Dear Rodgers Baptist Church,
To get anywhere we must have reliable information. Think about GPS systems. They are generally helpful, especially in urban settings like ours, but that is not always the case in rural areas. In the country, a GPS will instruct you to turn on roads that once existed but do not anymore, or it will use wrong road names, or you will be told that you have “arrived at the destination” but that is only true if your destination is a pasture. This is not an exaggerated claim. GPS’ ignorance of rural areas and small towns is a growing and documented problem.
Why? How does a system that easily and correctly provides directions for the labyrinth of roads in big cities be so wrong so often in small towns? The problem is not the GPS. The problem is the maps the device has downloaded. In the world of GPS, as in life, the source of information is critically important.
There is no more reliable source than Jesus Christ. He said to His anxious, stressed, and perplexed disciples, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by Me” (John 14:6). As Josh McDowell has written (and C.S. Lewis before him) that is either the insane ramblings of a lunatic, the powerful deception of a clever liar, or Jesus Christ is indeed Lord. Jesus is no lunatic or liar. He is Lord. His claims are truth and no other options exist.
There are not many paths to God. Other religions do not represent different directions that end at the same destination. Jesus is the only legitimate path to abundant living now and eternal life in glory to come. Every religion other than biblical Christianity leads to ruin. We must know the way of Jesus and then follow the way of Jesus. As we go, we must declare the way and show the way to others.
This means that our manner of living ought to reflect our beliefs and attachment to Jesus. After all, as Christians we are His “peculiar people” (1 Peter 2:9). Our connection to Jesus is comprehensive. As such, we believers ought to “stand fast…in the liberty wherewith Christ has made us free” (Gal. 5:1; c.f. 2 Cor. 3:17) That is not freedom to believe whatever we want, nor is it freedom to redefine marriage, sexuality, human identity and value, or anything else. As believers we are free to follow and enjoy our Savior, Christ Jesus the Lord.
Remember, Jesus is not content with our simply knowing the truth. Christ wants us to live the truth: “If ye know these things, happy are ye if ye do them” (John 13:17). Believing must lead to doing. We are not free to behave in any way we like. Our conduct is to reflect that of our sacrificial Savior and Lord. The call to Christian discipleship is a call to know and follow Jesus, not your heart. The call to the Christian life is not merely to believe the gospel but to let your manner of life be worthy of the gospel of Christ (see Phil. 1:27).
Let not your heart be troubled. We all fall short. Praise God that we are not left to ourselves. We have the Holy Spirit to guide us in all truth and enable us to live the truth (John 14:15-21; 16:13-14). We have the Holy Spirit inspired Word (2 Tim. 3:14-17), and we have the church, “the pillar and ground of the truth” (1 Tim. 3:15). These are the three resources available to us so that we may know, follow, declare, and show The Way. Let’s lock arms with one another so that we may see unbelieving people become committed followers of Jesus Christ. Together let us shine the light of God’s Word on one another, in our community, and through our missions efforts around the world as we seek to see the dead brought to life through the Truth!
Let’s Go!
