Church must take some responsibility

EDITOR: Many pertinent points were addressed by the students at the Lions Club South Public Speaking Finals concerning the issue of crime in our society and its causes.

The participants fairly attributed some of the responsibility for the high degree of crimes to the churches. Of course, these well-informed students did not hesitate to lay a fair share of the blame on the media, family, and the community at large.{{more}}

This writer is, however, greatly concerned about the role of the “church” in society and how it contributes to crime. We are told in the Holy Scrip-tures that “ … the church is the pillar and ground of the truth” (1 Tim. 3:15). We can therefore conclude from the above statement that the church of God upholds and support truth. Are the majority of “churches” in Christiandom upholding the Truth? The Bible describes the Law of God (which is a reflection of God’s character) as Truth. The psalmist David tells us “ … the Law is the truth” (Ps 119:142). But, do the “churches” uphold the truth? Let us consider the following statement made by an evangelical writer and theologian, a “representative” of the “church”:

“Since law and grace are opposed to each other at every point, it is impossible for them to co-exist, either as the ground of acceptance before God or as the rule of life. Of necessity, therefore, the scriptures of the New Testament, which present the facts and scope of grace, both assume and directly teach the law is done away… This present nullification of the law applies not only to the legal Mosaic system and the law of the kingdom, but to every possible application of the principle of the law … the law has now ceased, even in its widest meaning…” Lewis Sperry Chafer, “Grace”, pp 215, 216.

Do we wonder why crime is on the increase? Do we wonder why the “church” is failing in its duty and contributing to crime/sin in society? Not only is it not preaching out against all evil, but in addition it is found speaking against the truth by advocating errors such as mentioned in Chafer’s statement. How can the church encourage people to stop committing murder and in the same breath fail to regard the law of God? How dishonest, hypocritical, confusing and contradictory!!

It is time for the “churches” themselves to return to the Bible and understand the meaning of the church and its purpose. Christ gave his disciples, and by extension the church, a commission to teach all things whatsoever he has commanded (Mat. 28:20).

Stop the storytelling old fables, and diversion of people’s mind from the real truth about the gospel. The church has a great responsibility to call sin by its right

name – the transgression of the law.

The church has a duty to present the solution (with Christ in mind), which will cause man- kind to live in harmony with the immutable Law of Yahweh. As a result the laws of the land that are in accordance with God’s law would be respected.

As an ambassador of the true Church of Jesus Christ ( Rev.14:12), I declare unto you that the Gospel, which establishes the law in the heart of man is the remedy to crime in our society.

Ann-Marie John