Spiritual Blindness
Author: Lea Sylvester
Source: Rapture Ready
Much has been written from a Christian standpoint addressing the state of morality in America today. Great evil abounds and this is only going to get much worse. Some Christians seem to have the attitude that “Jesus will come get us so we will just go about business as usual.” That is exactly what Jesus Christ told us would happen when several of His disciples asked about signs of His coming at the end of the world [Related Article: The Spirit Of This Age]
We find the following statement in Matthew 24, from The Olivet Discourse:
“Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in My name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many. And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet...All these are the beginning of sorrows” (Matthew 24: 4-7, 8).
“But as the days of Noah were, so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.” (Matthew 24:37)
Jesus markedly said that when we see wars and rumors of wars that we should not be troubled for this is the beginning of sorrows. Then, in a later passage of Scripture, He says that as it was in the days of Noah, so it will also be in the days of His coming. Much can be said about these passages of Scripture but the point that must be made is that these things that we have been observing for some time now are just the beginning.
Jesus Christ later likens the process as birth pangs. If anyone reading this has ever given birth, then one knows exactly what He was illustrating. These pangs start and are mostly tolerable. But, as time goes by, they get more intense and more frequent. Finally, they are constant and seem unbearable. The end of this severe pain and distress is the delivery of a new life. This pain brings joy. This is exactly what we are experiencing our world today. How long until the evil ends and joy comes?
In the days of Noah, before the flood, He tells us that people were eating, drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, etc. Basically, this describes a society that is going about “business as usual.” This is how most Christians seem today. We have become so desensitized to events happening in rapid succession, that we don't take note of the frequency of earthquakes that occur daily in various places in the world.
We see the situation in the Middle East heating up and as Christians we should be greatly concerned. We should take note of the strange weather patterns, the active volcanoes, for all these point to the end. And, the tables have been turned on us as now we are labeled as “enemies of the state,” “intolerant,” “haters,” because when a Christian has the courage to stand up to the social issues that have been forced down our throats that are wrong; they are accused of being a hater or intolerant. [Related Article: They Call Us "Haters"]
Even in certain churches today immorality is tolerated. It seems even that it is invited. Such an example of this is welcoming homosexuality and those who practice it. After all, God loves homosexuals, doesn't He? Homosexuality is a sin and God does not love it.
The many sins being tolerated are swept under the pews. We are children of the Most High God! These are unnatural and they are something God hates. And, Believers should NEVER tolerate the intolerant. Recently, in a church located in the city where this writer resides, a speaker was invited to come speak to the congregation. This man, a current candidate for president of the nation of Malawi in Africa, is a mighty, courageous, anointed man of God who has had at least ten attempts on his life. The Islamic faction that currently rules that nation has tried to kill him, and has offered him great wealth if he will step down, but he will not.
He walks in the will of God. He understands that as an outspoken Christian, he could well lose his life. But, he refuses to back down and he stands. He stands on the foundation of the Word of God. Just several weeks ago, an attempt was made to kidnap his son. Two weeks ago, an attempt was made on the life of his wife. This man, James Nyundo, can never lay his head down in the same place more than one night because it is not safe. And, he never knows where he will be. He has to trust in God for his very life. So, one can see how he would be an exciting speaker for any group of Christians to have the opportunity to hear.
Nyundo has seen things Christians in the Western world never see or experience, his campaign is being assisted by Christians and Christian churches in his nation. The pastors of these churches and the Christians assisting him willingly do so at the risk of losing their lives. He knows that the only source of freedom comes from God. He knows that God can and will bless his nation but in order to affect change, he must defeat the Muslim opponent.
During his time speaking at the particular church, a “mainline denominational church,” he spoke about integrity and living a righteous life. He recently wrote a book titled, Absolute Integrity. He doesn't just talk the talk, he walks the walk, and the glow and peace on this man's face says all that needs to be said about His relationship with God. He began to speak about how God hates homosexuality and how God ordained marriage between a man and a woman. He pointed out that any nation that tolerates, promotes or allows homosexuality will be destroyed by God.
At that particular point, approximately one-half of the large congregation stood and clapped. The other half was absolutely upset! Mr. Nyundo was confused because these were supposedly Christians to whom he was addressing. After the service, the associate pastor, a woman, approached him and attacked him verbally. She was hateful and told him that he was wrong and that he “probably just got the pastor fired.” Nyundo was upset. What did he say? Why were they mad? This was America, a “Christian” nation! Why would they not want to hear the truth?
The congregation members who were angry were “liberal” Christians who believe that homosexuality is not a sin! Yes, Nyundo said exactly what these people needed to hear, and God sent him to tell them that. But this is the kind of thing that is happening in our churches today. It is just as it was in the days of Noah. Who wants to hear the Word of God? Who will tolerate it? It is so much more pleasant to hear a nice sermon about how to be a good parent. Who wants to hear that sin is bad?
This example is not unusual and it emphasizes how very disconnected most Christians in America are from the rest of Christendom around the world. People like Nyundo have endured severe hardship and have seen fellow Christians persecuted and even murdered for their faith. They don't sit in comfortable pews and rationalize that God's Word isn't relevant today. No, they can't get enough of it and they love to hear ALL of it. And, despite the teachings of many churches today that there is no such thing as demonic possession or that “gifts” of the Holy Spirit are no more, or that there are no miracles today; these people in tiny nations and in third-world nations have seen and have experienced first-hand these very things.
But, for Nyundo, it was never his expectation to experience what he called being confronted by a “demonic presence” in the person who verbally abused him. And, it stunned him that this happened in America. America - the very nation that had been greatly blessed by God Himself, for putting Him first in all things. But, that is the past.
What are we doing, brethren? We have become pathetically politically correct. We have rejected God's Word. Dictionary dot com. defines “politically-correct” in the following manner:
“Marked by or adhering to a progressive orthodoxy on issues especially involving gender, race, sexual affinity or ecology.”
The dictionary site notes that it is language of the progressive left. Unless we have a worldview compatible with the godless philosophy that sees man as essentially helpless and misguided, in need of a ruling class to take care of them �" we have no business falling into the trap of permitting the progressive left to control the terms of almost every conversation.
[Related Article: Deconstructing Liberal Tolerance]
We use their terms, which are never favorable toward the true conditions in our land. We permit them to use the term pro-choice, when they only choice they believe in is the choice to end the life of an unborn infant. They don’t believe we should have choices about the food we eat, our environment, even our light bulbs. It’s time to put an end our acceptance of their terminology, which is designed to sound good, and conceal their anti-life, anti-freedom agenda. [Related Article: The Psychopathology Of the Liberal Mind]
What happens when we stand up to the politically correct masters? What happens when we utter such things as we find in the Bible like the sinfulness of homosexuality, or that Jesus is the only way to heaven? The ruling class immediately goes into personal destruction mode. They roll out their closed minded, racist, hater rhetoric. There are some thoughts and ideas that they believe dare not be expressed, lest the lies of the ruling class be exposed.
If we really believe they are lies, they need to be exposed. They tell us there is no God, or if there is, he is the god of the liberation theologian interested in creating a socialist paradise on earth. They tell us that restricting marriage to a man and a woman is discriminatory and we need to be open to other types of relationships. They tell us that the welfare of children is the responsibility of the state more than the parents.
We are told that everyone has their own truth, that what is true for one may not be true for another. We are told that the truth of the Bible is fine for us if we choose to make it so, but others may come up with their own truth. We are just being closed minded and old fashioned if we believe everyone should be working with the same truth.
[Related Article: Is One Way the Only Way?]
At this point the relativists are ahead in the public sphere of ideas, primarily because too many people, too many churches, too many pastors have been intimidated into either complete silence or they have changed their message to make it acceptable to the ruling class.
There is a price to pay when we stand up for the truth. George Orwell told us, “Truth is treason in the empire of lies.” It is treasonous to the homosexual rights advocate to say that the Bible condemns their practice. They tell us that they were born that way. God Almighty, the God of Abraham, Jacob and Israel, does not make such mistakes, nor does He put a man in a woman’s body by accident. Our society has arrived at the point where so many accept the arrogance of those who say their work is to “fix” God’s mistakes.
With so many dysfunctional families, is it really a mystery how we end up with so many messed up children who become messed up adults that have no idea who they are? Christians! Arise! This is a spiritual war and we are losing the battle. Take up your sword (The Word of God) and speak the truth. Tolerate no more pithy sermonettes from your pulpits. Demand that your pastor preach the entire Word of God or show him the door. [Related Article: And the Pulpits Are Silent]
What we see happening in our churches today is parallel to what happened in Jesus' ministry. He was questioned by the religious “authorities” of Judaism.
They had added their own “interpretations” and “extra-rituals” to His commandments and couldn't bear the fact that He stood in defiance to them. He defied and taught against the traditions of Judaism. These were men who put tradition above God's Word. The same thing is taking place in the church today.
The Pharisees asked Jesus why His disciples did not observe the traditions of Judaism. Notice Jesus' reply: “He answered and said to them, 'Full well ye reject the commandment of God [disobey], that ye may keep your own tradition” (Mark 7:9).
Jesus said, “Well hath Esaias [Isaiah] prophesied of you hypocrites, as it is written, this people honore me with their lips, but their heart is far from me. Howbeit in vain do they worship Me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men” (Mark 7:6).
Jesus revered and followed God's Word, His commandments. Jesus told us that if we love Him, we will keep His commandments. This is not an “optional” thing for a Christian. Yet, today because we have been taught that Christians don't obey God's commandments, we seem to have made our own religion. If Jesus Christ and His disciples and the early church followed these teachings to the letter, then why are we exempt?
And, can we now see how failing to do so has been exploited by the enemy to bring this politically-correctness into the church? This has also allowed the great apostasy and ignorance of the deeper things of God. The church is the one place this should never be! The gates of hell are not supposed to prevail against the church but the gates of hell have flung wide-open the doors of the church. And the reaction? Silence.
Jesus and his disciples followed the commandments of keeping God's Feasts (His appointed times). In almost every account we read of Jesus being in Jerusalem, it was for one of those feasts in which going to Jerusalem was required. Yet, we are taught that we are exempt from God's feasts; the very ones that God Himself said, “These are My feasts to be observed forever” (Leviticus 23:41).
Had Jesus failed to keep these holy convocations (meetings or gatherings mandated by God Himself to be observed forever), he would have committed sin. Jesus had to be sinless. If it was “optional” then why did He diligently do so? Why? Because it wasn't optional for the Son of God and it isn't optional for us as Christians. But “man” has said otherwise. Do we serve God or do we serve men? We cannot do both.
When people reject the Word of God and devise their own religious traditions, they automatically bring spiritual blindness upon themselves.
Isaiah said:
“Stay yourselves, and wonder, cry ye out, and cry: they are drunken, but not with wine; they stagger, but not with strong drink. For the Lord hath poured out upon you the spirit of deep sleep, and hath closed your eyes: the prophets and your rulers, the seers he hath covered. And the vision of all is become unto you as the words of a book that is sealed, which men deliver to one that is learned, saying, Read this, I pray thee: and he saith, I cannot for it is sealed.
And the book is delivered to him that is not learned, saying Read this, I pray thee: and he saith, I am not learned. Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of man.
Therefore, behold, I will proceed to do a marvellous work among this people, even a marvellous work and a wonder: for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid”.
(Isaiah 29: 9-14)
Is what Isaiah described in the passage of Scripture above not a perfect description of the entire world today in religion, science, government, education and economics? Again, what a paradox: They use the Bible and profess to believe in God, but cannot understand the Scriptures. Other prophecies about the end-times confirm that God's people would understand the Word of God and prophecy, while the wicked, the majority of people in the world would not understand.
Truth must be told, but it must be done in love as a parent correcting a child. This writer is not condemning those in error. Not only have Christians today become tolerant of the intolerant allowing great apostasy to reign; we have forsaken the duty of lifting one another up. We should not attack our brethren, what does this accomplish? What good could come of it?
But, while we tolerate sin, great abominations; we are intolerant of our own brothers and sisters in Christ when they speak the Word of God - the Truth. To be silent and allow this apostasy in our churches, to allow this tolerance for sin (i.e., homosexuality, adultery, idolatry, etc.) is the real act of condemnation to the catastrophic results that await those who are silent, therefore complicit in these sins.
May we all plead for forgiveness, not only from our God, but those who have been led astray by our silence. If the truth shall set us free… why are we feeling the weight of chains growing heavier with each passing day?
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