A Test of Faith

Earl Gillespie

A Test of Faith #2

Deliberate Confusion

Revelation 21:8  But for the fearful, and unbelieving, and abominable, and murderers, and fornicators, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, their part shall be in the lake that burneth with fire and brimstone; which is the second death.

Verse 8. But the fearful. Jesus having stated previously , in general terms, who they were who would be admitted into that blessed world, he now states explicitly who would not. The fearful denote those who had not firmness boldly to maintain their professed principles, or who were afraid to avow themselves as the friends of God in a wicked world. They stand in contrast with those who "overcome," Re 21:7.

And unbelieving. Those who have not true faith; avowed infidels; infidels at heart; and all who have not the sincere faith of the gospel.  And the abominable. The verb from which this word is derived means, to excite disgust; to feel disgust at; to abominate or abhor; and hence the participle--"the abominable"-refers to all who are detestable, to wit, on account of their sins; all whose conduct is offensive to God. Thus it would include those who live in open sin; who practice detestable vices; whose conduct is fitted to excite disgust and abhorrence. These must all, of course, be excluded from a pure and holy word;  and this description would embrace a lamentably large portion of the world as it has hitherto been.  This includes murderers, and whoremongers and sorcerers, and idolaters. 1Co 6:9; Ga 5:19. And all liars. All who are false in their statements, their promises, their contracts. The word would embrace all who are false towards God, (Ac 5:1-3,) and false toward men. See Ro 1:31. Shall have their part in the lake which burneth, etc. That is, they will be excluded from heaven, and punished forever. 

I often speak of the confusion that exist in the household of faith.  This confusion is not the type of confusion that exist because of lack of knowledge or direction, it is a type of confusion that is perpetrated upon the believers of God.  The manipulation, the twisting of the scripture to achieve one's own agenda has become Christanity's worst enemy.  The recurring theme of religion is changing to accommodate the flawed nature of humanity.  Things that were once taboo in a religious society as well as things that once was acceptable in church worship services has now become acceptable.   The changes have become so pronounced that a ninety year old person finds many church services repulsive, yet we testify God has not changed.   Jesus addressed the subject in Luke 18:8... Nevertheless, when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?

Luke 18:9  And he spake also this parable unto certain who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and set all others at nought:

Beautifully adorned preacher appearing in the media  outlets, sculpturing the scripture, primping and posing and all preaching a message of giving.  The forefront of most christian messages is no longer based upon salvation, the message is about prospering here on earth.   Most are unaware of the ethnic diversity of the message of the church.  This ethnic approach has even fueled the framing of the question as to what color is the Son of God by those who are trying to appease the  ethnic diversification of their congregation.   In John 4:24, the scripture says, " God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth."  The question should be what color is a spirit?  Then common sense would dictate, a spirit has no color.   The smiling preacher ended his message by promising, "You are going to have success all you need to do is plant a seed.     Jesus ended his message in the book of Revelations by saying, "If you endure I will give you a crown of life."    

There are those who are looking to the church for faith building support, and there are those who are looking to the church for all types of gifts from God.  I am going to church to get my blessing, a holdover from the days of slavery has become the cornerstone of religion as entertainment takes the forefront, because as praises goes up, blessing come down.   On any given Sunday paid performers entertain and strive to work the congregation into an emotional frenzy which is often described as the 'Spirit of God'.   This same type of showmanship is often found in concerts offering worldly pleasures.   Listening to a message about how God is going to show up and show out is not faith building message, yet this is the core of many messages.   Those that are emotionally inclined shout and sweat, then leave emotionally drain until the next session,  they return again in an emotionally agitated state, begging God for the same blessings they asked for the last time.   Is there a need to bring in a rocket scientist and ask the question, why people are turning away from mainstream Christianity.

There are many questions that should be addressed by the household of faith.  First and foremost those that claim to be leaders of God should be held to a higher standard, the same as Moses and other messengers of God.  Those that are unable to live up to the standards of the Bible should   vacate the title and honor that are placed upon them.    God's true people are being offended.  Jesus addressed this problem when he said in Matthew 18:6  But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea. 

In my weaken state of faith, I can only wonder how all of this is going to play out when we stand before God.  We do believe in God don't we? In  Revelation 21:8,   But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with fire and brimstone: which is the second death.