Lst wk. I asked – question, are fundamental, conservative Christians too narrow minded ?
& I spoke about how Jesus himself said that he is – only way to enter heaven and – entrance into it is very narrow and few will find it
in todays society we have all kinds of people preaching their beliefs of how one goes to heaven
there are some whose concept of heaven is a place that does not include Jesus
some believe its a place where a man gets 70 virgins for his eternal pleasure
some believe its a place of perfect peace and where meditation and self realization
for some it only includes 144,000 and the rest will stay on earth and transform it into a new Eden where everyone is of – same religion and anyone not of their religion are annihilated
for others its just a place where you go and then sent back but in a different type of life and eventually you’ll experience what its like to be a different life form
but for those who believe in – biblical account of heaven, its a place where God and his Son live
and we have to make a decision before we die if we want to spend it in heaven with God and his Son
or reject them 1
3). & this morning we’re going to take a closer look at – narrow way
We are living in an age of relativism = Relativism is sometimes identified (usually by its critics) as the thesis that all points of view are equally valid. In ethics, this amounts to saying that all moralities are equally good; in epistemology it implies that all beliefs, or belief systems, are equally true.
We of course reject this, because not all points of view are equal, not all beliefs are valid, not all morality is good and not all belief systems are equal
some are not based on truth, some reject God which causes inequality
We also live in a time of tolerance = The heart of tolerance is self-control. When we tolerate an activity, we resist our urge to forcefully prohibit the expression of activities that we find unpleasant. More abstractly, toleration can be understood as a political practice aiming at neutrality, objectivity, or fairness on the part of political agents. These ideas are related in that the goal of political neutrality is deliberate restraint of the power that political authorities have to negate the life activities of its citizens and subjects. Related to toleration is the virtue of tolerance, which can be defined as a tendency toward toleration. Toleration is usually grounded upon an assumption about the importance of the autonomy of individuals. This assumption and the idea of toleration are central ideas in modern liberal theory and practice.
When you look at – definition of tolerance, we agree
But how our government is forcing its view of tolerance upon its citizens, we disagree
Our government & its agencies like schools & colleges views are, we are free to do anything we want & no one has – right to say its wrong or sinful
but – American people must be tolerant of those things
but then they take it farther, not only do we have to be tolerant, but we must agree and accept how others choose to live, no matter how outrages and sinful it may be
this is what has been called political correctness
+Political correctness or politically correct; both forms commonly abbreviated to PC) is a term which denotes language, ideas, policies, and behavior seen as seeking to minimize social and institutional offense in occupational, gender, racial, cultural, sexual orientation, certain other religions, beliefs or ideologies, disability, and age-related contexts,
According to our Government any ideas, gender race, culture, sexual orientation, other religions beliefs one has to be tolerant of
but this is where Christianity & our world comes to a disagreement
there are many things with-in these areas that – bible describes as sin
Biblical Christianity begins with an understanding of sin which has been rejected by todays world
today we no longer have sin, we have disorders, addictions, mental health issues, personality quirks, a failure to conform to societies rules or behavior but no one has sin
Sin is real, it began when Lucifer decided he wanted to take Gods throne & rule Gods creation, God wouldn’t allow this rebellion by Lucifer and cast him from his position
and God cursed him & he became Satan
Sin came into – world and as a result, we are all born under – penalty of sin
We must be truthful about our sinfulness, when we deny that we sin, we remove – possibility of receiving forgiveness from God
but when we acknowledge our sin, this allows us – freedom of walking in – light of our salvation
I Jn. 1: 5-8
In every courtroom a question is asked of – accused, How do you plead?
But – words “I’m Guilty” is seldom heard
no one today feels responsible for their own actions, its always someone elses fault, their parents, society, school or – dog
Dr. Karl Menniger wrote a book called “Whatever Happened to Sin?”
He said” sin was a word that once was on everybodys mind, but now, rarely if ever is it heard, no one has committed sin, where did it go? What became of it?
What happened to it is, its been explained away
today – criminal has become – victim
In NY , Bernard McCummings mugged & brutally beat an elderly man in a subway, as he ran away, a cop shot him & he was permanently paralyzed
he sued & won 4.8 million – man he mugged a cancer patient is still paying doctor bills
- court said – mugger became – bigger victim
In San Francisco a man murdered a fellow worker because he ate too much junk food especially twinkies, it caused him a hyperactivity that he could not control
- jury agreed & reduced his charge
we live in a society plagued by victimization in which no one is willing to plead guilty for his actions or take responsibility for – things he does
no one has sinned, we’re all helpless victims of – forces around us
Can science simply explain away our failures so that we no longer have to deal with them?
One by one – evils of this world and – sins of mankind have fallen prey to – most powerful of all scientific weapons,
anthropology, psychology, and sociology have cast aside sin and guilt for more tasteful alternatives such as:
political repression, poor living conditions, dysfunctional families and bad inherited genes
one by one human failings have been removed from – classification of sin & have been replaced under – classification of disease or disability
I’m sick or I have a disorder is much more preferred than saying I’m a sinner who is committing sin
But heres – problem when we say we don’t sin, we become self deceived
I Jn. 1:8
if we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us
you see when I can no longer admit that I have sin then I no longer have to take responsibility for – things I do
& if I can convince myself that I’m not responsible, then I no longer have to feel guilty over how I act
When an entire generation can no longer say they are a sinner, – way into heaven becomes impossible
for only those who can say, dear Lord, I’m a sinner can receive forgiveness and find their way through – narrow gate that leads to eternal life