With the Lord, I find sadly humorous those professing Christian leaders that exalt and admire the Old Testament prophets for their at times very harsh rebuke of Israel in sin who then turn around and condemn the contemporary prophets in this New Testament era sent to them for so easily finding critical things to say about the churches in sin declaring, “God is about love.” Hypocrites! Most assuredly “God is love” (1 John 4:8, NKJV), but He is also holy, righteous and just and therefore, judges sin wherever it is found including among those who profess to know Him as His people (Hebrews 10:30-31).
It is because God loved Israel that He sent the prophets to warn them of His judgment for their sins if they might repent, but they did not (2 Chronicles 36:15-16). It is because God loves sinners that He sent Christ into the world to die for our sins so that those who believe might be removed from eternal condemnation on the condition of their continuing faith and mutual love motivated obedience (John 3:16-21, 5:24, 14:19-24; 1 John 3:4-9). Otherwise, there is no other remedy for practicing sinners whether they never place faith in Christ or “draw back” from it in disobedience (John 8:21-24; Hebrews 10:26-29, 35-39, NKJV). Even so, our gracious God is ready to forgive the repentant!
Not the proud man who stubbornly resists admitting he has been wrong, but it is the man who humbles himself in brokenness and repentance from his sins that enjoys God’s grace in forgiveness (Psalm 32:1-5, 51:16-17; Proverbs 3:34; Isaiah 57:15; James 4:4-10; 1 Peter 5:5-6). If you, Christian leader that is guilty, will not repent seeking to save face among other reasons in the flesh, be reminded that knowing the right thing to do, but refusing to do it is sin (James 4:17). Also, as you have no doubt proclaimed to others, pride and haughtiness precede destruction (Proverbs 16:18). Know too for a certainty that God has warned and called you to repentance through this His servant and yours in the 2013 blog series on worship and this edited epilogue He led me to post. As a result, I fulfill the ministry He in love for you called me to (Ezekiel 33:1-11; Romans 12:3-8; 2 Timothy 4:1-5)!
Originally Posted September 29, 2013
In wrapping up the series of blogs the Lord led me to write entitled, Worshipping God Without God beginning September 8, 2013 there were a number of things that were left unsaid that I now present in a series of short statements.
To the triune God, Maker of the heavens and the earth, my God, my hope, my joy and my life; to You be my heartfelt worship, praise and adoration for all of who You are and all of your goodness to me both now and forever--Amen! Father, there is no one greater! Lord Jesus, my Savior and Champion: how awesome You are and pleased I am to praise You forever as one eternally grateful for your work to save a wretch like me! Holy Spirit, my constant Companion and Helper: thank You for bringing the love of the triune God to me and making possible my expression of it back to You! O God, you deserve so much better than what You are being offered as worship from us on earth.
To my Jewish brothers in Christ for whom I rejoice and am well pleased to be among and share as a Gentile in God’s salvation through grace by faith effected as of a first priority for you (Romans 1:16): you are of God’s continuing elect of your people since the earliest Jewish disciples that have enjoyed the initial realization of His promises in Christ (Romans 11:1-15) who is the Son of God and David soon to return to sit on His throne at Jerusalem (Psalm 110:1-2; Matthew 22:41-46).
As He spoke to the woman at the well “salvation is of the Jews,” so is everything pertaining to it historically (John 4:22; Romans 9:1-5, NKJV) and in the prophetic future yet to be fulfilled through Christ that true worshippers among the Gentiles celebrate with you (Isaiah 49:22-23; Zechariah 8:20-23). To the extent this is not true among any Gentiles professing to be Christians, forgive their willful ignorance and very importantly, do not compromise what you know is right from God’s Word following after their corruptions especially in worship! Instead, you who have suffered double persecution, lead the way before us in what pleases God through your obedience as did your first century Jewish predecessors, the Lord’s apostles most prominent among them (Revelation 3:7-9).
To my white brothers especially of Conservative Evangelicalism who are guilty not as you judge, but God: loving me and all of your black brothers has not been given to you as an option by God. It is commanded! Therefore, all failure to love your brothers in the Body of Christ is willful disobedience. As a result, your covert racism toward black Americans (trotting all over the third world helping and taking pictures with Africans and other people of color does not remove your guilt) causes you not only to continue to offer up polluted worship to God that is rejected, but many professors of Christ among you have died and will die entering eternity without Him because of clinging to it (Matthew 7:21-23; 1 John 3:10-15).
Also, the love Christ commands is not to be just words spoken insincerely in theory, but backed up by deeds (1 John 3:16-24). Repent now so God may send Holy Ghost revival that will supply His love to the many cold, dead hearts unable to love your brothers of color as equals and on an equal basis as you love yourselves. Nevertheless, many that read this will perish refusing to obey the call to repentance because it is coming from a black man. Surely, God is wise in all of His ways (Proverbs 27:12)!
To my black brothers in all of the major denominations caught up in Christianity the religion of men passed down to you by your former masters who are guilty: you pride yourselves on being free from the control of white men. So then, who is now holding you captive to carry on all of your traditional practices that cancel out obedience to the Word of God as it is written and pollute your world renowned, enthusiastically offered worship to God; worship which only pleases you and those entertained by all of your performance not God? While it is true from God’s Word that “where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty” (2 Corinthians 3:17, NKJV), the Spirit will never sanction sin or lead God’s people to sin in offering worship polluted through disobedience (1 John 1:5-7).
If you are truly free in Christ, then realize you are free to serve Him faithfully and obediently as a lifestyle of worship as He requires and not just a Sunday only affair where performers help you get your happy on! Also, our Christian slave forefathers learned singing to God lifts burdened hearts not as some cathartic release induced by the singing itself, but through the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit in faith filled hearts fulfilling the words of Christ found in Matthew 11:25-30. Repent, therefore, from your “old time religion,” wicked ways practiced even on Sunday and any bitterness of heart toward your white brothers in Christ which has already sent many to Hell, so you may offer up an authentic worship to God (Mark 11:25-26; Hebrews 12:12-17).
Finally, to my sisters in Christ who are guilty especially those of my own race and culture that beyond question have all of the right stuff in spiritual fervor and leadership skills to lead anybody’s worship of God: repent and voluntarily relinquish your leading of the worship of the whole church! Remember the divine response to Miriam when she challenged the leadership calling of her brother, Moses, and Sapphira when she blindly followed in the sin of her husband (Numbers 12; Acts 5:1, 7-10).
Your fervor for God, desire and ability to lead His worship is not somehow wasted because He has not elected you to lead the whole church in usurpation of men whom He has chosen. Thinking like this comes from the sinful flesh; a desire to be seen and heard by mortal flesh rather than the eternal God who has put His holy fire in you and called you to honor Him first with submission in this present age (Luke 1:38)! It is not about you in performance, but it is about what God has required for His own worship (1 Corinthians 14:34-37).
As an aspiring great woman of God in the image of Christ, pleasing Him in love and obedience should be your highest concern (John 14:15). Stop letting Satan deceive you into believing out of a rebellious, worldly feminist disgruntlement that you are being short changed by glory hogging men that want the spotlight all to themselves. Woe to any man in the flesh that is doing this as a worship leader or preacher! Instead, like Miriam before her sin, joyfully lead your daughters as well as fellow sisters in the churches, prisons and scattered as lost sheep in the community who need your fervor for Christ and leadership among them (Exodus 15:20-21). Your faith, submission, self-control and service will be richly rewarded by the Lord here and now as well as eternally if you will obey!
God destroyed all of the former places He set apart to meet with Israel assembled to worship. Surely, someone will say, “That cannot happen to the churches since God treats them differently than He did Israel.” Does He? As the corrupt religious leaders of Israel did to no avail, so, those that practice Christianity the religion of men have also concocted doctrines that falsely guarantee them and their religious structures protection from divine judgment (Jeremiah 7:4). Another will ask, “If God is all that put out about it, why has He not been judging the churches guilty of practicing corrupt worship?” Hasn’t He though? His destroying judgment among the churches has gone forth through the centuries and intensifies going forward as I write about in this concluding, edited 2013 post.
Originally Posted September 22, 2013
It is of the most insidious heresies of Christianity in the midst of the dominating influence of Gentiles from the end of the first century until now; the teaching that somehow God treats the sins ancient Israel committed differently from Christians guilty of the same sins because the cross of Christ has removed believers from the place of judgment. Such a thing would be showing partiality which the Scriptures teach is sin and not found at all in God (Deuteronomy 10:17; Acts 10:34-35). This wrongheaded, arrogant, patently anti-Semitic attitude persists in spite of the fact Christians are warned in the New Testament not to go where Israel went since Israel’s sins and God’s response are purposely written as warnings to help us avoid making their mistakes to the end also of avoiding their consequences.
In their case, an elect remnant will recover from the consequences of disobedience and behold at last, the returning Christ Jesus who will bring them into the riches of the New Covenant to include worship of God in spirit and truth (Isaiah 1:7-9, 10:20-23, 59:20; Romans 11:23-26). In our case, the consequences of disobedience that there is no recovery from without repentance now are more severe because we have the written warnings, the New Covenant in Christ’s blood, His instruction on worship, greater responsibility for obedience and no excuse since the Holy Spirit lives in us (Luke 12:47-48; 1 Corinthians 10:1-11; Hebrews 3:7-19, 10:14-18, 26-31,12:12-17)!
Tragically, it is apparent that God’s response of judgment upon polluted worship in Israel in the Old or of Christians in the New Testaments respectively has not borne its purposeful fruit to instruct and warn since I and others continue to cry out against the widespread scandal called “worship” in the churches to this day. For as He did in the Old Testament by making a perpetual example of Aaron’s two sons with their “profane fire” in the early days of Israel, so, in the early days of the Church the Lord made an example of Ananias and Sapphira putting them to death for the sin of lying about their gift only He knew about or do not most pastors to this hour teach “giving is an act of worship,” (Acts 5:1-11)? Again, is it not written our Lord taught, “true worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and truth,” (John 4:23, NKJV)?
But the appropriate response of fear in the Jerusalem church did not last long or spread far. Men went on to practice all manner of sin and sought to hypocritically pretend devotion to God which He also judged during the apostolic period and continues to judge or where are the churches of Asia Minor (1 Corinthians 5:1-13, 10:14-22; 11:17-34; Colossians 2:16-23; James 2:1-13; 2 Peter 2:1-3; Revelation 2:1-6,12-16, 18-23, 3:1-3, 14-20)?
With the rise of manmade Christianity the religion after the passing of the apostles and among predominantly Gentiles, all manner of corruptions such as the worship of relics, images and persons (alive on earth and deceased) other than the Lord were introduced in rank idolatry. As well, sinful flesh driven programmed and packaged worship services complete with incense, the formal service of male priests, expensively ornate pageantry, invented traditions and rituals not commanded in the New Testament were also introduced into what became the Catholic Church headquartered at Rome by the 4th century. An Eastern offshoot called itself Orthodox but retained all of the outward religious formality of Western Catholicism as did other traditions in North and East Africa for example, along with many Protestant churches after the failed 16th century Reformation attempt by disaffected Catholic priest, Martin Luther.
All of the major branches of Christianity the religion of men have their hands stained with the blood of God’s prophets, faithful saints and many people through murderous worldly intrigue and biblically unsanctioned wars to add to their countless wicked and perverted deeds in similitude to Israel. These Christian religionists to this hour supposedly offer what they want all to believe is worship accepted by God; worship that has initially among Protestants the last fifty years included a growing number of women as leaders--a corruption ancient Israel was never guilty of.
Before there was a formal religious organization in Israel, no woman is recorded in the Bible leading the family worship and conducting sacrifices to God, only men (Genesis 4:3-5, 8:20, 12:7, 26:24-25, 33:18-20). When Israel worshipped God appropriately the men as His chosen leaders always led; no women were ever priests in accord with divine decree (Exodus 29:9). And though she as the sister of Moses and a prophetess held leadership rank, Moses led the worship of God by the whole nation assembled after the Red Sea miracle while Miriam led only the women (Exodus 15:1-18, 20-21). Women sang in the choirs of Israel, but none ever served as the worship leaders--a job reserved exclusively for the Levite men (1 Chronicles 9:33-34, 15:1-28; 25:1-8; 2 Chronicles 29:20-30; Nehemiah 7:4-7, 39-67, 11:22-23).
The Lord Jesus nor His apostles changed what is clearly God’s will and pattern from creation that men lead the family and corporate worship out of their leadership role and responsibilities before Him (Genesis 2:7, 21-23, 3:16b; 1 Timothy 2:12-14). Even Christianity the religion of men in all of its manifestations around the earth and many corruptions honored the will of God that men only stand before Him as the leaders of worship until the 20th century. What changed? Not God! But many male pastors have changed for whatever all of the unbiblical reasons and women in disobedience lead the worship of God without God as the result in their churches.
Therefore, the God who shows no partiality and severely judged Israel for her sins before the whole world so that even the wicked at sane moments have marveled at their millennia long travail, has begun the foretold latter day terminal judgment within professing Christianity in like manner over what will be a much shorter time frame--you do not really believe He has forgotten about or overlooked the sins and bloody hands of Christianity the religion of men do you?
Within sixty years as time is reckoned both in a twenty-four and sixteen hour day (Revelation 8:12), the Lord will complete the total destruction of Christianity the religion of men on the earth and recovery of elect Israel which was scattered in 70AD in accord with His written prophetic Word plainly displayed (Psalm 90:4; Hosea 5:14-6:3; 2 Peter 3:8). Thus, those with eyes to see already see the holy contempt for the corrupt practices and worship of long standing traditions of Christianity the religion of men manifest itself in the steady deaths of Western churches as well as in the Middle East, North and East Africa with those called Christians being scattered and the destruction of their places of worship that will never be permanently rebuilt.
Yes, this is also persecution of the righteous remnant in the midst who are on the Lord’s side through obedience to His Word and warned to expect this in these latter days (Matthew 10:22-25). As were the conditions for the first through the third century believers who offered a pure worship under the persecution of Rome (Acts 16:16-25), so it will be again and worse for the righteous remnant globally until the Lord appears (Revelation 13, 14:9-13, 16:15, 19:11-20:6). We do pray for the strength of our faithful brethren.
However, there comes a certain point also in the face of known divine displeasure and coming judgment when the righteous are warned to depart from among the evildoers--Jewish Christians fled Jerusalem in droves as the Lord directed when the Roman army advanced to lay siege to it (Jeremiah 50:8-10, 51:1-10, 45-48; Luke 21:20-24; Revelation 18:1-8). Such is presently the case as the Lord in earnest carries out the foretold judgment on His house which will eventually come to all of the churches on the earth and finally “The Mother Of Harlots,” the seat of Christianity the religion of men at Rome (1 Peter 4:17-18; Revelation 14:8, 16:17-19, 17:1-19:4, NKJV).
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