A Dead Church
I have posted a host of questions and advanced numerous scenarios in my attempt to understand this thing called the organized and proliferated church. There is a problem with that which is and that which is not, the word church is used to describe both. The problem is not with the intent of the scripture; the problem is in the use of the English words to interpret the scripture. A simple analogy, if I defined shoes as footwear, then boots and sneaker would be shoes. Because of the need to separate that that is and that which is not, it is necessary to use such designators as the visible and invisible church. In some instances, I have referred to the church as the "organized church", because this was a thing that Jesus hated.
It has been the intent of the Devil to dominate the church from the day of conception, the same as it was his plan to dominate man from the day of creation. For reasons we shall not delve into, he chose Eve to put his infamous plan of divide and conquer into action. The church conception was that of a spiritual entity that existed within the heart, thus creating a strange paradox. For the Devil to attack the church, it was necessary to recreate the church as a natural body. If the Devil were to enter the secret chambers of the heart in search of the church, he would not be able to find it, therein is the paradox. The Holy Spirit is the protector of the church, and both exist within the heart. The Devil and the Holy Spirit do not enjoy a shared existence. If we allow the devil to take up residence in our Heart, the Holy Spirit and the church is long gone before The Devil moves in, thus an interesting paradox. The Devil cannot destroy the church.
Thus, Jesus, speaking of the spiritual church, proclaimed that the gates of Hell would not be able to stand against the church. To circumvent this proclamation and to achieve it ends, the Devil realized the necessity of recreating the church or assembly as a natural, organized and most importantly a corruptible body. It is the opposite of Christ church. Christ's church is invisible; the devil's church is visible.
The road to the domination of a church or the church as an organized earthly body began with making false claims in the name of God. Like the rock star of the sixties who proclaimed that, “God is dead”, church leaders began to preface their message with, “God spoke to me.” In the face of such stunning proclamation, there was no questioning the validity of the message, as the church marched down the wide road of emotional bliss.
The organized church that exists as an earthly entity is attempting to overshadow the spiritual church that exists within our heart and serves a definite purpose within the home, community, and the world. Many leaders of these finely organized churches have opted for money, fame and are operating as well-paid motivational speakers; they have become guilty of manipulating and perverting the word of God. The church never was about making money or lording over God's people. The church was a refuge from the storm. The church is supposed to help us be ready as we prepare for the coming of the bridegroom. The question that we need to address is, do we believe in God, or are we just play-acting?
There is a failure or disconnect between the organized church and the emerging generation. The church, the Bible and even the God of Abraham no longer hold the sacred place that they once enjoyed. The fault is not the new translations that are emerging. The different interpretation of the Word of God is causing confusion in the community of faith. It is easy to see why those who are, "of the world," as Jesus would say, find it hard to believe the message of the church today. Many who attend church on a weekly schedule are finding the polluted messages hard to believe.
Why has the Church erased the true gospel that saves perfectly from sin, and in its place, created another gospel without any power at all? The fail church has transformed the gospel, and God into a money machine. Making money to provide for one's well-being and salvation is two separate entities that exist on two extremely different planes, one is natural, and the other is spiritual. When we mix the natural with the spiritual, we are committing spiritual fornication.
New doctrines and new leaders are emerging, and the visible churches are lifting them up the same as the Children of Israel lifted up the golden calf. Casting aside, the ancient end-time prophecies of Daniel and Revelation, men and women of piety with impressive titles before and after their name are now debating the relevance of God in modern society. As the new day dawns, humanity embraces a new and politically correct deity
The message of salvation has changed into a message of deliverance. God is delivering his people from all types of adversities. The unscrupulous make promises of healing, deliverance, and financial blessings to draw people into a cult type relationship. Often our eagerness to hear God speak causes us to step outside of the sheepfold allowing our ears to attune to the voice of the Devil. Maybe the message should be, “God has already spoken.”
Now, it is not acceptable to talk about false claims made in God name because the God of our salvation is capable of performing all acts. God is redistributing wealth, buying cars and providing all of the necessities of life. The acceptance of this conclusion, allow us to depend on God for deliverance in every situation. Daniel wrote; “If it (be) so, our God whom we serve (is able) to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king” (Daniel 3:17). Paul wrote to all of the saints in Christ Jesus which was at Philippi. “ For unto (you)(it) (is) given in the behalf of Christ, not only to believe on him but also to suffer for his sake;”(Philippians 1:29). Paul, whose life was a true example of suffering was writing and offer consolation to the church who was enduring persecution. "Thou, therefore, endure hardness, as a good soldier of Jesus Christ" (2nd Timothy 2:3). "Yea and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution" (2nd Timothy 3:12).
The Church in Pergamum depicts the Era of Church-State Union (A.D. 312–590). It denotes a visible church that began to organize itself under guidelines set forth by the State. State acceptance and control of the church was now becoming a reality
Who was Balaam? What was his claim to fame in the Word of God? Numbers 22-23 detail the story of a man of God, whose focus was on the money. Peter spoke of the leaders, “Which have forsaken the right way, and are gone astray, following the way of Balaam the son of Bosor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness;” (2nd Peter 2:15). "Woe unto them, for they have gone in the way of Cain and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Core" (Jude 1:11).
Many leaders claimed to have the knowledge of Christ, but their motives are contrary to the teaching of Christ. False claims became an indisputable road to power in an organized earthly church. It was necessary because the church as a spiritual body offered no earthly enhancements of life. Jesus often spoke of the suffering one must endure to follow him. False claims or twisted the Word of God to deceive is a concept that has been in practice from the beginning of time. In the garden, the Devil convinces the created that they could be like the creator by explaining what God meant. Imagine a church whose message was to prepare its members to suffer, with all of the suffering going on in the world; people would run from the church.
In the early days of the church, the people came together, without any preconceived idea or notion of a blessing, their purpose was to search the scripture in the hope of obtaining everlasting life. Whether they worked as a successful angler or had great wealth, they were aware that, "I am going to leave this place and leave this entire operation behind". Jesus posed the question; “For what is a man profited if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his (own) soul? Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?” (Matthew 16:26). Their joy and emotionally stimulate derived from remembering and reflecting on the promises that Jesus made. "In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you" (John 14:2). "For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life" (John 3:16). "For (he) that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting" (Galatians 6:8).
"Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, (that shall) he speak: and he will show you things to come" (John 16:13).
In this final age when God is silent and after being rejected, Jesus returned to the right hand of his father. The only thing that is standing between humanity and judgment in this final age and dispensation is the Holy Spirit within the heart of humankind, pleading and struggling to bring humanity into the way of truth. If you were to read the Bible as the unfolding history of God’s interaction with his creation, allowing the Holy Spirit to guide you into the way of truth, this would be the inspired conclusion. If it is your desire to establish a conduit of control and manipulation, then you will overlook ages and dispensations and use the Word of God to create a cure-all for the common ills of humanity. In doing so, we create a sellable product; we also create an impotent god whose derive power from those blinded by the glitter. The same as we create “stars” whose value is of an irreverent nature, whose purpose is to entertain. Entertainment is a sellable product, and the visible church has now become dominated by entertainers.
Visualize a church without walls, a church without denominational restrictions. Visualize a church whose sole purpose is the spiritual enlightenment and empowerment of its members. The church that Jesus founded ruled over by a mere man; how profane when Jesus referred to himself as being a servant. What the visible church has become was what the spiritual church was never intended to be. If asked the question, what is the church? The researched and studied answer should be, the church is a spiritual body, referred to as the bride of Christ. Many noted theologians agree that the blood of Christ has purchased the church. Therefore, it is infallible. This grand ideology as Jesus spoke of the gates of Hell not being able to stand against the church, but there is a “but” included here for Jesus himself condemned what the visible church had become and issued threats against the visible corruptible church
Is the church of today a conduit to salvation? This question screams for an answer if the church wishes to regain its relevancy.
