“Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?” (II Cor.13:5).
If we know our Bible then we know that the literal church of Jesus Christ is made up solely of those who have repented of their sins and put their faith in Jesus Christ alone for the salvation of their soul. They are now a member of the Body of Christ, part of the Bride of Christ, and are not going to Hell.
When I use the term church in this context, I am not referring to the legitimate church of Jesus Christ, but to the religious crowd that gathers on many occasions to participate in what takes place at a church building. These heavily churched and religiously lost people have all the correct answers about church doctrine, but they have never personally experienced salvation and will spend eternity in Hell if they do not get saved.
Many that attend church regularly and have their name on the church roll can not say with certainty that they have been saved and know Christ as their Lord and Savior. They say, “I hope I’m saved” or “I’m trying to be saved” but they do not have the assurance of salvation that God gives to those who sincerely put their faith in His Son Jesus Christ. They do not have the Spirit of God’s Son in their heart crying “Abba Father” or “My Father” (Gal.4:6). Both C. H. Spurgeon and D. L. Moody, in their day, said that they believed only 25% percent of church members were saved. Our churches are filled with lost people, and some are even pastored by lost people.
A person can spend their life in church and never miss a service, but if they have never been born again, they will miss the Rapture and not spend one moment inside New Jerusalem.
The Rapture separates the true believers from the make-believers. The true believers will leave this world during the Rapture and ascend to Heaven. The pretenders who had their name on the church roll, but not in the Lamb’s book of life, (the church roll and the Lamb’s book of life are not synonymous) will be left behind to face the horrors of the Tribulation Period (Rev. 6-19).
Playing church and pretending to be a Christian by hoping that church membership, baptism, or good works will save them is a game Satan has many people playing. Those who play this game ultimately lose along with Satan. The reasons there are so many “show boats” and so much “show business” in the church is that so many lost people are trying to act like Christians.
Christians should pray that God would revive His church, for revival is for the saved who are backslidden. Christians should also pray that God would save the church; that is the lost person that has their name on the church roll and goes to church every time the church doors are open, but can not tell you that they know for sure they would go to Heaven if they died today.
