Chapter 15 of the book:
The Failure of the Great Amish and Conservative Mennonite Dress Experiment
Why Christian Conservatism Isn’t the Answer and What to Do
The need for repentance: If you are Amish, Mennonite, or a part of conservative Christianity that has added to the Bible, it is important that you repent to God and ask His forgiveness for adding to His commands. You need to repent of following the rules the church or church leaders have added to the Bible – rules, regulations, guidelines, teachings, etc. that have been added to and made more specific than God’s commands. Then take the step to change by following Christ alone, not your church plus Christ.
God tells us: “For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God? And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall the ungodly and the sinner appear?” (1 Peter 4:17-18)
Are you looking for something more than just the same old concepts, interpretations, explanations, and perspectives you have heard regurgitated over and over again? This website will give you some new insights and things to think about. You may not agree with everything you read, but Biblical Research Reports will stimulate your thinking. Our goal is to help you to formulate in your own mind what is Jesus’ truth as you look at the research we share on the various subjects facing the Church.
God pleads with you to repent from following man and the church’s man made rules and regulations, denominational beliefs and doctrines of men, and follow Christ alone. As God told me when He told our family to leave the Mennonite church, the cost of staying in the Amish or Mennonite denominations, or one of many other conservative Christian groups and denominations is greater than you are willing to pay. As we have seen in this book, the failures and consequences of following Christian conservatism and conservative theology have hurt many people more deeply than what many would have ever imagined possible including eternity in hell for many. Christian conservatism is not safe. It is not secure. It is not following Christ, and neither is liberalism.
If you have sexually abused someone, or have committed adultery by looking at pornography, or have committed any other sin, please repent to God, confess your sin, and ask Him to forgive you. In addition, if you have broken the law by sexually abusing a minor, or you are a church leader that has covered up sexual abuse and you are required to report it, you also need to go to the police. God knows what you have done and what you are hiding. Sexual abuse is a crime.
Sexual sins are not just a private matter that can be taken care of just between the offender and the one offended. Sexual sins are also a sin against God and He says that unless there is true repentance, the one who has committed those sins will not go to Heaven. “Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor abusers of themselves with mankind, nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall inherit the kingdom of God.” (1 Corinthians 6:9-10)
“Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.” (Galatians 5:19-21)
Fake Repentance in Christian Conservatism
Repentance is not just saying the right words. Who do you think you are fooling?
Repentance is not saying that one is a big hypocrite or a bad person.
Repentance is not merely the admission of wrongdoing.
A person can say the right words and still not be repentant. One of the things that happens different times in Christian conservatism is a person using words to imply repentance when they are not repentant at all. Repentance is true sorrow in one’s heart for what they have done, and sorrow for the hurts that they have caused others. But repentance is more than just sorrow. It means a change of heart that leads a person to turn away from their wicked ways and follow Christ with all their heart, soul, mind and strength.
Josh Duggar’s confession to molesting his sisters is an example of fake repentance that sometimes happens in Christian concervatism. Many believed that Duggar was truly repentant and stood behind him. He knew the “right” words to use. Here is his “repentance” statement:
“Twelve years ago, as a young teenager I acted inexcusably for which I am extremely sorry and deeply regret. I hurt others, including my family and close friends. I confessed this to my parents who took several steps to help me address the situation. We spoke with the authorities where I confessed my wrongdoing and my parents arranged for me and those affected by my actions to receive counseling. I understood that if I continued down this wrong road that I would end up ruining my life. I sought forgiveness from those I had wronged and asked Christ to forgive me and come into my life. I would do anything to go back to those teen years and take different actions. In my life today, I am so very thankful for God’s grace, mercy and redemption.”
www.facebook.com/duggarfamilyofficial/posts/653931128073873
What was missing in the repentance statement was Duggar’s confession of adultery. Three months later he was exposed by hackers of an adultery website for spending almost $1000 over several years in soliciting adulterous relationships. He then admitted to addiction to pornography and to adultery. In his admission he stated: “I have been the biggest hypocrite ever”.
www.cnn.com/2015/08/20/us/josh-duggar-ashley-madison/
People immediately saw Duggar’s original “repentance statement” as fake repentance. Folks, you can fool people but you can’t fool God. He knows if you are a phony or if your repentance is for real. Eternity in hell is a horrible price to pay for fake repentance.
True Repentance
In contrast to Duggar, Trudy Metzger tells about the confession of one man who was a perpetrator:
“We end the conversation and of his own accord, as I prepare to leave, he says he would like to talk to a police officer.
“‘Are you sure you want to do this? What if he has to charge you?’ I ask, feeling a sense of duty to let him know the potential consequences, and to see if that changes his mind. “I thought about that before I said anything,” he continues. I tell him I will talk with an officer, and get a time set up and other details if that is what he wants. ‘If it takes making an example of me to stop this, then I am willing,’ he says…
“I realize the man is not one of the ones who is a greatest threat to our community. He came forward of his own free will and asked for the police without so much as a hint of it from me. And through the tears, I worship a God who sees hearts and understands my struggle with knowing that many hide vicious crimes while a rare contrite soul exposes wickedness out of a desire for truth and freedom. And that one chooses to pay the price publicly, if that’s what it takes, to help end the epidemic.”
God holds Christians and those in Christian Conservatism to a higher level of responsibility than non-Christians who commit the same sin. This is evidenced in the following passages by the punishment that God says He will give to those who were Christians, who knew His will and committed sin and did not repent:
“And that servant, which knew his lord’s will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall be much required: and to whom men have committed much, of him they will ask the more.” (Luke 12:47-48)
“But I say unto you, that it shall be more tolerable in that day for Sodom, than for that city. Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon, which have been done in you, they had a great while ago repented, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. But it shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment, than for you. And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted to heaven, shalt be thrust down to hell. He that heareth you heareth me; and he that despiseth you despiseth me; and he that despiseth me despiseth him that sent me.” (Luke 10:12-16)
God tells us: “If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” (2 Chronicles 7:14)
It is important for people who call themselves Christian to humble themselves and repent so that God will forgive them their sins and heal the ground that is producing our food. The sins of the church do not just affect those that sin, but the rest of mankind also receives God’s judgment on their food supply.
Repentance of sin is the first step. But true repentance means that you also turn to Christ and follow His commands, not just because you fear God’s punishment, but because you choose to love and serve Him with all your heart, soul, mind and strength and want to show your love and devotion to Him.
Next Chapter: How to Prevent Lust and Adultery
Why Biblical Research Reports uses the KJV
When I started in-depth Bible research, I was using the NIV translation. I was not prepared for the deception and misguiding information that I found coming from Christian scholars. I did extensive research into Bible translations and into the Greek manuscripts themselves that the various versions are translated from.
I soon realized that the most significant subject facing the Church today is the Bible, what version is used and preached from, the Greek text it is translated from, and the way it is translated. Every Christian doctrine is based on the Bible. The way the Bible reads, the words that it has and the words that it does not have, the way the Greek words are translated or poorly translated, all affect the beliefs and teachings of the Church. At one point I thought that most translations of the Bible were basically the same except for the modernization of the old English in the KJV. This is not the case. Most of the modern translations do not have everything that the KJV does, as a result of changes in the Greek texts from which they are translated. In addition, significant changes have to be made in each new Bible version in order to copyright it. As a result of that research, I switched to the KJV. To read more about my Bible translation research check out these Research Reports:
Evidence the NIV is Not the Best Bible Translation
Evidence the NIV is not the best Bible translation (Condensed)
What is the Best Bible Translation?
I highly recommend the powerful, Free E-Sword Bible program for your computer, cell phone or other mobile device. Make sure you also download the free Treasury of Scripture Knowledge – cross references for each Bible verse to other verses on the same subject. For a cross reference database that is much larger and more complete consider purchasing The Ultimate Cross-Reference Treasury (in the dictionary category).
