Thursday, March 21,
2013, 6:46 a.m. – the Lord Jesus woke me with the song “He Gives Purpose” playing in my mind. Speak, Lord, for your
servant is listening. I read Jeremiah 23
(NIV): http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Jeremiah%2023&version=NIV
“Woe to the shepherds
who are destroying and scattering the sheep of my pasture!” declares the Lord.”
(cf. Ezekiel 34)
The shepherds referred to here are kings, rulers, civil
leaders and spiritual leaders. I see two main ways in which these shepherds
(and the ones today) destroyed and scattered the sheep of God’s/Christ’s
pasture (and are doing so today).
Oppression
There are sheep that these shepherds drive away. These are
the sheep who are following after Christ and the true gospel, who have
child-like faith eager to please their Lord Jesus in every way, but thus serve
as a threat to the kingdoms of men and their man-made religion. One pastor told
me that he was taught (not by God or by God’s word) to watch out for people who
might come into his church who have “strong convictions,” because they
potentially have their own agendas which may create divisions within the church.
This may or may not be true about people with “strong convictions.” A lot
depends on the convictions. So, I shared
with him the scripture in 1 Corinthians 12 where it says we are not to say to
another part of the body “I don’t need you!” And, I lovingly shared what the
Lord was teaching me through this passage of scripture. I received no response
from the pastor.
Desertion
There are sheep that the shepherds fail to give proper care
for. These shepherds are more focused on feeding and caring for themselves and
their own interests (building their own earthly kingdoms) than they are in
caring for the true spiritual needs of the people. In other words, these
shepherds are looking out for number one (themselves), and they will say
whatever the itching ears of the people want to hear instead of telling them
the truth of the gospel, because they want the people to like them and to keep
coming to their institutions of men. By doing so, they have not strengthened
the spiritually weak, or healed the hearts which are wounded by sin’s
deceitfulness, nor have they searched for the spiritually lost or backslidden Christians
in order to bring them to repentance and obedience to Christ.
And among the prophets
of Jerusalem
I have seen something horrible:
They commit adultery and live a lie.
They strengthen the
hands of evildoers,
so that not one of them turns from their
wickedness.
The “Prophets”
Personally I believe that we no longer have “prophets” in
the sense of those who once spoke God’s exact (God-breathed) words to the
people. Jesus Christ was the fulfillment of the law and the prophets, for they
all pointed to him. Now God speaks to us through his Son and his word. Yet, we,
who have trusted in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior of our lives, have the Son
within us in the person of the Holy Spirit, who still speaks to our hearts, and
who gives us words to speak in encouragement, counsel, teaching, instruction, in
sharing the gospel and discipleship. So, we are, in this sense, God’s
messengers, so it is imperative that we understand what scripture teaches so
that we can correctly handle the word of God.
So, in looking at God’s “messengers” today, which includes
all of us who give testimony to Jesus Christ and to the gospel of Jesus Christ,
we need to understand, Biblically speaking, what qualifies someone today as
speaking falsely.
“Do not listen to what
the prophets are prophesying to you;
they fill you with false hopes.
They speak visions
from their own minds,
not from the mouth of the Lord.
They keep saying to
those who despise me,
‘The Lord says: You will have peace.’
And to all who follow
the stubbornness of their hearts
they say, ‘No harm will come to you.’”
Those who speak falsely fill people’s minds with false
hopes. This is happening in today’s institutional church here in America in
sweeping numbers. A movement has swept across evangelical Christianity which
teaches faith in Jesus Christ absent of the cross of Christ in our lives, i.e.
minus repentance and a walk of obedience to Christ and to his commands. They
teach that all one has to do is “believe”, yet they give the impression that
believing is merely an emotional decision or an intellectual assent to what
Christ did for us, yet it does not teach death to our old way of living in sin
and for self, and it does not teach the necessity of a walk of faith and
obedience to Christ and to his commands.
They also teach that once you pray the prayer to receive
Christ that you now have your ticket into heaven, that no one can take it away,
and as an added bonus, you will be raptured out before the time when God visits
this earth in judgment. Yet, nothing is required other than an obscure
understanding of the word “faith.” One man told me one day: “I don’t have to
repent. I just have to believe.” That says a lot. Yet, scripture teaches that
repentance and obedience are indeed essential elements of saving faith (see
Eph. 4:17-24; Luke 9:23-25; Rom. 6; 1 John; Gal. 2:20; et al). So, anyone who
is teaching that repentance and obedience to Christ are not required for
salvation is teaching a lie and is giving people a false hope, and if they tell
people that God will not judge (discipline or correct) them, even though they
may be following the stubbornness of their own hearts, then they are, again,
filling the minds of people with false hope (see Rev. 2-3).
But if they had stood
in my council,
they would have proclaimed my words to my
people
and would have turned
them from their evil ways
and from their evil deeds.
Amen! The passage goes on to say that these false prophets
(messengers) declare their dreams (visions: ideas and thoughts) and goals
(purpose statements) that they create and think up in their own minds, and that
they also borrow from other messengers. Wow! Does this speak to today’s church!
This sweeping movement across evangelical Christianity in America not only
dilutes the gospel of Jesus Christ and does not turn people from their evil ways,
but it is man-made, created in the minds of men, and carbon-copied from one
church to another to another to another. Each has a “vision” and “purpose
statement” that they have decided is for their church and that everyone should
follow, and if you are not on board with them, then they suggest you go
someplace else where you can “fit in.” And, it is the same message from church
to church to church –borrowed from other “prophets.”
These “visions” and “purpose statements” created in the
minds of men and borrowed from one ‘prophet’ to another often are just words on
a piece of paper that are sometimes not followed at all, sometimes altered to accommodate
some while excluding others, and are frequently used as threats to keep people
in line, or to suggest that they leave and go someplace else.
Yet, they may well be taken right from scripture and
perfectly practiced in all respects. God is not against us having dreams, goals,
visions or to formulate purpose statements, as long as they are centered in the
word of God, consistent with scripture, and that their goal is to follow the
Lord Jesus Christ in obedience in leading people to repentance and toward faithful
and humble surrender to God and to his purposes for our lives. And, if our
visions and goals are in line with scripture, and we make public declaration of
them, then it is essential that we do our best to practice what we proclaim,
because the world is watching us.
He
Gives Purpose / An Original Work / June 9, 2012
“Listen
to Me when I’m calling to you.
Obey
freely My word.
Follow
Me in all of My ways.
Do
all that I say.
Hear
Me gently whisper to you
My
will for your life and future.
Give
all of your life and heart to
Follow
Me always.”
Repent
of your sins and worship Jesus.
He’s
your Lord and Master.
He
died for your sins so you could
Live
with Him today.
He
has a plan for your life and
He
gives purpose and direction.
He
gives meaning to your life,
So
follow Him today.
“I
love you so much I gave My life for
You
to walk in My ways,
Living
for Me each day as you
Bow
to Me and pray.
Witness
for Me of your love for Me and
Of
My grace and mercy,
How
I died to save you of your
Sins
now and always.”
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