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For the longest time I have wanted to write about this…let me tell you why.
There are several things that happened in one of my previous churches:
- There was one Sunday School class who ran the church. It wasn't the
pastor of the church. This Sunday School class decided everything that
was going on in the church…from firing a pastor to when the children
should have their recess time from Sunday School. Unfortunately, I
understand that it is still the same way.
- We had a previous pastor accused and convicted of Sexual Harassment
in the office. He was taken out of the denomination and he started his
own church. Of course, this split the church…those who believed the
pastor and those who did not.
- I had a personal example of when I decided that I wanted to stop
all the ministries that I was a part of so that I could focus on Christ
and learn to become a follower of Christ. The ministries were getting
in the way of my personal relationship with God. Many of the people did
not understand at all and one of them told me that if I was not going
to be a part of the ministry, then I should just leave the church.
Now…would you want to go to a church like that? I wouldn't….I mean, not now.
You see..the only reason I started going there was because my
parents liked the ministries that we could be a part of. It had nothing
to do with whether or not the teachings were biblically-based. Don't
get me wrong, they did bring scriptures and they did preach on things
in the Bible…but most people that went there had absolutely no
relationship with God at all. I only know this because all you had to
do was see them outside of the church…and their lives proved that they
were not following God's statutes.
Of course, neither was I. I grew up in the church and never had a
relationship with God. Sure, I went to church and prayed when I was
told to…not because I wanted to. It wasn't until I was about 27 years
old did I start to listen to God. I was torn. I wanted it and yet part
of my heart was kicking and screaming trying to get out of it. This was
my wicked nature trying to fight God's objectives for my life. Have you
ever felt that way before?
Many people nowadays think that the church is all hype. There are
priests who abuse children, pastors who don't stand on God's Truth,
televangelists who have a following so big that they think they are
God, themselves. It is nothing but chaos.
Granted, there a some churches out there who bring God's Word to
thousands of people. The pastors do not compromise on God's Word no
matter what society wants.
And what does society want from churches? Well…they want compromise.
They want to have same-sex marriages flowing through their doors. They
want biscuits and donuts while serving coffee. They want pillows and
blankets so that they can feel comfortable.
Give me a break! Nothing in God's Word said anything about being
comfortable when you are a Christian. It actually says in the Bible
that those who choose to follow God will suffer and be condemned by the
world's standards, but will be greatly rewarded in heaven.
Your family might disown you or you might even get killed for
following Christ. (This is happening in many countries around the world
at this very moment.)
I think that if, for the most part, you are listening to a sermon
and you are not squirming in your seat or are not really starting to
think about how your life is not up to par, then you have a pastor who
is not speaking God's truth. Some pastors love to make people feel good
so that they can get more people in their church.
The Christian church as a whole is divided. There are churches who
bring God's Truth to people and want people to have a personal
relationship with God and then there are churches who want you to feel
comfortable so that you can have a better feeling about emptying your
pocket and giving to them. It is as simple as that.
No wonder so many people on this planet think that Christianity is a
farce. It is because many churches, their pastors, and their
congregations don't want to live as Jesus Christ did, they want to
compromise God's Word so as to not offend anyone, and one of those
examples is to allow same-sex marriages, and then they want to make
people feel comfortable enough so that they can relinquish their
pockets into their hands.
And then to top it all off, even when someone decides that they want
to learn more about God and living as Jesus Christ did, they see people
who profess to be Christians take the Lord's name in vain and they seem
to be the most unloving people on the planet.
No wonder!
We need a mighty move of God to flow throughout the world. It is
time for the church to straighten up and get their act together. It is
time for the church to bring God's Truth no matter what societal
pressure there is. We should not compromise on God's Word! |
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