Jesus and World Progress

From Facebook thread:

Gordon said:

But as a pastor why did [Rev. Martin Luther King Jr.] not say the hope of a secure and livable world lives in the hope of Jesus Christ and bringing the nations to the Cross?

William:

Even Jesus said somewhere “When I return shall I find faith” and “there will always be wars and rumors of war” and “the poor shall always be with you” (and if Jesus did not say all this then Paul said some of it.) This world was never meant to be “heaven on earth” otherwise Jesus would not have said “my kingdom is not of this world” and Revelation would not speak of “the heavens rolled up like a scroll.”

When Jesus said “no man comes unto me unless the Father draws him/her” I take that to mean that it is a very subjective thing between God and the individual. No one can “win souls” for Christ for the simple reason that God is perfectly capable of doing whatever He wants and can choose NOT to draw someone for reason that we shall never understand and it is not our business to understand. Jesus emphatically states that HAD he worked certain miracles in certain cities they would all have repented (but obviously for some reason Jesus chose NOT to.) And why is it that ten times God hardened Pharaoh’s heart yet God gave Saul “a NEW heart” and still Saul disappointed God.

I am not Roman Catholic but I have known literally thousands of RC laity and clergy in my life and not ONE has ever been an “in your face” type preaching at people or asking “are you saved.” I do not think anyone can know that he is “saved” otherwise why would Paul say “work out your salvation with fear and trembling” and similar other statements and what pray tell is the purpose of a “judgment day” if some people are guaranteed salvation because (as Charles Stanley and others suggest) they have muttered the “magic words” and once and for all gained “the eternal security” of salvation. I do find truth in statements like “the only problem with Christianity is Christians” and “the only problem with Christianity is that it has never been tried.” I once met a pastor of Protestant denomination, so I asked him if he is Baptist or Evangelical or Lutheran or some other denomination. He looked shocked and said “well I would hope I am Bible based.” I looked at him in shock and said “but consider all the denominations which consider themselves ‘Bible Based’ including the Pope, the head of the Mormons, the Jehovah’s Witnesses, etc.” He looked sheepish and acknowledged that I had a good point. If you really believe that God is all-wise and all-powerful then why do you seriously think that God needs you to give the gift of faith?

[Via http://williambuell.wordpress.com]