Are you being taught in your church how to live, or how to do? I would hope that the words from the pulpit are those of encouragement, uplifting and filled with hope, but are they convicting, are they meant to teach you how to live for Christ, or how to live for Christ and others.
This is the path that far too many are preaching from behind the podium today, a life of self, disguised as a life for Christ, one in which we are the main actor, and not those around us. It is based on the works of emotion, its main path is that of a servant to the spiritual needs of self, and it is more prevalent today than ever before. This is much more complex than just an emotion-based faith, deeper than prosperity theology, its roots lie in the shallow ground of selfishness while feigning that of love for others. The prescribed protocol is simple and devilish, concern yourself with your walk with Christ, allow others to traverse their own path, never reprove or correct, you must continually show yourself approved. To ask others of what the Lord is doing in their lives is not your place, we each have our own path, and we have no right to instill any Biblical ideologies on anyone else, that’s their business, you concern yourself with your walk, that’s between you and God.
These pastors, preachers and priests are teaching their congregations how to live a Christian life, all based on their own Scriptural interpretations or on what the hierarchy of the religious organization that they adhere to has told them to believe, but on how to do, how to act and react as a servant of Christ is not on their agendas. These have become “half-teachers,” and so they are false teachers. The word reprove has been replaced with offend, correction of any form is seen as intrusive, and so therefore it is incorrect. If any attempt to reprove his brother, he is seen as judgmental, even if all that is spoken concerning the incident are the words of Scripture, and one must never allow the opportunity to offend ever to become a possibility, someone’s feelings might be hurt, and so it has become a faith of feelings, one in which certain parts of the Word of God are complied with, but never others, for they step beyond the religion of self-accountability.
Correction is a forbidden word in these churches, no one has the right to correct another, ever, even if the Words of Scripture are spoken in love to the one who is in error, that is to be left up to the Holy Spirit, it is He alone who can convict and correct. These individuals will never, or rarely, believe that another also has the Holy Spirit residing in them, and no one should at any time try to either reprove or correct anyone, and many who lead these churches would not only agree, but would admonish those who attempted to do so. They are there to preach love, mercy, grace and personal accountability only, not the faithful wounds of a friend (Prov. 27:6), not correcting or the reproof of any, half-truths equals false teachers.
You will generally find a lot of smiles, handshakes and small talk in these types of churches, but you will encounter little to no growth spiritually, and you will find few if any spiritually mature individuals. To the ears that cannot hear, these will seem quite learned, in fact righteous even, but to those who have been blessed with a heart that can discern between good and evil, they are shallow and tepid places, their fear of God is seen only in the possibility of offending others. It is an exceptionally well thought out deceit of Satan, “Ok, they’re saved, but here is how we are going to keep them ineffectual.” Instead of dying to self, these individuals will do everything in their power to make sure that they are acceptable to God, they will hide His Word in their heart, and that is right where they are going to keep it. When they know of someone living in sin, it would be a sin for them to mention anything about it, it is not their business, they are in no position to reproof or correct, even the pastor has no authority in this area. Oh, he might mention something in passing, humorously with a giggle, but he would never give any occasion to a frontal confrontation with the sinning brother, much less consider fulfilling Matt. 18:15-17, and in the end removing him from the fellowship, after all we’re all sinners, right?
Compromise is the key word in these churches, a little for you, a little for me, and every bodies happy. The problem is, sin doesn’t compromise, sin takes, very, very slowly and extremely subtly, but take is what it does best. This verse seems rude, this one is far too difficult, these are not the pattern that we want to instill in this church. The days of the “fire and brimstone” preacher who stands strong and tells all who will listen that if they do not repent of their sins they will go to hell are over my friends, welcome to the never offend age, the wishy-washy age, welcome to the apostacy. This little letter to you isn’t going to change anything, this day has been prophesized by the Word of God, it was to be expected, the itchy ears are being scratched. (2 Tim. 4:3) If you feel like your saved today, my guess is you never were in the first place, if you are resting assured in the knowledge of your salvation, if your faith rests in Christ alone and nothing else, no matter the circumstances, then you are a child of Almighty God. Obedient servants do not sit around and think about how they feel about a commandment from God, they do it. If a brother in Christ is living in a sin, love him, pray for him, but be obedient to your Lord and Master and open your mouth and reprove him, if he is offended by your words, the words of one who serves a Holy God, remind him how offended God is by his actions.
Somebody has to stand people, somebody has to stand on the firm foundation, (1 Cor. 3:11) and speak the Truths of God’s Word, with no thought of the consequences to themselves for their actions. “Woe is unto me, if I preach not the gospel!” (1 Cor. 9:16) We are not going to change these people in all these “half-churches,” the time is at hand, but if you are not going to try when you are commanded to, then you won’t have to be concerned with becoming one of them, you will have proven to yourself that you already are. Christians are always either on their feet or on their knees, they are only sitting when the Lord allows them to take a break for a few minutes, and the way the battle is going, there isn’t much time for sitting anymore.
