Professing Christians+continuing in sin = False Conversion

I am struggling this weekend…I am struggling with anger at Christians who are choosing to live like the world. Maybe my standard of what being a Christian is supposed to be, is too high. Maybe their standards are too low, I really don’t know at this point. All I know is that I am struggling with anger over this. 

There are other issues that surround this anger—such as why are larger churches asking people who follow the bylaws to leave, but keeping those in the church who are using salvation as a license to continue living in sin with out repentance. 

When people cite Christian freedom, usually Galatians 5:1 follows. The Bible states emphatically in Galatians 5:1 that believers are free in Christ: “It is for freedom that Christ has set us free” (Galatians 5:1). Before Jesus died on a cross, God’s people lived under a detailed system of laws that served as a moral compass to guide their lives. The Law, while powerless to grant salvation or produce true freedom, nevertheless pointed the way to Jesus Christ (Galatians 3:19–24). Through His sacrificial death, Jesus Christ fulfilled the Law, setting believers free from the law of sin and death. God’s laws are now written in our hearts through the Spirit of God, and we are free to follow and serve Christ in ways that please and glorify Him (Romans 8:2–8). In a nutshell, this is the definition of Christian freedom.

The practice of willful sin, of any kind, can certainly be considered as evidence of an unredeemed life—even for a professing Christian.

Steve Gallagher, of Pure Life Ministries says “I cannot recount the times men have told me that they “struggle with” pornography or some other form of sexual sin, and, when I begin to ask them about their ongoing war with temptation, they recount a long list of failures. “Where’s the struggle?” I ask incredulously. “You have only told me about a life of defeat; you haven’t said anything that leads me to believe that you are actively fighting those carnal urges! The fact that you are using terminology such as ‘struggle’ only indicates that you are exaggerating your spirituality while minimizing the seriousness of your problem.”

One common denominator among those who successfully fight their way out of the terrible hold of sin is that they are always trying to move forward spiritually. They may have failures, but they never quit fighting. It may take some time for an individual saved out of a life of wickedness to find real freedom from it. The hold of sin can be extremely powerful, but one thing is certain: if this person has truly been converted, sin will not—cannot—hold him indefinitely. 

There is something, or rather Someone, inside a bona fide believer that will not allow him to rest until he finds freedom from the hold of willful sin. How can the Holy Spirit indwell a professing Christian who regularly practices evil? Or as Paul put it: “How can light and darkness share life together?  What common ground can idols hold with the temple of God? For we, remember, are ourselves living temples of the living God, as God has said: ‘I will dwell in them…’” (2 Corinthians 6:14b) The apostle John made a statement that at first glance seems to solve the mystery. “The one who practices sin is of the devil… No one who is born of God practices sin…” (1 John 3:8-9) Taken at face value, these statements could easily cause one to conclude that anyone bound in habitual sin is not truly a believer. But 20 years of ministering to sexual addicts causes me to hesitate to accept such a simple explanation. Instead, experience seems to tell me that there are two distinct groups of “Christian” men bound up in sin.

I am starting to think there are possibly two groups of “Christians” First, there are those who have truly been born anew but have not yet completely broken away from their past life of sin. As the man/woman draws spiritual strength through his relationship with Christ, the longstanding habit gradually loses its power. His growing love for God is displacing his idolatrous love for sin.

The second group would be constituted as “tares,” men/women who have had some kind of religious experience that hasn’t actually taken hold in their hearts: “they believe for a while, and in time of temptation fall away.” (Luke 8:13) It seems that they have drawn near to the Light, but have drifted away from it without having experienced a true conversion. I call them tares because they continue in church alongside true believers, even though they really cannot be considered such.

Jesus said, “Unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven” (Matt. 18:3). Jesus is clear that if a person of this world is to be accepted into this other kingdom—the kingdom of heaven—he must be converted. What does the word conversion mean? In the biblical sense, conversion means a turning—a spiritual turning away from sin in repentance and to Christ in faith. It is a dramatic turning away from one path in order to pursue an entirely new one. This spiritual conversion is so profound that it involves many changes in a person. It involves a change of mind, which is an intellectual change; and a change of view, a new recognition of God, self, sin, and Christ. It involves a change of affections, which is an emotional change, a change of feeling, a sorrow for sin committed against a holy and just God. It involves a change of will, which is a volitional change, an intentional turning away from sin and a turning to God through Christ to seek forgiveness. The entire person—mind, affections, and will—is radically, completely, and fully changed in conversion.

To affirm true conversion implies that there is also false conversion. Put simply, there is such a thing as non-saving faith. Not everyone who says, “Lord, Lord” has entered the narrow gate (Matt. 7:21). People may know the truth and may have felt grief regarding their sin, but it is a selfish sorrow over what their sin has caused them to suffer, not how it has offended a holy God.

In a counterfeit conversion, there is no death to self, no submission to the lordship of Christ, no taking up a cross, no obedience in following Christ, no fruit of repentance–only empty words, shallow feelings, and barren religious activities. On the contrary, with a true conversion sin is abhorred, the world renounced, pride crushed, self surrendered, faith exercised, Christ seen as precious, and the cross embraced as one’s only saving hope.

The whole purpose of conversion is to bring men and women into a right relationship with God. This is why Christ came, and it is the reason for which He died. It was God who was “in Christ, reconciling the world unto Himself ” (2 Cor. 5:19). Conversion is the crying need of the soul. Until one’s life is turned from sin to Christ, nothing else matters.

Grace: Cheap or Costly?

If you know me, you’ll know there are few things in this material world that I treasure, you’ll know that I actually treasure my faith and working in ministry over many pleasures of this world.

On Tuesday, I went to my dentist office and after I had my cleaning and checkup my dentist and I were talking about Lent and he mentioned that his church, St. Therese in Mooresville, was having a Lenten retreat and that the Priest who was doing the retreat was amazing! Before I left, he told me “Hey, you should come down.” I attempted to make every excuse I could, but told him I would think about it. When I went to check out, I mentioned to his wife that he had told me about the Lenten retreat and she equally told me to come down to visit the church. Now, if you haven’t been following my blog long or maybe you just don’t know me, it may be fair to mention that I am a United Methodist. I often tell people that some of my favorite theological discussions have been between my dentist and myself. The best excuse I came up with was that my mom's recent health issues, have kept me pretty close to home. But all day I couldn't shake the feeling that I was to be at the Lenten Retreat; I walked in to the church and was greeted by my dentist’s wife. We walked into the sanctuary and my friend told me to go a head and sit down and she’d explain what was going on.

My friend leaned over and explained the altar setting, that the priest was going to come out and open the tabernacle, and place the Eucharist in the altar cross—signifying that Jesus is with us in the church that night while we worshiped. It was truly an act of beauty—and throughout the entire service, I felt the presence of God’s Holy Spirit. It was a peaceful feeling—something that I needed to feel, because it’s been a long time since I have felt that level of peace.

When Father Sutter started his sermon, I started taking notes. Evidently, I forgot how quiet a Catholic Church is because when Father Sutter said “Where is our zeal for the salvation of souls?” I said just above a whisper, “Amen!” I went to write down the question so that I’d remember to answer it later and as I looked in the opposite direct from my friends, some very kind folks were looking at me. However, what really got me, was looking at the crucifix. At first I thought “Why do the Catholics leave Jesus on the cross?” But I remember reading somewhere that a priest said it was because “The work of salvation isn’t complete.” So I went on a small search of my own, in my prayer time, I asked “Why do the Catholics leave Jesus on the cross?” And I started thinking during my prayer time what it meant when I looked at the crucifix, what did I feel?

Crucifix above the Altar at St. Therese Catholic Church
in Mooresville. Picture by Law's Stained Glass

That brings me to the main point of this blog…When I looked upon Jesus on the crucifix, I started thinking about how much Jesus loved me. He loved me so much that he was willing to take pain and death so that I could live. When I looked at the agony, the pain, the hands and feet where nails were piercing him, I wondered “was I really worth it and am I treating His grace as a cheap grace or a costly grace.”

So let me ask this, church entire, Catholic and Protestant, are we experiencing and pushing a cheap grace or a costly grace? As I have continued to read the articles about General Conference 2019 (#GC2019) I see that so many are embracing, desiring even, a cheap grace!

Maybe you are asking yourself, “What is a cheap grace?” According to Dietrich Bonhoeffer, “Cheap grace is justification of sin, without the justification of the sinner. It’s the preaching of forgiveness without requiring repentance, baptism without church discipline, Communion without confession, absolution without personal confession. Cheap grace is grace without discipleship, grace without the cross, grace without Jesus Christ, living and incarnate.”
Bonhoeffer goes on to say, "Grace without price; grace without cost! The essence of grace, we suppose, is that the account has been paid in advance; and, because it has been paid, everything can be had for nothing. Since the cost was infinite, the possibilities of using and spending it are infinite.”

In other words, cheap grace is a license to decide that you are forgiven, but willfully sinning anyway. When I think of cheap grace, I think of Jacob Marley in A Christmas Carol. Marley is burdened by the chains he has linked through out his life, symbols of the sins he chose to commit, and his guilt. But Marley’s chains also have another symbol, a more costly symbol, one that helps change Ebenezer Scrooge—Redemption and Repentance—to choose costly grace.

Bonhoeffer explained Costly grace so well, I am going to give him the final word on the matter, “Costly grace is the treasure hidden in the field; for the sake of it a man will go and sell all that he has. It is the pearl of great price to buy which the merchant will sell all his goods. It is the kingly rule of Christ, for whose sake a man will pluck out the eye which causes him to stumble; it is the call of Jesus Christ at which the disciple leaves his nets and follows him. Such grace is costly because it calls us to follow, and it is grace because it calls us to follow Jesus Christ. It is costly because it costs a man his life, and it is grace because it gives a man the only true life. It is costly because it condemns sin, and grace because it justifies the sinner. Above all, it is costly because it cost God the life of his Son: "ye were bought at a price," and what has cost God much cannot be cheap for us. Above all, it is grace because God did not reckon his Son too dear a price to pay for our life, but delivered him up for us. Costly grace is the Incarnation of God.”

So again, I have to ask, do you have a cheap grace? Or a costly grace? As for me, I am looking forward to a return visit to St. Therese Catholic Church for a Mass…until then, I continue to remember what grace really cost and how lucky, I am that Jesus paid that price for me.

Fleeing from Sin...

This week as I have read the various statements put out by various churches, state conferences and even singular members of the United Methodist Church, I have been thinking a lot about what it means to "Flee from sin..."

Last year, I came home from work. It was early evening, around 7:30pm, the sun hadn’t set yet but was going down. I walked into my house, changed clothing, walked back out to the mailbox…then it happened! I was walking back up my driveway and I see a stick near my flower bed, I went to step over it and it moved! Let me just tell you, this fat, white girl can dance! It was a black snake, a black racer to be exact. And it was laying there looking at me, and I was still in the driveway dancing up a blue streak and my neighbors were outside watching and laughing. Evidently, I scared the snake because after a few flicks of it’s tongue it ran…and I ran into my house. When I recounted it to my friend at work she laughed and said “Rachel, the snake just wanted to see you and say hello! It stared at you because it thought you were beautiful!” Needless to say I didn’t think that snake was too beautiful. And when my pastor decided to quote John Wesley, quoting Sirach “Flee from sin as from a snake.” He decided to follow it up with “Rachel, can tell you all about fleeing!” I tend to think my dad would agree…when he got to my house, I was standing on my coffee table shaking uncontrollably with fear. 

This story is funny. Hopefully, it made you laugh. However, there is a lot of truth contained in what the Apocryphal book Sirach is teaching. Sirach 21:2 says Flee from sin as from a snake; for if you approach sin, it will bite you. Its teeth are lion’s teeth, and destroy the souls of men.

How often do we take seriously the need to flee from sin? Do we really take seriously the fact that sin can destroy our souls? Or do we tend to think because we are saved, it’s okay to continue in sin? Many Christians would tell you “I believe I am saved; I know what I do is wrong, but I am saved, so God will forgive me.” However, is sin really worth losing your soul for? But what does it mean to flee?

There are several places in the Bible where you, Christian, are commanded to flee, to turn tail and run from an enemy far more vicious than any bear. You are told to flee from sin. Some sins are so strong and so dangerous that you simply cannot mess around with them. 

“Flee” is a strong word. The Bible does not tell you to amble, meander, lope, or trot from your sin. It tells you to flee. Fleeing involves effort. It involves straining. It involves speed. You flee when you need to find and experience safety from a threat—a threat like a bear. You flee when it is too dangerous to remain where you are, when standing still would put you in mortal peril. 

While fleeing sin isn’t complicated, that doesn’t mean it’s easy. Proverbs 22:6 says that if we train up a child in the way he should go, when he is old “he will not depart from it.” That works both ways, for good or evil. If you’ve been partaking in the same sin again and again, you’ve “trained” yourself – you’ve carved some deep ruts that will be hard to get out of, and easy to fall back into. 

That means fleeing from sin may be hard to do. But it isn’t hard to figure out what to do. It is a matter of placing God as first and throwing off everything that hinders (Hebrews 12:1). The reason we fall into sin, then, is because we count everything as too high a cost.

Interestingly, the command to flee is sometimes accompanied by an opposite command—the command to pursue. This, too, is a word that implies effort. 

If fleeing is fast and purposeful, so is pursuing—it is moving quickly and purposefully toward instead of away from. If fleeing involves determination and effort in sprinting away from a vice, pursuing involves determination and effort in racing toward a virtue. “But as for you, O man of God, flee these things. Pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, steadfastness, gentleness” (1 Timothy 6:11). These are four crucial marks of every true Christian. “So flee youthful passions and pursue righteousness, faith, love, and peace, along with those who call on the Lord from a pure heart” (2 Timothy 2:22). Here, too, Paul tells you, through Timothy, to strive for the key Christian virtues. “Pursue love” (1 Corinthians 14:1), that greatest of all virtues. “So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding” (Romans 14:19). Peace and mutual upbuilding come through the very virtues Paul elsewhere commands you to pursue.

Let me conclude with these questions, What are you pursuing? Are you pursuing your own desires and your own self-satisfaction or are you pursuing God's desires and His satisfaction? 

Reverend Beth LaRocca-Pitts Sermon on the Transfiguration: SAY WHAT?

CORRECTION NOTE: A member of Reverend LaRocca-Pitt's church contacted me via Facebook. She has corrected the date of the sermon; it was March 3rd, not the first. I apologize to Reverend LaRocca-Pitts for that indiscretion on the date. To the right is a screenshot of the date that I used; please forgive me, friends at St. Mark UMC in Atlanta for getting that information incorrect. I have also corrected Reverend Dr. LaRocca-Pitts title. Thank you to Julie A. Arms Meeks for the correction. 

Yesterday my pastor shared with me a nine minute sermon that was preached after General Conference 2019 (#GC2019) at St. Mark UMC in Atlanta on March 1. This morning I am still stunned—that I heard all the letters in the alphabet soup that has become the LGBTQIA+ community. Don’t get me wrong, I have many fine friends who are members of the community; they know me and they know I don’t treat them any differently than I treat a heterosexual female or male that is having an illicit affair or someone who is having a sexual relationship outside of marriage. Matter of fact, let me just say that any and all sexual immorality is not compatible with the Christian faith. 

Transfiguration on the Mount by stainedglass.com

In attendance that Sunday, was Bishop Sue Haupert-Johnson and possibly a Rabbi. Reverend Dr. Beth LaRocca-Pitts sermon actually did more damage than it did good. She jokingly speaks of the transfiguration of Christ as an allegory because she is supposedly a Hebrew Bible Scholar. She took the story of the Transfiguration of Christ and replaces Christ with the members of the LGBTQIA+ community. She speaks of Jesus as the third entity that allows for inclusion; and even though she mentions that He is there with Moses and Elijah (evidently in her mind symbolic of the Law and the Prophets) Jesus is the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets. He also didn’t come to abolish them.

She says in her sermon “In as much as you, members of my LGBTQIA+ family bear the image of God, the image of Christ, I see this as a story of your transfiguration, your glorification by a God, whose voice speaks from heaven to say: These are my children my chosen listen to them. I see the rest of the church as the disciples. A great many of the disciples are not present with us and have not seen you transfigured and glorified as God sees you. Those are the nine disciples who are not even close to Jesus at this time. And bear in mind that some of those disciples are not allies, some are like Judas. Still some of your allies are here with you, those people are Peter, James and John, your friends, your chosen family, we have seen you more beauty and your glorious truth. But we are tired, we are bone weary, we have to stay woke, if we are to get the rest of the disciples to see you as God sees you. Those disciples who are asleep on the mount of transfiguration or else where may not see Christ in you, because they have never seen Jesus as he truly is, dazzling, gleaming, glittering like a spinning disco ball and indescribably fabulous.  Christ knows you all, beloved, calls you all beloved, Christ calls you to ministry, to service, to witness, Christ calls you, beloved. Christ calls the narrow, religious bigots also: REPENT and believe the Gospel. Christ calls to zealot traitors in the church REPENT and learn to love your neighbor! You brood of vipers, that is what JESUS says to those who would shut you out. But Jesus wants to tell you rainbow fabulous people and allies something very important today, Jesus our ever loving Lord wants to tell you this, You are mine, you are beautiful, your suffering is reflective of mine, therefore you are holy. This is what Jesus ants to tell you. Beloved this coming Wednesday is the beginning of Lent…It is not a sin to be gay, it’s not crime to be transgender, queer, non-binary, pansexual or polyamorous. It is not a sin to be any of those things, it is however a sin to be hateful, bigoted, narrow, like those who would stand at the doors of their church to keep you out." 

Here I have given you the “meat” of her sermon. If I didn’t know better, and didn’t have a Biblical world-view then I would probably agree with this sermon; however, that being said, I am a Christian. I am a Methodist. I adhere to our discipline and if we are honest, the discipline has not changed it’s stance on homosexuality in 40+ years. Matter of fact, when I was 13 years old, a pastor friend of ours gave me a 1988 Book of Discipline (and yes, I read it word for word). When I started the candidacy process, I purchased my own 2016 Book of Discipline—the wording has changed very little in those years about our stance on marriage and homosexuality. So for those who are say “We’ve lost our church!” You’ve lost nothing. We are the same UMC we’ve been for years.

What disappoints me, however, is the hatred that is felt in the words of Rev. Dr. Beth LaRocca-Pitts. You hear it, the pride, the arrogance. It’s evidenced in the name calling of those, like me who are now called zealous traitors, narrow-minded religious bigots that would stand in the door of my church to block people from coming in. Rev. Dr. Beth LaRocca-Pitts reminds me of the priest who entered the temple to pray, lifting her eyes up to heaven and telling God “I did this and thank you for not making me like the tax-collector!” Friends, in this instance, we should be like the Tax-Collector. Humbled and seeking God, not willing to lift up our faces to Him. Jesus says in Luke 18:14 “I tell you, this man went down to his house justified, rather than the other. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but the one who humbles himself will be exalted.” 1 Peter tells us in chapter 5:5b “Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” In addition to humility, we, Christians, yes, you who are supposedly zealous traitors, narrow and bigoted  (I include myself in this description); and yes, you who are open minded and openly welcoming of all sin into your churches without the needed benefit of repentance, should heed 1 Chronicles 7:14 “if my people who are called by my name humble themselves, and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and heal their land.” 

The next thing that disappoints me is that as Rev. Dr. Beth LaRocca-Pitts named off all the LGBTQIA+ community letters including those in the “PLUS” category, her Bishop Sue Haupert-Johnson didn’t have the courage or even the integrity to stand up for the gospel. But what is the gospel? Rev. Dr. Beth LaRocca-Pitts narrowly missed it when she stated that the traditionalists didn’t have it. The gospel can be summed up in two verses. “For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures.” -1 Corinthians 15:3-4 (ESV) Yet, folks like Rev.  Dr. Beth LaRocca-Pitts, Bishop Sue Haupert-Johnson and the rabbi that was supposedly sitting in St. Marks are people who see themselves above God. A person who does not believe he is a sinner will see no need for a Savior.

Lastly, what bothers me is the fact that many Christians, be they Methodist, Baptist, Disciples of Christ, Quakers, Catholic, whatever have forgotten how to seek God. Isaiah 55:6 tells us to seek God while He may be found. Jeremiah 29:13 tells us to seek Him with all our hearts. Finally Amos 5:14-15 tells us 14 Seek good, and not evil, that you may live; and so the Lord, the God of hosts, will be with you, as you have said. 15 Hate evil, and love good, and establish justice in the gate; it may be that the Lord, the God of hosts, will be gracious to the remnant of Joseph.

Friends we are told to hate what is evil to love what is good. None of the things that Rev. Dr. Beth LaRocca-Pitts mentioned is “good or holy” in the sight of the Lord. I know this blog may reach Rev. Dr. Beth LaRocca-Pitts and it may even reach Bishop Sue Haupert-Johnson. I know it will reach 100s of people—and I know that among my friends some will be hurt, some are hurting, some will comment hateful things to me, some will email me and call me names, friends, as I said in my last blog post, Jesus did not die on the cross to have us quivering in a corner because some human being might say something mean, or stop our paychecks, or sever a relationship, or even kill us (Luke 12:4). Christ died that we would not have to take on the punishment for our sins. He was the final, and only acceptable sacrifice for our sins. He died, so that YOU didn’t have to. He took on every sin imaginable, ripped the veil to the holy of holies so that YOU could approach God and repent. And on that day that I and many others stand before God for our final judgement, Jesus Christ, our only mediator is going to look at His father and say “This one is mine. This one called upon my name, humbly, and by renouncing spiritual forces of wickedness, rejecting the evil powers of this world and repenting of their sins has become my child. This one, Father, is mine.” Can you say the same thing? 

You Don't Count the Cost: Boldness in the Pulpit

I have spent today, reading through various posts by pastors who were hoping that the “infighting” would stop in their congregations, some had hopes of becoming able to suddenly preach the gospel without fear. 

So let me ask you this: Do you want to live and speak more boldly for Jesus Christ? I do. How badly do we want it? Do we want it enough to ask, seek, and knock untilGod answers us and to take risks that press on our timidity? Or, if we’re honest, would we rather just keep wishing we were bolder — admiring bold people, being inspired by biographies about bold people, talking with our friends and small group members about our struggles with fear of man — all the while staying where we feel safe and relatively comfortable and letting fear go unchallenged? 

My flesh likes the second option with a more flattering description. The Spirit says, “If you want to walk with me, choose the first.” There’s the battle line. “The desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do” (Galatians 5:17). But in this battle, there’s no stalemate. One side always holds sway. So, “choose this day whom you will serve (Joshua 24:15). In Christ, “we have boldness and access with confidence through our faith” to God our Father (Ephesians 3:12). The truth is there’s no power in heaven or on earth or under the earth that remotely approaches the power of God. He is the only one we need to fear (Luke 12:4–5). And Jesus took upon himself every reason we have to be terrified of God. Now in Christ God is for us. And, If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? (Romans 8:31–32) 

If we can now “with confidence draw near to the throne of grace” (Hebrews 4:16), who then should we fear (Psalm 27:1)? Jesus did not die on the cross to have us quivering in a corner because some human being might say something mean, or stop our paychecks, or sever a relationship, or even kill us (Luke 12:4). No! For Jesus has ensured that,

neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 8:38–39). The only reason fear-based timidity remains in us is that we don’t believe these mind-blowing promises. What freezing fears might melt away, like snow in April, if we let the bright rays of Romans 8 shine on our shadowy places of unbelief, even for just a week? After sunbathing in Romans 8, we should take an invigorating walk through the book of Acts and watch how Spirit emboldened the early Christians were. 

Peter and John, once frozen with fear, when filled with the Holy Spirit, were out preaching the gospel for everyone to hear (see Acts 2:14–41). This soon got them arrested — the very thing that had terrified them before — and their boldness astonished the Jewish authorities, who then “recognized that they had been with Jesus” (Acts 4:13). 

Don’t you want to bear that bold spiritual family resemblance? It requires the Spirit of Jesus (Philippians 1:19).

 John Wesley, stained glass window,
St. Botolph's, Aldersgate, London, England, UK

But, Rachel, I am scared, I am scared, I’ll loose my commission, or I’ll not make it through dCom, or those who are my future peers will hate me. Guys, I get it. I live in the Western North Carolina Conference of the United Methodist Church (UMC). I watched with great trepidation on Tuesday as we found ourselves standing up for a reaffirming of the definition of marriage and ordination. I went to a conference with my pastor about learning to share my faith, while there I was introduced to many pastors in the Western NC Conference. Many of whom, have read my works here online and they were impressed that a candidate would speak so boldly about Jesus Christ and what is going on in the UMC. They already know I wear a target on my back because of my conservative views—yet they encourage me to continue on speaking, knowing what it is possibly costing me! 

I want to tell a story if I may. As many who are Methodist know we have a thorough way of discerning ministry candidates. I don’t know many people who can endure what I did, with being honest about my past, to taking a psychological exam where the interpreter ends up saying “Your results were refreshingly honest.” I went to my District Committee on Ordained Ministry (dCom) and was deferred due to my conservatism, I went to the local divinity school (Duke) and was deferred…most likely due to my conservatism. I came home from both and told my pastor “I am going to fly under the radar, until I can get through dCom and become a licensed local pastor (LLP). Friends, that lasted all of one, maybe two days. I could not do it! Why? Why would I want to continue risking everything to preach, even if it means I have to come to you from behind a screen…well…frankly, because there is a Heaven to be gained and a Hell to be shunned. Someone reading this blog, their eternity may depend on hearing the gospel of Jesus Christ and some of my pastoral friends…well this may encourage them to boldly proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ. 

Boldness is the courage to act or speak fearlessly, despite real or imagined dangers. When a person acts boldly, he or she takes action regardless of risks. A petite mother will boldly snatch her child’s hand away from a six-foot stranger. A man may boldly stand up to a dictatorial boss, knowing he could be fired for doing so. Boldness is not to be confused with rashness or aggressiveness. It is, however, similar to assertiveness in that it empowers someone to do or speak what is necessary, in spite of the possibility of a negative outcome.

Boldness was one of the first characteristics the Holy Spirit imparted when He came to indwell believers after Jesus ascended into heaven. The followers of Jesus had been hiding in fear of the Jewish authorities, praying and encouraging one another. Then the Holy Spirit came upon them, and those formerly terrified disciples became fearless preachers (Acts 2). A short time later, as the disciples faced persecution from the authorities, they prayed for boldness (Acts 4:29). Their prayer was answered, and they were filled with the Holy Spirit and “spoke the word with boldness” (Acts 4:31). God gives us boldness when our objective is to obey and glorify Him with it.

Luke tells us in the book of Acts that we are to boldly proclaim the word of the Lord. Paul’s story in Acts ends with Acts 28:30-31 30 He lived there two whole years at his own expense, and welcomed all who came to him, 31 proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance. 

My own 9th great grandfather, the founder of Quakerism in Ireland, William Edmundson, was known for his boldness in ministry. He and his wife, Margaret, settled in Lurgan in 1654, where they opened a drapers shop, and he started the first Quaker meeting in Ireland. Quakers were persecuted in Ireland as they were in England, and Edmundson was frequently imprisoned. Yet when he was let out, he’d go right on back to preaching the truth. Going so far as to walk straight into the Catholic churches and preaching the gospel message there.

So much of a bold man of faith was William Edmundson that John Wesley wrote of him in his journal (July 17, 1765) “If the original equalled the picture, (which I see no reason to doubt), what an amiable man was this! His opinions I leave; but what a spirit here! What faith, love, gentleness, long-suffering! Could mistake send such a man as this to hell? Not so. I am so far from believing this that I scruple not to say “Let my soul be with the soul of William Edmundson!” (The Journal of the Rev. John Wesley, ed. N. Curnock New York, 1910, V, 137.)

We speak of wanting Revival, but too many of our pastors are scared to speak and boldly proclaim Jesus Christ. Let’s take a look at John Wesley and the characteristics that lead to revival—part of the great awakening. 

God gave John Wesley several unique qualities that deserve consideration. First, he placed a tremendous emphasis on preaching. He saw clearly that this was the first work of any servant of God. Sunday, April 8, 1739, is illustrative. At 7 a.m. he preached to about 1,000 in Bristol. A little later in the day he preached to 1,500 in the open air on the top of Hannam-Mount in Kingswood. Still later that day he preached to 5,000 at Rose-Green. Two days later he went to Bath where he preached three more times to similar crowds. All this with no microphones, shouting into the wind and elements in the open air.

Second, God’s power was with him. Despite the fact he was an average preacher, it was not unusual for people to be tremendously affected by the Holy Spirit’s convicting presence. The following entry in his diary was typical: "Many of those that heard began to call upon God with strong cries and tears. Some sank down, and there remained no strength in them.” Neither Wesley’s gifts nor personality explain these results. He depended completely on God’s supernatural anointing, and God dispensed it liberally throughout his ministry.

Third, he was courageous. He feared no man. God’s anointing brought tremendous persecution. Crowds were often difficult and violent. "As soon as we went out," Wesley said of one place, "we were saluted, as usual, with jeers and a few stones and pieces of dirt.” 

"Wesley and his friends," wrote one biographer, "were often attacked by gangs armed with clubs, whips, bricks, stink bombs, wildfire, or rotten eggs. Sometimes bulls were driven through the audience or horsemen overrode them." In the face of this terrific opposition Wesley pressed forward, always seeking first the kingdom of God—like Paul, fearless. (Notice the contrast between the new Wesley and the fear-filled unbeliever in the Atlantic storm.) Wesley’s boldness also appeared early in his ministry when he returned to his hometown. When the village rector who had replaced his deceased father refused to let him preach because of his enthusiasm, he mounted his father’s grave that was next to the church and preached to a substantial crowd in the open air with momentous results.

Fourth, he was always a loyal Anglican. He did not want to start a new church. Although thousands were saved through his ministry, he ran it as a parachurch organization within the Church of England. This was a weakness. He refused to recognize what was really happening—God was calling out a people for himself from within a dead church structure. After his death, his followers broke away from Anglicanism and formed the Methodist church. It numbers over 9.7 million members today, but for the most part, the anointing of Wesley is gone.

Post-Pentecost they didn’t always feel bold. In fact, in Acts 4, when the disciples came back from the astonished authorities, they told the church of the threats they received. Everyone understood the implication: persecution and possible execution. So, did they flee back into hiding? No, they prayed for boldness:

“And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness.” . . . And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness. (Acts 4:29, 31)

In answer to prayer, fear melted away and they received a fresh filling of the Holy Spirit and renewed boldness to keep speaking.

Boldness is not constant or taken for granted. We must keep praying for it whenever we need it. Even the apostle Paul experienced this. That’s why he asked the Ephesians to pray that he “may declare [the gospel] boldly, as [he] ought to speak” (Ephesians 6:20). Boldness is not an option for us, but it’s also not a given. Since it is not a constant gift of the Spirit, we must pray for it frequently.