Recently I was asked by a man, “Why is it that so many people get caught up in all these cults? Don’t they have a mind of their own? It seems to me that you’d have to be a half-wit to be taken in by them.” Making it very clear to me that he was a non-believer in God, he made this assumption based on testimonies he saw being given by cult victims on television, who spoke of the controlling mechanisms of their former leaders, their one time doctrinal beliefs, plus the sexual and financial abuses each had suffered whilst members of a cult.
My response was to inform him that all people who have not personally developed an on-going relationship with the biblical Lord Jesus Christ, “are caught up in false belief systems, including you my friend.” He was annoyed with me for giving such an answer. Doing a cassette Bible study one time, the teacher gave his definition of truth. He said, “Truth is the actual state of affairs, as contrasted with rumor, false report and mythology.” I have never forgotten that definition. The Holy Spirit continues to burn it into my spirit even though it was over twenty years ago when I first heard it.
And I thank God the Holy Spirit, that it is only my love for truth that has delivered me from rumor, false report and mythology, both in “the church” and out of it! In twenty-six years of studying human nature, it has been my experience to observe that most people operate their lives out of rumor, false report and mythology – including those who believe they are Christians, whether they are church affiliated or not. Not only that, but it seems it is very much their preference to do so. There is a love for partial truth, but not the whole truth. In other words, people love to pick and choose what suits them and cast out that which does not.
God Himself tells us that the heart of man is deceitful above all things and desperately wicked Jeremiah 17:9-10. Not simply “wicked” but “desperately wicked” which means, so far as God is concerned:desperate, incurable, sick, woeful. Nobody wants to hear that. In my experience, even most people who say they love God, don’t want to hear that Scripture. I used it to underpin a communion message at the last church I was affiliated with and I felt the devil’s daggers behind me and in front of me – coming from those who just moments earlier had their arms raised in worship, praising God for Jesus being the way, the truth and the life.
Since March 1987, I have been associated with four different church fellowships. Within those fellowships combined, I have known only a hand-full of people to constantly talk of their love for all truth and, who constantly demonstrated this love. I am aware that this sounds arrogant and prideful on my part, but I will have to leave that with God. Two of them were old and have been long dead, but I thank God for bringing each one into my life and using them as role models of biblical faith. What they taught me by their lives, I pray, is being demonstrated in mine – or will be when I am of the same age.
In every one of those churches, I have heard the following statement expressed either from the pulpit, Bible studies, home groups, or in private conversations: “Don’t look for the perfect church – because once you find it and join it, it will no longer be perfect.” In those early days that sounded so spiritual when spoken by whoever. No longer does it sound spiritual. To me, it sounds demonic. I do not believe it comes from the mouth of God – it comes from the mouth of Satan the devil himself. It is not a statement from heaven; it is a statement from hell.
Satan has been hugely effective with this statement, as he uses the minds and mouths of God’s people, to shut down the minds and mouths of others of God’s people. In my conversations with leaders and fellow Christians down through the years, whenever I spoke with or challenged or asked them about partial truths being accepted for whole truths, how quick each person has been to pull the “perfect church” card on me. As a questioning Christian, they were successful as they dumped their piously-sounding words (condemnation) all over me – but not anymore, thanks to the Holy Spirit of truth.
It showed up eventually, that those people pulled that card as an excuse not to look further into what God might have to add to their theology. If they did add it, it would require biblical reality, godliness and holiness from them. It is only in recent years, since leaving the institutionalized church system, has the Lord been able to reveal the truth to me about this. Perfection (completion, maturity) was never on the agenda of those people, but rather, the mediocre “Christians are not perfect, just forgiven” mentality – another statement from hell which Christians are all too ready and willing to embrace.
As Christians we need to be mindful about truth. God makes His will known to us about the unbelieving world in no uncertain terms in 2 Thessalonians 2:9-11. If we continually refuse to develop a love for truth, refuse to embrace it all as the Spirit reveals and refuse to live it out under His power, then can we really say we are not in grave danger of coming under the God-sent misleading influences, workings of error and strong delusions that He is one day going to be sending upon an unbelieving world? It is God Himself and not the devil who is going to make them believe lies – in other words, rumor, false report and mythology.
In all those churches I was associated with, it was common to hear ourselves praying something like, “Lord, this is your church and the gates of hell will not come against it!!!” Lots of Amen’s would always follow that declaration. Once again, it was not until God brought me out of the institutionalized church system, could I see the deceptiveness of that prayer. Here we were praying against the gates of hell and all the time there was more hell in our midst than there was heaven. Why? Because of the picking and choosing of truth which was palatable and the casting aside of that which was not.
I marvel at the mercy of God in showing me this truth in recent years. How blessed we are to know that the gates of hell can never come against His true church (called out ones), which is never to be confused with man’s institutionalized religious system. Biblical Christians are few in every generation, and our way is always narrow. We will never compromise the word of God, because to do so is to deny the biblical Lord and Savior Jesus Christ – the very Word of God Himself. The liberty and blessings God is pouring out upon those who no longer identify themselves with compromising and counterfeit churches is an experience nothing short of astounding.
So why is it that unbelieving people, cult members and multitudes of church-goers alike, are living their lives based on rumor, false report and mythology? There is no one answer, but ultimately it comes down to one’s heart attitude towards TRUTH. Unbelievers intrinsically know that if they seek truth they will find it. But they also know that once they find it, there will be an expectation for them to change. That is why most of them do/will not seek for it. Even though they would never admit it, New Testament Romans Chapter 1 shows us clearly that they are lovers of lies.
However, cult members and church-goers are really no different from unbelievers either. Why not? Most church people do not join a church because they are searching for TRUTH. They join to fulfill a need to belong – to become part of a communal group. They enjoy their involvement and the blessings of participation and responsibilities; they also enjoy the sermons and teaching. At the same time, however, they fail to evaluate that which they hear. Through a continuous lack of prayer for spiritual discernment, they end up having little or no idea if what they’re hearing is in fact truly biblical and in context.
Cult members, having been brainwashed, are convinced they have the truth because the gurus have told them it is so and they dare not question them for fear of being branded faithless, or rebellious and “individual.” As for institutionalized church-goers, well, if the pastor holds the Bible in one hand and refers to the Scriptures displayed in his impressive PowerPoint presentation as he preaches – and if he mentions the name Jesus, “well, that’s good enough for me, who are you to judge?!” “Blessed is that man who makes the Lord his trust, and does not respect the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies.” Psalm 40:4.