Can you give an answer for your faith?

After you finish reading this blog, go ahead and click on this link! What does a picture of the Simpson's have to do with "Can you give an answer for your faith?" I went in to our junior high and senior high sunday school classes a while back. I asked each of the kids "Why are you a Christian?" Not a single teenager was able to give a reason for their faith. It surprised me. I figured a couple of them should be able to. So, after I asked them that question, I asked them another one. "What does it take to get to heaven?" Again, not a single one of them could answer that question. It scares me when you realize that it will just be a few years and they will be out on their own going to college and meeting up with all of the temptations that will be thrown at them. When I realized they did not know the answers, I mentioned it to our adult Sunday school class. I said we needed to pray for our kids and I told them what I found out. As a parent it would bother me if my son did not know what it took to go to heaven. It would bother me if he had no answer at all for "why" he believes in Jesus and follows Him. I think it is legitimate to love our kids enough to want to ensure they have the answers. What did I get from it? Both teachers are mad at me because they think it makes them look bad that those kids did not know how to answer me. One of them thinks I am accusing her of being a bad parent. Not true! Not once, did I say anything of the sort. I only wanted each one of us to know that our kids need our prayers and our guidance. The pastor just says, "Yeah, I know. They know the answers because I have been preaching it for years!" Within this group is a homosexual boy. He has a webpage with his boyfriend. He is openly gay on the web. He claims to be a Christian. The other's in his class do not see a problem with that. So what part of God's Word will you believe in? When you pick and choose which ones you will obey, you have ultimately made the decision to not follow Jesus. You have decided to make it to heaven based, not on Scripture, but on being a "good person!" The Bible says there is none that is good, no, not one! If you have been reading my other posts on this blog, you know that I feel that our churches need to get back to the bible and preach God's Word the biblical way! No more, "Purpose Driven Church" and no more Willow Creek style church. No more emergent style church. We need to return to the church of the Bible. The problem is, many people think they have a church of the Bible where they attend. Yes, in all likelihood, they do. The church of Laodicea comes to mind! The reference to the Simpson's at the top of this post will take you to a site where a church uses the Simpson's to teach sunday school class.

Both Marge and Homer have found themselves being offered the opportunity to play away from home and they both turn them down," said Spittle. "Temptation, choices and doing what's right - you can't get much more of a Christian message than that."

This is one of the messages that the website claims as to why they use the Simpson's for their study. The sad part is, I think this pastor actually thinks this is all the message his church needs. "You can't get much more of a Christian message than that." Where is repentance in that message? Where is sin? Where is obedience to God's Word? Where is the name of Jesus???????

Is it any wonder why our kids can not answer the simple question of why they are a Christian? The teaching has become so muddled with deceit and entertainment that to not know why they believe is to suggest that they are not truly saved. It is time for our pastor's and our churches to get back to teaching the whole message of Christ. They need to make sure that each and every person in their church knows the Ten Commandments (so they know what sin is!). They need to teach that anyone who does not follow Jesus and do what He commands us to do, will be lost and headed for Hell. There is a church that is going to send a bunch of cards to Britney Spears. The church members are told to not preach to her but to just tell her that Jesus loves her and so do they. That is nice, but that is not the message she needs to hear. She needs to get her life straight with God and she needs to do it NOW before it is too late. If she is going to continue to wear a cross around her neck, then she needs to start behaving like a Christian and repent of her sins. She needs to be obedient to God. This church would do so much better if they would just give her Scripture to read on what it takes to be saved. God's Word will not come back void! Can you give an answer for your faith? Can your church give an answer for its faith?