GO MAKE DISCIPLES

CLICK BELOW TO CHECK OUT OUR YOUTUBE CHANNEL!

A WONDERFUL PLAN

I work in the tax dispute department and receive disputes from some customers who are upset about the extra taxes and fees that are on top of their monthly charges. They say they wish they had known about them up front. I don’t think our sales reps omit this information on purpose. Some may not know and some may just not think about it. And I’m not saying that our sales reps do this, but it made me think of times when there are people who leave important things out just to try to make a sale or they try to make things sound better than they really are in order to get the sale. All of this made me think of how often it seems that people are trying to “make a sale” when it comes to the Gospel. It seems that often times, whether purposely or not, they leave out the bad news and just present the good news—which is not the full Gospel. Or they try to make it sound better by using verses out of context like Jeremiah 29:11 which says, “I know the plans that I have for you declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.” People will say “Jesus loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life. Just accept Him into your heart.” This is very misleading. For one thing, this is not the Gospel. We need to give all of the facts up front. People need to understand that they are not good people and automatically in God’s good grace because He loves them…and that He would save them if only they would accept Him into their hearts. NO! This is not the right message!

That wonderful plan that is often mentioned is a plan of salvation for eternal life. What is not mentioned are the reasons why people need the Savior. What is not mentioned is the life change that follows salvation. There’s no mention of all the trials and sufferings that we will go through as Christians while here on earth.

There are several problems with the “Jesus loves you and has a wonderful plan for you” message:

  1. When people are given a “Jesus loves you” message they don’t see their sin in the true light of God’s Word and they don’t truly see their need of the Savior. They don’t come to the repentance and faith that Scripture calls for1.
  2. This often leads to the sinner’s prayer which can lead to false conversions and false assurance. People think that saying a short prayer or repeating a prayer after someone will save them; but Jesus said we must be born again2. They are relying on that prayer for salvation rather than Jesus Himself. Often, there are no true heart changes present yet they believe they are saved because they repeated a prayer (said the magic words). And because people believe they are saved from this prayer, it makes it most difficult to talk to them about Biblical salvation and the evidences of it that follow.
  3. Because they have not been shown their sins, people will continue on in their lives as they always have with no internal heart change in them. They profess Him with their lips but their hearts are far from Him3. They proclaim Christianity but blaspheme His holy name by continuing in their sinful lifestyles4. This is not good witness.  Christians are to look different. They are called to be holy (set apart) as He is holy5. Additionally, there seems to be no desire for God’s Word nor desire to lead others to salvation. Read Acts 2:42-47—They display the hearts and actions of those who are born again (saved).
  4. Some people are under the impression that their life will now be smooth sailing since they “accepted Jesus into their heart”. This is furthest from the truth. Everyone has trials in their lives. Those who are unsaved as well as those who are saved. We live in a fallen world and no one is exempt from the damage and pain that it brings, even Christians. When people respond to the “wonderful life” version of the Gospel, they are deceived and will be greatly disappointed when things don’t go as they thought. This could leave a bad taste in their mouths and make it all the harder to discuss the true gospel with them. Check out this video from Ray Comfort: Hell’s Best Kept Secret.

Just like how salespeople should provide all of the details up front so there are no surprises in the end, Christians should provide all of the Gospel details up front, handling the truth of the Word of God correctly. We don’t want to mislead people with a “love only” type message that is pleasing to the ears just to try to “make a convert” and then in the end that person is surprised to hear God say, “Depart from me you workers of lawlessness, I never knew you”6.

So, what is the message that we are to tell people? We tell them that:7

God is Holy! He is morally perfect and demands perfect obedience. All men sin and fall short of the glory of God. None are righteous, no, not one. The wages of sin is death. Sinful man will be judged by God and will receive His wrath. They will spend eternity in the fires of hell where there is weeping & gnashing of teeth. All are in direct rebellion against God and are due His just punishment.  But God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.  Because of God’s great love, He gave His one and only Son. Jesus, being God Himself, came in the likeness of man in order to fulfill the law on our behalf because we can’t do it. He lived a sinless life in perfect obedience to the Father; even when it came to going to the cross. Even though He was without sin, He suffered God’s wrath on the cross for the sins of His people. He paid the debt in full for those who would turn to Him. And we know His payment was accepted because death did not defeat Him. For He rose again in glory and was placed at the right hand of God in honor. And those who repent and turn away from their sins and turn and cling to Him for forgiveness will be covered by His blood. His blood covers us in His righteousness and reconciles us to God.

Rather than asking people to repeat a prayer, we tell them what the Bible says they must do to be saved and we disciple them:7

Jesus said that we must repent and turn to Him in faith. He said that we must be born again. To be born again is to be given a new heart by God and be in-dwelt by the Holy Spirit. It is to become a new creation. You are not who you once were. You no longer live for self; you live for Christ. You are aware of your rebellion against God by your sinful lifestyle and you are grieved by it. You therefore turn from it and turn to Christ, trusting that He has paid your sin debt and He covers you in His righteousness. You have a new relationship with sin. The sin that you once loved, you now hate and wrestle with it. And out of a loving and thankful heart to God for what He did for you, you begin to practice righteousness. You will still fall into sin; however, it won’t be habitually and it will grieve you.  You will have a new relationship with God.  You will be hungry for His Word and want to know Him more. You will want to share His Word with others.  As a child of God, you are guided by the Holy Spirit through the teachings of God’s Word in the Bible. The Word transforms you and your way of thinking. You have a new love for others and desire for them to be saved.  You have a desire to fellowship and worship with other believers.  You are continually being sanctified (conformed to His holy image) until you will one day be made perfect when you are called to heaven to be with your Lord and Savior forever.

We don’t sugar coat. Those who respond to the Gospel must be made aware that there will be trials and persecution so they aren’t caught off guard:7

Jesus made it clear that following Him would not be easy. He told us to pick up our cross daily and deny ourselves and follow Him.  Scripture tells us not to be surprised when we are persecuted for the sake of Christ. If the world persecuted Him, it will persecute us. Scripture says to put on the whole armor of God. As a child of God, you have entered into a spiritual battle. Scripture tells us to contend for the faith and persevere to the end.

So, does God have a wonderful plan for us? 

Yes! He does!  It is a plan of reconciliation.  A plan to give us hope and a future – an eternal future – with God – where there will be no more sorrow and no more tears and no more pain8.  And Jesus has fulfilled that plan for us through His life, death, and resurrection.  So, turn from your lifestyle of sin and cling to Christ! Present your bodies to Him as a living sacrifice9 and pray to Him for spiritual wisdom and to help you persevere10 through all the spiritual battles and trials11 that come your way while you live your life for Him here on earth12. 

————————————-

  1. ACTS 20:21
  2. JOHN 3:3
  3. MARK 7:6
  4. ROMANS 2:23-24
  5. 1 PETER 1:16
  6. MATTHEW 7:23
  7. THE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST – OUR BOOK HAS THE GOSPEL BROKEN DOWN IN SECTIONS WITH RELATED SCRIPTURES REFERENCED FOR EACH SECTION.
  8. REVELATION 21:1-4
  9. ROMANS 12:1-2
  10. COLOSSIANS 1:9-14
  11. EPHESIANS 6:10-18
  12. LUKE 9:23
HOME