"Church Membership is Not Salvation!" Kathryn Kuhlman

You guessed it. Another heart -to -heart talk today. You knew it. That's the reason you were all ready for me. And you had your Bibles open. Oh, thanks for those nice things that you're saying about these heart -to -heart talks. And really, when it comes to the Word of God, His Word is very understandable. The Holy Spirit is one's teacher. And when you sit there with an open heart and an open mind, He is the one who is the great revealer of the Word. And even now, Heavenly Father, I pray that before we begin this little heart -to -heart talk, open our understanding to the deep truths of the Word. For Jesus' sake. Amen. You know, we've been talking about this wonderful inheritance. This great life of being a Christian. And that's exactly what it is. It is a life. It isn't just one experience. It isn't just a matter of stepping on your knees and praying a prayer of repentance. and then getting up and wiping the tears from your cheeks, and then going out and living the same life that you lived before you knelt. It's a whole lot more than that, believe me. And as we've been talking about this wonderful inheritance that God made possible unto those who accepted that Christ is their personal Savior and Redeemer, in His great plan, For man, he predestined that literally by adoption, man could become his heir and a joint heir with his son. Now, remember something. The believer's relation to God as a child, this wonderful inheritance that I've been talking to you about in these heart -to -heart talks, results... from the new birth experience just because you are a part of humanity just because you follow a code of ethics just because you live according to some doctrine just because you have accepted some creed or just because you are a member of some church does not automatically place you in that position of being an heir of God. Remember, this wonderful relation to God as a child results from the new birth experience. That's what those two verses mean in the first chapter of John. But as many... As received him. To them gave he power to become the sons of God. Even to them that believe on his name. Which were born. Not of blood. Not of the will of the flesh. Nor of the will of man. But of God. Now the thing that we all have in common. If you are a part of humanity. The one thing. that all of us have in common is the fact that we have been born of the flesh. That first birth. But the Bible teaches a second birth. The new birth. One is the birth of the flesh. The other is the birth of the spirit. That new birth experience. And just because you've had the first birth, The birth of the flesh does not make you an heir of God. God is your creator. But you are not his heir and you do not become his heir until you've had that second birth. The birth of the spirit. And that's what we've been talking about in this personal word of God. The first chapter of Ephesians. Oh, this is wonderful. In whom also we have obtained an inheritance, being predestinated according to the purpose of him, who worketh all things after the counsel of his own will, that we should be to the praise of his glory, who first trusted... In Jesus. Every man and every woman who has had this second birth, this spiritual birth, should live to the praise of his glory. I want him to be proud of me. I want to be an awful good representative. The family to whom I belong. I want to live so that... They can say, well, I have never seen Jesus. But I've met one of his children. Yeah. I want that more than anything in the world. You see... Jesus isn't here on earth. He's at the right hand of God the Father. He holds a great position. The position of great high priest. I have a great high priest. All of God's children have a great high priest. In the person of Jesus Christ. Jesus is no longer here. Men cannot... look upon him and see him in bodily form as they saw him one day as he walked this earth. The only Jesus that they can see with their natural eye is the one who is his joint heir. And the greatest compliment in the world that can be paid me is for someone to say, I want what you have. I want that same wonderful spiritual experience. I see Jesus in you. I'm not a great preacher and never will be. I'm very limited in my ability. Very limited. I do not pretend. to have anything unusual when it comes to gifts. I don't have anything that is unusual. And nothing that you could say, regardless of how complimentary you want to be, wouldn't affect me one iota. I know my limitations. But the greatest compliment that you could pay was to say, we see Jesus in your life. You live what you preach. There's something different about you. We know to whom you belong. I told you the other day about Concordia Missouri. You go to Concordia, Missouri, that little town just off of Highway 40 between Kansas City and St. Louis. And I don't care where you would stop in Concordia, whether it was at Krennicke's Drugstore or Roman's Meat Market. Or even stop at the post office and say, say, do you know Catherine Kuhlman? I'll promise you something. They'll come back with this question. Do you mean Joe Kuhlman's girl? Catherine Kuhlman really doesn't mean a thing. Speaking to those folks in Concordia, Missouri. And Papa's been gone, my goodness alight. My Papa's been gone for years. My Papa, who was killed almost instantly during the holiday season through an accident, has been gone for years. And yet, to this very day, Catherine Kuhlman, even though thousands and thousands Know the name Catherine Kuhlman. To that little town in Concordia, Missouri, I am just Joe Kuhlman's girl. It's Papa who is important. Beloved in this family to which you and I belong. An heir of God. Remember, he is the one that... is important, and you and I dare not bring reproach on his name. It means something to be a Christian, believe me. We put him to open shame if we profess something we don't live. We bring a reproach on the family. I want you to know that. Every time one of his children does something that is against his principles and his laws and bring a reproach on him, I am ashamed. I am humiliated. For I am a part of that great family. Let's be careful how we act, what we do. And when it comes to this gross inheritance, remember something. It wasn't. in God's great plan, that we should enjoy this wonderful inheritance because he had so much faith and confidence in you and in me. It said, who first trusted in Jesus. His faith and his confidence was in Jesus. When at that great conference table, they talked her over. And Jesus offered himself through the Holy Spirit to be given to God the Father. And plans were made for redemption of man. And Jesus came. And all of these things were taken care of at the great conference table. And it was in the will of God that all men and all women should be redeemed. None should be lost in his glorious plan that through the shed blood of Jesus, we might be adopted of the Father and be called the very sons of God. God approved all. of this before Jesus came because he trusted in Jesus. And he knew Jesus wouldn't fail. He wasn't so sure about you and he wasn't so sure about me. But he had complete faith and confidence in Jesus. Now, Follow me a little closer. I want to stop right here and bring you another portion of the Word of God. Perhaps one of the most misunderstood portions in the Bible. Hebrews. I'm going to give you just a second to find Hebrews in the Bible, your New Testament. It's the sixth chapter of Hebrews. I'm going to begin with the fourth verse. For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened and have tasted of the heavenly gift and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the world to come if they shall fall away to renew them again unto repentance, seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame. For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs, meat for them by whom it is dressed, receiveth blessings from God. but that which beareth thorns and briars is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing, whose end is to be burned. But, beloved, we are persuaded better things of you, and things that accompany salvation. But, beloved, we are persuaded better things of you. He is talking to two classes of people here. He is talking to the unregenerated. And he is talking to the child of God. And I'm going to take this very slowly that you might understand it. First of all, remember something. It means something to be a Christian. It means much more than shedding a few tears. It means much more than going down to an altar and kneeling. It means much more than just signing a card. It means much I believe in church membership. I am not against the church when I make that statement. But there are tens of thousands of people living this very hour who have their names on church records, who joined the church. who have never been born again. There's many a person who feels that they're absolutely secure because they belong to the Catholic Church. There are thousands who feel they are absolutely secure because they are a Good Episcopalian. There's many a person this hour who feels just because they sit in that pew, the same pew, week after week in that Presbyterian church, and God help anyone else who dares to sit in that same pew. It's theirs. It's an unwritten law. It's... But they've never been born again. You can be the greatest church member in the world and not be born again. There are literally thousands of Baptists. I know. I can say this because I still have my name on the record at The Baptist Church in Concordia, Missouri. It's still there. I'm a Baptist. But there are thousands of Baptists who have never been born again. Oh, sure. You've been immersed in water. Sure, you've been baptized. But water isn't going to save you. Just because you were immersed. doesn't mean you've been born again. Just because you were sprinkled as a baby doesn't mean that you've been born again. Just because for generations you've all been Roman Catholics doesn't mean that you've been born again. Just because you go through all the ritual of the Episcopalian Church doesn't mean you have been born again. I am convinced that there are thousands and thousands of people in the world today who are being grossly deceived by their own self -righteousness. There's many a preacher's son and daughter who have never been born again. They were brought up in the parsonage. They were forced to go to Sunday school. They were taken to church when they were only a baby in arms. And they've just taken for granted, because dad was a preacher, mom was a wonderful woman, they were brought up in the parsonage, that they automatically are Christians. There's many a man in the pulpit. We talk about Dr. Jarman, a man in the pulpit for over a half century. Preaching. Eloquent in his delivery. A personality to be envied. A vocabulary that one would envy. And yet, as he said, it wasn't so much what he said as what he left unsaid. Sure he could quote the Bible. I have sat across the table from Dr. Jarman and have heard him quote chapter after chapter. With his Bible closed, word for word, and yet that man preached from the Bible without having been born again for over a half century. In our next Heart to Heart Talk, I'm going to explain to you under the inspiration guidance of the Holy Spirit, the meaning. of the sixth chapter of Hebrews. God bless you.