Far too many churches
are still telling us, in essence, to focus upon sin: 'You've got to get
rid of this, brother or sister; you've got to get rid of that; you're too
critical, you're too apathetic, too lukewarm, too this and too that'.
A quote from Bob George's
book.Classic
Christianity."Marge
had been a Christian for about six years. In the early years she lived
on a continual high of joy in the Lord. She immersed herself in the enthusiastic
worship at her church, attended many seminars and, in her own words, was
there "every time the doors were open". There was a great emphasis on 'victory'
at this church, with an attitude that Marge described as "you and Emmanuel
can defeat anything".
She explained."The
only problem was that it wasn't working for me. I would go to the service
and get all pumped up, but then get back in my problems the next day. So
my life became like a roller coaster, all excited at church but down in
the dumps at home and at work."
The speakers all taught that
if there's some problem you can't beat, it's because you're not doing the
right things. They all implied,
'If you're studying your Bible enough, if you're praying and fasting
enough, if you're giving enough, then God will deliver you from your problems'.
But I was giving and I was studying and I was praying
and fasting and seeking God! But I still had financial problems. I was
still a single mother raising a teenage son. I was still lonely. I was
still struggling with being overweight. I was still angry. What was wrong?
I was taught that if I did all the right things, then God would deliver
me. But He didn't! The only thing I could assume was that God was rejecting
me. He was refusing to help me for some reason.
"When I told the preacher/teachers
about my struggles, they would always go back to me. They'd say
that I must be allowing Satan to have a place in my heart. So back
I'd go to confessing my anger and my overeating as sins and to promise
God to try harder to pray and fast and seek Him."
Marge's cyclical pattern
of work, failure and depression deepened to the point where she said."I
was ready to put a gun to my head. I would get up and start driving
to work, only to find myself weeping uncontrollably. I'd turn around and
drive home, draw the curtains and collapse on the couch for the day. Since
I was afraid to kill myself, I prayed every night to God that I wouldn't
wake up in the morning.(*).
Since he hated me so much.(*),
I couldn't see any reason why He wouldn't at least answer that prayer".
In these and in so many
other ways, churches place people in tombs of isolation. Pastors of churches
teaching such things as these are of the dark side and have no idea of
the
truth of God that is there to set us free:.John
8:32 "And you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you free."
This was the truth that
provided such a great intensity of feeling in those of the early New Testament
church. They were free of all the old
various procedures of the Old Testament Mosaic
Law that did
have a purpose, but were so burdensome and so they wanted to
reach others to share the good news they now believed in:.Acts
18:28 "For he mightily convinced the Jews and that publicly,
showing by the scriptures that Emmanuel was Christ." Acts
19:20,23 "So mightily grew the word of God and prevailed. And the same
time there arose no small stir about that way.".Acts
2:44-47; 8:4-8; 15:3,4;
17:4;
26:28;
Matthew 5:14-16.
It's as if those who don't
know that they are, but are nonetheless,
'falsies', are scared
over their parishioners.becoming
wild at heart. They.may
be.well meaning
but such false ministers.(because
they lack, for whatever reasons, the exciting truth of the Creator).have
bought into a demonic philosophy, meaning they have dark side pathways
within themselves and don't know how to deal
with these darker pathways:.1Timothy
4:1 "...some depart from the faith, giving
heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of devils."
And these sides of darkness
are always the ways to take a person down to depression and toward death.
That's the job of the dark
side..back
to some churches
