The Highway Forums General Discussion Open Forum Awkwardness Sharing the Gospel

Could you clarify this statement, please? And how does this accord with:

It could EASILY be understood to convey, "Who are YOU to question MY ability to discern one's spiritual state, especially MY OWN children?" or some other visceral response to having your knowledge, experience or ability questioned.

How many times have parents assumed the salvation of their children because they believe they have reared them properly? Isn't this the presumption of the vast majority of OT Israel. And is this not the type of thinking we find throughout Christendom today? Are any of us exempt from potentially falling into this sort of biased opinion? Methinks it is a legitimate question which when answered will surely help to answer the main question, "Why is it so hard for people to relate what the Gospel is?"

See above.

I suspect that this is what evoked Chestnutmare's question to you, to which it appears you have taken offense.

As to the original question, for me it begs other questions... for example, Is it possible that someone who has professed faith in Christ to be ignorant of what the Gospel is? I'm thinking of Christ's words in John 8:31:

"Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed;"

Notice first of all to whom Jesus directed these words; those who professed to believe on Him. Then notice the conditional clause, "IF ... THEN". Evidence of one's faith is shown in works, in this case the continuing; reading and studying, of Scripture. So, taking Christ's words as being truth, is it possible for someone to read and study the Bible for any length of time and not come to some understanding of the Gospel? But even more germane is the fact that did not one have to hear the Gospel to come to salvation in the first place? So, it's not as if the Gospel message is totally foreign to a professed believer's hearing. Nor, is the Gospel message hidden in Scripture so that only the "scholar" is able to find its pieces and assemble it into a discernible message. So, is this possible? In one sense yes, as Hebrews 5:12-14 makes clear. However, the writer goes on in the next chapter to give a most sober warning that there are those who PROFESS to belong to Christ and exhibit outward evidences and can attest to having been exposed to many blessings afforded to the people of God YET who can and do fall away because they were not truly ingrafted into Christ by a living faith.

We've discussed in the past the double responsibility of 1) The churches' responsibility to preach the truth and train up believers in the faith once delivered unto the saints. And, 2) The individual's responsibility to read and study the Word as well as the writings of other tried and proven authors. If #1 is lacking, then it is more than likely that the individual's knowledge of Scripture can be but not necessarily so truncated. But it is unlikely that even without sound teaching from one's church (how long would someone hungry for Christ and His truth remain in such a church?) that something as rudimentary as knowing what the Gospel is would not be part of one's knowledge.

That's my !

In His grace,