The Great Need For Bible Convictions

Illus: Years ago, it was not unusual to hear Christians in the church saying such things as, “I do not do this, or that, because it is a Bible conviction I have.”

But today, you rarely hear professing Christians talk about Bible convictions they have. Why? Because, Bible convictions are based on the Word of God. It is sad to say, today we do not have a lot of churches that are preaching the Word of God.

Illus: Dr. J. L. Cook, pastor of Homeland Baptist Church in China Grove, North Carolina, has a sermon he calls “Burger King Religion.” He describes the sermon by saying, “American Christianity has deteriorated into “Burger King” religion. He says this, because the chain has an advertisement that states, “Hold the pickles, hold the lettuce, special orders don’t upset us…HAVE IT YOUR WAY!”

This is what Christians today are doing. They are trying to find churches where they can have it their way. And a lot of these liberal, compromising preachers know that is what they want, and they are letting them have it their way. They know that the last thing that many today want, is a sermon from the Word of God that tells them it has to BE GOD’S WAY, not THEIR WAY!

Because the Word of God is not being preached, we live in a society where professing Christians do not have BIBLE CONVICTIONS. Bible convictions are based on the Word of God.

The apostle Paul spoke of an age when men would not come to church seeking for the truth of God’s Word. Look at 2 Timothy 4:3-4. We read, “For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables.”

Paul said the time would come when this age would exist, and today it does exist. Our Christian bookstores have filled the shelves with books that say if you want to grow numerically today, then the PREACHING OF GOD’S WORD IS OUT!

• You can give a speech, but you cannot preach

• You can share some ideas, but you cannot preach.

• You can entertain, but you cannot preach.

Illus: Dr J. L. Cook, who has this fiery sermon on “Burger King Religion”, also says, “I heard one young pastor of a rapidly growing church in Texas say, ‘Just preaching the old-time gospel isn’t enough anymore’.” Dr. Cook said, “I could not help but think when he said that, ‘How would he and his new kind know if it worked or not?’. They’ve never preached the old time gospel.”

Because there is so little of the Word of God being preached today, we have a society that no longer has Bible convictions. Oh, do not misunderstand what I am saying. THEY HAVE BELIEFS, BUT THEY DO NOT HAVE BIBLE CONVICTIONS.

Some seem to think that BELIEFS and CONVICTIONS are the same, but they are not. A belief can be a preference. And the reason that BELIEF is not the same as a BIBLE CONVICTION is because a belief can be changed.

Illus: For example, a Christian girl who went to high school, had gained the reputation of being a Bible believer. That is, all her friends knew that she professed to be a Christian, and that she was very active in the local Baptist church that was located a few blocks from her home.

But later, her sister that also was a Christian, started dating a young man in high school that was a Mormon. They graduated and later got married and she converted over to Mormonism.

Later on her sister graduated and she got married. Her older sister who had converted to Mormonism began to convert her to Mormonism. After awhile she was successful in doing just that.

But it was a shock to everyone that knew this girl. How could she believe in the things she believed in so deeply all her life, and now believe just the opposite?

HOW COULD THIS HAVE HAPPENED? It can happen, and does happen all the time, because our BELIEFS CAN BE CHANGED!

The reason these two girls converted over to Mormonism is because they never had Bible convictions in what they believed. They had beliefs, but circumstances changed their beliefs.

When a person has Bible convictions, NO ONE or ANYTHING can change their convictions. When people are not rooted in the word of God, often things come along and change their beliefs.

Illus: Dr. David Gibbs, president of the CLA (Christian Law Association), tells us there are, “Five circumstances noted by the court that most often cause one to change his/her beliefs”.

One of the groups that attorney Dr. David Gibbs represents is CHURCHES THAT HAVE CHRISTIAN SCHOOLS, KINDERGARTENS, AND CHURCH NURSERIES.