Compromised teaching and preaching are everywhere and you can't find a single Local Church which will not open their doors to preachers with doubtful man-pleasing doctrine. As long as you have credentials for a "big time" ministry and as long as you have a title before your name, like Dr. or Rev. you are welcome. You are more than welcome if you are skillful in keeping Churchgoers happy so that the pews of the Church will always be occupied. You can be sure you will be invited again and again if the majority of the Churchgoer like your entertaining preaching. In fact mega Churches have been built with men-pleasing doctrine (Please read my earlier message: "Mega-Churches that are merely Store Houses").
The apostle Paul warned Timothey that the time would come when his teaching would come under attack as believers will desert the truth for ear-itching words - words that are pleasing and gratifying.
Paul said, "For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth ...." (2 Tim. 4:3, 4, NIV, emphasis added).
I believe this prophecy of Paul is being fulfilled now. Sound doctrine is so offensive to many Church going Christians that they have to up with it. In order to ease the pain and discomfort of Churchgoers Church leaders everywhere welcome this "new breed" of man-pleasing preachers. Unfortunately they failed to realize that unsound doctrine is a product of believers' lust and evil desires compounded by the lies of Satan adding and subtracting from God's Word. In the eyes of God a compromising preacher makes himself in a position higher than Him - they have the self-given authority to edit the Bible so as to improve on what the Scripture says!
Definition of Compromised teaching
It is not easy to define exactly what is meant by compromised teaching. It is easier to illustrate with examples. To me an uncompromised preacher is someone who is ever ready to preach or to teach any Bible topic at any time. Try asking a woman Pastor to preach about her role in the Church you will see what I mean (Please refer to my earlier message: "Male-Female Role Relationship in the Church"). She will not be able to do it without having to compromise. Or you can ask any Pastor to preach about Tithing in the New Testament Church. Ask him to support his view by referring to the Churches mentioned in the Book of Acts. Ask him whether the Testament church should practice tithing or free-will offering. Again he will not be able to do it without having to compromise. A compromised preacher will choose a Bible topic that is generally accepted so as not to offend anyone.
The passion and integrity in Ministry
We are dealing with the ministry of teaching and preaching of God's Word. There is a difference in the ministry of a teacher and the ministry of a preacher. A preacher's desire is to impact the hearers' individual lives with God's Word in a meeting to get them to do something. On the other hand, a teacher's desire is to change your life for the rest of your life. In fact this precisely is the purpose of my weekly Bible messages.
The passion, integrety and consistency in Paul's ministry
Paul was an apostle and a preacher, teacher, evangelist and a Church planter. He was at the end of his ministry and he called for the Ephesian Elders and exhorted them with these words:
"You know, from the first day that I came to Asia, in what manner I always lived among you, serving the Lord with all humility, with many tears and trials which happened to me by the plotting of the Jews; how I kept back nothing that was helpful, but proclaimed it to you, and taught you publicly and from house to house, testifying to Jews, and also to Greeks, repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ" (Acts 20:18 - 21, NKJV, emphasis added).
In my opinion, from the above discourse, Paul was the most tender, affectionate, and eloquent man of God ever found in any of the New Testament epistles.
As a preacher Paul lived among the people and "served the Lord with all humility, with many tears and trials". A true preacher not only preaches the Word but preaches out of his lifestyle.
As a teacher Paul "kept back nothing that was helpful and taught publicly and from house to house.
As an evangelist and a Church Planter Paul "testified the Good News to both Jews and Gentiles and preached to them the need of "repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ".
Paul, a faithful servant of the Lord was able to say: "I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith" (2 Tim. 4:7).
Paul finished his calling well! Can we say the same thing with our contrmporary ministers who minister in Churches world wide?
The Problem of Professionalism in today's Church ministry
One of the problems with long time ministry today is that it begins will - with passion and ends up with professionalism. It begins with passionate love and concern for people and passionate love for Christ and His Church but ends up with complacency and self love. It begins with seeking out anointed people with ministry gifts (1 Cor. 12) with the right character but ends up hiring people who have credentials and offering them professional ministries in the Church. These people are very professional in the way they preach; in the way they organize the Church and Church groups and whatever.
One of the strong emphasis coming out of the American Mega Churches is professional in whatever things you do - professional in the music, professional in their children and youth ministries, professional in their presentation, drama, etc, etc. Some say they are doing things "a-cut-above" in excellence. But do they know that there is a big difference between excellence and professionalism? I support being excelled in excellence and I wrote about it - you can find it in this Blog.
Professionalism has something to do with the heart where our spirit dwells! The root of the problem is the heart. The major difference between the passionate ministry of Paul and the ministry of today's professinal ministers is that, in the case of Paul he walked in the Spirit and at all time led by the Spirit of God. On the other hand, these professional ministers failed to walk in the Spirit but led by their flesh.
Paul said, "walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish" (Ga;. 5:16, 17).
"The lust of the flesh" includes "selfish ambitions" and "heresies" (Gal. 5:19 - 21). And Paul said these people "will not inherit the kingdom of God".
The Holy Spirit in Paul caused him to "serve the Lord with all humility, with many tears, ..." (Acts 20:19).
Paul finished the "race" with humility, tears and with passion and compassion. He finished his God given ministry and looked forward to receive the crown of righteousness (1 Tim. 4:8). On the other hand, these professional ministers will finish their race when they have no more gimmicks to offer - but they end up missing heaven! Furthermore professional Church Elders and professional Pastors produce professional Church members. All of them will meet the same end!
An example of a professional healing minister
A professional minister comes to your Local Church equipped with a string of credentials and written testimonies and recommendations from his mother Church. He misquoted (taking a verse out of context) - John 14:12 which he said make ordinary Churchgoers do greater works than Jesus! He gives Churchgoers a healing seminar and also brings along some tapes and books to sell. The Local Church Pastor and leaders get excited and produce bulletin to inform Churchgoers of other Local Churches so that those who are sick could get healed and at the same time learn how to minister healing to the sick. At the end of the seminar all who attended will be awarded with a certificate indicating that they are now qualified to minister healing to the sick. I wonder who is truly qualified to issue this type of certificate in the eyes of God. But one thing I know this certainly appeal to the ego of those who received it - the work of the flesh again!
At the end of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus gave a warning to the His disciples:
"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you, depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'" (Matt. 7:21 - 23, NKJV, emphasis added).
Personally I don't believe these professional ministers who made these claims of able to prophesy, cast out demons, and work wonders are lying. They had actually done what they claimed. But being able to do all these and teach others to do likeswise does not necessarily prove that God knows this person. God looks at his heart and the hearts of those who were taught by him. From God's perspective in eternity He had looked below their public ministry into their personal lives. He had searched for the nature of the Lamb, manifested in meekness and purity and holiness. But in vain!
Outwardly, these professional ministers had been busy serving the Lord, but in their innermost character God had discerned something described as "lawlessness". This expressed itself in attitudes such as pride, arrogance, self -seeking, covetousness and personal ambition. For such, He had no place reserved in heaven!
Compromised teaching is a recipe for sickness and disease
Please refer to my previous healing messages before you read this. As I have said God's Word is the source of healing and God's Word is His recipe for health. Now if this is true then adulterated God's Word is a recipe for sickness and disease. Compromised teaching or preaching is the same as proclaiming adulterated God's Word. It follows that both preacher and hearers of adulterated God's Word are likely to be unhealthy.
Different emphasis on Proverbs 4 on "health"
Allow me to quote Proverbs 4 again but this time with different emphasis:
"My son, give attention to my words; incline your ear to my sayings. Do not let them depart from your eyes; keep them in the midst of your heart; for they are life to those who find them, and health to all their flesh" (Proverbs 4:20 - 22, NKJV, emphasis added).
God was speaking to believers because non-believers will not read or understand His Word. When God said, "my words" and "my sayings" He expects us to get His message. He was essentially telling us that there are other words and other sayings. His emphasis was on His Words and His Sayings.
God's conditions or recipe for good health is that you keep His Word, and His Word only, in the midst of your heart. He promised life and good health for you if you do that. If you are going to keep other words and other sayings in the midst of your heart instead, you are essentially opening the doors for the devil to bring sickness and disease to your body.
The average churchgoer, even Pastor, read more Christian books than the Bible. And they can quote you what famous book writers said. They are able to quote because they keep the book writers' words in the midst of their heart - or rather, in their soul. Man's words appeal to the soulish part of your person and certainly can make you feel good. God's Word is Spirit and the Bible is written by the Holy Spirit and it has the power to heal you and keep you healthy.
You can read and remember to quote the words of the most famous devotional Christian book writer but you will not enjoy good health. The end result is that you might even open doors for a curse to come in your life.
Moses said, "But it shall come to pass, if you do not obey the voice of the Lord your God, to observe carefully all His commandments and His statutes which I command you today, that all these curses will come upon you and overtake you" (Duet. 28:15, NKJV).
Notice that God's voice is His Words for He speaks to us through His Words. Notice also that the cause of curses is exactly the opposite to that of blessings. Blessings result from hearing God's voice and doing what he says. Curses result from not hearing God's voice and not doing what He says. The refusal to hear and obey God's voice can be summed up in one word: Rebellion - not against man, but against God.
Moses' list of curses in Deuteronomy 28 includes various chronic sicknesses and diseases - severe burning fever and inflammation (V. 22), incurable boils (V. 27, 35), tumors (types of cancer) (V. 27).
Tumor or cancer is a direct result of God's judgment on sin
1 Samuel 5 tells us that when the Ark of God was captured by the Philistines they did not know what to do with it. So they took the Ark and brought if from town to town. But wherever they took the Ark the people there were cursed with tumor of cancer:
"But the hand of the Lord was heavy on the people of Ashdod, and He ravaged them and struck them with tumors, both Ashdod and its territory" (1 Sam. 5:6, NKJV).
"For there was a deadly destruction throughout all the city: the hand of God was very heavy there, and the men who did not die were stricken with the tumors, and the cry of the city went up to heaven" (1 Sam. 5:11, 12).
The Philistines repented and made restitution by sending the Ark of God back to Israel (1 Sam. 6).
Therefore Christians afflicted by cancer because of their rebellion against God need to seek the Lord and repent. Surely true Christians are more humble than the Philistines!
No comments:
Post a Comment