I want to bring something up that is not talked about enough in the Christian community, and that is this horrible—I'm going to call it—echo chamber in church. One person says, "We are all sinners," and another person echoes that "all of us have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God." Another brother says in a false kind of humility, "I am the chief of sinners," as Paul said. And it becomes a way for people to hide behind their sin in this false kind of humility, trying to relate with the world.
Everyone knows that the world is full of sinners; no one's going to argue that the world is a pure place filled with righteous men and women. Everyone knows that all have fallen short of the glory of God. So it's easy for the Christian culture—that is the pastors, the lay people in the church—to hide behind this pretend shield of humility, claiming that we are all sinners. This is what the Christian church echoes, and a lot of Christians are stuck in this echo chamber. They're saying, "We are sinners. We are sinners saved by grace."
But this is a far cry from what Jesus actually taught about his church, about his people. I want to read to you what Jesus said in regards to sinners compared to people who obey his truth, that come into his light. This is found in John 8; I'm going to start in verse 31.
So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed him, "If you continue in my word, then you are truly disciples of mine; and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free." They answered him, "We are Abraham's descendants and have never yet been enslaved to anyone. How is it that you say, 'You will become free'?"
Jesus answered them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, everyone who commits sin is the slave of sin. The slave does not remain in the house forever; the son does remain forever. So if the son makes you free, you will be free indeed. I know that you are Abraham's descendants; yet you seek to kill me because my word has no place in you. I speak the things which I have seen with my Father; therefore, you also do the things which you heard from your father."
They answered and said to him, "Abraham is our father." Jesus said to them, "If you are Abraham's children, do the deeds of Abraham. But as it is, you are seeking to kill me, a man who has told you the truth, which I heard from God; this Abraham did not do. You are doing the deeds of your father."
They said to him, "We are not born of fornication; we have one Father: God." Jesus said to them, "If God were your Father, you would love me, for I proceeded forth and have come from God; for I have not even come on my own initiative, but he sent me. Why do you not understand what I am saying? It is because you cannot hear my word. You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie, he speaks from his own nature, for he is a liar and the father of lies. But because I speak the truth, you do not believe me? Which one of you convicts me of sin? If I speak the truth, why don't you believe me? He who is of God hears the words of God; for this reason you do not hear them, because you are not of God."
The Christians today are stuck in the echo chamber that they are sinners. And they even think that they are humble because they claim to be sinners. But they clearly are not of the children of God because Jesus said, "If the son of God—that is himself—sets you free, then you are free indeed."
So if you really have had an experience with Jesus and he has touched you, then you have been set free of your sins. But if you are still sinning, it proves that you belong to your father, the devil. A lot of people want to argue with this and say how everyone is sinful—"Just look at the world." Well, of course the world is sinful; the whole world is in the grips of Satan. But only those that Jesus has touched their heart and purified them, they have been made free.
But if you are still sinning, then how has God purified you? You can't just be part of this echo chamber, this Christian community that thinks that they are going to heaven because they are echoing the pastor's words. It is not humility to claim that you're still a sinner relating with the world. Either you belong to Jesus and you repent of your sin for real—and you love and you obey Jesus and you hold his hand and you go with him every day—or you belong to this Christian community that belongs to the world, that's gripped by sin, that's gripped by lust, pornography, hatred of the true God.
All the lies that they believe from the pulpit... are you in the Christian community that is stuck in sin, that is enslaved to sin? And are you in this echo chamber also preaching that everyone's a sinner? "I'm just like you, brother." Or have you truly been set free by the Son of God? Those the Son sets free are free indeed. But those who are entrapped, enslaved to sin, and have no desire to get out—they belong to the devil, and the devil is taking them where he is going.
So you have to choose this day who you will serve. Will you serve Jesus? Will you let him purge you and purify you? Will you come out of sinful religion that continues to speak from this echo chamber? Or will you come to Jesus and be set free of sin and walk in the newness of life, practicing righteousness, practicing the love of God, loving your neighbor? Will you love the Lord your God with all your heart and demonstrate that you do by practicing holiness, obedience, righteousness, doing what's good in the eyes of Jesus? Who do you belong to: Jesus Christ or Satan?
