Speak The Truth
I regularly read this ladies Blog. I love her heart for the Lord. I was deeply moved and convicted by this word. I pray that you are also. Lets welcome Dawn Hill to Grace for the Journey today!
Dearly Beloved,
This could open up a can of worms. With all humility, the can needs to be opened and we need to be stirred out of slumber and complacency. Opening up a can of worms is better than dwelling in a den of vipers. I pray that this would stir us to take spiritual inventory of ourselves and of the body at large and to make some distinctions in this hour of the real body of Christ. Some will say that I am embittered and speaking out of turn, but as a disciple of Jesus Christ and a member of the body of Christ, I am grieved and hopeful at the same time. The truth of the Word of God and of the Holy Spirit will bring division and unity simultaneously, and unity in Spirit and in truth is desperately needed right now while removing the leaven. This may not get shared and it matters not to me. What matters is that we who have ears to hear awake and speak the truth. Not our truth, but the Truth. We need a holy indignation and a reverential fear to bring us to attention.
It does not take much effort to see scandal, deception, manipulation and perversion all around us, and sadly this is happening in the professed church. We are not called to judge the world though we are masters at that, but when sin is called out in the body in accordance with the plumb line of the Word of God and fruit is judged, individuals sounding the alarm are demonized and labeled as religious. The Word warns us about hidden reefs feasting among the body without fear, waterless clouds swept along by winds, fruitless trees in late autumn, twice dead, uprooted, wild waves of the sea casting up the foam of their own shame and wandering stars for whom the gloom of utter darkness has been reserved forever (Jude 12-13). Notice that this is not talking about the world but those professing God, those having a form of godliness but denying its power (2 Timothy 3:5). We all have religion whether we want to admit it or not. But pure religion is not legalism. Rather, it is pure worship unto the Lord. My God, may we embrace pure religion and right relationship with You, and may we open our Bibles so as to not be deceived!
Corporate gatherings are more about us than about God. We lift up hands that are to be holy to the sky as we sing songs that exalt self more than Christ. Worship is going inward and not upward. Messages and prophetic words lull us to sleep with sweet promises of personal vindication while suffering for the Gospel is eliminated with our spiritual Sharpie. You might think I am angry. Truth be told, I weep for the current state of the church. There is a longing in me to draw closer to Christ and with that intimacy comes the painful truth that death is expected in preparation for the abundant life: eternal life.
If I could present these questions to you with all sincerity, please consider these because saints, we need to wake up. When was the last time you heard a message about repentance and sin? When was the last time you saw an altar full of those crying out for salvation? When was the last time you heard a message about eternity and the judgment seat of Christ? Where is the reverential fear of the Lord? Where is the message of suffering for the sake of Christ? When was the last time you heard preaching that centered around Christ crucified and not self? Do you rely on a minister to tell you what the Bible says without reading it for yourself? Could you tell someone why you believe in Jesus Christ according to your faith and according to Scripture? There comes a point when things need to be asked and answered with honesty and transparency.
Here is the thing: Jesus is returning for a bride without spot or blemish, a bride cleansed by the washing of water with the Word (Ephesians 5:26). In the meantime, we are to demonstrate that purity. We are to utilize the gifts that we have been given by the Bridegroom through the Spirit and to continue in sanctification while preparing for His return. We are to glorify the Lord in all things. We are to emanate His nature. We are called to consecration. We are not called to make nice with darkness and to dim our light so as to not offend. We are not to give the appearance of evil nor give place to sin and immorality as the norm in the body of Christ. To do so produces tares, not wheat. We must walk the narrow way which leads to Christ. The leaven needs to be purged from the house of God.
I urge you to ask the tough questions and do a heart check in your walk with the Lord. I pray that we as the church would honor the Lord above anyone and anything and bring the Word back to its rightful place above a word. May things not of God be exposed in our midst so that individuals would recognize the mercies of the Lord extended to them and in turn, return reverence to God. May we not shy away from repentance and from the command to be holy as He is holy.
With the love of Christ,
-The Lovesick Scribe