“Now in these days when the disciples were increasing in number, a complaint by the Hellenists arose against the Hebrews because their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution.  And the twelve summoned the full number of the disciples and said, “It is not right that we should give up preaching the word of God to serve tables.  Therefore, brothers, pick out from among you seven men of good repute, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we will appoint to this duty.  But we will devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”‘ – Acts 6:1-4

I REALLY WONDER as to how well received the above verses are in our current-day church of action. At first, they seem so disattached from the ever-abiding realities of poverty around us. How could leaders of the New Testament church be so ‘callous’ to the needs of many? We can be sure that the appointed twelve certainly had their priorities in order, just as Mary had chosen the right thing to do in devotion to her Lord, instead of being consumed with other needs (Luke 10:38-42). The needs, as we read in Acts 6, were not neglected as men of sound reputation were selected to carry out the ministry. It would have been an admirable sight to behold these twelve leaders – called to preaching the Word of God – rolling up their sleeves and settling the pressing needs of the widows – and rightly so as James points out that, “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God the Father is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.” – James 1:27. Isolating James’ verse without other biblical texts may sound so right, and yet, will be so misleading. We must take the whole into account, just as the pastor is called upon to preach the whole counsel of God that equips the church to promote growth in a way that is balanced and sound. This is why familiarising oneself with reading the scriptures frequently, and in their entirety, is so essential in developing a sound overview of what God has revealed to us. Sadly, this is a discipline sorely neglected today – and to our own detriment and inefficacy as Christians. As I have said before, there is no greater time to read the scriptures than when we think we have mastered its content.

As many are mourning the Pope’s recent death, it is somewhat alarming that not a few evangelical Christians hail him as a great example to our world, most probably not realising that he openly attacked the infallibility and inerrancy of God’s Word, and condoned a way of living that is an outright abomination in the eyes of God (and this comes nowhere near of exhausting the list). Not to mention that anyone who adheres to the Roman Catholic dogma that excludes justification by faith and grace alone, fails to acknowledge that there is only ONE mediator between God and man – the Man Christ Jesus, is in serious and grave error.

Varied religions/cults have been known for their kindness, being loving, sacrificial, tackling poverty, aiding the sick, infirmed, and are known to be very peaceful. Some of the accounts are emotionally impressive and moving. None can deny that. But what lies at the heart of it all? What are the driving motives behind all such acts? It is incredible what can be achieved by human effort, and for that matter, it is extraordinary how much a church can accomplish without the anointing of the Holy Spirit. Human effort, and all with the hope that such individuals or groups of people may somehow be pleasing their deity and earning a rightful place of blissful immortality.

We hear that love is what marks out a Christian as being the distinguishing note, which is inconclusive and just as arbitrary in stating that the climax of Christ’s suffering was the physical pain he endured on the cross, whereas other martyrs encountered worse.

What kind of love in 1 Corinthians 13 is the apostle Paul really discussing? Is it something innate, or is it something within a true ransomed child of God contrary to fallen human nature? The love of God was poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit (Romans 5:5). The foundation of this love is not directed towards those who are friends and companions of God per se; it is a love that dies for its enemy, toward those who hated the Redeemer, to the ones who have spat in His face – and we have all spat in His face when we preferred sin over Him. Not one human being outside of Christ can love to such a degree. It is impossible! “For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.” (Romans 8:7-8). We cannot love as Christ loved unless we are saved and the Holy Spirit drenches our souls with such a power that floors us. And that power is what kept Christ remaining on the cross until He drunk the very last dregs of God’s wrath on our behalf. That is the love poured into us when we are reconciled unto God. Just pause on that for a moment… not even in all of eternity will you fathom the depths of that love. 

Of course, love is a distinguishing mark of a Christian, and that love reaches out to the most awkward fellow brother or sister in Christ, the one’s we prefer to avoid because they irritate us or just don’t fit in with our social class. Oh churches can be extremely cliquey at times, no different from the world. Yes, no different. How on earth are we going to love our enemy if we don’t love our brother or sister in the faith that we fear ‘creeps us out’? I’ve deliberately used that word because I can think of no other that encapsulates what some of us have really felt like. I fear many churches love at the level of an unregenerate world, no matter how powerfully affective that may appear on the surface; it is a conditional, weak and emotion-driven feeling.

So what differentiates Christianity? What really are the distinguishing marks of a Holy Spirit regenerated believer? Is it not first and foremost the drawing of the Holy Spirit away from self to Jesus Christ as the only hope? Is it not knowing that Jesus Christ is the way, the truth and the life? Is it not relying totally upon Christ’s righteousness imputed to us? Is it not realising that none of our efforts can secure our salvation and that Christ has done it all for us? Is it not an insatiable thirst for studying God’s Word? Is it not being led of the Holy Spirit to know sound doctrine? Is it not a relentless hunger for more of God – to go on knowing Him? Is it not a breaking further away from this world as the realities of eternity shine brighter as we progress in our walk? Of course, none of this negates the fruits of us walking in the Spirit (Galatians 5:22), for if we truly have been born again of the Spirit of God, such fruit shall be inevitable. We shall love others with God’s love in a way that mirrors how God loved us while still being His enemies (prior to our conversion). The cults cannot do that. Self, in its autonomy, will play the martyr as a spectacle before the world; the Christian will die well longing for God to have mercy on the offender or unconverted. And mercy for what? That they also taste the salvation of God. That is a holy and selfless supernatural love that any unregenerate person does not encounter. If we blend into the same levels of the religious cults that show an impressive level of love for others as being the distinguishing hallmark of what it is to be a Christian, then we could be no further from the truth as to what one really is.

Is it to live morally right? The apostle Paul was blameless according to the Law until he was made conscious of what sin really is, and then the war within him really started. I know of work places that have displayed The Beatitudes (Matthew 5:3-12) as if it’s a moral code to live by. Absolutely nothing of the sort, and it is a complete and utter denial of what Jesus was driving at. None of us can attain living totally right before God’s eyes outside of Christ, and the Gospel of Jesus Christ breaks in when we realise we cannot fulfil God’s demands. “Blessed are the poor in the spirit…” it starts there – recognising our spiritual bankruptcy – “Blessed are those who mourn…” – mourning for their own unrighteousness and their utter inability to live right before God. But then, Christ is seen in His righteousness that He longs to unconditionally clothe us with…“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness…” It’s all God’s work within our souls, not man or woman attempting to work their way up to God.

Our modern churches fit so well within the world. It’s politically correct, tolerates practically everything the world stands for and strives for self-development. No wonder the world feels comfortable with or tolerable of the church around. Dare I say that the world is embracing all that the modern church is turning into. If the world loves us and never feels uncomfortable around us, then something is radically wrong. If we have the light of Christ within us then the world is naturally going to repel it. We are going to be misunderstood, ridiculed, slandered – even hated at times. This is not to say that a genuine Christian faces constant opposition from the world.

Our modern churches are social-gospel driven; the emphasis and main focus is just there at the expense of preaching the Word of God for fear of sounding irrelevant in our contemporary society. Our ‘advanced’ churches see the ‘outdated’ method of preaching to get the Good News across, so entertainment becomes a substitute to make the world feel at home. So long as we love, show kindness, are culturally non-biased, inclusive, and anti-discriminatory, then we carry the very heart of the Gospel in our conduct; so long as we’re caring for a less fortunate people in so many practical ways, then we must be pleasing God. Really? Even Judas’ focus was more on the social conditions of life (John 12:1-11), rather than perceiving the kingdom of God changing lives inwardly that has wider repercussions on changing society itself. I’m not implying we’re sharing the same agendas and motives Judas had, although some have been known in liberally taking advantage of church finances for their own gains. Judas saw how such expensive means of worship could have been put to better use for the poor, rather than Mary pouring out that costly ointment in utmost devotion to her Lord. And this is exactly where mainstream 21st century Christianity gets it the wrong way round. Instead of service unto God first, we first serve a needy world in the practical element. “But isn’t serving those in need service unto God?” someone may say. Yes, it is, but if our devotion is primarily unto the world, aren’t we missing the entire picture? Church, what is your doctrine and confession of faith? Are you able to speak the truth when asked? I’m not suggesting that we be eloquent of speech or master theologians here, but that we give a biblical solid reason as to the hope that is within us, which can be done in the most simplistic terms that glorifies God at the heart of it.

I refer again to this pertinent quotation by Oswald Chambers uttered over one hundred years ago, “Missionary enterprise on the line of education, and healing, and social amelioration is magnificent, but it is secondary, and the danger is to give it the first place. The temptation is more subtle today than it ever has been, because the countries of the world are being opened up as never before. It sounds so plausible and right to say – heal the people, teach them, put them in better surroundings, and then evangelise them; but it is fundamentally wrong. The cry ‘Civilise first, and then evangelise’ has honeycombed itself into missionary work in every land; and it takes the Spirit of God to show where it is in direct opposition to God’s line. It is putting men’s needs first, and that is the very heart and kernel of the temptation Satan brought to our Lord. Our Lord’s first obedience was not to the needs of men, but to the will of His Father. We must beware of putting anything first that Jesus does not put first. The testimony of missionaries over and over again is to the effect that when once evangelistic work is put in the second place, it is the devil who gets his way, not God. The introduction of civilisation, without the emphasis on living the life hid with Christ in God, tends to increase the power of evil because it covers it with a veil of refinement. ‘The heathen shall know that I am the Lord…when I shall be sanctified [in you] before their eyes.’ The only reason for a Christian to go out to the mission field is that his own life is hid with Christ in God, and the compulsion of the providence of God outside, working with the imperative call of His Spirit inside, has wedded itself to the command of Jesus – ‘Go ye therefore, and make disciples of all nations.’ The awakening force spiritually will not come from the civilisation of the West, but from the lives of the lonely, obscure missionaries who have stood true to God, and through whom the rivers of living water have flowed.”

If Satan can counterfeit the works of God, he can certainly have a church misrepresent the Gospel of Jesus Christ to be what it was never meant to be. And here is the ever entire deception that pervades 21st century Christianity. It is interesting to note that most churches today that are social-gospel driven will not embrace sound Biblical doctrine. In fact, they are opposed to it, and their distaste – even hate – for it is veneered over with the excuse that there is no time for theology as there is so much work to be done among the needy outside church walls. It sounds so plausible and yet, in reality, is so appalling.  They’ll feed the poor, clothe the naked, and care for the sick, but cannot give witness to how God can truly save their souls, be clothed with Christ’s righteousness, or give godly counsel to a soul that is sick with sin. If there is any kind of ‘evangelism’, it is one of easy believism and of a Jesus that exists nowhere in scripture, but one that has been erected in the hearts and minds of many that leads searching souls further astray and closer to hell than before. We can also throw some miracles in there to back up their work, and there is no denying that something indeed supernatural took place as if to verify such work as being anointed by the Holy Spirit. Did not our Lord say, “Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord’, Lord shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father Who is in heaven”, and for many who think they are Christians will have a shock after they state, “did we not prophesy in Your name, and cast out demons in Your name, and do many mighty works in Your name?’ And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’”  (Matthew 7:21-23).

We can most certainly add to this, that in truly doing the will of the Father may well entail sacrificing our careers, our talents, giftings, or what we might assume is our calling; all that lies on the altar for God to either burn to ashes or resurrect for His purposes. Some may see this as preposterous, but when it comes to discipleship, it is serious. Too long have many professing Christians been convinced that to follow Jesus is to develop ourselves. Even the world strives after bettering themselves; after all, isn’t that what humanism is really about? What distinguishes us as Christians? What if God calls us to let go, for Him, our endeavours we worked so hard for in college, university, a work promotion, our social class, or our title of prestige? Can we say with the apostle Paul, “I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord” (Philippians 3:8)? There’s one thing when the crucible comes – all that is left standing, is the desire to really know God, and that He has His way with us, leads us where He wants us, and accomplishes what He has willed to do through us. It is a life abandoned to Him and for His glory. It is the road by which we are made loyal unto HIM, devoted to HIM throughout all of our daily activities, and it is the only way we are made effective unto HIM; He is our primary focus of entire devotion, while the inevitability of His life pours through us in reaching a lost and dead world.