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Many Christians are skittish when
it comes to apologetics, especially as it pertains to
contrasting false religions with the truth of the gospel.
Some feel uncomfortable with “judging” or being “critical”
of others. However, these people are neglecting some
crucial points. Jesus taught of love for others, but not
acceptance of false faiths or religious beliefs. He
constantly challenged the Pharisees and false prophets.
Jesus also told us there would be false prophets and false
messiahs (Matthew 7:15; 24:11, 24). He warned us about
them. Jesus taught us that the only way to the
Father was through Him (John 3:16, 14:6). Jesus
taught of a narrow path that leads to salvation, and a broad
path that leads to destruction (Matthew 7:13-14). Paul
continually warned of false teachings (2 Corinthians
11:13-15; Galatians 1:7-8; 1 Timothy 1:3-4), and urged us to
respond with the truth (2 Timothy 4:2-5). Jude told us to
“contend for the faith” (Jude 3,4).
When Jesus
left us with the Great Commission, He told us to “go and
make disciples of all nations…” (Matthew 28:19). The
majority of people in this world hold to some spiritual
belief system. Presently only 15% of the world’s population
claims to be non-spiritual atheists or agnostics. I
sincerely doubt that Jesus wanted us to only target that
15%. When Jesus said He was the only way (John
14:6), He excluded all other ways. This is not a popular
notion in today’s pluralistic and ecumenical society, but
truth is not based on popularity. That’s what the gospel is
– truth. While many have difficulty fathoming the concept
of absolute truth, it exists independently of our belief or
unbelief. The quirky thing about absolute truth is that it
is, by nature, exclusionary. Christian thinker Ravi
Zacharias said, “If truth does not exclude, then no
assertion of a truth claim is being made; it’s just an
opinion that is being stated. Any time you make a truth
claim, you mean something contrary to it is false. Truth
excludes its opposite.” If Jesus is THE way, and the
ONLY way, and THE TRUTH, then all other ways
are false, and will ultimately lead to destruction. People
that are being duped by a system of false beliefs are in
peril. Jesus wants them to come to Him, and we are His
instruments to that end.
Jesus said
that the harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few (Luke
10:2-3). We are the workers, and we have been entrusted
with a Great Commission to win souls for Christ. Presently
most churches are not equipping their congregations to be
effective witnesses to 85% of the world! The harvest is
plentiful, but it is replete with false doctrines and
beliefs. If we are to hold to the Great Commission, we are
going to have to associate with people that have various
(false) religious beliefs. If we are to be an effective
witness to these people, we must understand their
beliefs, and be prepared to present the true gospel of Jesus
Christ to them. We must be able to present the truth, but
we must also be able to expose lies and heresy. Paul
instructed us to expose the deeds of darkness (Ephesians
5:11). This is not a call to congregate together and be
right. This is not a call to bask in the warmth of our own
redemption, while ignoring the souls in this world that are
lost. This is a call to proactively expose the lies of the
evil one, and present the radiant light of the true
gospel of Christ Jesus.
Imagine two
people, each holding a crisp, new twenty-dollar bill. The
problem is that one of these people is holding a brilliant
counterfeit. It looks real, feels real, and it even smells
real; but it is completely worthless. People who are
trained to spot counterfeit currency train extensively on
what real currency is supposed to look like and feel like.
They are intimately familiar with real money, and are then
able to spot a counterfeit. As Christians, we need to
become intimately familiar with the true gospel of Jesus
Christ, as presented in the Word of God. However, it is not
enough for us to merely guard ourselves against counterfeit
doctrines and beliefs. We are called to expose them, for
the sake of people’s eternal souls. This does not always
earn us points in political correctness, but we each have to
decide what is more important – social acceptance, or
fulfillment of the Great Commission.
Christians must be equipped with more than stock answers.
We must always be prepared to give an answer for the hope
that lies within us (1 Peter 3:15). We do not attack
people – we attack the spirit of darkness that has
deceived them with lies, and blinded them to the truth.
Many feel that it is more loving to “live and let live.” If
we as Christians believe that Jesus is the truth, then “live
and let live” is more accurately stated, “live and let die,”
and that is the least loving attitude we can have.
As Christians, we must prepare ourselves for this battle,
and our churches must be willing to equip us as we expose
the lies of the Prince of Darkness.
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