House Churches and Leadership
One of the most common arguments I hear from traditional (or institutional) churches is that house churches are opposed to leadership. One blogger put it this way, “House churches want to play church instead of being the church.” Traditional churches pride themselves on their clergy-laity division, that they have leaders in place whereas it is assumed that house churches oppose any thought of a leader telling them what to do.
Well this is partly true. First of all we hold that Jesus is the head of His Church. As did the New Testament. As do all evangelical churches. Colossians 1:18 says, “He is also the head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning, the first-born from the dead; so that He Himself might come to have first place in everything” (NASB). Ephesians 1:22 echoes the same thought. Jesus is the head of His Church. Not a pastor. Not a pope. Not a priest. Not any flesh but only Jesus is Lord over His Church. Therefore it is true that we in the house church movement oppose someone telling disciples what to do or think since Jesus is the Lord of His Church. We need to heed the words of Christ as found in the Scriptures above the creeds and confessions of human beings. We believe that leaders in the church are not to lord it over others faith but be examples of true faith in the Lord Jesus Christ (1 Peter 5:1-5).
The ironic thing about reading the New Testament is that you find not a lot of information about leaders in the church. Only one letter in the New Testament even addresses the leaders from the outset and that is Philippians (1:1). All of the New Testament letters are addressed to the saints when it would be assumed by modern traditional churches that leaders would first be addressed since the professional clergy set the tone for the local church. The clergy set the agenda, the vision, the purpose, etc. for the local church. This is not the case with the New Testament.
Leadership is addressed in the New Testament. Jesus spoke about leadership in Matthew 20:20-28 but He contrasts the worldly leadership that the Jews had seen with true servant leadership that He called for and demonstrated with His life and death (Mark 10:45). Leadership is addressed in 1 Timothy 3:1-13 and Titus 1:5-9. Ephesians 4:11 speaks of gifted people who God gives the Church but for a reason: to equip the saints to do the work of the ministry (vv. 12-16) and not to pay someone else to do the work of the ministry. Leaders are mentioned in Hebrews 13:7, 17 and 1 Peter 5:1-4. Elders are mentioned in James 5:14. You’ll notice how important elders were to the New Testament Church. What you will not find is the idea of one professional pastor serving over a church with a deacon board or a group of elders helping the pastor lead the church. The word pastor appears only in our English Bibles in Ephesians 4:11 and the ESV correctly translates it “shepherds.” Jesus is the true shepherd of the flock of God (John 10:1-16; 1 Peter 2:25; Hebrews 13:20).
So what does leadership look like in a house church then? First of all, we have elders. A biblical house church should have a plurality of elders (Titus 1:5) who lead the house church. Their purpose is not to be over the people of God but among the people of God (1 Peter 5:2). The elders are to fit the qualifications of 1 Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus 1:5-9. The elders are not professional Christians although they could receive some money as a gift from time to time (1 Timothy 5:17-18). No where does the New Testament call elders to abandon the “secular” for the “ministry.” Elders are to lead by example and not as professionals who dominate the local church life (Hebrews 13:7, 17).
Secondly, leadership in the local house church is often consensus based. In Acts 13:1-3 we see the Holy Spirit leading the church in Antioch and He does so through the people of God. Notice that the people of God were seeking the Lord for Himself (v. 2) and it was during this time that the Spirit called Barnabas and Saul for a specific work (in this case to be apostles or sent ones; see verse 4). The church didn’t quickly say okay but again they fasted and prayed to come to a consensus about this call.
In Acts 15 we find another example of consensus. Here the church meets to debate the relationship between the Law of Moses and the grace of Christ. The church comes to a consensus after much debate (Acts 15:22).
1 Corinthians 11:2-16 is another example. Here Paul is addressing an issue among the Corinthians about head coverings. His point throughout these verses is that the church needs to come to consensus over this issue as he states in verse 16.
What this looks like on a practical level is that house churches often move slowly. Unlike the traditional churches who vote on issues all the time and are building buildings and doing this or that, house churches are slow to act and instead seek God for His wisdom, to study Scripture, and to come to a consensus over issues. Some issues are quickly solved while others must be handled with much prayer and wisdom from the Lord. Keep this in mind, however, that Jesus is the Lord of His Church and He is faithful to His Church. We need only to wait on Him and obey all that He has taught us (Matthew 28:20). No matter the issue, Jesus should be the main focus and His glory is to our aim.
Lastly, the priesthood of the believers is vital to the local house church. Each person can study the Scriptures and can speak for God (1 Peter 4:10-11). All of us are called by God to glorify His name and to proclaim Him. All of us can hear from God in His Word (John 8:47). All of us have the Spirit of God living within us (Romans 8:9) and all of us can be led by the Spirit (Romans 8:14) and He is able to speak through us. We should be open to all disciples of Jesus sharing from the Scriptures or giving a teaching since we are all priests unto the Lord (1 Peter 2:4-11) and all of us can give input into the kingdom of Christ (1 Corinthians 14:26). Elders are not to be the only ones teaching the Bible. Elders certainly are to keep the house church sound doctrinally (Titus 1:9; 2:1) but elders are not to dominate the house church meetings.
Leadership in the house church is important and should not be rejected. God raises up elders to glorify His name through their passion and examples. Elders are not to dominate the people of God nor are elders to be professional Christians but they are to serve as servant leaders of God’s saints. We need godly leadership in the local church but what we don’t need is more of the CEO-type leadership that we find in the traditional churches. Only Jesus is truly head of His Church. Let us exalt Him for His leaders while He Himself is our true leader.
House Churches and the Arminian/Calvinist Debate
Most house churches don’t have a doctrinal statement. Some do. I know of a house church in Atlanta, Georgia that follows the Second London Baptist Confession of 1689 which is Calvinistic while holding to particulars of being Baptist. Most house churches that I know do not have a clear doctrinal statement other than a common faith among those who attend. Of course a biblical house church will stay true to the orthodox faith if they are truly led of the Holy Spirit and seeking to make sure their faith is based on Scripture alone. Some house churches deviate from sound doctrine and wander into error as Paul the Apostle predicted in Acts 20:29. Satan seeks to lead God’s people away from sound doctrine and into error (1 Timothy 4:1; 1 John 4:1-2). After all, Scripture calls Satan the “father of lies” (John 8:44).
In a biblical house church, doctrine is important. Paul reminded the Corinthians in 1 Corinthians 1:10 that they were to be united in the same mind and judgement. This can only happen if disciples of Jesus in the local house church are seeking Jesus above all (Colossians 3:1-3) and are seeking to build their lives firmly upon His teachings as found in His Word (Matthew 7:24-27; John 8:31-32). When the 3,000 were saved on the day of Pentecost in Acts 2 we read in Acts 2:42 that the disciples devoted themselves to the Apostles’ teachings. Later this would become Scripture as Jesus had promised (John 16:14-15).
In the midst then of seeking unity around doctrine, how are we to handle the ongoing Arminian/Calvinist debate in our unique setting. No house churches fall under the authority of a denomination or a pastor. We seek to follow the leading of our head, the Lord Jesus Christ (Colossians 1:15-20). Our passion is to be disciples of Jesus and not flesh. Yet within the house churches are Arminians and Calvinists alike. So let me offer a few pointers regarding this issue for house churches.
1. Focus on the Essentials and Have Fun Debating the Non-Essentials
House churches are known for living out our discipleship with one another. When you come to a house church you are not coming to hear a lecture on doctrine. You are not coming to give money for the overpriced church building. You are coming to partake in the Lord’s Supper (Acts 2:42; 20:7; 1 Corinthians 11:20) to celebrate the resurrection of Jesus our Lord (1 Corinthians 11:26) through our fellowship with the saints of God. In this setting, I pray that house churches would focus on the essentials of the gospel and not arguing and split over non-essentials. We can debate end times, spiritual gifts, does God still speak, etc. but let us not divide over non-essentials. Both Arminians and Calvinists believe the gospel. We believe in the power of God to save sinners through the shed blood of Jesus (Matthew 26:28). We might argue about how someone came to be in Christ but we will not argue that all people need to come to Christ to be saved by grace.
2. Love One Another
Jesus said that all men would know that we are His disciples not by our doctrinal convictions but by our love for one another. A family is the most common term we find to describe the Body of Christ. By faith in Jesus we are now children of God (Romans 8:14-16). We are placed by the Spirit into the Body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:13) and we become one with other believers (Ephesians 2:19-22; 4:4). We are commanded by Jesus to love one another. Love is the greatest gift given to the saint of God (1 Corinthians 13). Paul told the Galatians in Galatians 5:13-14 that we are to serve one another out of love and that love fulfills the law of the Lord. Love is the first fruit mentioned in Galatians 5:22-23 for disciples.
3. Lay Down Your Pride
Pride would seek to convince us that we are right and all others are wrong. If a person doesn’t believe what I believe about A then they are wrong. We need more love for the saints and we need to lay down our pride. Hold firmly to sound doctrine but allow the Holy Spirit to teach you. This doesn’t mean that we don’t hold to doctrinal convictions but we must not be so prideful as to think that we are always right about all issues. We are but flesh and blood. Remember that God opposes the proud but He gives grace to the humble (1 Peter 5:5). Pride comes before a fall (Proverbs 16:18). Avoid the trap of Satan.
4. Wash One Another’s Feet (John 13:14-15)
Jesus was the ultimate servant. He said that He came not to be served but to serve and to give His life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45). Isaiah prophesied in Isaiah 52:13 that the Messiah would be the servant of Yahweh. Jesus told His disciples in John 13 after washing their feet to wash one another’s feet. He was meaning more than just washing feet but He was pointing to His example of a servant’s heart. It’s very hard to argue with our brothers and sisters if we are seeking to serve them ahead of ourselves. This is the example of our Lord (Philippians 2:1-11). It should be ours as well. Service goes a long ways beyond debating.
5. Never Make Arminianism or Calvinism the Gospel
The gospel of Jesus is not Arminianism. The gospel of Jesus is not Calvinism. The gospel of Jesus is the gospel of Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 15:1-4). It is not the teachings of Arminius or Wesley or Luther or Calvin. It is the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus our Lord and God. When we make our doctrinal convictions the gospel, we will soon lose sight of Jesus and His glorious work on the cross and His powerful resurrection. Remember that only Jesus saves sinners for His glory (1 Corinthians 3:6-9). He alone receives the worship for salvation (Revelation 5:9-10).
6. Seek God in Prayer
Prayer has a way of tearing down our theological arguments unlike any other discipline I know. When brothers and sisters come together to seek God in prayer, the Holy Spirit begins to move among us and He opens our hearts to our pride, our sins, and He causes us to love each other deeply through intercession. Prayer is to be the heart of the house church (Colossians 4:2). Prayer should drive our discipleship (Luke 18:1). We should pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17). We should be a praying church as the early disciples were (Acts 2:42). When we come together to pray, Arminianism and Calvinism seem so pointless in comparison. At the time of prayer, the only thing that matters is the gospel of Jesus Christ that unites our hearts to fear His name.
Conclusion
House churches offer the unique opportunity of fellowship that traditional churches do not. When you enter a house church you are not coming to stare at the back of another person’s head but you are coming to be with fellow disciples of Jesus and some of them may not agree fully with your theology. We must agree to the fundamentals of the faith but we can show charity toward one another when it comes to non-essentials. God is bigger than our debates. God does not need you and I to protect Himself from heresy. His Word is powerful enough to do that (Hebrews 4:12-13). Our duty before God is to love the saints and to cherish our time together on this planet (Hebrews 10:23-25).
The Omniscience of God Concerning Free Will Events
In Exodus 3:18-22 we read what Yahweh tells Moses concerning Pharaoh and the plunder of the Egyptians. God tells that Moses that He is going to set His people free from the bondage under the Egyptians (vv. 7-8). He then tells Moses in verse 18 to go and tell Pharaoh that the Jews were to go into the wilderness to sacrifice to the LORD yet Yahweh tells Moses in verse 19 that He knows that Pharaoh will not let them go unless compelled by a mighty hand and so in verse 20 Yahweh tells Moses that He will strike Egypt with wonders and then Pharaoh will let them go. God even promises in verses 21-22 that He will give the Jews favor with the Egyptians so that the Jews will plunder them.
Anyone who knows the book of Exodus and the history of the Israelites knows that all this comes to pass. Moses goes before Pharaoh and sure to God’s word, Pharaoh denies that the Israelites can go free. God does wonders that amazes both the Egyptians and the Israelites and finally, after the striking down of the first-born in all of Egypt, Pharaoh calls Moses to him and tells him to leave (Exodus 12:31-32). The Israelites even plunder the Egyptians as God promised (Exodus 12:36).
What amazes me about Exodus 3:18-22 is that Yahweh clearly foresees all the free will decisions that will come to pass. In His complete omniscience He knows what Pharaoh will do and say and even what the Egyptians will do for the Israelites after God’s judgment upon them. Romans 9:14-18 gives us insight into God’s choosing of Pharaoh for His own purpose. Romans 9:14-18 is not salvation in nature. The point of Romans 9:14-18 is that God is sovereign to choose whomever He desires for His own purpose without saving them in the process. Pharaoh could have been saved if he had repented of his sins but he continued in his unbelief and hardened his heart toward Yahweh. The parallel between John 15:16 and Romans 9:17 are similar. Jesus’ choice of His Apostles in John 15:16 was to service and not entirely to salvation (as the case of Judas shows). This is true of Pharaoh as well. He was chosen by God for God’s own purpose: to show His glory and wonders to the Israelites.
What is amazing though is that God knows the free will choices that Pharaoh and the Egyptians would make. God does not force these decisions but He knows them just as He knows your thoughts before you even utter them (Psalm 139:4). Jesus knew the thoughts of many in the Gospels. In Mark 2:8 we read that Jesus perceived the thoughts of the people questioning His words in their hearts. In John 2:25 we read that Jesus knew what was in man. In John 6:64 Jesus even knew who did not believe about the disciples spoken of in verse 66 and about Judas (verse 71). On a side note, Adam Clarke makes the point that could it be that Jesus was reaching out to Judas trying to call him to repent of his wickedness beforehand? I know this is speculation on Clarke’s part but I do see the love of Jesus even for a Judas.
I write all this because some accuse us Arminians of rejecting the omniscience of God. They believe that we hold to open theism, that God does not know all future actions of free will creatures. I certainly reject this notion. I believe from passages such as Exodus 3:18-22 that God does indeed know all things. He knows even the free will decision of people. He foreknows even those who will believe the gospel of Christ (Romans 8:29). While this knowledge is not unconditional in that salvation is based on conditions that God has set including belief, He does know those who will believe. This mystery is beyond me. I cannot fathom knowing all things including decisions others are going to make. God does. God knows all things. He foreknows all events. He has chosen in His sovereignty to allow for free will from His creatures so that none can accuse Him of evil and say on the day of judgment that they were only doing what God had caused them to do. Calvinists believe that God renders certain whatsoever comes to pass including sin. How does this not make God the author of sin? If God is going to render certain all things that come to pass then this means that He causes them to come to pass. In essence, this makes God the one who caused the event (even sinful) to be rendered certain.
The Arminian view is that God simply knows. That is it. God knew the free will actions of Pharaoh and the Egyptians before it happened because He knows. God knew when you would believe. God knew that I would write this post. That God knows is not the same as God caused. God foreknows all things including the free will decisions of people. He controls all things but He does not cause all things. He knew the free will actions that would be taken toward His Son (Isaiah 53:4-6) but He allowed those free will choices to be made and for Jesus’ death to come to pass (Acts 2:23 notice that Peter says that those Jews were guilty of Jesus’ death through the hands of lawless men). God allowed people to make free will choices to crucify His Son but He knew those choices would be made even if He didn’t make that choice for them.
There are some who take comfort in a fatalistic view of God’s omniscience. I have even known some who would abide in sin believing that God knew and rendered certain their sin so why fight it? I have seen some find comfort in their struggles of life by believing that God caused their troubles to come upon them by His own sovereign choice. I have seen women mourn over their dead baby only to bless God for killing the child. They find comfort that God causes all things to come to pass even if they don’t understand God’s ways. They read the book of Job and see the hand of God crushing Job as proof that we should expect the same in this life.
I don’t know. I don’t find much comfort in that thought. I do believe that God is sovereign. I do believe that God foreknows all things. I do believe that God controls all things. I reject that God causes all things. Did God cause Adam to sin? Did God cause Judas to betray Jesus? Did God cause Hitler to murder over 6 million Jews? Did God cause the rapist to rape a little girl? What kind of God is this? Despite the picture that Scripture presents of Him being loving and good, I would find this fatalistic view of God as appalling.
I am not sure if either Arminianism or Calvinism has the answer to the problem of evil. The Calvinist views the sovereignty of God as meaning that He must cause all things to come to pass for His glory even the hardening of sinner’s hearts. The Arminian views the sovereignty of God as God allowing free will decisions to be made that He does know but does not cause. The open theist view is that God allows the future to partly open so that free will decisions are completely unknown to Him before they take place in time and then God reacts to those free will decisions. I believe that all three may have problems but I accept the Arminian view as I believe from cases such as Exodus 3:18-22 that God does know all things including the future free will choices that others will make and He is able to make prophetic statements in that regard.
Arminius on the Catholic Church (Part 4)
This is the final installment of allowing Arminius to share his thoughts with us on the Roman Catholic Church and her pope. While his words are not as gracious as we might find in today’s Church when dealing with the Catholics, certainly we would agree with Arminius that the Catholic Church needs the gospel of Christ to tear down her traditions that have robed God of His glory and the people of their salvation in Jesus Christ (Romans 1:16-17; Titus 1:16).
XII. It is demonstrable by the most evident arguments that the name of Antichrist and of The Adversary of God belongs to him. For the apostle ascribes the second of these epithets to him when he calls him “the man of sin, the son of perdition, who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he, as God, sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God.” (2 Thess. ii, 3-8.) It was he who should arise out of the ruins of the Roman empire, and should occupy its vacant digaity. These expressions, we assert, must be understood, and can be understood, solely respecting the Roman pontiff. But the name of “The Antichrist” belongs to him pre-eminently, whether the particle anti signifies opposition, or the substitution of one thing for another; not indeed such a substitution as is lawfully and legitimately made by Him who has the power of placing things in subordination, but it signifies one by which any man is substituted, either by himself or by another person through force and fraud. For he is both a rival to Christ, and his adversary, when he boasts of himself as the spouse, the head, and the foundation of the church, endowed with plenitude of power; and yet he professes himself to be the vicegerent of Christ, and to perform his functions on earth, for the sake of his own private advantage, but to the manifest injury of the church of Christ. He has, however, considered it necessary to employ the name of Christ as a pretext, that under this sacred name he may obtain that reverence for himself among Christians, which he would be unable to procure if he were openly to profess himself to be either the Christ, or the adversary of Christ.
XIII. Although the Roman pontiff calls himself “the servant of the servants of God,” yet we further assert that he is by way of eminence, That Wicked And Perverse Servant, who, when he saw that his Lord delayed his coming, “began to smite his fellow-servants.” (Matt. 24, 48.) For the Roman pontiff has usurped domination and tyranny, not only over his fellow- servants, the bishops of the church of God, but likewise over emperors and kings themselves, whose authority and dignity he had himself previously acknowledged. To acquire this domination for himself, and still further to augment and establish it, he has employed all kinds of satanic instruments — sophistical hypocrisy, lies, equivocations, perfidy, perjury, violence, poison, and armed forces — so that he may most justly be said to have succeeded that formidable beast which “was like unto a leopard, a bear and a lion,” and by which the Roman empire was prefigured — and to have “had power to give life unto the image of the beast, and to cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast, should be killed.”
XIV. Lastly, though from all these remarks it will readily appear that the Roman pontiff is unworthy of the name of apostle, prophet, evangelist, pastor, teacher, and of universal bishop; (1 Cor. iii, 5; xii, 28; Ephes. iv, 11;) yet, by this single argument, which is deduced from their peculiar attributes and duties, the very same satisfactory conclusions may be rendered evident to all who search the scriptures of the Old and the New Testament, and especially the epistles of St. Paul to Timothy and Titus. (1 Tim. 3; Tit. 1.) Nor will this evasion avail any thing, “that whatever a man does through another who is his vicar or substitute, he seems to do it himself;” for it is Christ alone who makes use of the vicarious aid of these persons as ministers; and the duties which they perform, are such as ought to be discharged by those who are distinguished by those titles. (Gal. i, 7-9.) Therefore, that rightly appertains to the Roman pontiff which God threatens through the prophet Zechariah, that he will raise up a foolish shepherd, and an idol shepherd, who shall devote no attention to the sheep, but who “shall eat the flesh of the fat, and tear their claws in pieces.” (Zech. xi, 15-17.) God grant that the church, being delivered from the frauds and tyranny of Antichrist, may obtain shepherds that may feed her in truth, charity and prudence, to the salvation of the sheep themselves, and to the glory of the chief Shepherd. Amen.
COROLLARIES
I. It is a part of religious wisdom to separate the Court of Rome from the church, in which the pontiff sits. II. The Roman pontiff, even when conducting himself with the greatest propriety, must not be acknowledged by any human or positive right as the head of the church, or the universal bishop; and such acknowledgment of him has hitherto contributed, and does in its very nature contribute, not so much to preserve unity in the church, and to restrain the license of thinking, speaking and teaching differently on the chief articles of religion, as to take away necessary liberty, and that which is agreeable to the word of God, and to introduce a real tyranny.
Jacob’s Blessing of Judah
I was reading in my devotions from Genesis 49 and I noticed the prophecy that Jacob (Israel) pronounces over his son, Judah in verses 9-12. I have read these verses many times before and knew that they applied to the Lord Jesus as the “Lion of the tribe of Judah” (Revelation 5:5). But what struck me is the sovereignty of His reign that we see in Genesis 49:10. Jesus was to be a strong, sovereign King. This prophecy is partially fulfilled at this point as we wait for the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ who will establish His eternal kingdom that will crush all others.
This kingdom view is seen in other places in the Bible as well. In Isaiah 2 we see the prophecy from Isaiah that the mountain of the house of the LORD will be established as the highest of mountains and above the hills and all the nations and peoples will come and go to this mountain and learn of the Lord, that He might teach them His ways. In Daniel 2:44 we see another prophecy that the kingdom to come will crush all other kingdoms and He will reign forever and ever.
This kingdom is not fully come. It is still to come. The kingdom is being preached now and we can become part of the Lord’s kingdom when we become disciples of the Lord Jesus but the complete reign of His kingdom is yet to come. Acts 28:31 says that Paul preached “the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hinderance.” Notice that Paul preached the kingdom of God. And yet in the Epistles of Paul it seems that the kingdom of God is yet to come. Notice how he placed the kingdom as something to come in 1 Corinthians 6:9 or Galatians 5:21. The kingdom then is advancing in that people are repenting and coming into the kingdom but the ultimate manifestation of the kingdom of God is not yet come.
My point is to point back to Genesis 49:10 and to notice how sovereign Jesus is to be according to Jacob’s prophecy and blessing of his son Judah. This lion (verse 9) is to be a ruler. He will reign completely and notice that the obedience of the people will come. This Jesus is not to be a “gentle” leader but He is to be Lord of all. We are to submit to His Lordship over our lives as the King. How dare we call Jesus “Lord” and not do what He tells us to do (Luke 6:46-49). He is Lord of all and we must bow down to His sovereign will. Either we submit to His Lordship now and obey Him or we will bow later at the judgment of God (Philippians 2:5-11). Either way, every person living and dead and yet to come will stand before Jesus and declare that He is Lord of all. Revelation 19:16 says that both on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, “King of kings and Lord of lords.” There is none like this Lion!
How then can we confess that Jesus is Lord (Romans 10:9) and not submit to His Lordship? How can we believe Genesis 49:10, that Jesus will reign supreme over His eternal kingdom, and yet not obey Him now? The fact is that we can’t. 1 John 2:3-6 makes it clear that we are to obey Him or we are liars and the truth is not in us. To simply believe facts about Jesus is not enough. We must obey Him as Lord. We are to seek to know His commandments and obey them (John 14:15). Romans 6 is forced on that end, that Jesus reigns over us and we are His slaves. He is completely the Lord and we are His slaves who simply submit to Him and obey Him.
The blessing of Jacob toward Judah is a powerful example of the truthfulness of Scripture and the dominion of God. He reigns. This is one of the main points of Scripture. Jesus came as a baby in Matthew 2 and Luke 2 but He will return to reign forever and ever in the end and this time He will come in power and authority (Hebrews 9:28). All the nations will bow down to Him and praise Him as Lord (Psalm 2:8-9). Even Satan will declare that Jesus is Lord (Philippians 2:9-11) and then will be cast into hell (Revelation 20:10-15). Let us seek to praise and obey Him now as Lord! Let us exalt our King above all things especially in laying down our lives for our King and our God.
Jesus is Lord!
Compassion and Evangelism
When Joe Paterno died I posted on Facebook that I hope he was ready to meet his Judge and that he had repented of his sins before it was too late (Hebrews 9:27-28). It is amazing to me that when a person dies, especially in the United States, they are said to be “at peace” (RIP) and most of the time they are said to be in heaven. A person can go their entire life and never give any evidence that they are a disciple of Jesus but suddenly when they die, they are in now heaven with the Lord. This amazes me.
I am not here to judge a person’s eternity. I am only here to proclaim in the here and now that unless we repent we will die both in this life and the one to come (John 5:24-25; cf. Luke 13:1-5; Romans 6:23). The soul that sins will die (Ezekiel 18:4). There is no second chance for salvation after death (Hebrews 9:22, 27). We must be saved in this life (John 1:12-13; 3:3-7) or we will not see the kingdom of God. That is the gospel. That is not passing over the clear statements of Scripture that all who die without Jesus will perish (Revelation 20:10-15; 21:7-8).
I, of course, was not judging Joe Paterno. I didn’t know him personally and knew none who did. I was only saying that I hope he did repent. I was amazed at the anger my post caused. I was accused of being “without compassion” for the Paterno family (who could not read my Facebook page without being my “friend” anyway). Yet where did I lack compassion? To hope that Joe repented of his sins before he died is less than compassionate?
Joe Paterno was a Catholic. If he followed Catholicism, he was not saved. Catholics hold to “works-righteousness” (which is what we Arminians often get accused of). They hold that they are saved by God’s grace but they also hold to works obtaining grace before God. This is what Martin Luther fought against. Luther opposed the idea that we are declared righteous before God by good works of any kind. Luther saw in Romans 3:22-29 especially that we are declared righteous because of the work of Jesus Christ on the cross (John 19:30). The work of God is now to believe in His Son (John 6:29). Salvation is completely a work of God’s grace through faith in Jesus (Ephesians 2:1-9). Regeneration takes place by the work of the Holy Spirit (Titus 3:5-7) and not by the flesh. Isaiah 64:6 says that all our righteous deeds are worthless before a holy God who judges us based on His Law (Exodus 20:1-17). Joe Paterno, along with all of humanity, will be judged based on the Law of God (1 Timothy 1:8-11). If Joe did not perfectly keep the Law then he is guilty of sin (James 2:10) and will be judged for that sin. He then must have either himself as the one who will seek to pay the price for his sins or the cross. If he did not repent in this life, he is doomed. He has no substitute and will pay the price for his own sins.
Now has it less than compassionate to want anyone to avoid this fate? I do pray that Joe Paterno truly repented of his sins. Perhaps someone shared the true gospel of Jesus with him before he died. Perhaps a team player from Penn State or a Spirit-filled doctor shared the gospel with Joe before he died. Only God knows now.
I do find it odd, however, that people find evangelism less than compassionate. How can we not warn people about hell? How can we not warn people that they will die and face the Lord on that day of judgment (Hebrews 9:27)? How can we not take Scripture seriously and preach the gospel to all (Mark 16:15)? Jesus shed His blood for our forgiveness (Matthew 26:28) and will we just sit back and allow people to stumble in the darkness while we gloat over the light? The whole world needs to hear the message of salvation through Jesus Christ. My prayer is that all would hear and be saved. I pray that disciples will be made in every nation under heaven to the glory of the King of kings and Lord of lords (Revelation 19:11). I want all people to repent of their sins and be baptized (Acts 2:38-39). I want all to believe the gospel that saved this sinner.
So accuse me of a lack of compassion all you want to but I do believe that it is compassion that causes us to evangelize. It is compassion that causes me to pray for the lost. It is compassion that leads the Church to give to the poor, to support missionaries, and to pray for the nations to be saved as God promised (Psalm 2:8). I want to see the glory of God fill the nations through evangelism. That is true compassion (Matthew 9:35-38).
