“And Jesus entered the temple and drove out all who sold and bought in the temple, and he overturned the tables of the money-changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons. He said to them, ‘It is written, “My house shall be called a house of prayer,” but you make it a den of robbers.’” (Matthew 21:12-13 ESV)
“The Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem. In the temple he found those who were selling oxen and sheep and pigeons, and the money-changers sitting there. And making a whip of cords, he drove them all out of the temple, with the sheep and oxen. And he poured out the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables. And he told those who sold the pigeons, ‘Take these things away; do not make my Father's house a house of trade.’ His disciples remembered that it was written, ‘Zeal for your house will consume me.’” John 2:13-17 ESV
“To those who sold doves he said, ‘Get these out of here! Stop turning my Father’s house into a market!’” John 2:16 NIV
“Then, going over to the people who sold doves, he told them, ‘Get these things out of here. Stop turning my Father’s house into a marketplace!’” John 2:16 NLT
“And to those who were selling the doves He said, ‘Take these things away from here; stop making My Father’s house a place of business!’” John 2:16 NASB
And in our day and age this is exactly what is happening in the majority of the gatherings of what are called “churches” here in America. They are turning the church, the body of Christ, the house of God into places of business to be marketed to the people of the world. And if Jesus were still on this earth, and if he could be physically in every location where this is happening, he would be in these gatherings with a whip driving out all of those who are turning his house, his body, into a place of business.
For the church is not a building called “church,” and the physical building is NOT the “house of God.” It is just a building. And the church is not a church denomination, and it is not a business incorporated under the state being marketed to the people of the world. And it is not a social club nor a civic center. And it is not something that you go to. But this is what human beings have turned it into, and this is what is generally now being accepted as “the church.” So the whole biblical concept of “church” is getting lost.
For what is the church? We who believe in Jesus Christ with God-gifted and God-persuaded faith in Jesus Christ, who have been crucified with Christ in death to sin and raised with Christ to walk in newness of life in him, no longer to live as slaves to sin, but as slaves to God and to his righteousness – we are the church, the body of Christ, born of God and not of man. And the purpose of our gatherings is so that we can encourage one another in our walks of faith and obedience to our Lord Jesus Christ.
And it is so that we can be equipped in service for our Lord within the body of Christ and in order to take the true message of the gospel to the people of the world. For we are not to be inviting the people of the world to these institutions of human origin that are businesses of men, but we are to be going out where the people are and we are to be inviting them to surrender their hearts and lives to Jesus Christ in death to sin and in living to God and to his righteousness so that they are now part of his body, his church.
[Matt 5:13-16; Matt 28:18-20; Jn 4:31-38; Jn 13:13-17; Jn 14:12; Acts 1:8; Acts 2:14-18; Acts 26:18; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 10:14-15; Rom 12:1-8; Rom 15:14; 1 Co 12:1-31; 1 Co 14:1-5; Eph 4:1-16; Eph 5:11-27; Php 2:1-8; Col 3:16; Heb 3:13; Heb 10:23-25; 1 Pet 2:9,21; 1 Jn 2:6]
For, we are not to conform the gatherings of “the church” to the likeness of humankind in order to attract the world to our gatherings. But this is what so many are doing. They are appealing to the felt needs and the likes of the flesh in order to draw in large crowds of people of the world into their gatherings so that they are winning the people of the world to these “places of business” but not usually to genuine walks of faith and obedience to the Lord in holy living. For they dilute the gospel to make it more appealing.
And so many of them have this idea that “sowing seed” is doing stuff that will attract the world to their gatherings, but that is not sowing the spiritual seed of the gospel of our salvation, but it is sowing seeds of worldliness in order to attract the world to their gatherings. So they have all these fun activities and great performances and light and fluffy sermons that they have in order to attract the world, and they buy chairs and discard their pews (at great expense) to attract the world to their gatherings, etc.
But this is not “sowing seeds” of righteousness and of repentance and of obedience to the Lord and surrender of our wills to his will for our lives. But this is all about attracting the world to the gatherings of these businesses called “churches” so that they can fill up their chairs with the people of the world and entertain them with their music and with their performances and with their fun activities and their modern sermons, so many of which are intended to tickle itching ears and to dilute the truth so as not to offend.
So, what do the Scriptures teach should be our response to all of this? We are not to be unequally yoked together with the ungodly. And the ungodly are all who are still walking in sin and not in righteousness and not in obedience to our Lord, even if they profess faith in Jesus Christ. We are not to partner with nor be in fellowship with the ungodly. So we are to come out from their midst and be separate from them, and God will be a father to us and we will be his sons and daughters (see 2 Corinthians 6:14-18).
And we are not to partner with gatherings called “churches” if these gatherings are being led by the marketing schemes of the ungodly and not by Jesus Christ, and not by his teachings and his gospel message. For if our goal is to make “the church” attractive to the world so that they will enjoy being among us, then we have it all backwards. And if we are trying to win people to our gatherings and not to biblical repentance and to walks of obedience to Jesus Christ in holy living, then we have it all backwards.
“For many, of whom I have often told you and now tell you even with tears, walk as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their end is destruction, their god is their belly, and they glory in their shame, with minds set on earthly things.” Philippians 3:18-19 ESV
And we are not to worship “the beast,” i.e. the world’s system. We are to be God’s holy people who are taking the message of the cross to the people of the world and who are calling them to leave their lives of sin behind them to follow Jesus Christ in obedience to his commands in holy living. So we are to come out from the midst of those who are following after man and not the ways of God and of Christ and of his Spirit. We are to come out from among them so that we do not take part in their sins and in their punishment.
See: [Matthew 21:12-13; John 2:13-17; Acts 5:27-32; 2 Corinthians 6:14-18; Philippians 3:18-19; Revelation 13:5-8; Revelation 18:1-5]
For Our Nation
An Original Work / September 11, 2012
Bombs are bursting. Night is falling.
Jesus Christ is gently calling
You to follow Him in all ways.
Trust Him with your life today.
Make Him your Lord and your Savior.
Turn from your sin. Follow Jesus.
He will forgive you of your sin;
Cleanse your heart, made new within.
Men betraying: Our trust fraying.
On our knees to God we’re praying,
Seeking God to give us answers
That are only found in Him.
God is sovereign over all things.
Nothing from His mind escaping.
He has all things under His command,
And will work all for good.
Jesus Christ is gently calling
You to follow Him in all ways.
Men deceiving: We’re believing
In our Lord, and interceding
For our nation and its people
To obey their God today.
He is our hope for our future.
For our wounds He offers suture.
He is all we need for this life.
Trust Him with your life today.
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