Dave,

What do these folks think of Heb. 11:6, "And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him"?

1) Mahatma Gandhi rejected the faith. He spurned the Lord of Glory, preferring his dumb idols to the Maker of heaven and earth. Do your church folks believe in the First Commandment?

2) Like Gandhi, the Amazonian tribal leader falls under the condemnation of Scripture, as one who "exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures" (Rom. 1:23), even though God's attributes are revealed in what He has made; therefore, "they are without excuse" (v. 20).

3) As for the "fallback" option, your church folks should be pressured to show where in Scripture God has said that any class of men are exempted from condemnation. It seems rather the opposite, if we believe the Apostle: "As it is written, 'There is none righteous, not even one; there is none who understands, there is none who seeks for God'" (Rom. 2:10-11).

Finally, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, 'But the righteous man shall live by faith" (Rom. 1:16-17).

May I ask, what kind of church are you attending that the people are so ignorant and hard-hearted regarding the utter importance of the Gospel? It may be the wiser choice to leave and find a church that is solidly biblical.

Kyle

I tell you, this man went down to his house justified.