Learning More about the Scuttlebutt Against Me

Today I learned a little more about why my old home church doesn't like me, when I talked to a guy who attends there and told him about how I was "snubbed" by one of the members of that church yesterday. I then asked him if knew of any reason why they would not want to have anything to do with me. His answer to me was that he heard they preached against me because I was "preaching too hard on the blood of Jesus Christ," and that I guilty of saying a man had to "understand" the Gospel before he could beleive it.

I looked at the man who told me this, I then looked at my wife, and I then shrugged my shoulders as I looked back at the man saying, "So, what's wrong with that???"

How could these be bad things, as they are just sound Bible doctrine? And how could someone be against preaching those things? For the Bible clearly teaches salvation by faith in the blood (Rom. 3:25), and believing only by first hearing (Rom. 10:17) and then understanding (Acts 28:27).

He continued to tell me that he believed (and he inferred that it's what his church believes also) that anyone who just comes to Jesus today, he will in no wise cast out. To them, that means if a man will just come in sincerity, with no understanding whatsoever, asking God to save him, then according to them, God will do so.

I couldn't believe what I was hearing. This is not what that church used to believe and teach. In fact, it is the exact opposite! For case in point, check out this quote by the Pastor in the 1980's: "If you are saved, you know that the only way to heaven is the substitutionary blood atonement of Jesus Christ. If you don't know that, it's because you are lost."

This pretty much says it all. You have to KNOW how to get saved before you can get saved. In other words, you have to KNOW what to place your faith in before you can place your faith in it to save you. But this very same preacher, who is still the pastor, is saying today things like, "You don't have to know anything to get saved!" And, "Just come to Jesus the best way you know how!" How different this is from what he used to preach and believe.

Did you know you can be "sincere," but still be sincerely lost! Unless a soul comes to Jesus Christ with the understanding that salvation is through trusting in his blood sacrifice for their sins, that person is not saved. It's certainly not because I say so. Nor is it because my old Pastor said so in the 80's (even though he's saying something much different now). It's because THE BIBLE SAYS SO!

It doesn't matter how "sincere" someone is. What matters is what they do with Jesus Christ and his sacrifical blood atonement on Calvary. If they try to come to God outside of the Finish work of Jesus Christ, THEY WILL NOT BE SAVED! You cannot bypass Calvary or the Gospel and expect God to save you. You must come to God through Jesus Christ, and you must come through the knowledge of the Gospel.

The man I talked to then gave his testimony, in which he said he didn't know when he got saved. He said, "I don't know all the details, I'm going to leave those to the Lord and let him explain them."

It was like he was confessing to not knowing when he got saved, and it made me wonder if he was even saved to begin with! How can a guy say, "I believe a man can get to God without knowing or even hearing about the Gospel as long as he's sincere?" How is that even possible?

The guy then said, "I just believe that when that women touched the hem of the garment of Jesus, she was healed! For God saves all sincere folks that come to him!"

I don't think he understood that passage happened before Jesus died on the Cross, and it was not for SALVATION, rather for healing that the woman came. He should have known that though, as his Pastor (my old Pastor) is very good at making a distinction between the Old Testament and the New by teaching dispensations.

How weird this whole thing was. I even told the guy that my Dad also went to his church and its Bible School years ago (before I went there) and when he went there the Pastor taught that a man had to hear, understand, and know the Gospel before he could be saved, and salvation was by faith alone in the blood atonement. But now that very same Pastor was preaching the very opposite and has begun lamblasting me for preaching it! How strange. It's almost like this is an episode of the Twilight Zone or something!

What's worse is everyone who goes to that church reveres the Pastor as though he is above reproach and above sin. They claim he is the greatest Bible teacher that ever lived (and yes, he is a great Bible teacher), and they exalt him almost to the point of infalibility. They also believe that he is right because of his hard stand against apostasy, as he preaches hard against those who have perverted truth and preach tradition rather than the word of God. But they never stop to think that it's possible that their mighty leader has apostasized himself by preaching something different than he used to.

It just blows my mind that our "crime" in the eyes of those at that church is that we "PREACH THE BLOOD TOO HARD" and that we are too dogmatic in stating the sound Biblical truth that a man has to hear and understand before he can be saved. How can this be?

I remember being taught in Bible school that the "apostates" were those ungodly "liberals" who omitted the Blood of Jesus. When we students heard things like that, we all shouted heartily, "Hear, Hear!" or "Amen!"

But now my old Bible school, and even students I graduated with, are the ones guilty of making light of the blood of Jesus, but now I'm the "bad guy" and they are the true Bible Believers. How does this even make sense? They are omitting the Blood, not me!

I talked to another friend on the phone today and told him about some of this, and he told me not to worry about it. He said, "That's the Independent Baptist movement you! They are all preaching and teaching the same thing and if you don't preach what they do, then you are ostracized. It's not important if you are sticking with the Bible and they are departing from it. If you are not like them, then you are a heretic in their eyes. For they believe everyone should be the same as they are!"

Can you spell C-U-L-T?

I then told my friend about how the member of that church I met at the mall wouldn't even shake my hand or give me the time of day. He said, "Yep, that's how Independent Baptists are. They have no love for anyone who isn't part of their 'click' or 'camp.' They are only interested in bragging on themselves and their 'groups' and have no time for anyone who's not going alone with them teaching what they do."

It's so sad, but what he said rang true. And thankfully, I'm not the only one seeing this. More and more people are starting to wake up to the fact that the Independent Baptist movement is going down the drain hole, and is apostasizing at an alarming rate. Its substitution of sound Bible doctrine for Baptist tradition, and it's "secret society" mentality has lead to its hierarchy learning how to enslaves its members to their own will. For if their members don't shut up and obey them, they are automatically ostracized and labelled. That way they are made out to be the bad guy, or the opposition to the "man of God" who wishes others to view him as "suffering oppostion for the truth." (But what if he is the compromiser and those who are questioning are only doing so because what that man is preaching is not what the Bible says?)

The leaders squelch out any form of questioning and demand their congregations follow them as the absolute authority, instructing their members not to even speak to those who don't follow them, lest they might be "tainted" by their independent and resistant attitude to follow their dogmatical rule. In short, they have become the Pharisees of Old who desire fame, money, and power.

It'd be funny if it wasn't so sick and disgusting. I have a friend who has started studying some modern Independent Baptist traditions in light of the scriptures and he is finding many of them to be nothing more than modern money making schemes which are not only ANTI-BIBLICAL, but PENTECOSTAL in origin. And do you know what they are already labelling him for just asking questions? They have told him point blank that he has "no love for souls," and have labelled him as someone who is "dabbling in Calvinism."

He's not a Calvinist! He is not against soul-winning or Missions. He, like me, has looked at his Bible and looked at what modern Pastors are preaching and tried to see if they agree together. Often they do not, for many Preachers today are busy preaching "Programs" they've learned from their denominations, rather than simply preaching "PAULINE Doctrine" from the word of God.

It's like Independent Baptists today have their fingers in the air and they are looking for which way the wind blows. When they find it, they all flock together in unison and park there awhile. As they fellowship, they come up with modern new teachings, doctrines, and programs which work for them, but are foreign to the scriptures. As these are adopted by others, they point to their numbers and how so many use their methods, and then they ridicule anyone who refuses to do things their way. And then before you know it, they are off the deep end preaching apostate teachings instead of simply preaching the scriptures.

God help us! I look at it and it makes me laugh and it makes me cry. It's funny that people who call themselves "Christians" and even "Bible Believers" could tell me I preach the blood of Jesus too much, and I'm too hard on stressing the need to preach the Gospel plainly and clearly so sinners can hear and understand it. What could possibly be wrong what that? Wouldn't you think the Devil would be the one who wishes us to not preach the blood or the Gospel clearly?

Does that mean that those who are against me are really on the side of Satan? Hmmm.

I'll let you decide for yourself. As for me, this whole thing has only strengthened my faith. And I count it a joy to suffer for the sake of righteousness, for I chose to follow the Scriptures and not men who are change their positions. I'll preach the BLOOD, the BOOK, and the BLESSED HOPE. After all, what do I have to lose? What, are they going to refuse to shake my hand again? Maybe that's for the best!