Satan the devil must be very pleased indeed with the church leaders and many Christians presently. What with so much talk, protest, criticism and abuse among us regarding, abortion, same-sex marriage, climate change, Israel, the Democrats, the Republicans, the USA Presidential election, Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump, how could he not be pleased? How he loves to see us sneering and snarling, ripping and tearing at one another over these issues when he knows full well there is a much greater issue by far being ignored, except by himself and God. The much greater issue? Idolatry! The many heated exchanges on “social” media show it to be so.
It seems it’s not enough for one to express his or her opinions on these issues unless insult and ridicule become part of the deal, whether it be the one making comment or the one responding – or both. “You’re not a Christian,” says one. “How could you be with a belief like that? You’re an idiot!” Says another, “I’ve studied the Bible all my life! You won’t find it in there, so go to hell where you belong!” And another. “Call yourself a Christian? I don’t think so. You dishonor God. You need to repent!” There’s even a pastor on You Tube assigning Christians to hell if their vote is for Trump! Not only that, he expresses colorful language in doing so. How sad such Christians, believing they speak for God, don’t see they actually dishonor God.
So what’s the idolatry? It’s making an idol of one’s opinions and feelings. Too many Christians of like-nature love to speak of their anger as, “righteous anger.” But it’s not. Anger expressing insult, abuse and ridicule is self-righteous anger, the same kind of anger Jesus rebuked the Pharisees for and we Christians must acknowledged it as such, otherwise we’re a negative witness to the unbelieving world. “Call yourself a Christian?” That’s the unbeliever’s language, not that of one who says he/she is robed with the righteousness of God 2 Corinthians 5:21. When unbelieving people see or hear these things it confirms what they already believe about us, “a bunch of self-righteous hypocrites who can’t agree with one another!”
In a major sense, this is the idolatry that caused the Old Testament Jews to turn their faces from God. They wanted religion, yes, but on their terms not on God’s terms. The result being as we read in the Scriptures, God turned His face from them! Not forever, praise God, for we see they will turn back to Him again, in Jesus Christ. But it’s going to take the awful horrors of the Tribulation for them to do so. “I will bring one third through the fire, will refine them as silver is refined, and test them as gold is tested. They will call on My name, and I will answer them. I will say, ‘This is My people’; and each one will say, ‘The LORD is my God.’ “ Zechariah 13:9. Too, Romans 11:1-33 tells us Israel’s rejection is not total and not final.
Now whilst I firmly believe spiritually born-again Christians will not go through the Tribulation, I’m wondering if the Lord is going to allow severe persecution to come to His church in the very near future. We look at the world and the who’s who of hell running it and we think surely God must soon bring down His judgment. Well, if He does, He may bring His judgment down on us first! Had we allowed God to deliver us from our idolatrous opinions and feelings perhaps the world wouldn’t be as openly lewd, vile and corrupt as it is. We are the salt of the earth; we are the light of the world Matthew 5:13-16. But where’s the evidence? There is next to none and that’s why the ungodly crowd is getting away with it. We have ourselves to blame, not them.
Repent, said Jesus to the loveless church in Ephesus. They didn’t repent. Repent, said Jesus to the compromising church in Pergamos. They didn’t repent. Repent, said Jesus to the corrupt church in Thyatira. They didn’t repent. Repent, said Jesus to the dead church in Sardis. They didn’t repent. Repent, said Jesus to the lukewarm church in Laodicea. They didn’t repent. That’s the pattern church of the West now, mostly; the love of Christ always goes first, followed by compromising Bible truth, followed by corrupting Bible truth, followed by spiritual death, followed by lukewarm religiosity with no evidence of reality, no evidence of spiritual power, no evidence of spiritual authority, holiness or righteousness. Revelation Chapters 2 & 3.
But it’s not the final story by any means, all glory to God! The persecuted church in Smyrna and the faithful church in Philadelphia had no need to repent of idolatrous opinions and feelings. They had done that already by taking God’s word seriously from the start. I am the LORD your God,…….You shall have no other gods before Me Exodus 20:2-3. This again makes me think God will allow persecution to come upon us. It is not our confession of Christ that makes us a faithful church, but rather, our possession of Him. When Jesus speaks of His word abiding in us, He is the Word John 1:1. Abide in Me and I in you…. He who abides in Me, and I in him…….. John 15:4-5. There is no other way to endure persecution or to become a truly faithful people.
There is the odd Christian leader of influence who says God is finished with the church of the West and that He’s now concentrating on the East and the Middle East. Given that there’s absolutely no New Testament Scriptural evidence to support that belief, it could be said of these people that they too are operating from idolatrous opinions and feelings. Worse: those who listen to them are parroting them. “God is finished with this nation,” others are saying of their country of residence. “The ship of righteousness has sailed,” says a pastor to his church and You Tube audience. If these statements were true, God would make it clear somewhere in New Testament Scripture. He does not. The timeless Scriptures remain timely for all nations till the Lord comes.
Certainly thousands of people are turning to Jesus in the East and Middle East, but that fact should be a rebuke to us in the West. If we believe, God is no respecter of persons Acts 10:34, surely that must mean we believe He doesn’t contain His gospel to one part of the world at the expense of another part. It’s persecution that’s driving people to Christ in droves over there and it’s persecution that’s driving them on to faithfulness, holiness and righteousness. Persecution may do the same here in the West if the church continues ignoring the command of the Lord, Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works…. Revelation 2:1-7. One way or another, God would love that idolatry cast out before He returns for us!
Another issue causing too many Western Christians to sneer and snarl, rip and tear one another apart is the Pretribulation/Premillennial doctrine. Those who hold to it are not only abused, insulted and ridiculed by their fellow Christians, but if “social” media gives us a true indication, they are despised for holding to it. Even a well known and respected theologian is in on the act. Once again, any Christian who dishonors another Christian dishonors God. Why can they not simply be free to disagree and leave it at that? Especially why not, with Christians deemed to be more wise and mature. How wise to heed the following statement: “Education is the ability to listen to almost anything without losing your temper or your self-confidence.” – Robert Frost.
However, Christians solidly grounded in Christ are not self-confident, they’re Christ-confident. If they’re wrong about an issue it’s no big deal, they’re pleased to discover the wrong and thankful for the opportunity to make adjustments. They refuse to get trapped into “either”-“or” doctrinal decisions, knowing it’s this that can lead them into doctrinal error quicker than anything else. Quote: “The Bible is self-correcting; take it all and not one alone. All the things of God are given to us in balancing factors.” – Bob Mumford. Another quote: “All truth – you dry up! All Spirit – you blow up! Spirit and truth – you grow up!” – Ern Baxter. And yes, I am aware the reputation of these two men was once tainted, but I bless them and thank God for them.
Should the Lord in His mercy not allow persecution before His coming for the church, it probably means many will still be clinging to their idolatrous opinions and feelings on that day. If so, they’ll be ashamed big time; one glimpse at the Lord in the air will be sufficient. But what if they should die in the meantime without repenting from this sin? Will they be ashamed when coming face to face with the Lord in heaven? Who knows? What we do know, God despises idolatry. Why? It causes one to hold faulty concepts of Him … and that, is the biggest problem the Western church has today! And now, little children, abide in Him, that when He appears, we may have confidence and not be ashamed before Him at His coming. If you know that He is righteous, you know that everyone who practices righteousness is born of Him 1 John 2:28-29