Proclaiming The Gospel: May Newsletter (re-formatted for word press)

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Where Will You Spend Eternity?

Several of our subscribers have asked me to publish another Gospel tract with the theme: Where Will You Spend Eternity? This article will be used for that purpose and will become our 8th Gospel tract.

God’s inspired Word tells us how brief our life is on this earth compared to eternity. “You do not know what your life will be like tomorrow. You are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away” (Jas. 4:14). When we take our last breath, we will enter into eternity and experience either the joy of heaven or the eternal fires of hell. We all face two appointments that cannot be avoided – death and judgment. “It is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment” (Heb. 9:27). Thus, preparing for eternity is the most important issue we face in this life. We can be wrong about a lot of things and still survive, but if we are wrong about eternity, we will pay for that mistake forever and ever!

Man’s Greatest and Most Serious Problem

We have all sinned against our God and Creator, who cannot let the guilty go unpunished (Rom. 3:23; Ex. 34:7). The punishment for sin is death and separation from God in the eternal lake of fire (Rom. 6:23; Rev. 20:14). Our God is majestic in holiness (Ex. 15:11). Righteousness and justice are the foundation of His throne (Ps. 97:2). Divine justice must be satisfied. The guilty will pay the penalty of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power (2 Thes. 1:9). Yet, there is even more bad news. There is absolutely nothing we can do to save ourselves. Good works can never make us right with God or save us from sin’s punishment (Rom. 3:20; Eph. 2:8-9). Religion can never reconcile us to God or make satisfaction for our sins.

The Horror and Reality of Hell

Hell is a real place of fiery torment where unforgiven sinners undergo the punishment they deserve for their sins. This eternal punishment is called the second death, where divine justice is meted out forever in the lake of fire (Rev. 20:15). Unrepentant sinners consciously suffer pain and thirst from an unquenchable fire, and the horror is so great they want to warn their loved ones on earth, but cannot (Luke 16:19-31; Mark 9:43). There is weeping and gnashing of teeth because the eternal state of God’s just punishment is irreversible; there is no second chance, no escape, no hope, no rest, and no relief (Luke 13:28; 2 Thes. 1:8-9).

God Provided Only One Way To Be Saved

In God’s infinite wisdom, He devised the only way He could save sinners while upholding His own holiness, righteousness and justice. As a demonstration of His love, mercy and grace towards sinners, He sent His only Son to die as a substitute (Rom. 5:8). In this way, He would be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus (Rom. 3:26). Jesus Christ, God’s eternal Son, was conceived in the womb of a virgin and lived in perfect obedience to God’s Law. He was crucified as the perfect sacrifice to satisfy divine justice for sinners. He bore man’s sins, suffered God’s wrath, died in man’s place and was raised on the third day to show divine justice was satisfied. God “made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him” (2 Cor. 5:21). Christ “died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God” (1 Pet. 3:18).

How Will You Respond?

“There is a way that seems right to a man, but its end is the way of death” (Prov. 14:12). We cannot trust our feelings; only the Bible can be trusted (2 Tim. 3:16). Jesus made it very clear that our relationship with God in this present life will determine our eternal destiny in the next life (Matt. 19:16-26; 7:13-23). God is declaring “that all people everywhere should repent, because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness” (Acts 17:30-31). Will godly sorrow for your sins bring you to repentance that leads to salvation (2 Cor.7:10)? Will you confess you are a sinner and trust Christ alone as your Lord and Savior to cancel your eternal sin debt and reconcile you to God (Col. 2:13-14; 2 Cor. 5:18-20)?

Two Groups of People and Two Eternal Destinies

According to God’s Word, all of humanity is divided into two groups. We are either one of the few on the narrow way destined for heaven, or one of the many on the broad way destined for hell. We either stand forgiven and justified by God’s grace and mercy, or guilty and condemned by God’s justice. We are either reconciled to God by the mediation of Jesus, or separated from God. We are either spiritually alive in Christ or spiritually dead in sin. We either trust Jesus or reject Him. “He who believes in the Son has eternal life; but he who does not obey the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him” (John 3:36).

God Does Not Promise Anyone Tomorrow
Every tick of the clock is bringing us closer to eternity. “How will we escape if we neglect so great a salvation” (Heb. 2:3)? Are you ready to meet your God and Creator? Will He be your sin-avenging Judge or your merciful Savior? Today is the day of salvation (2 Cor. 6:2). What will your final destiny be? Eternity in heaven and in the presence of our glorious God and Creator can only be received as a gift of His grace by repenting and trusting in the Lord Jesus alone for salvation.
Letters to Edify and Encourage the Saints

I am currently leading a Bible Study with 30 women, and a few of them are from a Catholic background with their families still caught in the deception of the RCC. I believe our Lord would have me share your wonderful ministry with all of them. I have spent the better part of the day reading your articles and have chosen to copy your “ABC’s of Effective Witnessing to Catholics” to hand out to all the women. May the grace of our Lord and Savior rest and abide on you Mike! J.S., Chardon, OH.

Mike, I watched your YouTube on Roman Catholicism and you are very well spoken. Yet, I feel if you really want to convince Catholics your way is the right way, you’ll need to debate against a renowned Catholic Apologist like Dr. Scott Hahn. You did an impassioned plea for defending the truth, yet, I still believe Apostolic Succession and the laying on of hands enables the priest to uphold sacred tradition. There is a difference between some of the faith and the fullness of the faith. G.M., Internet

G.M., As an ambassador for Christ, I am not called to “convince” Catholics “my way” is the right way. I am called to beg people to be reconciled to God (2 Cor. 5:20). My way is not the right way. The Lord Jesus said He is the only way to the Father and the narrow way is the only way to life (Matt. 7:13-14; John 14:6). Our ministry is to proclaim the Word of God which is the supreme authority for all matters of faith. It is sufficient to make one wise unto salvation, and nothing else is needed or necessary (2 Tim. 3:15-16). The Holy Spirit is the only one who can convict those who have been deceived (John 16:8-11). He removes their spiritual blindness when they turn to Christ (2 Cor. 3:16). As long as you are looking to your clergy or Scott Hahn, who is an apostate, the spiritual blindness remains (2 Cor. 4:4).

Hi Mike, I wanted to let you know how much I really like your book Preparing For Eternity. It’s one of the best books I’ve read and I continue to promote and distribute it. I so much appreciate how biblically sound it is. I do have a question about all the guys going the social justice route. Do you think its appropriate to call them out and separate from them if they don’t repent? Dan, Internet

Dan, Yes, the social justice people in the church need to be exposed for leading people away from the purpose and exclusivity of the Gospel. The proponents of Intersectionality, Critical Race Theory, and Marxism are causing divisions in many evangelical churches. Their social gospel addresses a “skin” issue and is a distortion of the true Gospel which addresses the “sin” issue. “All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23). The social gospel declares that if we feed enough people, educate enough children, dig enough wells, and redistribute enough wealth, then we will see God’s kingdom manifest on earth. If we preach enough love, justice, brotherhood, and goodwill toward men, then the remnants of greed and selfishness in mankind will be overwhelmed and give way to goodness. God’s Gospel is not about race, but grace (Eph. 2:8-9). Our Lord’s Gospel focuses on man’s spiritual needs, not his physical needs. Jesus fed the multitudes a lunch, but then offered Himself as the spiritual nourishment they really needed (John 6). We are sinners estranged from our holy God and Creator. We need a Savior who will cancel men’s eternal sin debt and reconcile us to God. As ambassadors for Christ we need to be Contending for the Gospel.
Truth and Grace Interview with Mike Gendron
Haley Williams interviews Mike Gendron on Kindled Podcast, which exists to speak truth and grace with boldness. They cover basic teachings of the Catholic Church through the lens of Scripture including: sin, salvation, the eucharist, and heaven and hell. It is important to study the theology of religions like Catholicism, which uses a lot of the same terminology but with different definitions. Mike Gendron explains this and more.
Another Mary, Quite Contrary

Catholics not only worship another Jesus and believe another gospel, they also embrace another Mary. In 1854, Pope Pius IX established the immaculate conception of Mary as an infallible dogma, which states Mary was preserved from inheriting original sin. The dogma encourages all Catholics: “to venerate, invoke and pray to the most Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God, conceived without original sin. And since she has been appointed by God to be the Queen of heaven and earth, and is exalted above all the choirs of angels and saints, and even stands at the right hand of her only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ our Lord, she presents our petitions in a most efficacious manner. What she asks, she obtains. Her pleas can never be unheard.”

This heretical dogma has established Mary as a co-redeemer with Christ and co-mediator with Him. This makes her another way to approach God. She replaces the Holy Spirit in bestowing aid and comfort to believers. In effect, she has been given many divine attributes, including Mother of the eternal Son of God. Scripture has very little to say about Mary. When she appears with the other believers on the day of Pentecost, she’s not an object of worship or even a leader in the early church. There are no occasions of anyone ever praying to her, honoring her, or venerating her. Peter preached that it is Jesus who is at the right hand of God, not Mary at Christ’s right hand, as the papal dogma declares (Acts 2:33). She is never mentioned in any presentation of the Gospel. Jesus Christ alone is our Redeemer, Deliverer, Mediator and Advocate. He alone is to be worshiped, adored, honored and praised, now and throughout all eternity! May Catholics repent of their distortion of Mary and put their trust in Jesus, the only sinless Mediator!
Questions With Eternal Consequences
Two thousand years ago, our Lord Jesus Christ walked the earth proclaiming the Gospel in order to seek and to save those who were lost. Crosstalk radio host Jim Schneider interviews Mike Gendron about some of the 339 questions Jesus asked that are recorded in the Gospels. Many of these questions deal with eternal consequences. Since the Lord used such questions in dealing with lost individuals, is it possible that we should learn from His example? Listen to the interview here.
I Left Catholicism, Now What?
Costi Hinn interviewed Mike on how to disciple all the new converts coming into the church from Roman Catholicism. Mike gives biblical answers to questions like: How do I go from praying Hail Marys to real prayer? How do I talk to my family about salvation? How do I start reading and studying the Bible? What in the world is a small group and why are they important? How can I know the Bible like other Christians? What do I do? Listen here.
Protestants and Catholics United in Marriage

Have you noticed what usually happens when a Catholic marries a Protestant? Four out of five times, the Protestant converts to Catholicism. Protestants, who have been sanctified by the truth of the Bible, are the first ones to compromise their faith. Catholics, on the other hand, who proudly uphold unbiblical traditions, refuse to compromise their dead faith. They are held captive by the fallacious threat of going to hell if they ever leave the “one true church.”

This deception is best understood in light of the Vatican’s ongoing strategy for a one-world church ruled by the papacy. It is not a union with other faiths they are pursuing; it is the absorption of all faiths. Unity with Rome is strictly a one-way street. It can never revoke any of its “infallible” dogmas. To do so would cause its entire religious system to implode. It is for this reason people of other faiths must compromise their positions in order to have peace unity with Rome. The Vatican’s diabolical strategy of rebuilding the religious tower of Babel includes eliminating gullible opposition in order to achieve its goal.
Let us glorify our Lord Jesus Christ by faithfully sharing His glorious Gospel of grace!
Mike and Jane Gendron
(817) 379-5300
2829 Veranda Lane, Southlake, TX 76092