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A Heart Issue



There is an epidemic sweeping through the Church today. This pestilence is heartlessness. There is local Church in my town that I have attended on and off for fifteen years. It has gone through many changes, but there is one recurring problem that has never been resolved. At this Church intellect is supreme and theology is elaborate, but there is no heart. You are not cared for or receive the feeling that people genuinely love you. You are treated like a commodity, a human doing rather than human being made in image of God. I wish I could say this was an issue found in only one church, but I'm finding it everywhere I go. It seems Christians have bitten the forbidden fruit of humanism. Believers have become so self focused that they are becoming incapable of showing compassion or truly caring for others. This is a major problem because a major pillar of the Christian Faith is to "treat people the way you want to be treated." (Luke 6:31).

So why have churches become crypts? Why has "love waxed cold?" The answer lies in Matthew 6:24, people love Mammon (the god of money) more than Christ. Believers today profess on Sundays that they are Followers of Christ; that they aim to be like the Lord. But at the same time they make deals and run the Faith like a business. This is the corruption in churches today. Most churches are built on a business model, with pastors being CEOS and the Flock being the investors. It is then not all too surprising that the Church is failing to win souls or to enlighten saints. If you merge the Kingdom Plan with the Mammon Plan you get what is "lukewarm" and Jesus says, "I will spew the lukewarm out of my mouth." (Revelation 3:16).

Christians become ineffective and impotent because they serve two gods. If you make money a foundation of a church then you give Mammon influence and dominion. Granted, bills will need to be payed and electricity isn't free, but perhaps this is why the First Apostles and believers held church or fellowship in their homes. That way you aren't having to be sustained by tithes and thus eliminate the chance of Mammon getting a hold on the Flock. When I enter most churches these days, I feel like I've entered a bank. I'm asked to give a deposit for a withdrawal of God's Word or a nugget of wisdom from some clergyman. This is actually contrary to what the example of the Apostle Paul, "I present the gospel of Christ without charge (free of charge), that I many not abuse the authority in the gospel." (1 Corinthians 9:18). In fact, the Forefathers of the Faith had their own jobs on the side! Paul was a tent maker and Peter a fisherman! They didn't take money to spread the message of Salvation. The Gospel was meant to be free! Not ransomed for money!

I have had many conversations with young people and the consensus is that they love Jesus, but they aren't attending Church. I frankly don't blame them. I myself have ceased attending Church because I'm convinced It's not where I can freely move in the gifts of the Spirit that the Lord has given me. I however don't ignore the importance of gathering together with the saints, so I do seek out Bible Studies or other gatherings that aren't influenced by Mammon. In churches today your voice is blocked by an organized concert and speaker. It's like going to a political convention every weekend and sitting there to hear what the candidates of God have to say. The problem is the Kingdom of God is not politics, it's people; its relationships. The Temple is not some building crafted by men, but it is each and every Christian who carries Christ and the Spirit within them. (1 Corinthians 3:16, 6:19).

The Heart of Church needs a cardiologist and that person is Jesus Christ himself. It's time to let the Lord do some surgery on his children and restore the warmth that once surged through the arteries and veins. It's time for Christians to support each other and let that love for each other be so strong that it bares witness to the world that we are His disciples. (John 13:35). Like the Psalmist David, we need God to "create a clean heart in me (us) and renew a right spirit within me (us)." (Psalm 51:10).

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