Come as you are

 by David Long

All are invited to the church of Christ. We don't care who you are, what you have done or where you are from. All are welcome to the services of the church of Christ. You can come as you are but don't leave as you are. "Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodomites, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God. And such were some of you. But you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus and by the Spirit of our God" (1 Cor. 6:9-11). 

Automatic forgiveness

 by David Long

Where does the Bible teach automatic forgiveness for anyone? It doesn't. God has always had conditions for forgiveness. One of the conditions that has always been true is repentance. God has always required man to repent. Name the person who was not required to repent of their sins? Even Christians who sin must repent (Acts 8:22). The Bible is clear, God commands all men everywhere now to repent (Acts 17:30). 

windshield wiper forgiveness

 by David Long

Is God's forgiveness of sins for a Christian like a windshield wiper? What do I mean by that? When a Christian commits sin does God just automatically wipe the sin away like a windshield wiper? No! 1 John 1:7 teaches that the Christian has continual cleansing with the blood of Christ "as they walk in the light." Walking in the light means when a Christian sins they repent of that sin (Acts. 8:22) and confess that sin (1 John 1:9). But someone will say, "What about the sin of ignorance?" When has ignorance ever been an excuse? "And if any one sin, and do any of the things which Jehovah hath commanded not to be done; though he knew it not, yet is he guilty, and shall bear his iniquity" (Lev. 5:17). 

I can't do perfect

 by David Long

I can't do perfect. By perfect I mean sinlessness. I messed that up years ago and sometimes still mess it up (Rom. 3:23; 1 John 1:8, 10). But I can do faithfulness. By faithfulness I mean striving to the best of my ability to obey all things that Jesus has commanded (Matt. 28:20) and when I mess up (sin) I repent of it, confess it and ask forgiveness (Act 8:22; 1 John 1:9). God doesn't demand sinlessness but He does demand faithfulness (Rev. 2:10; Matt. 25:23). 

It won't be by accident

 by David Long

Do you think a person can get to heaven by accident or luck or chance? Do you think there will be people in heaven who didn't expect to be there? No to both questions. Those who will be in heaven are those who desire it more than anything else in the world and their lives reflect that desire (Col. 3:1-2; Matt. 6:33). They will be in heaven because they are on the road that leads there (Matt. 7:13-14). They will be there because they put forth the effort to enter and walk the narrow road that leads there (Lk. 13:24).  They will hear the words "Well done thou good and faithful servant... enter in" (Matt. 25:23) because that's what their lives were all about. It won't be by accident, luck or chance.

What repentance looks like

 by David Long

What does repentance look like?

"The men of Nineveh shall stand up in the judgment with this generation, and shall condemn it: for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and behold, a greater than Jonah is here" (Luke 11:32).

"Now the word of the LORD came to Jonah the second time, saying, "Arise, go to Nineveh the great city and proclaim to it the proclamation which I am going to tell you." So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh according to the word of the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly great city, a three days' walk. Then Jonah began to go through the city one day's walk; and he cried out and said, "Yet forty days and Nineveh will be overthrown." Then the people of Nineveh believed in God; and they called a fast and put on sackcloth from the greatest to the least of them. When the word reached the king of Nineveh, he arose from his throne, laid aside his robe from him, covered himself with sackcloth, and sat on the ashes. And he issued a proclamation and it said, "In Nineveh by the decree of the king and his nobles: Do not let man, beast, herd, or flock taste a thing. Do not let them eat or drink water. "But both man and beast must be covered with sackcloth; and let men call on God earnestly that each may turn from his wicked way and from the violence which is in his hands. "Who knows, God may turn and relent, and withdraw His burning anger so that we shall not perish?" When God saw their deeds, that they turned from their wicked way, then God relented concerning the calamity which He had declared He would bring upon them. And He did not do it" (Jonah 3)

A distinctive faith

 by David Long

The Christian faith is a distinctive faith. How? It is based on the word of God and only on the word of God (Rom. 10:17). 

It's not based on: opinions, assumptions, what a person thinks, man-made traditions, feelings, what seems right, what the majority believe, what my parents believe, what the "pastor"  "preacher" or "Catholic priest" may say. It's not based on any other book but the Bible (2 Tim. 3:16-17).