Scripture makes clear that professing believers who have not repented and turned from sin are in the same spiritual category as the garden variety unbeliever—they’re lost (Matthew 7:13-27). If a professing believer has not repented and turned from sin they do not have a clear understanding of the gospel. And very often they lack this understanding because they’ve never heard the gospel (even if they go to church), or they’ve heard it but don’t really understand the implications in their own lives. There is no contrition, no repentance, and ultimately no salvation. This was me for many years.
A few days ago, I saw a video clip of a “pastor” preaching from a pulpit in these United States. I could only watch a couple of minutes of it because it was so offensive. I realize that coming to a knowledge of the truth can be a process for many of us, but there should be some basic expectation when you hear a pastor preaching. At a minimum, there is a general expectation that inappropriate language won’t be used. There are a lot of very bizarre, unbiblical things coming from pulpits, but just as a basic expectation, we should expect to be able to bring our kids to church. When a person attends church week after week there is an expectation that they will learn the basics of the faith and should be able to articulate those basics with some degree of accuracy. Clearly, it’s not happening to the degree one would expect. Why? Because many “Christian” teachers, preachers, and speakers are not teaching Christianity. They’re teaching a false gospel.
Scripture is clear that there will be many false teachers. Scripture is also clear that we should be able to identify them quickly. But we can’t identify them because we don’t study the Scriptures for ourselves. This should be a habit of every believer – study your Bible and examine what you're being taught against the Scripture so that you are not deceived (Acts 17:11). A counterfeit expert knows the difference between the real thing and the fake because they’ve studied the real thing in detail. Christians should be no different. When we don’t study Scripture for ourselves we end up sitting under “pastors” like the one I saw preaching on YouTube. A false teacher on their way to hell and sadly, taking their entire congregation with them.
People like to rest in the comfort of a perceived salvation by quoting John 3:16. The problem is they fail to read the entire chapter to get a full understanding of what it means to ‘believe’. John 3:16 is the beautiful promise of eternal life, but it’s critical that we understand that we don’t have access to the grace of John 3:16 without the submission of John 3:36. Read all of John 3 so that you understand its context. Pray for an understanding of the gospel (1 Cor. 15:3-4, but start at v. 1).
Once we’ve come to a clear understanding of Jesus’ finished work on the cross, we can’t help but live a life that is reflective of who He is and what He did for us.
I pray that you come to truly understand the saving grace of Jesus Christ so that you can begin to live for Him.