In between chapter devotional and Bible reading week 3, day 1

Today's devotional is an in between chapters lesson.

One author that I read often and also listen to is Dr. Albert Mohler who is the president of Southern Seminary.  He has a podcast called "The Briefing" that airs 5 days a week with up to date news and a Biblical perspective on it.  

He recently wrote an article titled "Moralism is Not the Gospel (But Many Christians Think It Is)" that I would like to refer to this morning.  This is his opening paragraph that sets the scene to talk about moralism. 

"One of the most amazing statements by the Apostle Paul is his indictment of the Galatian Christians for abandoning the Gospel.  "I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel," Paul declared.  As he stated so emphatically, the Galatians had failed in the crucial test of discerning the authentic Gospel from its counterfeits."

The central point to be made was that we face and battle false gospels every day and also with every passing generation.  I think sometimes we think of someone who denies the Trinity or the virgin birth or the deity of Christ but Dr. Mohler brings up the false gospel of moralism.  Simply put is that we believe that the Gospel is just an improvement in our behavior.

It is easy to convey that message to lost people because we are all sinners and therefore need some improvement in our behavior but that is not what saves us or what is the Gospel.  We also have what Dr. Mohler calls "the process of parenting" to deal with.  Parenting involves raising and we want to raise our children right.  We want our children to behave properly.  We raise them to obey the laws and respect their elders.  We raise them to walk little old ladies across the street and to share when someone is in need.  We raise them to be honorable in their dealings with others and to be known as people of their word.  I feel I was "raised right" by my parents and I am so thankful for it and I have attempted to "raise right" my children.  But as Dr. Mohler states, "But our communities are filled with people who have been 'raised right' but are headed for hell."

The danger of reducing the Gospel to improvement in behavior is that I can actually gain all the approval I need through my behavior.  My good behavior becomes my ticket to getting into heaven.  As a church we need to beware of presenting the Gospel in a way that it is hinged on this moral improvement.  Will moral improvement come?  If needed, yes because we will start to bear the fruit of the Spirit if truly converted but it should not be the dominate proclamation about what it means to be a Christian.

Moralism makes sense to our world and many outsiders of the church characterize Christians by their moral behavior that is seen but we are saved by Someone outside of ourselves and our own doing.  Something has been done so that anything we do would glorify the One who gave the One who did something for us.  As a church we need to make sure that we are saying as Dr. Mohler and others put it, "that we are justified by faith alone, saved by grace alone, and redeemed from our sins by Christ alone."

In a world that believes moralism is the message of the Church we need to be adamant about preaching the Gospel of Jesus and explaining it over and over again, to them and to us.  Dr. Mohler ends the article with,

"Hell will be highly populated with those who were 'raised right.'  The citizens of heaven will be those who, by the sheer grace and mercy of God, are there solely because of the imputed righteousness of Jesus Christ.  Moralism is not the gospel."

May these words and thoughts keep us this day from falling for a false gospel and promoting anything other that what God gives us through His Scriptures.  Let us pray.

"Lord, thank You for the boldness of Your Word.  Thank You for calling us out when we stray to some other message.  Help us to communicate everyday about Your grace and mercy.  May all glory be to You and You alone.  Amen."

Pastor Adam