The condition the church is in – Is it The Bible  you learn from?

When a good portion of the church cannot distinguish from a false teacher or prophet and those who speak from the word of God accurately, we are in trouble spiritually.

Even Balaam heard the Lord tell him to give God’s people (Israel) a blessing and tried to disobey. But today the Balaam’s do not hear the donkey, and they certainly don’t bless God’s people but only take what they want.

You can’t keep up with all the false teachers produced under the discipleship of the other more well known false teachers. It is seasonal, they have become like rabbits reproducing. How many people can we write on that teach the same errors? Yes, they deliver it in a different manner or use different words or methods, but it is nearly all the same. Nothing is new under the sun.

People cannot tell the difference between someone using the Bible for self and are lying or preaching the Bible in truth, allowing it to do the work in an individual’s heart by the Spirit.

Rev. 2:15-17 Thus you also have those who hold the doctrine of the Nicolaitans, which thing I hate. Repent , or else I will come to you quickly and will fight against them with the sword of My mouth.  He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”

 You have allowed these men to rule over you as if Christ is not your mediator!

They want a pastor like the world has a CEO, give us Saul Israel cried out, a ruler like the other nations. Business and Politics instead of shepherds is what we have now.

We must be relevant, or become relevant, make the stories relevant. Not realizing that substituting the word of God, no longer empowered by the Spirit becomes irrelevant when they do this!

The music must be professionally done. It’s pleasant to hear harmonized voices praise the Lord, but this music sings songs like the world so the people will not be uncomfortable.

They turn down the lights to darken the church as if they are having a séance to contact the spirit. At the same time you can’t read your bible in the place that it is to have priority in. Some make it easier to have you not bring your Bible and have what they want you to hear on a screen.

They remove any cross out of the building, whether it’s on the pulpit, or on a picture. They even object hearing of the cross but the saved rejoice at it.

The people are taught they are like Jesus in nature, they believe and live as if they have the exact same power of Jesus. Have you seen anyone curse a tree? Or bless food to an increase to feed thousands? Call them over the next time you have a flat tire and see what power they have with their words.

The Bible is protein to your spirit, but so many are fed empty nourishment, chaff. This is done through what they claim is a new word from God, new revelation. I constantly hear of “new” words the spirit is saying to the churches. People cannot tell the difference between someone using the Bible for a new revelation and preaching from the Bible the truth.

Both rhema and logos are written words in Scripture. There is no reason to accept one as superior to the other. rhema is used approximately 26 times in the New Testament, compared to the logos being used over 500 times.  Peter uses both the logos and the rhema interchangeably for the Word of God. 1 Peter 1:23 Peter states we were born again through “the living (logos) word” and v.25 states, “the Word (rhema) of the Lord abides forever.” Peter tells us we have a more sure word of prophecy [that is the logos] (2 Peter 1:19).

Hebrews states, the word of God is living and powerful--this word is the logos. “In John 1 the Word that is God is not rhema, but logos. Logos is the Word of God used from Genesis to Revelation. Only the logos is applied to Jesus, (the word). Peter also writes of Christ being the chief cornerstone “They stumble, being disobedient to the Word, to which they also were appointed.” The Word that many stumble over and are disobedient to is the logos.

When our spiritual walk and understanding are guided by the Rhema, fresh “words from the Lord” and “new revelation,” we become dependent on particular men and meetings, not God. When the Word of God is substituted to follow other men’s words, you begin to lose any spiritual understanding you had of the Word.

You do not need to seek “A new Word” given through someone when you know THE WORD, start listening to Jesus.

Some go to church as if every service something is to be happening; a new prophecy, a healing, a miracle. God needs to wow us by His power. Real spirituality is not a roller coaster ride. Ps.86:11; 2 Jn.2 walk in the spirit that where we find contentment, peace.

If we would walk in truth maybe we would see something happen from God that would stun us all but in the meantime we can all be happy with the Devil causing a ruckus in the church, at least something is going on (AKA Rodney Browne)

The book of Acts is NOT about the power of the church producing miracles (go find them).  Its correct name is called the Acts of the Apostles. It traces the missionary journeys of them planting churches and returning to them on a secondary journey. Paul teaches of gifts within the local bodies yet we do not see anyone else but apostles raise the dead, they sent for Peter when someone died, they did not do this themselves. When people tell you thaey can teach how to use miracle gifts or how to raise the dead, run from them.

What is the church being taught about their Lord and savior?

These new churches have made the most important relationship we have as the horizontal, with people, and not vertical with God first. Matt 22:36-40 Jesus said to him, "You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.'   This is the first and great commandment And the second is like it: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'   On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets."

It’s not 613 commandments, not 10 either (both of the Old covenant).  If you are willing to serve Jesus over man you will be rejected by these churches but acceptable to God. That is loving God, that is doing His will. The church is to meet the needs, not from the pulpit necessarily but from body ministry. It should flow naturally if the Spirit is among the people working. When it is not working they appoint committees and make ministries as a substitute.

In these churches the important people to the pastor are launched into ministry, not those who have the actual spiritual ability. If they can clean the bathroom, be a gopher the pastor sees that they can serve HIM.

Want to find your purpose, your ministry? Pick up your cross and die to self, become other centered. God prepares us for the ministry and the ministry for us. Make the Lord your chief shepherd, (pastor) and have him lead you through the wilderness. Our strength comes out from our weakness. Our human strength cannot be used of God until we die to it and allow God to resurrect it for His purpose.

Yes, the church is in decline yet at the same time there are many hungry and are growing that want to serve and do ministry.

You don’t necessarily get the truth from the preachers behind the pulpits. So where does one go to hear it?

We need to learn doctrine, principles. For example you can’t take a rare miracle and say it is commonplace or have miracles that are not mentioned in the Bible. If people were put through a Biblical foundation class on the faith we would not have the condition in the church. The reason the church cannot change direction is because there is so much corruption and we do not want to deal with it.

They have abrogated the responsibility to expose the unfruitful works of darkness. The church can change to be more of what it is expected to be, but we must first decide what is biblical and what is not and secondly decide what our mission is. Without these two points settled nothing will change.

The reason apologetics only gets through to the few is because most people do not know doctrine, they don’t understand what we are saying because they can’t think doctrinally. We may as well be speaking a different language that is un-interpreted. Many pastors today are dysfunctional in how they deal with new people in Christ, especially those who are set free from cults and the new age movement. I know this personally.

When leaven spreads, it is quick. It is like what takes place in the media. If you do not hear or watch both sides the news you believe can be lies. That is what takes place with false teaching in our day. It is disseminated quicker than good teaching.

1 Thess. 5:5-6 You are all sons of light and sons of the day. We are not of the night nor of darkness. Therefore let us not sleep, as others do, but let us watch and be sober.”

1 Thess. 5:8 But let us who are of the day be sober.”

1 Peter 1:13 Therefore gird up the loins of your mind, be sober.” To be sober means one is awake, attentive, not drunk in the spirit. Some have never stopped drinking bad wine.

The church hates apologists that point to things wrong on the inside, they insist to look outward and disregard what is closest to home. Therein lies the problem. Church has come against ministries that are willing to be a help to the people, People that they themselves do not help. Yet they complain about those who do ministry outside their jurisdiction. As if we are breaking some law of God not to have their permission.

 The Real Jesus does not make you comfortable, he is not about making you successful or rich, but honest and have integrity, to fix what is wrong. He asks us to be sacrificial to help others by serving them. It’s a matter of your heart to listen to him or others leading you astray.