The FEAR of GOD --- The FORGOTTEN MESSAGE of the CHURCH --- How to DEVELOP the FEAR of GOD in ORDER TO SAVE MEN'S SOULS

Why are there no Conversions to CHRIST ?

Could it be we have forgotten something ?

 Is there something MISSING from our current "invitation to CHRIST? "

The Church in Western Civilization has forgotten its Mission: To Plant the FEAR of GOD in all in order to SAVE men's SOULS. 

GOD'S TRUE CHARACTER in Judgment as well as Love, is needed TO BE SEEN when presenting HIM+ to both churched and un-churched alike. 

UNFORTUNATELY . . . By promoting a lop-sided MESSAGE of Salvation -- i.e., "love" only -- many Churches have presented a lop-sided, incomplete, and thus UNTRUE picture of the CHARACTER of GOD , of The ELOHIM, of The LORD JESUS CHRIST.  This picture is a figment of their wishful thinking . . . so as not to offend anyone.

Many, many churches in America omit the JUDGMENT of GOD,  from United Methodist to Anabaptist, liturgical to open-ended charismatic. 

Here are some suggestions to keep in mind when meeting hard-hearted persons who have NO FEAR OF GOD . . . which engenders NO repentance . . . which results in NO conversions to CHRIST . . . and consequently,  NO salvations. 

1. Seek GOD’S Guidance, for every person is different. The LORD knows exactly what will penetrate each hardened heart.

2. CORRECT the MIS-CONCEPTIONS of the Character of The LORD JESUS:

This mis-conception is that

“JESUS never judges; HE+ just loves.”

This error states that the Old Testament GOD punished, but JESUS’ grace excuses all sins, i.e., “I’m saved . . . so now I can sin all I want to !”   

The Apostle Paul said, “ GOD FORBID!” 

This ERROR is called "cheap grace." 

3. POINT OUT: The LORD JESUS CHRIST does indeed issue JUDGMENT now.

The “No-Judgment JESUS” concept developed because readers confuse His+ First Coming with His+ work  AFTER HIS+ RESURRECTION and at His+ 2^nd COMING.  

His+ First-Coming Work Brought Salvation,

 Not Condemnation

For GOD sent not HIS SON+ into the world to condemn the world, but that the world THROUGH HIM+ might be saved, 

according to The WORDS of JESUS, recorded in John 3:17.

Also, HE+ said:
  “I+ judge him not for I+ came not to judge the world but to save the world.” 

John 12:47

BUT . . . after His+ Resurrection, the JUDGMENT IS GIVEN directly into His+ Hands. HE+ pointed this out in John 5:21-22, as follows:

For as The FATHER raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth them; even so The SON+ quickeneth whom HE+ will.

 

For The FATHER judges NO MAN, 

but has committed (given)

all JUDGMENT unto The SON+.

Now then, be aware of a difference in the Judgment The LORD JESUS issued Before the Resurrection:  The LORD JESUS incarnate only JUDGED men when HE+ heard the Judgment of The FATHER being pronounced. 

 I+ can of Mine+ own Self do nothing: as I+ hear, I+ judge: and My+ judgment is just; because I+ seek not Mine+ own will, but the will of The FATHER Which hath sent ME+. John 5:30

However, Scripture teaches that AFTER the Resurrection, all JUDGMENT is committed directly unto our GLORIFIED LORD JESUS.

AFTER His+ Resurrection, we see His+ Judgments falling heavily upon the seven churches in Revelation, chapters 2 and 3. . . if they do not repent:

• ·         Upon those who left their first love of CHRIST comes the 2^nd death

• ·         Upon those who practice wrong doctrines of the fornicators, the Nicolaitans, etc. . . . HE+ fights against them with the Sword of His+ Mouth ( that sharp, two-edged sword)

• ·         Upon those who follow Jezebel and commit adultery with her HE+ will cast into her bed of great tribulation and kill her children with death, giving to every one according to their works

• ·         Upon the ones which have a reputation of being alive but are really dead due to their imperfect works before GOD, HE+ will blot out each one’s name out of the Book of LIFE

• ·         Upon the lukewarm, HE+ will spue them out of His+ Mouth

• ·         And lastly, HE+ removes their Candlesticks

4. REMIND them of the 2^nd DEATH ~ The Lake of Burning Fire ( Revelation 20) vs The LAMB’S BOOK of LIFE ( Rev. 21:27)

Revelation 20 is seldom read, seldom preached upon, and VERY seldom laid to heart, even by serious Christians.

Entire congregations have never heard about the 2^nd Death. Christendom has been lulled to sleep by that cheap grace teaching; it is in the air and we pick it up by osmosis.

Christians who truly follow The LORD JESUS die only once; everybody else dies twice, and this 2^nd death lasts forever in the Lake of Burning Fire.

 (Rev 20:11)  And I saw a great white throne, and HIM+ that sat on it, from Whose+ Face the earth and the heaven fled away; and there was found no place for them.

(Rev 20:12)  And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before GOD; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is THE BOOK OF LIFE: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.

(Rev 20:13)  And the sea gave up the dead which were in it; and death and hell delivered up the dead which were in them: and they were judged every man according to their works.

(Rev 20:14)  And death and hell were cast into the lake of fire. This is the second death.

(Rev 20:15)  And whosoever was not found written in THE BOOK OF LIFE was cast into THE LAKE OF FIRE.

REMEMBER:

 This BOOK of LIFE is The LAMB’S+ BOOK of LIFE, identified in Revelation 21:27.

5. REMIND them that they are playing with FIRE.

The LORD JESUS warned us that there IS a place where the worm of man dieth not and the fire is not quenched. HE+ warned us of this THREE TIMES according to the Byzantine Greek texts. Mark 9: 43-49 records His+ Warnings. 

(Mar 9:43)  And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two hands to go into hell --- GEHENNA --- , into the fire that never shall be quenched:

(Mar 9:44)  Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.

(Mar 9:45)  And if thy foot offend thee, cut it off: it is better for thee to enter halt into life, than having two feet to be cast into hell --- GEHENNA --- , into the fire that never shall be quenched:

(Mar 9:46)  Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.

(Mar 9:47)  And if thine eye offend thee, pluck it out: it is better for thee to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye, than having two eyes to be cast into hell fire --- GEHENNA --- :

(Mar 9:48)  Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched.

6. REMIND them of the DIRE CONSEQUENCES if they crucify The LORD JESUS to themselves , afresh, and put HIM+ to an open shame again. 

Heb 6:4  For it is  impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, 

Heb 6:5  And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, 

Heb 6:6  If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame. 

7. ASK THEM:  HOW shall we ESCAPE if we neglect so great a SALVATION ? 

Hebrews 2:3 tells us of the confirmation and testimony recorded that JESUS was the TRUE SON+ of GOD, Who+ died for our sins. HE+ is our ONLY PATH to Salvation, the ONLY Door to Heaven, the ONLY Way out of death, the ONLY LIGHT we will ever have. 

HE+ tells us in John 14:6  . . . 

JESUS saith unto him, I+, I+ AM the way, the truth, and the life: NO man cometh unto The FATHER, but by ME+. 

And in Acts_4:12, Luke the Evangelist records this:  Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other Name+ under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.

8. SHOW THEM: That the WRATH of GOD HIMSELF abides – rests upon – remains upon --- persons who disobey The SON+. 

John 3:35  The FATHER loveth The SON+, and hath given all things into His+ Hand. 

John 3:36  He that believeth on The SON+ hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not  [OBEYS NOT] The SON+ shall not see life; but the wrath of GOD abideth on him. 

Unfortunately, the DIRE warning in this verse has been hidden in the KJV translation. The first “believeth” means trust, believes in.

The SECOND “believeth” is not the Greek word, pisteuO, like the first, but rather apeitheO … which means WILLFUL and stubborn disobedience.

9. BRING THIS TO THEIR MIND: There is NO hiding place for anyone, small or great. 

Psalm 139 informs us that HE+ knows the words on our tongue before we even speak them ! There is no hiding place from HIM+ where HE+ cannot see us. 

The writer of Hebrews states that EVERYTHING is open and naked unto the eyes of HIM+ with Whom+ we have to do. Hebrews 4:13

10. IF ALL ELSE FAILS . . . we can go through the 10 Commandments which are familiar to many.

It is good to ask them to review their life in regards to each commandment and we can help them do this exercise to give them a picture of their soul as GOD sees it.  

We can ask them  if they have ever broken one of these commandments, which, if transgressed, will identify them as sinners and assign them to Hell. 

This is especially good when encountering self-righteous worldlings.

 There are many other verses that could effectively be used, such as the Romans verses, 3:10 and 3:23. 

Not every person may need ALL these verses, at least at first.

The HOLY SPIRIT will bring to mind the exact Scriptures to share to bring others into a correct understanding of the POWER of GOD and the WILL of GOD towards hardened hearts.

It should work to bring conviction of sin and the FEAR of GOD upon all, which leads to repentance and a conversion to CHRIST JESUS . . . and to Everlasting Life with CHRIST . . . instead of the Lake of Burning Fire.