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I was reading an article where the author was lamenting feel good-type churches with their feel good approach to religion. Such churches are designed to make the religious consumer feel good about himself and these feel good churches and their feel good-brand of religion over against truly evangelical churches whose Law/Gospel approach is designed to make sinful humanity in general, not just religious consumers in particular, feel bad about themselves apart from Christ and good about Christ.
So bad and so good is this tactic designed to make sinful human beings feel, in fact, that they forsake the bad for the good, forsaking themselves apart from Christ for Christ the Good Shepherd who didn't forsake them just because they are bad but forgave them and saved them, even though it meant forsaking His own life and being forsaken by His Father to pull it off--to pull them out of the hole they themselves dug and fell into--a hole that's the epitome of black holes and the China Syndrome. Only this hole doesn't just lead to China and non-existence but to hell and annihilation.
In trying to reach the unchurched, have these feel good churches become unchurched? In trying to reach the lost for Christ, have they themselves lost out and lost Christ? Pray they haven't become lost to Him and become lost causes not just lost sheep!
The well-meaning author concludes, "If the mention of sin offends the non-churchgoer, then the Gospel can never bring comfort." To the contrary, I believe, if the mention of sin does not offend the non-churchgoer, then the Gospel can never bring comfort. That's because the non-churchgoer will never feel bad enough about his big bad self to feel really good about Jesus and turn from his badness to Jesus' goodness and be saved.
And if that turnabout which alone is fair play does not occur, the unconverted and unsaved remains unconverted and unsaved and the lost sinner remains lost. To the author's credit, I believe this is what he meant: If the mention of sin so offends the non-churchgoer that he gives up on church altogether and stubbornly goes on in his sin and never turns from it to the One who alone has forgiven him and would convert and save him, then the Gospel can never bring comfort, and the comfortless God-hater dies without comfort.
But I expect better things in your regard, dear friends. The mere mention of sin has so offended you churchgoers over against the comfort you derive from Christ that, despairing of yourself apart from Christ and trusting in Him alone, you've forsaken sin and latched on to Him. Hearing God's no to sin and His yes in Jesus, through faith in Him, you've said no to sinning and yes to God's Son; yes to forgiveness, no to grudge-bearing; yes to confession, no to excuses; yes to life and no to death and damnation.
I pray you've heard the same from me, your pastor: no to all that's apart from Christ, yes to Christ and all that is in Him and by Him and through Him and to Him, such as the righteousness that is from God and by God and through Him, and that is ours in Him through faith.
I pray, when it comes to Jesus, that my words to you are never yes and no at once, vacillating between the one and the other like a flickering wick on the verge of going out, giving out an uncertain light just as assuredly as it gives off choking smoke; good for nothing but being snuffed out before it smokes us out and chokes us off.
Such wavering is like the feel good religious consumer who vacillates between another feel good cup of coffee at the feel good kiosk in Feel Good Lutheran Church and getting to the feel good service on time so he can feel really good!
No to all that! Yes to Jesus, God's Yes to wishy-washy sinners--consumers on the verge of being consumed by their conspicuous consumption, their sins. Vacillating between yes and no, stuck on maybe and maybe not, between merely feeling good and being good, they flicker like a sputtering wick not only on the verge of going out and being smoked out and choked off in the meantime, but destined to being snuffed out without Jesus, unless they turn to Him who alone can breathe life into them, and fan that spark into flame.
I pray that I can make my boast with St. Paul. I pray you can too. "As surely as God is faithful, our word to you has not been yes and no. For the Son of God, Jesus Christ, whom we preached among you. . .was not yes and no; but in him it is always yes. For all the promises of God find their yes in him. That is why we utter the amen through him, to the glory of God" (2Cor 1:12-22).
Back at you, Jesus! Yes. And amen.
- Pastor Erickson