TROUBLEMAKERS WANTED

What brand of Christian are you? I don’t mean are you a Pentecostal, an Anglican, a charismatic or a Presbyterian.

No, what I am asking is, are you a “gentle Jesus meek and mild” or a “you generation of vipers, who has told you to flee from the wrath to come.”

Generally speaking the western church is the first, the gentle Jesus type. We do our best not to offend. But when you read the scripture, if anyone crossed Jesus with their sanctimonious word or way of life he let rip and told them what they didn’t want to hear.

Just like the Old Testament prophets who always told Israel what they didn’t want to hear. Despite that you only have to read on and you find that when the Jews did what the prophets demanded of them, they got the results they said would happen.

Strange isn’t it. Do what God said and you usually get the victory. Ignore him and, well, we are usually cut adrift until we repent of our arrogance and pride.

The truth is we are an independent lot and would rather follow our cultural traditions rather than the word of God and do you know why? Because our traditions mean that we stay in control and allow us to keep God from interfering and doing things his way.

As I have studied the New Testament Church in the scriptures and found out that we have all but ignored what it says there, when I raise the issue I am always told words to this effect. “I know that is what the bible says but…”

The ‘but’ usually means that there is a reason why we ignore the scriptures. We have got things sorted out to our satisfaction so we don’t want to rock the boat with anything that might challenge the status quo, even if it is what the scripture teaches.

I am not too popular with the Scribes and Pharisees in the modern day church because I keep insisting that we should do what the scripture says. They don’t like it because they always have a ‘but’ to justify their refusal to submit to God and his word.

How do I know when the ‘but’ takes precedence over God’s word? Usually they don’t counteract what I say (because they can’t). They usually tell me to go away or change the subject.

Until we get a breakthrough and stop this ridiculous idea that one man has all the wisdom so he is the only one that can preach and what he says must be accepted as gospel and cannot be challenged, we will thrash around in total ineffectiveness.

How do I know? Research shows that only 1% of churches in the USA are growing. What more proof do you want?

What we need now is more troublemakers and prophets who are going to call a spade a spade and get God’s people out of their complacency and slumber so that the church can once again become like a mighty army sweeping all before it, especially those pharisaic religious nuts who don’t give a damn about Gods will.