Dear Liberal Friend

A Letter ...

Dear Liberal Friend,
I am so sorry about how our friendship has turned out. I was so excited when I first learned that you were a Christian. Fellowship and friendship with another of like faith are very important to me. However, I quickly learned that your definition and my definition of being a "Christian" were completely different.

When one says they are a "Christian," I assume their thinking and lifestyle would be aligned with the Bible. Your "Christianity" is not what is described in my Bible. Matter of fact, most of the time you didn't want to discuss the Bible. When the conversation did lead to spiritual things, you quickly went on the defense and accused me of judging or argued the doctrine. We have spent more time discussing "what the Bible really means", as you keep saying, rather than agreeing on the things of God.

My other friendships with Christians have never been this strained. It is has always been easy and perfectly natural for me and my other friends to talk about the things of God, because we are interested in them. You, obviously, are not.

I may not have been saved as long as you have been, but I do know that the Bible teaches a Christian should live differently than the unsaved. You seem to be very comfortable dressing like the world, talking like the world, acting like the world, doing things the world does, going to places that the world goes to; and your philosophies are often identical to what the ungodly world thinks. It’s hard to tell any difference between you and the unsaved. I am not comfortable doing many of those things, and I feel some of them are against what God teaches in his Book for us to do.

The consequences of worldliness and its sin are some of the things I got saved from. The world is losing and not heading for Heaven, but to Hell. I have no interest in thinking and looking like the losing side. I lived that way before salvation, and I certainly did not have the joy or peace I do now by obeying the Lord. I think it is far safer and biblical to be more like Christ.

Clearly, the Bible tells us to talk to others about Christ, so they also can be saved and have the promise of heaven. Proverbs 11:30 says you are wise if you do this. You have ridiculed and tried all you can to stop me from doing this. No, I don't think it “is pushing God’s Word down their throat” by telling them. If someone didn't tell me how to be saved, I would not be. I would feel very selfish if I didn't share salvation with others, and would be disobedient to God's biblical command, if I didn't.

When I do witness to others, I quite often hear the word "hypocrite." The unsaved world knows how Christians should live. They have seen so many that call themselves Christians, and see that they don't live the way they should. After seeing more living the wrong way, they quickly assume that all Christians are hypocrites and living the wrong lifestyle. I certainly am not perfect, and am still growing spiritually, but the people they are referring to are not people like me, but are people like you.

I love being saved. It is so exciting to know that Christ died for all my sins and paid the price for them so I could go Heaven. I owe Him so much. My desire now is to live for and serve Him. Your liberal theology and lifestyle are doing much to harm and weaken the cause of Christ. It is giving those trying to serve and live for God a bad name and is hurting the testimonies of those that are trying to live right.

Sadly, I think it is time to part as friends. No, I don’t think myself “holier than thou.” I know what I was, and that I can fall back into my old ways. I am concerned that your disobedience may rub off on me. Association with your unchristian lifestyle will also hurt my Christian testimony. My desire is to be more like "Christ", and I want to have that reputation; so until your lifestyle becomes more Christ-like, our fellowship will have to stop.

Regretfully,
Bill

“Worldliness is a life-style that matches those of the unsaved, and it is far from having an appearance of a Christ-like, biblical-based, obedient-to-God life.”

This article was featured in The Bible View #179.