On this Palm Sunday 2016, the Lord has directed me to repost this edited 2013 blog that as it turns out was a prelude to important posts on apostasy He led me to make in February 2014. After reading this blog, I encourage you to follow it up by reading “The Falling Away” and “The Man Of Sin” under the category, Bible Prophecy as well as “Is There No King Among Us” under the category, Call To Repent. Concerning this repost, I am certain that in the midst of all the outward display of religiosity by professing Christians beginning today through this upcoming Resurrection Sunday--my 39th spiritual birthday, the Lord is giving us a reality check (Luke 6:43-45). Hear the Word of the Lord! In honor of the occasion, this post will stand until a new one is made on April 3rd. Hosanna!
Originally Posted March 24, 2013
It is Palm Sunday 2013 and who could have imagined that a major issue in the churches of Jesus Christ at this hour is the rising tide of apostasy in Western Christianity? Contrary to the position of some that Christian apostasy is impossible, the Bible not only says it is possible, but foretells it with deceit as among the evil features of these latter days before the return of the Lord (Matthew 24:3-4, 9-10; 2 Thessalonians 2:1-4; 1 Timothy 4:1-2). Now, if God in His Word says something is not only possible, but will occur, what man is there filled with the Holy Spirit and coming to Scripture ready to be taught solely by what it says that will teach otherwise?
The same Scripture teaches only men devoid of the Holy Spirit or quenching His fire that come to the Word with their minds already made up, who refuse to accept its teaching and impose on its sacred verses their own doctrines will teach other than what is written. These are impostors, false prophets and teachers, carnal men and apostates walking about in cynical unbelief creating divisions; men of which as well are members of Christianity the religion’s educated elite who arrogantly exalt and cite themselves as wise authorities and blindly lead one another into the ditch of divine displeasure (Matthew 15:12-14, 24:11; 1 Corinthians 1:10-13, 3:1-4, 18-23; 2 Peter 2; Jude 3-19).
For the sake of clear biblical definition, apostasy is in subsequent unbelief to willfully forsake, turn from following, deny or renounce the Lord or the faith outright or to practice sin without repentance after having first truly believed (Ezekiel 18:24-26; Mark 8:34-38; Titus 1:10-16; Hebrews 3:5-19). It is silly to interpret Bible passages that speak of apostasy as referring only to persons that never believed and are later exposed as impostors. An impostor is a fraudulent pretender from beginning to end, while Scripture teaches the apostate actually believed God’s message and enjoyed its fruit but after a time, completely turned from Him and His Word in unbelief. The only things the impostor and the apostate share in common are unbelief and where they will spend eternity after the judgment of God (Luke 12:42-46; Romans 11:19-22; Hebrews 6:4-8, 10:26-31).
Apostates are of two kinds: willful and de facto. One that is willful openly turns from the Lord. A de facto apostate is one such as the apostle Paul refers in Titus 1:15-16 that professes with his mouth to know God, but actually denies Him by his corrupt doctrines and unrepentant lifestyle. To this hour, such have been the greater number of apostates since the first century who discover too late in Hades that God does not judge us by a one-time profession of faith, but by deeds that demonstrate faith’s continuing vitality in and to the end of our lives (Matthew 24:13; Romans 1:16-17, 2:5-11; 1 Corinthians 6:9-11; Galatians 5:19-21, 6:7-8; Hebrews 3:5-6, 14, 10:35-39; James 2:14-26).
The tide of apostasy in Western Christianity has been slowly rising for the last five centuries since the failed reformation attempt of Catholicism and splinter groups of every kind formed under the umbrella of Protestantism. All manner of heretical instruction has infiltrated the post-Reformation daughter churches of Catholicism not just by patently false uncredentialed teachers, but as already mentioned, those calling themselves scholars, theologians--the religious educated elite.
As the Lord leads me to discuss in the final chapter of my book, The Strong Man Of God: Back To Basics directed to pastors and churches, the last hundred years have been especially devastating in the churches as under the guise of academic freedom and theological discourse, proud professionals as cynical unbelievers and de facto apostates have churned out or upheld any number of false, confusing and conflicting doctrines in a not so funny comedy of errors that often has persisted even after being challenged. As I point out in my book, for example, this evil state of affairs has led to churches not upholding the biblical worldview of marriage, family and men as God’s appointed leaders.
Now, with worldly political correctness, tolerance, truth and moral relativity added to the mix in the churches along with related entities, there is a free for all where men and women with credentials from esteemed institutions hold any viewpoint and spout any kind of doctrine that can no longer be challenged from the Word of God because that is his or hers expertly held personal theology. Those that challenge these de facto apostates anyway in earnestly contending for the faith are considered intolerant, divisive, out of touch and “holier than thou.”
Meanwhile, willful apostates are not only found in the Bible colleges and seminaries of Western Christianity, but in steady increase church pulpits. This growing apostasy will continue to flower until it reaches the near at hand foretold culminating event in the face of severe global persecution and before the Antichrist’s appearing followed gloriously by the Day of the Lord (2 Thessalonians 2:3)!
Freedom from the ties of sin and at the root, the continuing mental and emotional legacies of slavery and racism is supposed to be the desired in process reality of every black American that becomes an authentically born again Christian and most assuredly all who serve us as leaders in our churches. This is so because freedom by and through Christ is the perfect will of God in His redemption plan for all sinners (Luke 4:18; 2 Corinthians 3:17)! Thus, to resist God’s will to be free from all satanic ties that bind the soul out of whatever motives is willful sin. Practicing sin always dulls the spiritual senses and deceitfully hardens the heart (Matthew 13:10-17; Hebrews 3:7-13).
Professing Christians bound by sin and Satan leads to the substitute and inferior practice of manmade religion, its traditions and rituals in their churches (2 Timothy 3:1-9). Youth are scarce in them and prisons full of our men with their names on the rolls because it is not enough to say “come to church” or therein, “the doors of the church are open” if manmade religion is all that is offered since it is powerless to save or give real spiritual help to anybody. Christ alone saves and in relationship with Him men are delivered through the transforming power of God’s Word and Spirit! And as we mature in Christ as aspiring strong men of God, we come to a biblical understanding of and right attitude about the troubles of this world which include continuing struggles with racism (John 16:33).
Rather than taking refuge in churches and attempting to escape through the practice of manmade religion, in God’s perfect will we emerge from them into the world as His eternal sons, disciples and servants to first overcome it in Christ (1 John 5:4-5)! For we know with certainty the troubles, difficulties, hardships, adversities, persecutions and afflictions of this world as God’s workmen are working together for our good; conforming us to the image of Christ in nature, character and demeanor (Romans 5:1-5, 8:28-29).5 Second, overcoming (instead of being overcome by) the world in Christ, we serve His cause and fellow man in the Gospel; preaching and giving witness to the divine call to salvation, liberty and victory to set others free (Luke 11:23)!
Tragically though, here is where most professing Christian black Americans and pastors bound by sin and Satan take their leave because of cynical unbelief, practiced disobedience to God’s Word and with anger, other root ties like entitling victimization which rise up to exert a tightening tug of pressure on their minds and hearts. Having been here, done this over thirty years, now, many are even angry at me for telling the truth and want me to shut up and go away--would to God I could! But His love will not let me go seeing as it is He that persists in calling after the many to repent before it is too late in spite of our false and hypocritical claim to innocence in victimization while steadfastly pointing an accusing finger at whites for their sins (Romans 1:18-2:4).
Supposedly being so spiritual, do we not grasp that to claim innocence before God as a victim all the way back to Africa is to call Him a liar? Or what part of “There is none righteous…none who seeks after God…none who does good,” and “all have sinned” in the divine assessment of all humanity do we not get or think applies to us (Romans 3:10-12, 23)? But someone will say, “Whatever our African forefather’s sins, they did not deserve what we got!” Biblical Christianity says such a one is right! Neither our forefathers nor we have gotten what we deserved for our sins which is immediate and eternal death (Ezekiel 18:4)! Professing Christians and pastors that choose victimization assure they will remain slaves to sin and bound by Satan with worsening consequences (Luke 11:24-26).
Truly, the sins of the many satanically bound pastors have not gone unnoticed by the Most High. Only because of His longsuffering forbearance and deference to the faithful reaching back to slavery has He not until now carried out a more severe judgment on you for especially the arrogance of changing the order of His house to put women over men as His appointed leaders done in rank rebellion and out of a satanically twisted sense of fairness hatched from victimization (1 Timothy 2:11-15, 4:1-2). Already--as the Lord has led me to declare to all of the churches, the latter day judgment of His house is underway (Ezekiel 12:21-28). As I am a witness, predominantly black American churches; those old time houses of refuge are dying right along with those from other ethnicities.
Therefore, because the relative few pastors and churches among black Americans on the front lines proclaiming the tie breaking message of the Gospel and doing related service in the community (I praise God for you!) cannot do it all and the remaining messengers are bound up and sheltered in place unless they repent, the foretold spiral of our community to disastrous ruin is unavoidable. For apart from God’s help in the Gospel, Word and Holy Spirit, there are no other viable answers or appointed messengers! To the glory of the sovereign God, the ruin occurs in the gracious aftermath of the clearly unheard of divine miracle that had those who first oppressed our forefathers in slavery also provide them with the key to freedom in the Gospel as the Lord led me to write in a 2003 Journal.6
Yes, my God has marvelously done and does His part so that no one as a victim blames Him on Judgment Day (Romans 2:5-11; Revelation 20:11-15). So, because the many were not willing to let go of their anger and victimization as only two of many root ties by which Satan binds them and instead, let God receive glory through them as Christ’s victors in our historical experience as a witness to the world, the opportunity will shortly be lost forever (Hosea 4:1-10)! In the day of ruin, it will be painfully seen that churches as a house of refuge without sanction from God are utterly worthless like rotten and wormy manna.
Too, in the day of ruin it will be seen that churches are not the real place of refuge any way for they shall be destroyed; it is and always has been God Himself (Psalm 32:6-7, 90:1, 91:1-2; Hebrews 6:16-20)! Likewise, the Promised Land for us never was this present world. It is the eternal Kingdom of God come in and coming with Christ of which the faithful and free in Him eat now of its sweet produce while we wait patiently by faith for His appearing (Joshua 5:10-12; John 18:36; 2 Corinthians 1:20-22; Galatians 5:22-23; Philippians 3:20-21; 2 Thessalonians 1:3-12; Revelation 11:15)!7
5 Again, in a sermon over fifty years old entitled, Shattered Dreams preserved in written form by the book, Strength To Love, Dr. King affirms the advantage we Christians have through faith in our God to cope victoriously with the disappointments and manifold struggles of this life, p. 87-97.
6 Read this Journal at https://fromslaverytovictory.org/Journal-Sept-2003.
7 Help us reach out with God’s call to freedom in the Gospel and biblical manhood instruction by sending my book, The Strong Man Of God: Back To Basics to over
800 prisons. Go to https://thestrongmanofgod.org/Give.
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