Dirty Church Words

I was listening to a sermon the other day and the preacher was presenting the salvation message and he said the word “repent.” Then he stopped himself and clarified that repentance is the “church word”, as if “church words” are the new dirty words of Christianity. I know his heart is in the right place, it bothered me that there is a train of thought in Evangelical Christianity that we can no longer use the red words in our Bibles because someone might not understand or find the word offensive. 
I could go several directions here and if you know me, I probably will. LOL! 
Firstly, this word is not a “church word.” It is a Bible Word, and 2nd Timothy tells us that “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.” 
Nothing about this verse has been changed by time. The Word, as it is written is STILL PROFITABLE and reproof is still necessary. It does not need to be replaced by softer, less offensive wording, and let’s face it. the word “REPENT” is an offensive word to most. It was then, it is now. It’s also a necessary word. In a sinful state, we are offensive to God Almighty. Yes, He loves us but He does not accept us as sinners. We need correction according to the passage above. Every sinner burning in Hell today is loved by God but they could not be accepted by God. You see, we cannot get to the nicer Bible words like salvation, justification, sanctification, blessing and redemption if we do not first go through repentance. 
For those truly seeking God, repentance is a welcome word simply because it is possible. For if Jesus had not died for our sins, there would be no opportunity for repentance because the price of redemption is too high and something we could never pay for on our own. But because Jesus died in our place and squared our debt with God with His own life’s blood, we now have the opportunity to repent of our sins and become children of God instead of enemies of God. We become heavenbound instead of hellbound. It’s just that simple. 
Secondly, repentance IS the Gospel’s main message. It’s step one. Without it, there is nothing further. It was the main message of most of the major and minor prophets to Israel and was a foreshadowing of the message of John the Baptist, the disciples and Jesus Himself. It was the message of the early church. You may think that I’m splitting hairs because really, can’t we just use the definition of the word instead of the actual word itself, given it’s abrasive connotation? NO, because if we could, John the Baptist and Jesus would have done the same thing. You see, Bible words carry a spiritual weight and anointing that cuts deep into the spirit of a man when he hears them. Unless the Father draws a man, they cannot come. And how does He do this? Through His Word. That alone carries the anointing needed to reach the unregenerate spirit of a man. A lot has changed in the cultures of humanity through the ages but the one thing that has not changed, and will never change is the spirit of man. Every man is born in sin and needs redemption. So to say that we need to change the wording to reach a man’s spirit in these present days is just not viable, especially when those words are the exact words the Son of God used. 
Thirdly, this gospel message is, at it’s very origin, a harsh message! The devil is harsh! Sin and its effects are harsh. The cross was beyond harsh! The devil is a formidable enemy. He is smarter than we are. He is more deceptive than we could even imagine. Let’s face it, he fooled Adam and Eve when they were in a perfected state! So what does that say about what he can do to us in a sinful state or a lukewarm religious state? He has placed a bullseye on the backs of every human being because we are God’s creation and loved and wanted by God. He hates God because he saw himself as equal with God, thus the start of a continuing battle between good and evil that will not be settled until Christ Himself settles it forever, and that battle folks is going to be HARSH! 
That doesn’t mean that we can be harsh when presenting the message of repentance. If you notice, the only ones who were insulted by Jesus's message were those who already considered themselves spiritual. They refused to consider that they may be wrong! To those humble enough to receive Christ’s message, He gave the right to become children of God. Jesus said what He said out of love and in love, and that is exactly the way we should present it to, but it doesn’t mean that we soften or re-word it in any way. The “Bible words”, when studied, have deep, rich, saturating meanings that make them priceless in the heart of any believer who truly understands them. Learning and experiencing these words are the most precious part of living in God.
Clearly, there are those who have abused the message and used it to browbeat, but that does not change the necessity or the validity of the message. This was Jesus’s message and Jesus was a complete reflection of the Father who out of love sent Him to us so that we would know the necessity of repentance. It was out of love that Jesus came and even though His message is sometimes hard to hear in our sinful, human state, it is absolutely the most important thing we need to know if we really want to have any hope of living a life pleasing to God and spending eternity living in His goodness instead of His judgement. We can’t escape it. 
Gospel messages on Hell are necessary because they are the truth of the reality that we live in. There are only two final destinations, Heaven or Hell and no one is going to avoid the day of judgement, they can only prepare for it. And as wonderful as living our earthly life in the pleasure of God is, the most wonderful knowledge that we can possess is knowing that we have been saved and redeemed in the eyes of God, our final judge. There is way too little preaching that causes us to focus on eternity. Whether life seems long or fleeting, the truth of the matter is that it is not so much as an eye blink in eternity. I honestly try to not to take life so seriously because it is such a minute part of the whole picture. That alone helps me focus on my eternal purpose in the eyes of God and gives my life meaning and direction.
That doesn’t mean that I don’t do anything in life, that I can just sit back on Christ’s laurels and wait for death or for Jesus to suck me up into the clouds with Him (that’s called The Rapture in Bible words.) If I truly have embraced the gospel message of repentance, salvation, redemption, justification and sanctification, and have been made new by the Spirit of God that now lives in me, I have been commissioned by God Himself to carry that message to as many people as will receive it. I should be busier than I have ever been, but not about my own business. I belong to God now. Where the devil had me serving him by serving my own needs, wants and desires, I now live my life serving the interests of God and oh, what a glorious life it is! I’m doing what I was designed to do. And I’m determined to take as many with me as possible because this is why Christ died. He did for me what I had no hope of accomplishing. He deserves my best, my life, my all. Because of Him, I need not fear what comes after death. I have a blessed assurance and a hope that cannot be altered by anything I experience in this life as long as I stay true to the One who called and guided me to repentance.