are many other verses that talk about being rich in God’s Word.  The Bible says if you are faithful with little things you will receive bigger things, there is always two sides of the coin.  Think about all the people that have won the lottery, it has ruined their lives because they could not handle that kind of money and the responsibility that comes with it.  Only the Lord knows who can be trusted with riches and who cannot be trusted.

What about what Jesus said about taking up your cross, denying yourself and following Him?  It doesn’t seem like many of these prosperity preachers are doing much in the way of denying themselves; driving big fancy cars and owning their own airplanes and yachts plus houses that cost in excess of a million dollars, not to mention the expensive suits and jewelry that they wear and I could go on and on.  Every pastor will stand before the Lord someday and give an account of how they feed God’s people in the pulpit and also the non-believer that comes to dine at the table to hear the truth preached.

Remember what Jesus said to Peter when He told him to feed His people, read John 21:15-17, “So when they had dined, Jesus saith to Simon Peter, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me more than these? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my lambs. He saith to him again the second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep. He saith unto him the third time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? Peter was grieved because he said unto him the third time, Lovest thou me? And he said unto him, Lord, thou knowest all things; thou knowest that I love thee. Jesus saith unto him, Feed my sheep.”

This was after Peter denied the Lord three times, just before His crucifixion, and Jesus ask this question three times.  The first time Jesus asked Peter if he loved him, the Greek word would mean agape love which is volitional self-sacrificial love; the second time was the word agape love focusing on Peter alone.  The third time Jesus used philia love which is a friendship love.  Just like Peter, we have to face our true feelings and motives when Jesus confronts us with these questions, which every seeker or believer has to answer.  What would your answer be, are you truly loving Jesus and his followers or are you just using them for your own advantage?

Is anyone broken over the condition of the church or the way the seeker is preached to today?  It should break all of our hearts that are truly born-again and I will be the first to confess that it hasn’t bothered me as much as it should.  I have given you something to think about and I hope you don’t take this lightly, it is a serious condition and we need a great Holy Ghost revival, not only in our own lives, but in the church as a whole.  May the good Lord speak to your heart through this message and may you act upon it by prayer and supplication and repentance if you need to.  Have a super day and may the Lord bless you and yours!!  If you are a believer, don’t forget to thank and praise the Lord for He is worthy!!