The Gospel, Its Fruit, and Christian Cultural No-No's

Why do churches allow into their rolls those whom the Bible would not consider Christians? Maybe churches aren’t keeping rolls today. Why then are they allowing those whom the Bible would not consider Christians to attend and consider themselves part of the church? An evangelical church must agree on the gospel. But agreement is not enough.

Christ warns that false prophets are like ferocious wolves in sheep’s clothing. How is the church to discern sheep from wolves who look and even sound like sheep? “By their fruit you will recognize them” (Matt. 7:16). Those who only profess Christ must not be considered Christians. The Bible doesn’t ask us to assume. We don’t need to assume. Rather we need to wait and watch their actions. With numbers being the criteria for success, waiting makes no sense. One who acts like a sheep and cries ‘Lord, Lord’ like a sheep is welcomed into the fold. Patience and wisdom are needed. They are what the Bible expects.

But if wolves act like sheep and the church is to judge sheep by their actions, how are the two to be kept separate? In between his teaching on sheep and wolves and his comment about those who cry ‘Lord, Lord,’ Christ answers this. “Every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit” (Matt. 7:17-18). Wolves bear bad fruit. Wolves cannot bear good fruit. It seems so clear, yet I look at churches I’ve been in and people would say, ‘we have no wolves here.’ The church has mistaken ‘Lord, Lord’ with doing the will of the Father.

Even more of a problem, the church has mis-defined fruit. Not watching movies in the theater, attending concerts, listening to ‘bad music,’ smoking, drinking, and a hundred other understood no-no’s has been mis-taken with actually bearing fruit–that is acting like a Christian. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control are understood to be needed, but not essential. Faithfulness to Christian cultural norms–the no-no’s–has replaced faithfulness to Christ. Not doing (in the name of Jesus) has replaced bearing.

So one who cries ‘Lord, Lord’ and doesn’t do these understood no-no’s is believed to have found the small gate and the narrow road. I fear the gate they have walked threw and the road they are on feel small and narrow due to exclusive legalism–yet they are wider than they know. Their road will lead to Christ as judge and–at the end–he will say ‘I never knew you.’