I recently came across a man that I have known for over two decades, and although we do not speak with each other on a regular basis, each time we meet the greetings are cordial. We were employed by the same small company for about three years, and though I was not as submissive to the Holy Spirit at that time, this man knew of my convictions and faith in Christ as my Savior, witnessing on His behalf was accomplished, but never accepted by this man. He belongs to what I refer to in my letters to you as a religious organization, one that his parents attended and one that has been around for many centuries. Although he has not entered the doors of the building in the town where this religious organization has met each weekend for many years, he still considers himself associated with it, and as it is with most individuals like him, the prescribed methodologies that this organization teaches run deep within him.
We spoke at this recent encounter for only a minute or two, but one thing he mentioned has stuck in my mind, “If I wasn’t a [member of this particular religious organization], I would kill myself.” He did not look healthy, he really never has though, and I know something of how his life has gone over the last twenty-five years or so, and so I also knew that this was not a serious statement of his intentions, but merely the desire for his life not to continue in the path that it has been on for many years. This action, if performed, is looked upon as an unpardonable sin within the “church” that he associates himself with, and so the inverse must also be true, Heaven, eventually after many candles are lit and prayers said, is unavoidable, it is they teach a guarantee.
I do what I can to listen to the promptings of the Holy Spirit within me, and when just the next day I spoke with a different individual who not only is associated with this same organization, but also attends on a regular basis, I realized that I should open my ears to what was being said to me by the Lord. Wisdom comes only from the Lord my friends, and He can and does bring it to our attention on a daily basis if only we will listen, and from many different sources. As is in my nature, if a conversation last more than just a few minutes, the words of Scripture will pass my lips, and this one lasted almost twenty. There were no antagonizing words or bad feelings, this man is quite staunch in his adherence to the traditions prescribed by this so-called church, and he is more than willing to attempt to defend them, but he fails miserably when the Truths of the Scripture are brought to bear upon the conversation.
There is a place where the soul must reside after it leaves the body to be purged of the last of the sins within it, yet the Bible says that “It is appointed unto a man once to die, but after this the judgement.” (Heb. 9:27) They must enter what they call a “confessional booth” often to confess their sins to the ones in charge, yet we are to confess our sins to one another. (James 5:16) They bring in individuals from other “churches” of the same denomination occasionally, for their voices become familiar to the one they meet each weekend, and some sins must not be known by all those in the congregation, and only those who have been trained in the proper procedures for removing these sins can assist them, when the Word of God is quite clear, “We have one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.” (1 Tim. 2:5) These that continue to be deceived by these false precepts are always under a constant threat of the loss of what they think they have obtained, and refute Romans 8:1 where we are told there is “No more condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.” There is no security in the assurance of their salvation, for in the bondage of tradition there can be no security.
What has always amazed me about those that I have spoken the Truths of Scripture to that continue to darken the doors of these false religions is that even when the Truths are spoken to them, they continue to attend. The grip of fear is strong upon them, the traditions of men are burned upon their hearts, but not the Words of God, even when they are shown in the Scriptures, the majority of the time they will not listen, it is in a sense a type of brainwashing, deeply rooted ideologies that are nearly impossible to dig up and discard. This is nothing new, even though this religious organization has been around for centuries, think back to the days that our Lord walked upon this earth, when the Pharisees and Sadducees ran the same scam. They placed upon the children of Israel the burden of the traditions of men for the things of God, (Mark 7:8) and those who would follow this man, this Jesus of Nazareth, would be cast out of the temple, ostracized from the worship of Jehovah with the congregation. (John 12:42) These men were telling the people that they would not be accepted any longer by God if they followed this man Jesus.
The same is happening with this current religious organization, and all the others that profess that Christ is not the only way to the Father. (John 14:6) If you do not follow the prescribed rituals and adhere to all the ordinances that the organizations have put into place, you will be rejected from entering into Heaven, the traditions of man have been placed above the Truths of Scripture. Again, it amazes me how many will not seek the Truths in the Word of God to see if what is being preached to them is indeed the Truth, but it should not, I guess. Many of these places use books that have the word “Bible” printed on the front cover, but they are far from the Word of God. After many years of research, and many years of study on this subject, I personally use a “Old Scofield Study System,” King James version of the Bible. I can remember when I first began in God’s Holy Word asking Him to help me to understand His Word and to be able to know which Bibles were not glorifying to His name, and He has faithfully answered this prayer.
It is close to impossible to assist these individuals who are being deceived by these religious organizations to see the truth, for many of them have produced their own so-called Bibles, and have no need to compare it to others. In this sense they are self-deceived, Satan may have blinded their eyes in the beginning, but as with this individual that I spent the twenty minutes of conversation with, once the Truth has been shown to them, and if they continue to deny it, they have no more excuses. It is illogical in the extreme for a person not to check other sources of information when attempting to complete a task, “In the multitude of counselors there is safety,” (Prov. 11:4) but to leave your eternal soul in the hands of any man, to believe without question his interpretation of the path that a man’s soul should be on is damning. “They have turned the Truth of God into a lie,” (Romans 1:25) and even when they know the Truth, they continue to follow the lie, and so their condemnation is just. (Romans 3:8)
It is one of Satan’s greatest ploys, change a few words here and there, find a man who can be deceived, one with great oratory skills and the ability to lead, and they will worship, it is just so sad that they think they are worshipping God. The longer we do something, no matter what it is, if we continue to perform that task incorrectly, and no one shows us the proper way, we will believe ourselves to be doing it correctly. It is the Truth of the Words of God that we are to give to the lost, and those that are confused, remember that Satan is the author of confusion, (1 Cor. 14:33) we fight against principalities and powers, (Eph. 6:12) this is not a battle against man, so keep your armor on at all times. (2 Tim. 2:15) If you do not understand your adversary, you cannot defeat him, these individuals believe themselves to be serving God, only the Truths of the Word of God can show them their errors.