Tell me how this works. How do "Christians" bring condemnation, shame and feelings of hatred to someone with the expectation of them hearing a message that says, "Jesus loves you?"
Sadly, the old way of thinking (which is currently still alive), is that to testify about Christ' love is to make sure you tell them what is wrong with them.
At Free Indeed, we do not believe in this and we do not follow this practice. In fact we condemn it!
The very thought that Christ or God is a condemning all knowing God is the antithesis of who and what he is. He is our loving father. Because he is omniscient he knows all that we are and all that we've done.
He is our Creator God. He is not surprised by anything we did or will do. He is not surprised by anything we do. All sin we commit is future sin, since Christ lived (bodily on Earth) over 2000 years ago and died on the cross over 2000 years ago.
Where then did this practice come from? Why would a church, with the most loving God, the one true God, have the thought or the feeling that if they don't condemn the unsaved they (the unsaved) don't get to have relationship with God and will not be saved?
The way this came about was because people did not want to accept the ministry of Grace. They wanted to only accept the ministry of law which in the Bible is called the ministry of death. The law was placed there to bring man to the end of himself and to force him to his knees.
The law demanded, Grace gives. So you say, "well we are of the generation of salvation so therefore grace is alive". Yes grace is alive. In fact, Grace and Truth came through Jesus Christ. Therefore, Grace has been around for a very long time.
The problem is people have tried to mix grace and law to create their own religion. It is evident in all of the denominations we have, especially in America. If Bible believing Christians would stay within the will of God and the word of God and trust in what Christ did on the cross as God,
there would be no other denominations. It would be what the Bible calls "the church".
This church would follow exactly what Christ did. This church would reach out to all people. This church would know that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, even themselves! They themselves have been saved by the grace of Christ. Deserving of condemnation and death not salvation and redemption.
Why is it, that by knowing one's sin, they decide whether or not the one is deserving of salvation? You see, the ones who think the way this chapter is titled, also believe that we must always confess ALL of our sins one to another.
Interesting isn't it? They will admit that they should be telling their sins to each other, yet if they find out about another person's problems or needs it's okay to condemn them before giving Christs' love to them. I guess once they have chosen to be saved, their self-righteousness takes over
and allows them to be the Holy Spirit to the rest of the world? I say, "who do you think you are, to stand in the place of God and to make a judgment of salvation or sin and death.
Salvation comes as a free gift of love. A relationship with Jesus comes through the heart of the one who seeks him. We receive from a God that loves us so much that he would die for us, raise again and stand for us!
I have heard it said, that if you don't tell somebody what they're being saved from, there's no reason to be saved. Dare I say how foolish this is? This is almost stupid!
If I offer to feed you but first I tell you it may be poison, there may be something in there that you shouldn't eat and that you'll have to pick one plate. What have I done except instill fear
and absolutely no trust in anything I have to offer next. So bring on the plates! Now what? Which would I choose? I'm certainly not going to choose the plate that you point out. The one you say is the good food. That this plate will keep you from the other plates of death.
Ridiculous. In fact, stupid!
But what if I tell you, "here, have this plate of food it's good for you and will give you life". I give you the plate of food and place it in front of you so you can see it and smell it and know that it is good. Your first instinct would be to trust me and believe that I would not have a motive to harm or hurt you.
You would know in your heart, I only want to nurse you and see you have life. To give you the same kind of strength in life that I have.
Now you accept the plate and you eat. You're filled with life and hope and you trust me. Now the conversation of why you are so hungry and why you felt such pain can be spoken.
A bond of trust between us and God is most powerful. Now let God be God and make you healthy and whole as I continue to offer you food that will give you the life that God has for you. Until you can make your own plate and trust the one who's giving you the food to put on that very plate.
But John, Jesus told the Pharisees what was wrong with them. Yes he did, and he told them how bad they were. Why? Because the Pharisees were condemning people. The Pharisees were keeping people from God. They were condemning people away from God.
There stood Jesus. God himself, as they attempted to condemn him away from who he is. Of course he condemned their behavior, they were not allowing Jesus own children to find him! But how typical for someone who feels the same way as this article is titled to align with those with the law.
To align with the Pharisees and think that somehow this is good. What a sad state of one's relationship with God, to know you've been reduced to pharisaic foolishness. That condemnation away from the love of Jesus is the best way to bring someone to Jesus.
I hate you therefore Jesus loves you. How wrong and sad!
I heard recently someone tell me that if we know that the car is driving down a road that has a cliff on it, we must tell the person that there's a cliff and therefore they will stop the car and then they will somehow be safe.
Really? So where's the cliff? Tell me how far can the car drive before the cliff?
Your playing Holy Spirit so you're going to tell me basically that I'm going to die when my going to die? How will I die? In what way will I die? I'm sure this conversation is not going to get very far with someone as you try to explain that you're telling them that they're doomed but God loves them! We all know were going to die. Certainly no one needs you to try and tell them their doom as if your God!
So through my frustration (as I'm sure you've detected), I want to summarize the truth in the following way.
Free Indeed is given to all who seek a relationship with God while same-sex attracted, gay or navigating sexual identity or homosexuality. If this article finds one person and brings them out of the, condemnation closet to a point where they would trust us then to a point where they would trust Jesus, we have done our work for the kingdom.
Christ calls us to go and to spread his love and to tell people about how wonderful and wondrous he is. He does not, in any way, call us to condemn someone to their death. And we will love them to the kingdom. We will not condemn them away from God and we will not accept them into their death whether spiritually or physically.
Recently a young man who heard this message, the message of Free Indeed, came to Brandon and said I'm a Christian I struggle with same-sex attraction and I want it to go away. There was the one in a room where some were condemning tho many more were not. This message of love, that Christ loves you while you're sinning rang true in his heart. Notice his first statement was, "I am a Christian". Then his burden. How telling that with a message that begins with Grace (Jesus loves you right now) he knew he was safe to trust Brandon. As Christians, we know that if a message does not ring true in our spirit, (someone teaching you the wrong gospel) that you are to flee from it and reject it. But this message resonated with nearly 100 people and with one who was brave enough to come forward and say, "help me". God will honor that request. God will honor him and show him the love that he needs and wants. God will lead him into an intimate relationship that he can enjoy and appreciate for the rest of his life.
All because we did not say I hate you therefore God loves you or I hate you and God hates you.
Jesus loves you this I know, for the Bible tells me so! Little ones to him belong we are weak but he is strong. Yes, Jesus loves me yes Jesus loves you, yes Jesus loves us the Bible tells us so.
No matter what the person you meet is dealing with, no matter how offensive is their sin you may know, let us not look at the sin and attempt to be God. Rather, let us look at their heart and be a light in their darkness. We hope to be the Christ in their life right now.
Be life, always!
Now go and change someone's mind about God!
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