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Question: Why is teaching and preaching the whole truth of God’s word a primary focus at Wellington?

Answer: A friend entered the hospital for what he thought would be a routine by-pass surgery due to a couple of clogged arteries to his heart.  The nurse initially informed the family all had gone well, only to return later with the devastating news something was wrong.  72 hours later, at age 52, he died.  While heart by-pass has become a common procedure, it by no means should be taken lightly.  And what the doctors and nurses first believed about the success of the surgery was in fact not the truth.

This painful experience caused me to think of those who enter church for routine worship and leave thinking all is well, only to learn later what they initially believed about God is in fact not the truth.  The latest fad in worship is to appeal to the masses with inspiring self-help messages to motivate people to do their best for Christ.  However, a recent poll indicates most within the church are no different in their attitudes or actions than those outside the church.  Teens within the church dress, talk and act much the same as those who do not attend worship. Why? Fallen man cannot experience true change through a right relationship with his holy Creator if he does not know Him, which involves knowing the truth about Him?  Unfortunately, the God revealed in Scripture is still “the unknown God” (Acts 17:23) to a countless number of church members; therefore, simply attending worship produces no effective or permanent change in their lives.  The Lord can only be known as He is revealed to the heart by the Holy Spirit through the truth of His Word.

While the creation demonstrates a Creator so plainly all men are “without excuse” (Romans 1:20), no man can truly know the Lord apart from His word.  Yet the contemporary approach to worship is to reduce the self-existing, self-sustaining, eternal, infinite, omniscient, omnipotent, and sovereign God to the level of finite comprehension. Innovative programs targeting the masses have replaced the clear teaching of God’s word, causing many to create a god within their own mind, who has little resemblance to the Almighty.  Many still take worship of the Lord too lightly, assuming all is well, only to be devastated by the truth once they die and are confronted with the God they do not know.

“God is Spirit” (John 4:24); therefore, He can only be known spiritually.  Fallen man is dead to all that is spiritual (I Cor. 2:14); he is carnal (Romans 8:7-8), unless he is born again (supernaturally brought from death to life; miraculously translated out of darkness to light), he cannot see the things of God (John 3:3).

When the day comes for our members to enter eternity, I would not want them to be shocked or surprised by truth, but I want them to humbly enter our Lord’s presence, knowing it is only by His underserved and unmerited grace they will receive the gift of salvation, because they have been “washed” in the blood of the perfect Redeemer, “sanctified” by the powerful work of the blessed Spirit and “justified” through the infinitely tender mercies of a Gracious God (I Cor.6:9-11). I want them to hear the only true living and sovereign God say, “Well done good and faithful servant.”