False Converts

I had been planning for some time to write about false converts, but due to some recent issues, I feel more compelled than ever to share my concerns. My intent here is not to single out any one denomination or judge any group of persons, but to warn and remind those of us who call ourselves Christians to “examine yourself, to see whether you are in the faith.” (2 Corinthians 13:5) I realize that as I speak out about the issues that God clearly defines as sin, I will be seen as intolerant and judgmental and I will offend some. I am seeking to please God, and oftentimes that will not please men: “If I were still trying to please man, I would not be a servant of Christ.” (Galatians 1:10) I will attempt to speak the truth in love, but the reality is that the truth IS offensive to those who walk in darkness. True Christians are not only called to “take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but to instead EXPOSE them.” (Ephesians 5:11)

I am deeply troubled by some recent websites I visited from a link on a blog site of an ordained pastor. These websites promote and support homosexual marriage, “progressive” Christianity and moral relativism and portray a false image of God. One cannot be a true Christian and call good the things that God calls sin. (Isaiah 5:20) “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness.” A false convert “claims to know God, but by their actions deny him.” (Titus 1:16) My purpose is not to point a finger because I am certainly not without sin myself, but to be sure that no one is deceived into thinking that all religious people are really genuine Christians. There are many self-proclaimed Christians, even pastors, who will have elements of Christianity, but are not saved because they lack true contrition (sorrow) for their sin. “See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ.”(Colossians 2:8) Don’t be led astray by false teachings! We must read the Bible ourselves daily to know and understand what it says so we will not believe a lie and can recognize false teachings when we hear them!

A true Christian will believe in the inerrancy of the Bible- that is, that every word of it is true and unchanging. There is no such thing as “progressive Christianity”!! God’s Word does not evolve to fit our agenda. It is timeless and still as applicable today as it was when it was written. We cannot pick and choose which verses we like and which ones “no longer apply” to current times. To preach only a God of love and not warn sinners of God’s wrath for sin and the punishment of hell for those who choose not to repent are not preaching what Jesus taught- the narrow path to salvation. (see Matthew 7:14)

Let me preface this with telling you that I am not homophobic, nor do I hate homosexuals. I have a gay brother, a gay uncle and a gay cousin, and I love them dearly. I might even be able to justify their lifestyle by telling you that it “runs in the family”. It does to some extent, because we are all born with a sinful nature! Loving them means that I don’t tell them that their sin is acceptable, but just like with any other sin, they are damned to hell if they refuse to turn from it and trust in Jesus. They need to be taken through God’s Law and shown their sinfulness even despite their sexual tendencies, “for the law is not laid down for the just, but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and sinners, for …men who practice homosexuality.” (1 Timothy 1:9-10) Yes, come to Jesus just as you are, but don’t stay that way! By the power of God’s Spirit, not of their own strength, they too can change. Let me clarify what the Bible says about homosexuality, to name a few:

Leviticus 18:22 - You shall not lie with a male as with a woman; it is an abomination.”

Leviticus 20:13 - If a man lies with a male as with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination; they shall surely be put to death.

1Corinthians 6:9 - Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality…will inherit the kingdom of God.

And as for transvestites:

Deuteronomy 22:5 - A woman shall not wear a man’s garment, nor shall a man put on a woman’s cloak, for whoever does these things is an abomination to the Lord your God.

It is very clear! Homosexuality, while no greater a sin than others, is an abomination, and those who continue to practice the lifestyle will NOT inherit the kingdom of God. To preach anything but these truths is a lie! “There are some who…want to distort the gospel of Christ. But even if…an angel from heaven (or a “Christian” minister or great religious preacher, for that matter!) should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed.” (Galatians 1: 7-8)

Yes, we are to “love the sinner, hate the sin”, but “love” does not just mean to wrap our arms around them and tell them God loves them, but to tell them what they NEED to hear, not what they WANT to hear: that God’s wrath is upon them if they don’t repent and turn away from their sin. For a so-called Christian to embrace what God abhors is an outright defiance and rejection of His Word. The Bible portrays marriage as symbolic to the church, and to promote homosexual marriage as equal to the God ordained marriage of a man and a woman is to make a mockery of Christ and His Church.

The issue here is not debating whether or not homosexuality is a sin- the Bible says that it is. The issue is that professing Christians are saying that it is not by their acceptance and embracing and even promoting of the GLBT agenda. “Though they know God’s decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, they not only do them but give approval to those who practice them.” (Romans 1:32) These “Christians” obviously do not believe in the inerrancy of the Bible and instead of calling sin for what it is, they seek to justify it to be praised among men. (James 4:4b) states “whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.” They have created a god in their mind (idolatry) that they are more comfortable with who will overlook their sin and they have no fear of God. False converts say they have fellowship with God, but walk in darkness- they lie and do not practice the truth. (1 John 1:6) Whoever says “I know God” but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him. This doesn’t mean that a Christian will never sin, but it does mean that he will acknowledge when he does and not make excuses for it.

Do not believe the claims that Christ is one who will Recognize the faithfulness of other people who have other names for the way to God's realm, and acknowledge that their ways are true for them, as our ways are true for us. There is no place for moral relativism in Christianity. Relativism is the position that all points of view are as valid as any other points of view and that the individual is the measure of what is true for that person. It is basically a justification to do whatever you want and because of this it is a contributor to overall anarchy. A Bible believing Christian knows that there are black and white truths and set standards of right and wrong, such as the Ten Commandments. Even sinners have a God given conscience to show them right from wrong. Society cannot flourish nor survive in an environment where everyone does what is right in his own eyes (Judges 17:6), where the situation determines actions and if the situation changes, lying or cheating is acceptable- as long as you’re not caught. Without a common foundation of truth and absolutes, our culture will become weak and fragmented. For any “Christian” group to say otherwise is heresy - a false preaching about God.

A true convert has a knowledge of sin (his own personal sin and agrees with what the Bible says is sin) and has Godly sorrow, truly repents, and produces the things that accompany salvation (Hebrews 6:9). This conversion is evident in his or her life by the fruit of the Spirit and the good works it produces. This is not to say that everyone who does good works is therefore a Christian. Jesus told us we would recognize false converts by their fruits. (Matthew 7:15-20) The fruits of the “Christians” on these websites are abominable because they are calling good what God has called evil. They are justifying sin with moral relativism. Are you guilty of preaching a gospel that reaps false converts? Are YOU a false convert yourself?