Christianity Lite is being Preached

“All the simplicity in the world can do no good, unless you preach the simple gospel of Jesus Christ so fully and clearly that everybody can understand it. If ‘Christ crucified’ has not His rightful place in your sermons, and sin is not exposed as it should be, and your people are not plainly told what they ought to believe, and be, and do — your preaching is of no use!”
~J.C. Ryle

We see little preaching today that convicts the heart of it’s sin. To much of the preaching we see today is, instead, a reaction to the preaching of days gone by that did indeed convict a sinner’s heart. Or we may hear a self-help lesson designed to draw a crowd, to who the gospel will not be preached.
Those young people of yesterday, who’s hearts were convicted by the fiery sermons of yesteryear, mistakenly believe that the Holy Spirit conviction they felt, back then, was a bad thing. They now react by spreading a watered down gospel that is void of any speech that condemns sin and worldliness in the life of those who are Born Again. The young people, of today, often hear empty sermons that are void of the calls to purity and righteousness that Paul and Peter cried out so long ago.
It is becoming rare for us to hear preachers exhorting the body of Christ to live pure and holy lives. Gone are Paul’s messages of “Keep yourself pure.” (1 Tim 5:22) and “…let us purify ourselves from everything that contaminates body and spirit, perfecting holiness out of reverence for God.” (2 Corinthians 7:1) No longer do we hear “..train the younger women to love their husbands and children, to be self-controlled and pure…” (Titus 2:4), or “For God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life.” (1 Thessalonians 4:7)
Paul wrote, “So then, the law is holy, and the commandment is holy, righteous and good. Did that which is good, then, become death to me? By no means! But in order that sin might be recognized as sin, it produced death in me through what was good, so that through the commandment sin might become utterly sinful.” Romans 7:13 Too many of today’s Christian’s skip over this scripture. They do not want to see that exposure of sin is a good thing, sanctioned by God, through the law, in order to help the Christian live in Christ. Many view the exposure of impurity and sin in the life of a Christian as legalistic and wrong.
Love, grace, righteousness, holiness and purity must always be spoken of together. They cannot be separated and one does not outweigh the other. They are all equal attributes of our most Holy God and Lord. We must teach and expect all of those who call themselves Christians to live lives that are motivated by love, grace, righteousness, holiness and purity. Peter wrote, “As obedient children, do not conform to the evil desires you had when you lived in ignorance. But just as he who called you is holy, so be holy in all you do; for it is written: “Be holy, because I am holy.” (1 Peter 1:14-16)
WAKE UP YOU SLEEPY CHRISTIAN! In this time when the Body of Christ is shrinking and the sins of prominent preachers are spread all over the internet and in the headiness, it is all the more important for us to heed the calls of Peter and Paul. We do not show the world the qualities of Christ by being like the world, the world will see the qualities of Christ when we start becoming like Christ, when we expect our preachers to teach others to become like Christ, and when we teach others to become like Christ.
Peace in Christ, Steve

My Prayer for us all:

And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast. To him be the power for ever and ever. Amen. ~Peter