Are You Ready For Jesus To Return?

"That is the question I have often asked myself many times."

Am I really ready to meet my Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ……. TODAY? It’s a question that all of us need to answer truthfully if we are going to have any true peace in our lives. It is so easy to feel that we have lots of time at our disposal, to sort out our lives and get things under control. But what if Jesus is closer to His returning than we think? Or what if we were to die before we get everything sorted out that we know we need to get sorted? Yes, God’s grace is all-sufficient, but what responsibility do we have in the whole picture called life as Christians?

This week I went to a funeral for a friend that died from the effects of cocaine abuse. He was only 26 and had battled his addiction for years. I met him in a rehab-program run by the Salvation Army here in Calgary. I was there because of my gambling problems, he was there trying to beat his crack cocaine habit. We both needed the kind of help that only Jesus could give the both of us. My heart went out to his parents, especially his dad who broke down at the funeral and understandably so. I have a son just a few years younger, and as a father it tore my heart out as well.

The Chaplain from the Salvation Army that was officiating was a friend of mine. After the service we had a brief time to talk and he told me that he wasn’t sure if the young man he had just done the service for was saved or not. I told him that the deceased had stated to me that he was a Christian, and was even baptized at the Mustard Seed along with three other friends of mine. But did he live the Christian life, or merely had he only gone through a “Mechanical” confession, “The Sinners Prayer”? We will never know for sure until we get to heaven whether or not he was truly saved.

What does the Bible say about “Salvation”, is it “Once saved… always saved”? Can we walk away from Jesus Christ of our own “Free Will”, and loose the free gift of eternal live? Many fine Christian scholars have put forth arguments for both sides of this complex issue. I personally believe we can walk away.

“Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He who says, “I know Him”, and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as he walked”.

1John 1:3-6.

Is Our Gospel Really “The Gospel”?

I firmly believe with all my heart that Jesus would be ashamed of most of the “gospel” messages and sermons that are being preached today, mainly because they lack almost every major point Jesus Himself preached on (Mark 8:38, Romans 1:16, 2 Timothy 1:8). How dare we try to change or improve or alter the Gospel message? We remove most of the vital parts, and replace them with “artificial-mechanical” limbs of our own design (Galatians 1:6-10).

Isn’t Jesus Christ the Master Evangelist? Shouldn't we judge our evangelism by His standard and example? Was His message anything like what we’re hearing today? Surgical removal of most of the vital limbs from today’s gospel, has caused many a sinner to gallop down the isle for salvation with Jesus being presented as an “Ice Cream Salesman Santa Claus” giving away “free samples” in a playground on a hot summers day.

The Removed Parts Of The Gospel

The Blood of Jesus Christ:

Even the word blood as a matter of fact, scares most people. It’s also a fact that the blood of Christ scares the devil, because it’s the only cleansing agent for a sin-sick soul, and Satan knows it (1 John 1:7-10). If the Apostle Paul had been as squeamish as most of our modern preachers about even mentioning the blood of Christ, his preaching and writings would have been of no effect on men like Charles G Finney and Charles H Spurgeon, who made such an impact on their generation. The power and the beauty of the blood of Jesus is almost none existent in today’s 1-2-3 gospel (Just add music and stir the emotions) of easy believisms and “minimal commitment”. All traces of the blood evidence have been professionally cleansed away and discarded to the point that not even a crack forensics CSI unit could find enough proof to convince a jury of skeptics that “There’s POWER in the blood” as the blessed old hymn proclaims. What we have today is a bloodless gospel!

Today, people are afraid to think and preachers are afraid to make them. The whole concept of Jesus as the “Passover Lamb” of the Old Testament has been lost—“It takes to much time and thought to explain”—“We need to simplify the Gospel so that we can reach the MASSES”. Talk about twisted logic and Satan loves it. “Now that they’ve put away the BLOOD, I’ll get them to get rid of the CROSS”.

The Cross of Jesus Christ:

Paul said, “I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified” (1 Corinthians 2:2). Nowadays it’s, “Jesus Christ and what He can do for you!” You can’t have a more direct opposite than the Bible’s “Christ-Centered Gospel” and today’s “Me-Centered gospel”, and our new cross-less-centered, me-centered gospel Combo. Today, if anyone preaches self-denial as a condition of discipleship, we can hear the comments afterwards: “Old-Fashioned, Harsh, Legalistic, etc”. Jesus would have as much trouble finding acceptance amongst today’s preachers, as He did amongst the religious leaders of His day.

Here’s what A.W. Tozer says about the Cross:

“The cross is the most revolutionary thing ever to appear among men. The cross of Roman times knew no compromise, it never made concessions. It won all its arguments by killing its opponent and silencing him for good. It spared not Christ, but slew Him the same as the rest. He was alive when they hung Him on the cross, and completely dead when they took Him off of it. That was the cross the first time it appeared in Christian history. With perfect knowledge of all this, Christ said, “If any man will come after Me, let him deny himself take up his cross and follow Me”. So the cross not only brought Christ’s life to an end, it also ends the first life, the old life of every one of His true followers….this and nothing less is true Christianity. We must do something about the cross, and there’s only one of two things we can do—FLEE it or DIE upon it”.

The Doctrine of Hell (Missing in Action):

People often say, “I’m tired of Hell-Fire and Brimstone preaching”. But when was the last time they heard any? Its true, most preacher’s never preach on Hell anymore, “it’s just not in vogue--popular today”. They would rather not scare the poor sinner; he might not come back next Sunday. They say, “I tell them about heaven”, and “the Love of Jesus and the rewards of being born-again”. But they completely neglect the other side of the “two-edged sword” (Hebrews 4:12). Instead of sinners being brought to the very brink of Hell so they can see what awaits them in their rebellious state, we paint a picture of a “heavenly Club Med”, where all are welcome, with repentance being only a technicality, a suggestion, not a mandatory requirement. Oh, how our Lord must weep when He hears our weak copy of the message for which He lived and died to bring us life for. When the new social gospel leaves out the doctrine of Hell as an eternal place of punishment for all those “rebel’s without a cross” the flags go up in my soul, and should in your soul as well.

The Law of God Preached to Convict One of Sin:

It would take a complete article and maybe more to finish this topic. Jesus used the Law (The 10 Commandments) to convict the sinners of His day about their sin and to point out their being utterly lost in God’s eyes (Like sheep without a Shepherd), because of sin. Long had the Jewish people waited for their promised Messiah (Deliverer) to completely deliver them from sins evil grip. Jesus used the Law of God to point out the perfection of God and the gulf between them and God that sin had placed all men under both Jews and Gentiles. The Law forced them to look in the mirror and take responsibility for their own sin. They never said, “It’s not my fault I can’t help it, its all my parents fault, it’s how they raised me”. No…those who listened to Christ’s message had one of three possible reactions:

1)They were SAD—because they didn't want to change their lives—it would cost them to much. (I’ll have to give up my old ways, but I’m having so much fun!)

2). They were MAD—Jesus cut to the chase using the Law to convict their self-righteous hearts—and they hated Him for it (And ended up killing Him over it).

3). They were GLAD!!! They saw their sin for what it was—An Offense against God Himself—and Jesus was the answer (Their Passover Lamb) worth FOLLOWING (So they did what they had to do to be right with God, they repented and believed).

Jesus never preached the Law as the way of salvation, He used the Law to convict sinner’s when He preached of their sin. Today’s gospel message is:

“Just admit you’re a sinner, accept Jesus as your personal Saviour, go to Church, pay your tithes, try to be good, and you’re in”.

In the age of instant mashed-potatoes, TV dinners and Macdonald’s happy meals to go, we are now serving up “instant-Christianity”, and leading many to eternal destruction. There is no true repentance anymore, no cross to die on to self, no self-denial period. Today’s instant Christians are hooked on their spiritual steroids (books on how Christian’s “should be”, rather than the Word of God that tell us how “we must be”), like candy. They rarely read the Word, or pray unless it’s for material needs, so when the devil comes calling they crumble like a cheap cigar in the rain. And we tell them “You’re a Christian, I prayed with you myself, didn't I”? They are never asked to count the costs before becoming a Christian, they focus for a while only on the positive aspects of Christianity, the “Bless me Lord” side.

Jesus has become “The ice cream Santa Claus”, the Church has now become the Goody Store, and all will be perfect in their lives from now on, RIGHT!!! But how about having your family turn against you, your wife, kids, and friends turn against you, all because you’re following Jesus Christ. The old Saints of yesteryear knew the loneliness of personal rejection, hunger, cold damp prisons, and even execution without a single friend being present, yet they remained faithful to Jesus right up to the end. Today, a slight pinprick to our modern faith sends the new breed of Christian running for cover, and keeps their Pastor’s working overtime trying to put out all the fires that are going on in their lives.

“Short Comings”—“Not Full Blown Sin”:

Today we have Christian-Psychologists. One of the most insidious doctrines of man to ever assault the Christian Church in the last 2000 years has been psychology. It has run rampant in today’s modern social gospel circles. Instead of one admitting their sins before the Living God that they have offended, we use the more palatable catch all phrase “Short-Comings”, instead. Now the guilty can say “Hey I’m not really so bad--trust me—After alI, I said the prayer”.

If I was to have graduated from Bible College, and then when asked, “So what subjects did you study?”, answer by saying, “the completed works of Karl Marx, Chairman Mao’s little red book, and Oh ya don’t let me forget, the rise and fall of the Third Reich”, you would say, “This guy is a twisted Christian. Christian’s don’t study these evil men’s works to learn from them do they?” Yet, today, these so called Christian-Psychologists study all of the major teachers of modern psychology, Jung, Myers, James, Freud, etc, many of whom were fully involved in the occult. They trust in intellectual mental-gymnastics rather that the power of the Holy Spirit to deal with the problems of mans sinful nature.

God help us, and save us from the on-slot of these ministers of death. Whenever we try to invent new ways of dealing with sin we loose, because Jesus Christ is the same Yesterday, Today and Forever, and requires the same act of repentance He has required from the beginning in order for a sinner to be saved.

I have heard many in need of salvation being told by some preacher, evangelist or Christian-psychologist that they have “Short Comings” but rarely do they say they have “Full Blown Sin” which leads to eternal death (James 1:15). Their watered down gospel sounds so tempting to the average person that at times I have been tempted to follow their psycho-babble, the easier softer way. Where are the hearts that are broken over sin? Where are those that cry out, “I’ll do anything—anything—anything you say Lord to follow You, and keep Your commandments so I can have eternity with You in the glory of your Father”. The teachings of Jesus and the apostles are full of commands to “Repent and be Saved”. Repentance is not just “Being Sorry”- that is only conviction. Repentance is not merely a change of heart and a change of mind, it is a change of action! God requires that if we are sincerely convinced that sin is wrong, then we will turn from it to God alone.

God’s Sorrow and Broken Heart Over Sin:

The picture of God as presented today by most evangelists is that of an Optimist—a Positive-Thinking Good OLE Boy who lives in heaven, high above the troubles on earth, where everything is rosy, “and the skies are not cloudy all day”. Why, how could anything bother the living God? He isn’t really troubled by all the mess down here, He has everything under control!

But again the Bible paints a different picture of our King. Just look at Jesus weeping over Jerusalem (Luke 19:41), or the pleadings of God with the nation of Israel through the prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel (Isaiah 1:8, 54:7; Ezekiel 18:23, 32, 33:11; Hosea 11:8). How can anyone believe that God sees everything on earth and is not grieved (Proverbs 15:3)? Today, God will see every murder, every person that starved to death, every abused and battered child, every pornographic film and book. Doesn't the Bible implore us not to “Grieve the Holy Spirit of God” (Ephesians 4:30).

The Modern Gospel is Shallow, Cheap and Offered as a “Bargain”:

Our modern gospel reduces The Good News to a “Come and get it while you can” sale. We make every effort to take all the bones out of everything that might offend the rebellious sinners, or might make them hesitate, or put off their decision. Jesus didn't do this. He never lowered the requirements for anyone. One had to be completely sincere, totally humbled, having counted the cost, willing to leave everything, family and property, “count all things loss” so that they might “gain Christ”(Philippians 3:78).

When the rich young ruler “went away sad, for he had many possessions” (Matthew 19:22), Jesus didn't go running after him shouting, “Hey, wait a minute! Let’s talk this whole thing over, it isn’t as bad as it might sound. Maybe I was a little to harsh”. Today’s gospel is served up at hamburger drive-thru speeds. A quickly prepared thrown together mix of whatever “shloche” just happens to make the altar call more “effective”. The head count is what matters, not the feet count of those who continue to walk in Christ Jesus’ footsteps, through obedience and faith. The rush to publish the numbers of how many got saved at this or that, has forced us to change the Gospel Jesus and His disciples preached, to the gospel we have invented for today’s masses. We have become, especially in North America, hamburger Christian’s, over a billion saved is our new slogan. No wonder true Christianity has been loosing ground in the west. We aren’t taken seriously by a world that is in serious trouble and needs Jesus Christ. We have become used car salesmen selling a bargain basement gospel that promises a great value, but is full of rust under the freshly painted and disguised surface.

Bless me Lord, I feel great, Bless me—Bless me—Bless me Lord:

Anyone who is made to believe he becomes a Christian under such preaching components that we find in most of today’s gospel, will seldom bring forth the true fruits of a real convert. He will remain just as selfish as he always was, only now his selfishness will take on a religious form (before he became a Christian he was CHEAP—now he’s a good steward of God’s RICHES). If he wants something for himself, he will say he “has a burden” for something, or some other religious sounding phrase like that. He will pray selfishly, desiring blessings for himself, and even if he does pray for others, it usually will be for selfish reasons. After all, when he “accepted the Lord”, he was told how much Jesus wanted to bless him and how much God had stored up for his account, and how the Bible was like a “Chequebook full of promises, just waiting to be cashed” all for him.

Such a person always seeks to “feel good” about himself, his church, his own pastor, etc. His whole world is built on “feeling blessed”. He was never shown how he was created to bless God…God was not created to bless him (Psalm 149:4—Philippians 2:13). As you can see, the “converts” described here are not like those in the book of Acts 2:41-47—Acts 4:31-35, where you will see the tender spirit of love, and the mighty Spirit of power that prevailed among the brethren in those early days. I believe that one of the great reasons that: “everyone kept feeling a sense of awe” (Acts 2:43), was because “they were continually devoting themselves to the apostles teaching and to prayer” (vs. 42). I believe that Peter and the others made every effort to convey the whole message of the Gospel when they preached and taught, and that is why the Spirit of God could anoint and bless the new converts so powerfully—God always anoints the truth! (Isaiah 55:11).

So What’s my Point in all this:

My point in all this was to show us just how self-centered, and off-centered, our modern gospel has become in contrast to what Jesus preached. We have become so enamored with the “altar call” that we trust more in “the volume of people coming forward” “during a heads down eyes closed” ending to a modern gospel preaching than any other evidence of conversion. We need to make disciples that will progress ahead in Christ, not decisions that can fade away like a vapour on a sunny day. Jesus would rather see one true disciple living the life He came to bring this world, than a million decisions being published to garner financial support in some Christian publication.

I wanted to show what is wrong with much of the modern gospel, to show what is so right with the original Jesus and His disciples preached. Being at my friend’s funeral has made me even more determine to preach: “The truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth—so help me God”. Because like you, I can’t do anything without Jesus’ help that will be of eternal value.

The Real Gospel—Really Saves, but the modern plastic counterfeit only brings a false sense of security that will not stand the test of time in eternity. So can someone walk away from Jesus if they are saved?---YES. I walked away for 16 years, and I’m so thankful that a merciful loving God took me back. If I had died while in my state of rebellion I know in my spirit that I would have been LOST FOREVER. That’s the wonderful mercy and justice of God. We get to choose if we follow Jesus or not.

We can read about Demas, one of Paul’s co-labourers, (Colossians 4:14—2 Timothy 4:10—Philemon: 24) of whom Paul spoke of admirably twice about. However, in 2Timothy 4:10, Paul is very blunt in his description of his co-worker “For Demas has forsaken me, having loved this present world, and has departed for Thessalonians”. If Demas had only left on a restful holiday to Thessalonians, Paul would not have used the phrase “Having loved this present world”.

Paul taught that we are not to love the world, but Christ. No one could ever have served with Paul and not have been a strong Christian. Paul would have demanded that only solidly converted workers need apply to work beside him in ministry. Paul makes it clear that Demas had left the area that they both were ministering in to pursue his old lifestyle in, “this present world”, the temporal world. Many Christians have ended their walk of faith by abandoning Christ, and going back to their old lifestyle, by returning to this present world that is winding down at a rapid rate of knots to peruse the lust of the flesh. They have lost their first love.

Jesus talked of the need for His followers to eat of His flesh and drink of His blood. For many of us this may seem strange or even grotesque, but to the Jewish people it made perfect sense, (they knew about eating the Passover Lamb), and all around them at that time were pagan altars and temples. It was part of the custom of the time for pagans to offer up sacrifices to their gods. They would seldom burn all of the meat on the altar, but would offer up only a portion. The rest of the meat was served to friends and guests at a feast, (usually held at the temple of the god). After the feasting and drinking many would leave the feast believing that they had eaten or, partaken of their gods flesh, and literally believed to be full of god.

Jesus is using the same dynamic to show people that are there hearing His words, that if they want to follow Him, and be one of His disciples, they needed to embrace His teachings, and partake of the life He is offering to them by Him becoming their “Sacrificial Passover Lamb”. Many turned away and followed Him no more after His sermon on commitment. It was such a blunt call for commitment that everyone walked away except the inner circle of His 12 disciples. Jesus has never lowered His standard of commitment, so why would we present a “once saved always saved” gospel? We need to base our faith on the whole counsel of God’s word, not just the parts we like which makes us feel good.

My only hope is that my friend, even in the last few seconds of his life here on earth cried out to God for forgiveness and is safe in Christ our Saviour’s arms. The best plan we can have is to follow Jesus and become one of His sheep, to know His voice, and to follow in His Steps. I wish that I had had more of a chance to talk with my young friend about the slippery slope he was walking on. Maybe it would have made a difference, maybe not, but I know one thing, he made his own choices.

God will never force any of us to follow Him, that’s why God gave us “FREE-WILL”. Many examples are given in the bible of those who chose to disobey God, never repented of their sins and died in their sins. Yet today we have come to believe that Christians can live any way they want to live just as long as they have said “THE SINNER’S PRAYER”. Lets not deceive others and ourselves into believing that the job is completed when we lead someone to the saving knowledge of who Jesus Christ is. Instead of it being the finish line its where we need to start turning new believers into disciples of Jesus Christ by example. We need to love them enough to tell them the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth—so help me God. We can make such a difference to those that are lost and going to hell, that need to be told that there is a better way, if they will repent and turn to Jesus Christ for true salvation.