We are living in some rather unusual times. The Age of Reason is over, and the Age of Mysticism and Spiritism has begun. It is no longer Charles Darwin and Stoics who assault the Church, but the mystical philosophies and practices of the East. The world at large is becoming spiritualist, the supernatural is now the focus, and in sense of irony, the Church is become intellectualized and a harbor or moseleum for the Age of Reason. In a bizaree twist, when Darwin and the skeptics made war on God, the Church remained spiritual, holding fast in prayer and the power of God. Now as mystical powers arrive from India to Indonesia, the Church intends to fight with reason, and it shall lose. As the old adage goes, "fight fire with fire," so it must be in this age of spiritsm. But many of the churches in the West have submitted to Minerva and Reason based tactics. The problem is that the war has shifted from arguments to angels, we are at war with unseen forces now (Ephesians 6:12), powers in this present darkness, and you cannto argue with them, you must fight them with weapons of warfare (2 Corinthians 10:4); with prayer, and gifts of the Spirit, and ultimately Christ Jesus our King and General.
Something has happened to the Church in the West. It has become like whitewashed tombs (Matthew 23:27-28). Where once the thriving heart beat of Holy Spirit resided, now there is hollow rooms full of hardened souls. The Holy Spirit is not permitted to enter, He is barred from moving, and Gifts remain covered on cobwebs (1 Corinthians 12:4-11), and prayer too is shelved when it is chiefest of concerns for a Church (1 Timothy 2:1-2). Even more disturbing Jesus should he knock at the doors of these churches, would find himself locked out of the doors, His attire not to the liking of torn jeans, crocodile shoes, and the new haircuts of today. Christ would find His own words absent from the inner sanctuary, as sswaths of His Scripture are either burchered or ignored altogether, How do pastors and profession priest ignore Christ command to let no servant of His be called such titles "But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brothers. And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven. Do not let yourselves be called leaders or teachers; for One is your Leader (Teacher), the Christ. But the greatest among you will be your servant." (Matthew 23:7-11) and what is to be said of Christ rejecting his own family (Mark 3:21, 31-35) and even promising to bring sword between families?, "Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword. I have come to set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. man's enemies will be the members of his own household.' If you love your father or mother more than you love me, you are not worthy of being mine; or if you love your son or daughter more than me, you are not worthy of being mine. Whoever does not take up their cross and follow me is not worthy of me." (Matthew 10:34-38). Jesus is clearly saying you will come to place where you have to choose Him or your family (if they aren't going to choose Him too), He is speaking of if you must decide between Him or family you must choose Him. The terms of His "deny youself, pick up your cross, and follow me," seem to be swallowed up in prosperity teaching. I imagine if Christ did not arrive in golden chariot or Lamb-rogini, and enter the church building and adhere to norms of services today; He would be asked to leave; sadly He knocks at church doors, and there is no stirring.
Jesus promised that in last days love would grow cold (Matthew 24:12), and already love is growing cold in churches today. For while congregations wish to boast of their contributions to Haiti and distant refugees, they neglect the brethren in their own cloisters who are suffering, something that Jesus chastised the Pharisees for, "What sorrow awaits you teachers of religious law and you Pharisees. Hypocrites! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore the more important aspects of the law--justice, mercy, and faith. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others," (Matthew 23:23), and "A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so also you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another." (John 13:34-35). The Church is growing cold in West, its love becoming nothing but stone symbol, a statue that is lifeless and memorial of what once was; perhaps this is why Christ said, "When I return will I find faith?" (Luke 18:8); for faith is a member of love, "Three things will last forever--faith, hope, and love--and the greatest of these is love," (1 Corinthians 13:13), "But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!," (Galatians 5:22-23), "If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am a noisy gong or a clanging cymbal. If I had the gift of prophecy, and if I understood all of God's secret plans and possessed all knowledge, and if I had such faith that I could move mountains, but didn't love others, I would be nothing," (1 Corinthians 13:1-2); for Christ showed us love, "But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. And not only this, but we also exult in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation," (Romans 5:8-11), and God is love, "Beloved, let us love one another, because love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. But anyone who does not love does not know God, for God is love. God showed how much he loved us by sending his one and only Son into the world so that we might have eternal life through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another." (1 John 4:7-11). And yet the halls of churches are cold, lifeless, and dead; generations flee it for they find no warmth their of God's Spirit, nor His love, and justice. As a result churches are beginning to lose membership, and attendance, because the Church is the universal body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12:27-28), not a building and country club that it has been demoted to since Constantine the Great. Oh Christ knocks at the doors O Church, and He says, "But I have this complaint against you. You don’t love me or each other as you did at first! Look how far you have fallen! Turn back to me and do the works you did at first. If you don’t repent, I will come and remove your lampstand from its place among the churches." (Revelation 2:4-5). Open wide the gate to our Lord, and let the Spirit, the Comforter, the Holy Ghost, glide into your hearts and minds, manifesting in healings, prophecies, and more ().
The Reason (intellect) the church is preserving in its halls cannot fight the tide of mysticism that is here now, nor is it a reason that anyone will stay. For reason and intellect can be replicated, and God does not have to show up; to this I ask, if church goers are content for God not to show up, for liturgy or a meeting and service to go on without His presence, then what is point? The point of meeting was to connect with Christ manifestly, and let God's Spirit descend on the faithful, and move in will of the Father. Alas, like Pharisees many are content to have the law, and not their Lord at church service, or worse, they delight in a teacher rather than The Teacher Christ (Matthew 23:7-11). O woe to you my Western brethren, for Jesus is locked outside the door, the Holy Spirit is hindered by proud men, and the Father and His throne does not descend as unto Ezekiels because the church is content to be distant, and to worship the doctrines of men, "These people honor Me with their lips, but their hearts are far from Me, Their worship is a farce, for they teach man-made ideas as commands from God," (Matthew 15:8-9), "They worship Me in vain; they teach as doctrine the precepts of men, You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men," (Mark 7:7-8), "They will act religious, but they will reject the power that could make them godly. Stay away from people like that!," (2 Timothy 3:5), "These have indeed an appearance of wisdom in promoting self-made religion and asceticism and severity to the body, but they are of no value in stopping the indulgence of the flesh," (Colossians 2:23), "For a time is coming when people will no longer listen to sound and wholesome teaching. They will follow their own desires and will look for teachers who will tell them whatever their itching ears want to hear. They will reject the truth and chase after myths," (2 Timothy 4:3-4), and, "Now the Holy Spirit tells us clearly that in the last times some will turn away from the true faith; they will follow deceptive spirits and teachings that come from demons," (1 Timothy 4:1).
How long O Church will you shut God out and let doctors of philosophy, and theology lull you to sleep? They may know some things, but knowing Christ personally matters more (John 17:3, Many will say Lord Lord verse). Are we really at placei n Western Church that we are content for God to not show up? For Christ to remain outside the door, knocking, while men go on with their prattle, pontifications, and pious platitudes? Are we not to invite Immanuel in, God with us? O woe, woe to you Western Churches that think your generous offerings of tithes and offerings amount to anything while you refuse to love your borthers and sisters who sit in hosptials, and other dire need, "What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? Suppose you see a brother or sister [in Christ, see Matthew 23:7-11] who has no food or clothing, and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well”—but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do?" (James 2:14-16), and, "Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you," (James 1:27). The first on our list that should be helped is believers who are widows and orphans, not strangers in distant countries! Our witness and love is growing cold, and yielding no fruit, because Jesus said, "the world will know you are my disciples by your love for one another." (John 13:35 NLT). Instead, churches are content to help people they do not even know, and let those they know wallow in debts from crises, and other struggles.
It's time to wake up and save what remains, "I know all the things you do, and that you have a reputation for being alive—but you are dead. Wake up! Strengthen what little remains, for even what is left is almost dead. I find that your actions do not meet the requirements of my God. Go back to what you heard and believed at first; hold to it firmly. Repent and turn to me again. If you don’t wake up, I will come to you suddenly, as unexpected as a thief," (Revelation 3:1-3), and for those who think wealth is a sign of holiness and devotion to Christ, "I know all the things you do, that you are neither hot nor cold. I wish that you were one or the other! But since you are like lukewarm water, neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of my mouth! You say, ‘I am rich. I have everything I want. I don’t need a thing!’ And you don’t realize that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked. So I advise you to buy gold from me—gold that has been purified by fire. Then you will be rich. Also buy white garments from me so you will not be shamed by your nakedness, and ointment for your eyes so you will be able to see. I correct and discipline everyone I love. So be diligent and turn from your indifference." (Revelation 3:15-19). Its time to let the Holy Trinity come back into Church. It is time to answer Christ's knock, to let Holy Spirit speak and move in sanctuary again, and to listen our Father in Heaven. We cannot go on like this, there is mass exodus of Millenials and Generation Y, who are fet up with empty pious rituals, and who want a touch of God. I think building shall soon fall, the last aritifce of Constantine, and we will be in home churches again. To this I pray, let us be Christians not only in word, but in deed, let us radiate Christ's love to our brother and sister Christians. Lets answer the knock of Christ, and start knockin on doors of fellow Christians, showing them love, hospitality, and offering help. Amen.
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