The Scourge Of Racism
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There is the Church and there are the churches. So very sadly, the two are not equivalent in all cases throughout the earth especially where the churches are the product of Christianity the religion of men! That said, let us be clear that the declaration of Matthew 16:18 from the lips of the Lord Jesus does not apply to the churches as institutions of men, but His Church. His Church are all who have come to Him by repentance and faith in the Gospel--His death on the cross for our sins, burial and eternal resurrection on the third day after (1 Corinthians 15:1-4). As is commonly known, the Greek word the Lord uses for “Church” is Ekklesia which generally means a called out assembly.
From the earliest eye witnesses of Him raised from the dead to every soul that will receive their proclamation of the Gospel and testimony to the end of this season of grace, all are assembled to Christ as His Church on earth and in Heaven after death (1 Corinthians 15:5-11). When He returns in awesome glory and power we all shall be gathered to Him in the sky and remain with Him as His Church forever (Matthew 24:29-31; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 2 Thessalonians 1:3-12)! This is the assembly of whom Christ speaks when He, based on who He is declares, “…on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it,” (Matthew 16:13-18, NKJV).
Not only does the resurrection and ascension of Jesus Christ to immortal glory validate His ability to fulfill His declaration, but the Father has given Him all authority both in Heaven and on earth as well as over Hades and Death (Matthew 28:19; Revelation 1:18). It goes without saying (yet, I say so anyway because of the widespread rebellion against His rule and disobedience in the churches) that Christ is also the Head of His Church (Ephesians 1:22-23; Colossians 1:18)! Therefore, the Church triumphant here and now and forever is an assured reality regardless of what goes on in this life or death because Christ our Head has already triumphed for us and reigns!
Many sinning professing Christians in the churches are confused about and wrongly apply to themselves, the victories of the faithful saints assembled to Christ by persevering faith and obedience as the Church. It is not just saying one is a Christian and getting baptized that saves, but it is living as one for life. As dirt and improper handling leaves spots and wrinkles on white garments, so, sin on sinners! Christ sacrificed Himself to purify for Himself a Church, a Bride without “spot or wrinkle” (Ephesians 5:25-27; Revelation 19:7-9, NKJV). So, where do unrepentant professing Christians willfully practicing sin in unbelief driven disobedience get off thinking they are fine with Christ?
Besides the fact many are impostors and religionists devoid of the Spirit practicing Christianity the religion of men in their churches who have invented for themselves doctrines of eternal security, there is also a great number of professing American Christians who have both culturally conditioned the faith and been conditioned through compromises with secular culture to believe in the concept of “American Exceptionalism.” From its secular and religious use, the concept expresses the idea that our nation has been uniquely raised up by God and graciously given such values as embodied in the founding documents and the national character along with prosperity and might as a world leader, to assure all of this from Him in perpetuity.
While I, with thanksgiving, have marveled with fellow citizens of like mind at the historic grace, prosperous blessing and might God has bestowed on our nation in spite of its many past sins to include legally sanctioning the oppression of my forefathers and present moral declension, His Word prophetic and otherwise precludes any of this continuing in perpetuity (Proverbs 14:34; Jeremiah 25:15-33). This being so, it is foolish for any professing Christian to bank on American Exceptionalism as a means to comfort themselves about the nation’s future, their escape from divine judgment for sin or for that matter, persecution as our brothers in other nations are now enduring.
Neither heretically constructed doctrines of eternal security or American Exceptionalism provide escape from divine wrath for unrepentant sinning professing Christians in the churches or our sinful nation. Those who say the contrary are false prophets of peace like the ones of ancient Israel the Lord condemned (Jeremiah 23:16-22); those that believe them are deceived (Galatians 6:7-8).
Too, the victory of Christ’s Church is not to have escaped persecution for His sake (Revelation 6:9-11), but in spite of it, to be gloriously displayed as immortal king/priests with Him at His appearing (2 Thessalonians 2:13-14, Revelation 20:4-6)! These are the saints who during their earthly sojourn as aspiring strong men and great women of God in the image of Christ faithfully served Him; loving Him more than their own lives (Matthew 10:34-39; 2 Timothy 4:6-8; Revelation 12:9-11). The risen, living Christ continues His cry among American churches, “Who is on the Lord’s side?”
In following up the end of last week’s blog calling for aspiring great women of God to allow Him to be glorified in them through their submission to His calling to be helpers, the Holy Spirit led me to post again this blog from 2012. Not through the pride filled pursuit of men’s roles and responsibilities have the aspiring great women of God in the Bible or history distinguished themselves before Him, but out of the fullness of their divinely created female roles and responsibilities! The women featured in this blog are examples and so are our sisters enduring similar persecution in hostile nations today. Of course, a major difference in the blog is the persecutors were supposedly fellow Christians. I have posted this blog today to enjoy some time off. My next post will appear as regularly scheduled on Sunday, November 30th. Have a great Thanksgiving.
Originally Posted November 26, 2012
I recently had the opportunity to read a series of excellent articles on Anabaptists produced by the magazine, Southwestern News a communication vehicle of the seminary I graduated from, Southwestern out of Fort Worth, Texas.1 While I found the articles a stimulating refresher of general information I had learned about this 16th century group of Reformation Christians, I was also thoroughly captivated by details I did not know about the persecution and martyrdom they endured from State, Catholic and Protestant authorities. The latter group of professing European Christian authorities includes a major name in the Protestant Reformation of the stature of Martin Luther and John Calvin, Ulrich Zwingli, headquartered out of Zurich, Switzerland.
After enduring so much in the contentious and deadly at times struggle to reform the Catholic Church, Protestant officials also turned to hideous forms of violence to crush those that differed with them. Zwingli gave support to the attempted rooting out of some who were his former students and led the group that came to be called Anabaptists. One of the primary convictions of the group was that baptism is exclusively for believers in Jesus Christ which is biblical. Their male members were hunted down and imprisoned, tortured with hot instruments to get them to recant; killed by the sword, burned at the stake, drowned, starved to death and exposed to the elements when they refused. These ostensible Protestant brothers and other persecutors did not show much mercy to the wives, mothers and daughters of Anabaptist men either.
In one of the articles titled, Anabaptist Womanhood by Sharayah Colter, Anabaptist women (as most Christian women in similar circumstances since the first century) were martyred for the faith in the same wretched ways as their husbands. As one act of civility, some women were chained to their homes for the years it took to raise their children then they were taken out and put to death. Many of course, endured being raped publically as a form of humiliation. These things the women suffered in the quiet dignity of submission to Christ without hostility or threats toward their persecutors. Such things are happening to our sisters at this very hour in various non-Western nations.
In this month of remembering and praying for persecuted believers around the globe, I hold up especially our sisters in Christ who in their submission and willingness to suffer for Christ put the great woman of God I write about in my book, The Strong Man Of God, on full display. I salute and admire these godly women who as those throughout history such as the Anabaptist women, fulfill the portrait of womanhood God designed in their Christ-like character and demeanor as seen in His Word (see for example Judges 11:29-40 and Luke 1:26-38). They are in complete contrast to the many Western women today that profess to be Christians but are far from the biblical model in their selfishly ambitious press to be seen, heard and walk in the God ordained leadership roles of men for this age (1 Timothy 2:8-10; Titus 2:1-5; 1 Peter 3:1-6). Pray for our persecuted brothers and sisters.
A final word to my Protestant brothers of European lineage; there is martyr’s blood on the historical hands of the movement which includes that of my Christian forefathers (slave and free). Neither you nor any other professing Christians have been commanded or taught anywhere in the New Testament to harm much less kill a brother that differs doctrinally with you or is sinning. The only recourse we have for a biblically incorrect or sinning brother after attempts to gain his repentance taught by our Lord and His apostles is excommunication, avoidance and giving him over to Satan by declaration (Matthew 18:15-20; Romans 16:17-20; 1 Corinthians 5:1-13; 1 Timothy 1:18-20). Otherwise, the Lord will surely deal with such a one (Acts 5:1-11; 1 Corinthians 11:27-32; Hebrews 10:26-31).
Truly, how could anyone believe the God of all justice will somehow let the glaring sin of professing European Christians of the Reformation era along with their scattered guilty descendants beyond it pass that have murdered His faithful saints? He will not let them or other professing guilty Christians from any camp that murder His faithful ones escape (Isaiah 47; Jeremiah 50:8-16; Luke 18:1-8; Romans 2:1-11, 12:17-21; Galatians 6:7-8; James 5:1-6; Revelation 6:9-11, 17:5-6, 15-18:20)! And how can it really be believed that He will safely evacuate their unrepentant contemporary progeny from any form of suffering that has been foretold for followers of Christ until His return? You love the Lord? You will demonstrate it fully as all the other saints of history and our present time in days shortly to come (Acts 9:13-16; Philippians 1:27-30; Revelation 7:9-17).
1 You can view the fall 2012 magazine issue, Anabaptists: Patterns for Radical Discipleship and its articles at http://www.swbts.edu/southwesternnews/.
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