Potential Snares and Hindrances to Maturity in the Body of Christ
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| In loving memory of my father Robert Louis (Bob) Padgett July 28, 1931-May 22, 2023 |
In our message last week, we emphasized many of the so-called "positive" aspects which enable us to walk with the Lord and be led by His Spirit. Tonight, let us consider some of the major snares and hindrances to maturity or to the unity of the faith within the body of Christ. This is NOT to say that the following are the ONLY hindrances to maturity in Christ, but the following are some of the most common. They have both an individual and a corporate application in the church community today. These hindrances are very much inter-related. It is the little foxes that spoil the vines
(Song of Solomon 2:15).
Before getting into any specifics, let me emphasize that I am by no means "perfect." Just ask my wife. However, I have been privileged, over the past 55 and 1/2 years, to have experienced a few things of the Lord that have not been made available to the great majority of the church community. For example, we were part of a local church for 12 years that was the closest I have ever seen to the early church after the Day of Pentecost. In addition, almost every time I sit down to write anything, the Lord seems to quicken to me new revelation ... something I have never heard nor read before about the living Word of God. None of that makes me "special" in any way. It simply emphasizes the amazing grace of God, because all things of any value come from God. One thing I know for a certainty ... the Lord, shortly after He sovereignly apprehended me, has given me a great desire and burden to see the body of Christ mature. To God be the glory!
Somewhere around 1973 the Lord told me to go down to the Capitol Building in Washington, D.C, and speak a word of confusion to the Federal Government of the United States. I did that. I stood right in the middle of the Rotunda in the Capitol Building and I spoke, out loud, a word of confusion to the Federal Government. Of course, I did not shout, because had I done so I might still be in jail. A few months later, I received in the postal mail a monthly newsletter from a nationally-known Christian brother. In one of the articles, that brother prophesied that the Lord was going to send someone to the Capitol Building to speak a word of confusion to the Federal Government. Of course, every Christian knows that democracy, as well as all other varieties of man's governments, must eventually fall. But of the increase of God's government and peace there shall be no end.
Now we come to the 64-dollar question ... Is there confusion in the Federal Government today? Obviously, the answer is a resounding "YES!" In fact, that confusion has gradually, over the years, been growing, culminating with January 6 of 2021. I say culminating, but that is not true. The confusion increases by leaps and bounds almost every day. Sadly, that same spirit of division and confusion has magnified itself in the church community.
The lack of spiritual understanding and lack of discernment in the body of Christ is at epic proportions. No wonder the world is going from darkness to gross darkness.
Donald Grey Barnhouse was a 20th-century American Christian preacher, pastor, theologian, radio pioneer, and writer. As a pioneer in radio broadcasting, his program, The Bible Study Hour, continues today and is now known as Dr. Barnhouse and the Bible. In 1970 I bought an outstanding, hard cover book for $4.95 he wrote, titled "Genesis" (Zondervan Publishing, 1970). In his book, Dr. Barnhouse puts it this way: (quote)
Incidentally, you can still buy that original book on Amazon for $80.50, plus tax, although copies are extremely limited now.
Many years ago, a man that many called an apostle told me that, flying over Central America, some countries looked green and prosperous while others looked dry and brown ... a reflection of the spiritual state of the countries.
That Divine principle has solid scriptural support. Whenever God's chosen people put away their idols and followed the Lord, the land had rest for many long years. This is repeated in Joshua 4:15, Judges 3:11, Judges 3:30, Judges 5:31, and 2 Chronicles 14:6.
Now we must ask the question, "What is the spiritual state of the United States today?" Does our land have rest today? The answer, of course, is obvious. Our land, indeed all the earth, is in a state of total unrest. Why? The answer, of course, is also obvious ... the state of God's chosen people is in disarray ... almost apostate.
In today's Christian community, perhaps no Christian would respond, "Lord, is it I?" Instead, almost everyone would think, "Lord, it's not me. It's those Christians over there." The situation today is similar to 1 Samuel 15:3-14. Samuel told Saul to go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass. But Saul and the people spared Agag, and the best of the sheep, and of the oxen, and of the fatlings, and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them: but every thing that was vile and refuse, that they destroyed utterly. Then came the word of the LORD unto Samuel, saying, It repenteth me that I have set up Saul to be king: for he is turned back from following me, and hath not performed my commandments. And it grieved Samuel; and he cried unto the LORD all night. And Samuel came to Saul: and Saul said unto him, Blessed be thou of the LORD: I have performed the commandment of the LORD. And Samuel said, What meaneth then this bleating of the sheep in mine ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?
Christian man is FOREVER trying to pull down that which is spiritual and holy to the natural level. Why? So that man can try to understand the ways of the Lord with his own natural, carnal mind. That, by definition, is called idolatry. The book of 1 Corinthians is primarily a letter of correction to the Church at Corinth and a warning or exhortation to us today. Paul tells them that they are carnal, babes in Christ (1 Corinthians 3:1). Paul also says, in
Evangelicals, as a generality, emphasize a literal interpretation of the Bible. But there are hundreds and hundreds of verses in the Bible that cannot (or at least should not) be interpreted in the natural realm. For example, here are a few: a cup that is not a cup; a sea which is not a sea; a woman who is not a woman; a smoking furnace that is not a smoking furnace; a burning lamp that is not a burning lamp; seven stars which are not stars; Babylon that is not a geographical area called Babylon; Armageddon that is not a geographical area in the Middle East; the Morning Star which is not a star; a Lamb that is not a lamb; a lion that is not a lion; Jerusalem which is not the city of Jerusalem in the Middle East; Zion which is not Mt. Zion; a wilderness of barrenness which is a place of sustenance; a loaf of bread that is not a loaf of bread.
Another hindrance ... Christian man is forever searching the scripture to find the pattern for this and the pattern for that ... how to do this ... how to do that ... and then crystalizing their doctrine into a hard and fast set of rules and dogma, all set into concrete and then written down in pen and ink for all to see. Sounds like Judaism or legalism. Many years ago, some one brought a suggestion to the different charismatic churches in the Washington, D.C. area. He suggested that each church write down a summary of their Christian beliefs and package them all together. Then, whenever a new Christian moved into the area, they could be handed the consolidated package to read and thereby determine which church they would attend. I opposed that plan because then we don't need the Holy Spirit to direct us to a church.
Many years ago, a good brother with a lot of maturity wrote a book titled, "The Pattern." In that book he described the pattern for church government, which includes apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers, elders, deacons and their function and operation within the Church. That is well and good except there is no such thing as a static pattern for Church government. It must be dynamic where the government of God forever moves away from man to the Lord's shoulder (Isaiah 9:6). The only pattern for Church government is the Lord Himself. Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, and today, and forever.
How many "kings" (in the form of pastors) rule over God's flock today? The Church community today is big business. However, many of those big businesses are in financial difficulty today. Many years ago, my aunt called me and said that she and a number of other believers were going to leave their charismatic house church and start another local church. She also said they had hired a pastor from another state to come and be their new leader. When I heard that, I responded that I would like to talk with the leaders of their proposed new church.
My aunt did arrange for such a meeting. I drove 300 miles to meet with the elders. I told them that what they were doing was not in the will of the Lord. Their chief elder said, The pastor of the church they were leaving told them that what they were about to do was wrong. Now here I come from 300 miles away and I tell them that what they were about to do was wrong. But, he said that they had prayed about it and were going to pull out and start their new local church. Later that evening, I told my aunt that their new church would not last one year. Sure enough, in one year their new church disintegrated.
Another hindrance among the members of body of Christ lies in the area of human communication. The most difficult aspect in charismatic circles today is communication, which requires both a transmitter and a receiver. Even if the transmitter is perfect (the Holy Spirit), without a receiver tuned to the same frequency, no communication is possible. Lord, give us ears to hear! The church cannot thrive or survive on yesterday's manna. This area is much more difficult than communication between those who do not know the Lord. Why? because those who do not know the Lord have no access to things of the Spirit. Therefore, they have far fewer areas to argue about. This is a day when every Christian does that which is right in his own sight. The same written and/or spoken word is interpreted in many different ways by different believers because of the hindrances of the flesh. We like to hear only that which agrees with our own understanding of this walk.
Christians, i.e., genuine born-again believers, also are prone to the following three errors: (1) I know that; (2) I am; and (3) I. The Holy Spirit quickened to me those three errors very early in the morning about the middle of August, 2012. It should also become rather clear that all of those three errors have a common thread, namely, a pre-occupation with self in all of its various forms.
We Christians have a great need to readjust our thinking along certain lines. It is far easier to get into a rut than it is to get out of that rut. Man's self-centeredness and his acceptance of what others say, without searching the Scriptures and without asking the Holy Spirit to shed His light on God's will and His word, has gotten us into a rut in our thinking.
When we look somewhat objectively at the Christian world today, we discover that the average believer is beset with a salvation complex. We tend to view everything in the Bible from the viewpoint of personal salvation. Our thinking and actions lead us primarily to desire to be saved and go to a better world when we physically die. As a result, we seem more interested in getting ready to die than in getting ready to live. But the will of the Lord is for us to walk in the kingdom of God here and now.
Now in no way do we minimize personal salvation, but we need to set it in its right order in the overall plan of God. However important man's initial salvation may be, it is only a part ... indeed a very early part in the total plan which God purposed for man from before the foundation of the world. We are so nearsighted in spiritual things that we are prone to take the part as though it were the whole. John the Baptist, Jesus, Paul, and the early apostles all preached, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." In reality, the kingdom of God is the subject of the entire Bible, from Genesis through Revelation. Personal salvation is just the first step toward the kingdom of God. We will not belabor the fact that being born again, in itself, does not automatically put us into the kingdom of God.
If we understand these errors, then, and perhaps only then, can we understand the whole plan of God, not simply the first small step. Paul said to the Church at Colosse (and unto us),
First, why would Paul pray such a prayer for them (and us) if they were all walking in that knowledge? If I have a new Mercedes car in my garage, why would I pray, "Lord please give me a new Mercedes car"? Next, why should we be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual (not natural) understanding? so that we might walk worthy of the Lord in all pleasing.
Another error is "I know that." This subtle, almost insidious error is probably the most common among charismatic believers. We have read all of the books, been to all of the "conferences," listened to all of the tapes and DVDs, and have been submerged with more teaching than Carter has liver pills. Some of the teachings have been good, some of it not so good. Then we throw into the mix the reasoning of our natural minds. If we ever hear some "new" or fresh teaching, our carnal mind pulls it down to the level which we already believed. The truth is,
The Church at Corinth had been exposed to the best teaching available through Paul and others. They were born-again, baptized with the Holy Spirit, and had the gifts of the Spirit in operation. Yet Paul called them "carnal." At least nine times in the Book of 1 Corinthians, Paul says "Do ye not know that ...?" As it was in the Church at Corinth, so it is today.
Another potential snare is "I am ..." Many times, I have heard someone say, "I am such and such in the body of Christ," giving themselves a title. I am Pastor so and so; I am Bishop so and so; I am prophet so and so. Many times in the past, professing Christians have asked me, "What is your ministry?" My response has always been the same. I have no ministry. The ministry belongs to God. People come and go but the ministry continues forever because it is His ministry. To the best of my knowledge, Peter and Paul are the only men in the New Testament who called themselves an Apostle. But both of them said that in all humility of heart. Human nature likes titles. Titles may inflate the ego and make us feel important. But any true gift or ministry should be recognized by other Christians without having to name it. The hand does not have to know that it is called a hand in order to function as a hand. The truth is, there is only one "I AM." That is the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ.
A closely-related potential snare is to interpret scripture as it applies to me. That reinforces our self-centered approach to Christianity. But scripture speaks about the sovereignty, the pre-eminence, the centrality, the supremacy of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Father has designed that all things must be centered in His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. It is not "me in Christ" that is the hope of glory. It is Christ in you, the hope of glory.
Much of modern, lukewarm Christendom is so lacking in commitment it can best be characterized by the "Laodicean church," a type of the arrogant body of believers in the end-times who confidently proclaim "I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing" (Revelation 3:17). What an astonishing statement! It indicates a dangerous level of self-deception. Christ reveals their true condition is the exact opposite: "wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked." In Matthew, chapter 24, Jesus tells us what will happen on earth just prior to His return. Four times in that chapter He tell us about the great deception that will occur ... deception so great that if it were possible even the very elect would be deceived. I believe without any doubt that we have been living in the Laodicean church age for quite some time.
Another error is "I ..." Here we need to be careful. Scripture records that Jesus used the phrase "I" many times. So did Paul. It is not the use of "I" that is, in itself, an error. Rather, it is what is in the heart when "I" is used. We should never call attention to our self. There is absolutely nothing about natural man that is acceptable to God.
The world idolizes self-confidence, self-assertiveness, and independence, but there is no room in the life of a true believer for self-anything.
Whatever ministry we have, we received from God. Whatever gift we have, we received from God. Christian men have been trying for centuries to help to build the Church. But only the Lord can build His Church.
In Verse 13 the LORD says, "If I send pestilence among my people." I have always believed that the Lord has sent the Covid epidemic to try to wake up His chosen people that the current church operations do not meet His standards. Sadly, too many professing Christians cannot wait to get back to the way we have always done things prior to Covid.
True humility is probably the most important characteristic that we need to develop and walk in. We are charged to humble ourself.
Even Jesus as a man humbled Himself.
Now I am confident that some number of believers, but not all, have humbled themselves.
I am also confident that many believers will say that they pray. But there are different levels of prayer, ranging from, "Lord, please heal Aunt Sally" to "let the priests, the ministers of the Lord, weep between the porch and the altar" on behalf of the body of Christ. We also know, from
One more time ... has the Lord healed our land? Also, consider the fourth condition in that verse that the Lord requires of us ... namely to turn from our wicked ways. Who believes that? How many times have you heard that we must turn from our wicked ways? How many professing Christians today take that personally and agree that I must turn from my wicked ways?
Therefore, what are our wicked ways? any deviation from the ways of the Lord.
Before getting into any specifics, let me emphasize that I am by no means "perfect." Just ask my wife. However, I have been privileged, over the past 55 and 1/2 years, to have experienced a few things of the Lord that have not been made available to the great majority of the church community. For example, we were part of a local church for 12 years that was the closest I have ever seen to the early church after the Day of Pentecost. In addition, almost every time I sit down to write anything, the Lord seems to quicken to me new revelation ... something I have never heard nor read before about the living Word of God. None of that makes me "special" in any way. It simply emphasizes the amazing grace of God, because all things of any value come from God. One thing I know for a certainty ... the Lord, shortly after He sovereignly apprehended me, has given me a great desire and burden to see the body of Christ mature. To God be the glory!
Somewhere around 1973 the Lord told me to go down to the Capitol Building in Washington, D.C, and speak a word of confusion to the Federal Government of the United States. I did that. I stood right in the middle of the Rotunda in the Capitol Building and I spoke, out loud, a word of confusion to the Federal Government. Of course, I did not shout, because had I done so I might still be in jail. A few months later, I received in the postal mail a monthly newsletter from a nationally-known Christian brother. In one of the articles, that brother prophesied that the Lord was going to send someone to the Capitol Building to speak a word of confusion to the Federal Government. Of course, every Christian knows that democracy, as well as all other varieties of man's governments, must eventually fall. But of the increase of God's government and peace there shall be no end.
Now we come to the 64-dollar question ... Is there confusion in the Federal Government today? Obviously, the answer is a resounding "YES!" In fact, that confusion has gradually, over the years, been growing, culminating with January 6 of 2021. I say culminating, but that is not true. The confusion increases by leaps and bounds almost every day. Sadly, that same spirit of division and confusion has magnified itself in the church community.
The lack of spiritual understanding and lack of discernment in the body of Christ is at epic proportions. No wonder the world is going from darkness to gross darkness.
Donald Grey Barnhouse was a 20th-century American Christian preacher, pastor, theologian, radio pioneer, and writer. As a pioneer in radio broadcasting, his program, The Bible Study Hour, continues today and is now known as Dr. Barnhouse and the Bible. In 1970 I bought an outstanding, hard cover book for $4.95 he wrote, titled "Genesis" (Zondervan Publishing, 1970). In his book, Dr. Barnhouse puts it this way: (quote)
The earth has always been a mirror of its inhabitants [italics added for emphasis]. When Lucifer was an unsinning cherub, the earth was perfect. When he fell, it became a wreck and a ruin. When Adam was created innocent, the world was a garden of Eden. When he fell, God cursed the ground for man's sake, and it became the mirror of fallen Adam. (end quote)
Incidentally, you can still buy that original book on Amazon for $80.50, plus tax, although copies are extremely limited now.
Many years ago, a man that many called an apostle told me that, flying over Central America, some countries looked green and prosperous while others looked dry and brown ... a reflection of the spiritual state of the countries.
That Divine principle has solid scriptural support. Whenever God's chosen people put away their idols and followed the Lord, the land had rest for many long years. This is repeated in Joshua 4:15, Judges 3:11, Judges 3:30, Judges 5:31, and 2 Chronicles 14:6.
Also, in Acts 9:31, "Then had the churches rest throughout all Judaea and Galilee and Samaria, and were edified; and walking in the fear of the Lord, and in the comfort of the Holy Ghost, were multiplied."
Now we must ask the question, "What is the spiritual state of the United States today?" Does our land have rest today? The answer, of course, is obvious. Our land, indeed all the earth, is in a state of total unrest. Why? The answer, of course, is also obvious ... the state of God's chosen people is in disarray ... almost apostate.
John 13:21-22, "When Jesus had thus said, He was troubled in spirit, and testified, and said, Verily, verily, I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me. Then the disciples looked one on another, doubting of whom He spake."
Matthew 26:21-22, "And as they did eat, He said, Verily I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me. And they were exceeding sorrowful, and began every one of them to say unto Him, Lord, is it I?"
In today's Christian community, perhaps no Christian would respond, "Lord, is it I?" Instead, almost everyone would think, "Lord, it's not me. It's those Christians over there." The situation today is similar to 1 Samuel 15:3-14. Samuel told Saul to go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass. But Saul and the people spared Agag, and the best of the sheep, and of the oxen, and of the fatlings, and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them: but every thing that was vile and refuse, that they destroyed utterly. Then came the word of the LORD unto Samuel, saying, It repenteth me that I have set up Saul to be king: for he is turned back from following me, and hath not performed my commandments. And it grieved Samuel; and he cried unto the LORD all night. And Samuel came to Saul: and Saul said unto him, Blessed be thou of the LORD: I have performed the commandment of the LORD. And Samuel said, What meaneth then this bleating of the sheep in mine ears, and the lowing of the oxen which I hear?
1 Peter 4:12-14, "Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you: But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings; that, when His glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy. If ye be reproached for the name of Christ, happy are ye; for the spirit of glory and of God resteth upon you: on their part He is evil spoken of, but on your part He is glorified."
A wonderful spiritual song is titled, "Oh the Glory of Your Presence," written by a man named Steven Fry. The words are:
Jesus, all glorious, create in us a temple; called as living stones where you're enthroned.
Jesus, all glorious, create in us a temple; called as living stones where you're enthroned.
As you rose from death in power, so rise within our worship, rise upon our praise,
And let the hand that saw you raised, clothe us in your glory, draw us with your grace.
Oh the glory of your presence, we your temple give you reverence,
Oh the glory of your presence, we your temple give you reverence,
So arise from your rest and be blessed by our praise, as we glory in your embrace
As your presence now fills this place.
You can find quite a few arrangements of this song on the internet, but the one I like the best is by the City Harvest Church in Singapore. Google "Oh the glory City Harvest Church," watch and listen. One thing that struck me was the young age of those professing believers. City Harvest Church has about 30,000 members with 15 different services on the weekends. In that video there appears to be at least 5,000 young people, all of whom seem to be very sincere. A few years after that video was made, 6 of the leaders of that megachurch embezzled 50 million dollars of the church funds. Moral of the story? bigger is not always better. In reality, mega-churches are man's misguided inventions. Jesus never worked with a multitude.
About seven years ago I listened and watched a video recording on the internet of some more emotionally-stirring Christian music. The event had been video-taped from a 2001 gathering of professing Christians in the Municipal Auditorium located on historic Elvis Presley Avenue in Shreveport, Louisiana. According to one internet blog, there were 15,000 folks there. That arena is internationally well-known for performances of various venues such as sporting events, touring acts, live local concerts, graduations, family shows, parties, and debutante balls. The event, which was televised at least locally, was part of a several-days "faith-healing" crusade by a well-known man plus music led by one of the best in the Christian world. The video captured many different pictures of different professing Christians, most of whom seemed to be very sincere.
However, immediately after the video ended, the Lord spoke to me and said that if all of those professing Christians had been walking with the Lord, then Katrina, one of the most devastating hurricanes ever to hit the U.S., never would have hit New Orleans in August of 2005.
Further review of that video revealed the following ... The "performers" included a full 50-piece orchestra plus keyboard and organ, at least a 200-member choir, with all the men dressed in white shirts and dark ties and all the women in blue gowns. Also on the stage were a few dozen pastors plus the faith-healer dressed in his usual white suit. The songs were indeed very emotionally stirring, almost creating a fervor rarely seen or heard. It is so easy to stir audiences up to a fervor pitch. Hitler was a master at that. A few American politicians have also been very good at that. That faith-healer's net worth is now reported as 60 million; the famous music composer, singer, and keyboard player's net worth is reported at between one and 5 million. Both men have had affairs and were divorced. The faith-healer was born in Israel. The front row seats were occupied primarily by Messianic Jews. I am sure that the meetings were not free. Is there a message for us through all of that? It is certainly true that when thousands of professing Christians gather together and sing some emotionally-stirring songs, we may tend to believe that we are more spiritually mature than we actually are, particularly when the masses then hear a word that our "breakthrough" is just around the corner. But unless our gatherings result in our lives being changed, then no amount of emotion is of value.
When I was a freshman in college, at our biggest home football game, when our team first came out on the field, there was a big roar from the 20,000 fans that really impressed me and stirred my soul. By the way ... our team lost the game. However, I cannot imagine the excitement, the emotion generated by 100 thousand fans at a college game.
A well-known quote is, "Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it." That is true both in the natural and spiritual realm. Whenever we read anything in the Bible, we should always ask, "What does this mean for me right now?" We should also be open to learn from the experiences of other believers or through any means that the Lord chooses to speak to us.
You can find quite a few arrangements of this song on the internet, but the one I like the best is by the City Harvest Church in Singapore. Google "Oh the glory City Harvest Church," watch and listen. One thing that struck me was the young age of those professing believers. City Harvest Church has about 30,000 members with 15 different services on the weekends. In that video there appears to be at least 5,000 young people, all of whom seem to be very sincere. A few years after that video was made, 6 of the leaders of that megachurch embezzled 50 million dollars of the church funds. Moral of the story? bigger is not always better. In reality, mega-churches are man's misguided inventions. Jesus never worked with a multitude.
About seven years ago I listened and watched a video recording on the internet of some more emotionally-stirring Christian music. The event had been video-taped from a 2001 gathering of professing Christians in the Municipal Auditorium located on historic Elvis Presley Avenue in Shreveport, Louisiana. According to one internet blog, there were 15,000 folks there. That arena is internationally well-known for performances of various venues such as sporting events, touring acts, live local concerts, graduations, family shows, parties, and debutante balls. The event, which was televised at least locally, was part of a several-days "faith-healing" crusade by a well-known man plus music led by one of the best in the Christian world. The video captured many different pictures of different professing Christians, most of whom seemed to be very sincere.
However, immediately after the video ended, the Lord spoke to me and said that if all of those professing Christians had been walking with the Lord, then Katrina, one of the most devastating hurricanes ever to hit the U.S., never would have hit New Orleans in August of 2005.
Further review of that video revealed the following ... The "performers" included a full 50-piece orchestra plus keyboard and organ, at least a 200-member choir, with all the men dressed in white shirts and dark ties and all the women in blue gowns. Also on the stage were a few dozen pastors plus the faith-healer dressed in his usual white suit. The songs were indeed very emotionally stirring, almost creating a fervor rarely seen or heard. It is so easy to stir audiences up to a fervor pitch. Hitler was a master at that. A few American politicians have also been very good at that. That faith-healer's net worth is now reported as 60 million; the famous music composer, singer, and keyboard player's net worth is reported at between one and 5 million. Both men have had affairs and were divorced. The faith-healer was born in Israel. The front row seats were occupied primarily by Messianic Jews. I am sure that the meetings were not free. Is there a message for us through all of that? It is certainly true that when thousands of professing Christians gather together and sing some emotionally-stirring songs, we may tend to believe that we are more spiritually mature than we actually are, particularly when the masses then hear a word that our "breakthrough" is just around the corner. But unless our gatherings result in our lives being changed, then no amount of emotion is of value.
When I was a freshman in college, at our biggest home football game, when our team first came out on the field, there was a big roar from the 20,000 fans that really impressed me and stirred my soul. By the way ... our team lost the game. However, I cannot imagine the excitement, the emotion generated by 100 thousand fans at a college game.
A well-known quote is, "Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it." That is true both in the natural and spiritual realm. Whenever we read anything in the Bible, we should always ask, "What does this mean for me right now?" We should also be open to learn from the experiences of other believers or through any means that the Lord chooses to speak to us.
2 Corinthians 3:18, "But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord."
Does that verse imply that if we have a closed face then we will not be changed into the image of the glory of the Lord? Sadly, scripturally, historically, and experientially, far too many professing Christians have had a closed face toward any revelation that does not agree with their traditional understanding. "Give me that old time religion, it's good enough for me."
Another potential snare is to hear a word from the Lord correctly, but interpret that word in the natural realm rather than its spiritual counterpart. A good example of that is the tendency to interpret Psalm 122:6, "pray for the peace of Jerusalem" at the natural level. But there is no peace to natural Jerusalem. The peace of God is found only in Christ. God loves the Palestinian just as much as He loves the Jew. "God so loved the world ..."
About 15 years ago I heard a nationally, well-known, evangelical minister say that when he gets to heaven, he is going to wear a literal crown on his head and a literal robe. I believe he is going to be in for a big surprise! Then we can hear a word from the Lord correctly, interpret it correctly, but miss the timing of the Lord as to when that word should be implemented. Of course, a key element on our part is the state of our heart. Do we really want only the will of the Lord or is that just another doctrine for us to affirm?
Another potential snare is to hear a word from the Lord correctly, but interpret that word in the natural realm rather than its spiritual counterpart. A good example of that is the tendency to interpret Psalm 122:6, "pray for the peace of Jerusalem" at the natural level. But there is no peace to natural Jerusalem. The peace of God is found only in Christ. God loves the Palestinian just as much as He loves the Jew. "God so loved the world ..."
About 15 years ago I heard a nationally, well-known, evangelical minister say that when he gets to heaven, he is going to wear a literal crown on his head and a literal robe. I believe he is going to be in for a big surprise! Then we can hear a word from the Lord correctly, interpret it correctly, but miss the timing of the Lord as to when that word should be implemented. Of course, a key element on our part is the state of our heart. Do we really want only the will of the Lord or is that just another doctrine for us to affirm?
But the anointing which ye have received of Him abideth in you, and ye need not that any man teach you: but as the same anointing teacheth you of all things, and is truth, and is no lie, and even as it hath taught you, ye shall abide in Him.
1 John 2:27
Christian man is FOREVER trying to pull down that which is spiritual and holy to the natural level. Why? So that man can try to understand the ways of the Lord with his own natural, carnal mind. That, by definition, is called idolatry. The book of 1 Corinthians is primarily a letter of correction to the Church at Corinth and a warning or exhortation to us today. Paul tells them that they are carnal, babes in Christ (1 Corinthians 3:1). Paul also says, in
1 Corinthians 2:14, "But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned."
Evangelicals, as a generality, emphasize a literal interpretation of the Bible. But there are hundreds and hundreds of verses in the Bible that cannot (or at least should not) be interpreted in the natural realm. For example, here are a few: a cup that is not a cup; a sea which is not a sea; a woman who is not a woman; a smoking furnace that is not a smoking furnace; a burning lamp that is not a burning lamp; seven stars which are not stars; Babylon that is not a geographical area called Babylon; Armageddon that is not a geographical area in the Middle East; the Morning Star which is not a star; a Lamb that is not a lamb; a lion that is not a lion; Jerusalem which is not the city of Jerusalem in the Middle East; Zion which is not Mt. Zion; a wilderness of barrenness which is a place of sustenance; a loaf of bread that is not a loaf of bread.
Another hindrance ... Christian man is forever searching the scripture to find the pattern for this and the pattern for that ... how to do this ... how to do that ... and then crystalizing their doctrine into a hard and fast set of rules and dogma, all set into concrete and then written down in pen and ink for all to see. Sounds like Judaism or legalism. Many years ago, some one brought a suggestion to the different charismatic churches in the Washington, D.C. area. He suggested that each church write down a summary of their Christian beliefs and package them all together. Then, whenever a new Christian moved into the area, they could be handed the consolidated package to read and thereby determine which church they would attend. I opposed that plan because then we don't need the Holy Spirit to direct us to a church.
Many years ago, a good brother with a lot of maturity wrote a book titled, "The Pattern." In that book he described the pattern for church government, which includes apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers, elders, deacons and their function and operation within the Church. That is well and good except there is no such thing as a static pattern for Church government. It must be dynamic where the government of God forever moves away from man to the Lord's shoulder (Isaiah 9:6). The only pattern for Church government is the Lord Himself. Jesus Christ, the same yesterday, and today, and forever.
1 Samuel 8:4-7, "Then all the elders of Israel gathered themselves together, and came to Samuel unto Ramah, And said unto him, Behold, thou art old, and thy sons walk not in thy ways: now make us a king to judge us like all the nations. But the thing displeased Samuel, when they said, Give us a king to judge us. And Samuel prayed unto the Lord. And the Lord said unto Samuel, Hearken unto the voice of the people in all that they say unto thee: for they have not rejected thee, but they have rejected Me, that I should not rule over them."
How many "kings" (in the form of pastors) rule over God's flock today? The Church community today is big business. However, many of those big businesses are in financial difficulty today. Many years ago, my aunt called me and said that she and a number of other believers were going to leave their charismatic house church and start another local church. She also said they had hired a pastor from another state to come and be their new leader. When I heard that, I responded that I would like to talk with the leaders of their proposed new church.
My aunt did arrange for such a meeting. I drove 300 miles to meet with the elders. I told them that what they were doing was not in the will of the Lord. Their chief elder said, The pastor of the church they were leaving told them that what they were about to do was wrong. Now here I come from 300 miles away and I tell them that what they were about to do was wrong. But, he said that they had prayed about it and were going to pull out and start their new local church. Later that evening, I told my aunt that their new church would not last one year. Sure enough, in one year their new church disintegrated.
Another hindrance among the members of body of Christ lies in the area of human communication. The most difficult aspect in charismatic circles today is communication, which requires both a transmitter and a receiver. Even if the transmitter is perfect (the Holy Spirit), without a receiver tuned to the same frequency, no communication is possible. Lord, give us ears to hear! The church cannot thrive or survive on yesterday's manna. This area is much more difficult than communication between those who do not know the Lord. Why? because those who do not know the Lord have no access to things of the Spirit. Therefore, they have far fewer areas to argue about. This is a day when every Christian does that which is right in his own sight. The same written and/or spoken word is interpreted in many different ways by different believers because of the hindrances of the flesh. We like to hear only that which agrees with our own understanding of this walk.
Christians, i.e., genuine born-again believers, also are prone to the following three errors: (1) I know that; (2) I am; and (3) I. The Holy Spirit quickened to me those three errors very early in the morning about the middle of August, 2012. It should also become rather clear that all of those three errors have a common thread, namely, a pre-occupation with self in all of its various forms.
We Christians have a great need to readjust our thinking along certain lines. It is far easier to get into a rut than it is to get out of that rut. Man's self-centeredness and his acceptance of what others say, without searching the Scriptures and without asking the Holy Spirit to shed His light on God's will and His word, has gotten us into a rut in our thinking.
Acts 17:10-12, "And the brethren immediately sent away Paul and Silas by night unto Berea: who coming thither went into the synagogue of the Jews. These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so. Therefore many of them believed; also of honourable women which were Greeks, and of men, not a few."
When we look somewhat objectively at the Christian world today, we discover that the average believer is beset with a salvation complex. We tend to view everything in the Bible from the viewpoint of personal salvation. Our thinking and actions lead us primarily to desire to be saved and go to a better world when we physically die. As a result, we seem more interested in getting ready to die than in getting ready to live. But the will of the Lord is for us to walk in the kingdom of God here and now.
Now in no way do we minimize personal salvation, but we need to set it in its right order in the overall plan of God. However important man's initial salvation may be, it is only a part ... indeed a very early part in the total plan which God purposed for man from before the foundation of the world. We are so nearsighted in spiritual things that we are prone to take the part as though it were the whole. John the Baptist, Jesus, Paul, and the early apostles all preached, "Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand." In reality, the kingdom of God is the subject of the entire Bible, from Genesis through Revelation. Personal salvation is just the first step toward the kingdom of God. We will not belabor the fact that being born again, in itself, does not automatically put us into the kingdom of God.
If we understand these errors, then, and perhaps only then, can we understand the whole plan of God, not simply the first small step. Paul said to the Church at Colosse (and unto us),
Colossians 1:9-10, "For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God;"
First, why would Paul pray such a prayer for them (and us) if they were all walking in that knowledge? If I have a new Mercedes car in my garage, why would I pray, "Lord please give me a new Mercedes car"? Next, why should we be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual (not natural) understanding? so that we might walk worthy of the Lord in all pleasing.
Another error is "I know that." This subtle, almost insidious error is probably the most common among charismatic believers. We have read all of the books, been to all of the "conferences," listened to all of the tapes and DVDs, and have been submerged with more teaching than Carter has liver pills. Some of the teachings have been good, some of it not so good. Then we throw into the mix the reasoning of our natural minds. If we ever hear some "new" or fresh teaching, our carnal mind pulls it down to the level which we already believed. The truth is,
Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. Romans 8:7
And if any man think that he knoweth any thing, he knoweth nothing yet as he ought to know. 1 Corinthians 8:2
The Church at Corinth had been exposed to the best teaching available through Paul and others. They were born-again, baptized with the Holy Spirit, and had the gifts of the Spirit in operation. Yet Paul called them "carnal." At least nine times in the Book of 1 Corinthians, Paul says "Do ye not know that ...?" As it was in the Church at Corinth, so it is today.
Another potential snare is "I am ..." Many times, I have heard someone say, "I am such and such in the body of Christ," giving themselves a title. I am Pastor so and so; I am Bishop so and so; I am prophet so and so. Many times in the past, professing Christians have asked me, "What is your ministry?" My response has always been the same. I have no ministry. The ministry belongs to God. People come and go but the ministry continues forever because it is His ministry. To the best of my knowledge, Peter and Paul are the only men in the New Testament who called themselves an Apostle. But both of them said that in all humility of heart. Human nature likes titles. Titles may inflate the ego and make us feel important. But any true gift or ministry should be recognized by other Christians without having to name it. The hand does not have to know that it is called a hand in order to function as a hand. The truth is, there is only one "I AM." That is the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.John 8:58
A closely-related potential snare is to interpret scripture as it applies to me. That reinforces our self-centered approach to Christianity. But scripture speaks about the sovereignty, the pre-eminence, the centrality, the supremacy of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Father has designed that all things must be centered in His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. It is not "me in Christ" that is the hope of glory. It is Christ in you, the hope of glory.
Much of modern, lukewarm Christendom is so lacking in commitment it can best be characterized by the "Laodicean church," a type of the arrogant body of believers in the end-times who confidently proclaim "I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing" (Revelation 3:17). What an astonishing statement! It indicates a dangerous level of self-deception. Christ reveals their true condition is the exact opposite: "wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked." In Matthew, chapter 24, Jesus tells us what will happen on earth just prior to His return. Four times in that chapter He tell us about the great deception that will occur ... deception so great that if it were possible even the very elect would be deceived. I believe without any doubt that we have been living in the Laodicean church age for quite some time.
Another error is "I ..." Here we need to be careful. Scripture records that Jesus used the phrase "I" many times. So did Paul. It is not the use of "I" that is, in itself, an error. Rather, it is what is in the heart when "I" is used. We should never call attention to our self. There is absolutely nothing about natural man that is acceptable to God.
The world idolizes self-confidence, self-assertiveness, and independence, but there is no room in the life of a true believer for self-anything.
For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh. Philippians 3:3
Whatever ministry we have, we received from God. Whatever gift we have, we received from God. Christian men have been trying for centuries to help to build the Church. But only the Lord can build His Church.
Micah 6:8, "He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the LORD require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God?"
2 Chronicles 7:12-14, "And the LORD appeared to Solomon by night, and said unto him, I have heard thy prayer, and have chosen this place to myself for an house of sacrifice. If I shut up heaven that there be no rain, or if I command the locusts to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among my people; If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land."
In Verse 13 the LORD says, "If I send pestilence among my people." I have always believed that the Lord has sent the Covid epidemic to try to wake up His chosen people that the current church operations do not meet His standards. Sadly, too many professing Christians cannot wait to get back to the way we have always done things prior to Covid.
True humility is probably the most important characteristic that we need to develop and walk in. We are charged to humble ourself.
James 4:5-10, "Do ye think that the scripture saith in vain, The spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy? But He giveth more grace. Wherefore He saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble. Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw nigh to God, and He will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded. Be afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your joy to heaviness. Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He shall lift you up."
Even Jesus as a man humbled Himself.
Philippians 2:5-11, "Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made Himself of no reputation, and took upon Him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, He humbled Himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted Him, and given Him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."
Let us return to 2 Chronicles 7:14, "If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land."
Now I am confident that some number of believers, but not all, have humbled themselves.
I am also confident that many believers will say that they pray. But there are different levels of prayer, ranging from, "Lord, please heal Aunt Sally" to "let the priests, the ministers of the Lord, weep between the porch and the altar" on behalf of the body of Christ. We also know, from
James 5:16, "Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye may be healed. The effectual fervent prayer of a righteous man availeth much."
The word, "fervent," is very important.
In Hosea 5:15, the Lord says, "I will go and return to my place, till they acknowledge their offence, and seek my face: in their affliction they will seek me early."
David, in Psalm 27:7-8, prayed, "Hear, O LORD, when I cry with my voice: have mercy also upon me, and answer me. When thou saidst, Seek ye my face; my heart said unto thee, Thy face, LORD, will I seek."
One more time ... has the Lord healed our land? Also, consider the fourth condition in that verse that the Lord requires of us ... namely to turn from our wicked ways. Who believes that? How many times have you heard that we must turn from our wicked ways? How many professing Christians today take that personally and agree that I must turn from my wicked ways?
Isaiah 55:8-9, "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts."
Therefore, what are our wicked ways? any deviation from the ways of the Lord.
Jeremiah 17:5-11, "Thus saith the LORD; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the LORD. For he shall be like the heath in the desert, and shall not see when good cometh; but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land and not inhabited. Blessed is the man that trusteth in the LORD, and whose hope the LORD is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit. The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? I the LORD search the heart, I try the reins, even to give every man according to his ways, and according to the fruit of his doings. As the partridge sitteth on eggs, and hatcheth them not; so he that getteth riches, and not by right, shall leave them in the midst of his days, and at his end shall be a fool."
In spite of all of the misguided efforts of Christian man, the Lord is still building His church. This brings us back full circle to our opening verses from last week's message, namely ...
Ezekiel 36:25-28, "Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you. A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them. And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God."
What an awesome, amazing God we serve! Amen and amen.
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