The Main Thing

I was given an audio of a sermon to listen to recently, by a good friend. The title was ‘The Main Thing’, and the subject is quite obvious, but I think it needs to be emphasised again. The message starts with the true story of the minister who is urged by an older colleague to ‘keep the main thing, the main thing’. Of course the main thing is the gospel of Christ. The saving and life changing gospel which we once knew, and today in our modern, progressive and educated church, we seem to be leaving behind.

There can be a tendency to analyse and use psychology to preach the Gospel, but my concern is that we may, in the best of motives, be throwing the baby out with the bath water. It can be good to understand the background to the circumstances of any of the Bible’s teachings, but what if that becomes the main thing? We could be left with a congregation of educated and enlightened members, but with no life changing experience. A church with a good head, but no heart, and therefore one that does not, or cannot care. A declining church possibly in heart, and attendance. After all, Christians do not go to church to see psychoanalysis in operation. They go to hear the good news of the Gospel.

This is not a finger pointing exercise, but more a reminder to myself of the reasons I am a believer in the risen Christ. I was not brought to a saving grace by being analysed as an eight year old. The saving gospel of Christ was presented at a children’s meeting in a way that we could all understand. Not fancy, not deep, but something I could see as being for me, and I took the life altering step of accepting Jesus as my very own and personal Saviour. Did I understand it all? No. Did I need to? No again. As life and time have passed, my understanding has also increased, but so has my faith in that same Gospel I heard over 50 years ago when it was presented as the main thing. For me it still is, and I believe should remain the main thing! Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Heb 13:8 NKJV