Ichabod! Churches Choose Politics Over Obedience to God
Wolf In Sheep's Clothing
On Sunday June 26, 2011 several churches across the country signed up to be part of an event called “Faith Shared, Uniting in Prayer and Understanding.” The event is designed to show Muslims around the world that Americais not against them. In their words they want to demonstrate that Americais defined by, a “longstanding tradition of religious freedom, tolerance and pluralism.” Sounds nice enough right? However these words spewed from the post-modern pez dispenser, are hiding a dangerous agenda, as they always do. To sign up for this event, the churches involved, some 65 of them across the nation, read passages to their Sunday congregations from the Koran, and invited Islamic Imams in to speak to their congregations!
While it is good as Christians to reach out to the world, the Bible instructs us to speak the truth in love, not invite false teaching into God’s house. As many liberal, post-modern forces in the world beat up the churches with the typical words such as “tolerance” many churches have watered down the message and now apparently sunk to new lows by inviting others to share the space that belongs only to God and His message of salvation through Jesus Christ alone.
Yes, Jesus commanded Christians to “love your enemies and to pray for those who curse you,” however, that does not mean that Jesus said to condone false teaching or sinful behavior. Jesus said, “Blessed are the peacemakers.” He did not say, “Blessed are the peacekeepers.” There is a difference. Too often people in the church today mistake one for the other, rendering themselves impotent, and useless for the kingdom. A peacekeeper says while wringing their hands in distress, “I just don’t want to make waves, so I’m going to sit here and accommodate everyone.” They allow themselves to be pushed and bullied by everyone in this age that uses words such as “intolerant” and “fundamentalist,” as if that were bad.
That attitude stands in stark contrast to the early church that boldly preached the truth, even in the face of certain torture and death. No one will face that kind of punishment for a lie. Those people, lived, ate, slept, and witnessed Jesus’ ministry, miracles, and resurrection. While many will die for what they believe is true, the early church died for what they knew was true. If they had not witnessed Jesus’ resurrection from the grave, they would not have been so bold. Those men died for what they knew was true. However, you will not have anyone die for something they know is a lie. Therein lies huge testimony to the validity of Jesus’ claims and the Christian faith.
Notice in the Faith Shared mission statement that they also believe in pluralism. Pluralism is defined as:
a. a theory that there is more than one basic substance or principle.
b. a theory that reality consists of two or more independent elements.
This is a ridiculous notion that should not be entertained by anyone who is responsible for teaching the faith. The Bible and the Koran can not coexist or be believed simultaneously. They stand in direct opposition to one another. Therefore, both can not be true.
Make no mistake, God is not smiling down on churches that open their doors and hand over their pulpits to other doctrines. While Jesus was going throughout Judea andGalileepreaching and teaching, not once did He ever step aside, and warmly introduce another speaker that had a different point of view, so they can have a group hug afterwards and sit around a campfire singing Kumbaya together.
While delivering His Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said, “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.” ~Matthew 5:13
Many post-modernists, atheists, and other liberal minded people will dismiss this as they regularly say, “There is no absolute truth.” They love that statement and use it regularly whenever they want to dismiss Christian teaching, and have no other means of logical rebuttal. However, that statement in itself is illogical as it contradicts itself.
Examine this statement closely, “There is no absolute truth.” If the statement includes itself, it means not even that statement is true, and if it excludes itself, (that is to say there is no absolute truth, except this statement which is always true) then it is postulating an absolute which the statement itself stands against. Either way the statement collapses under its own weight. Basically, the statement says that there is no universal truth, while attempting to apply itself as truth universally. The statement commits suicide.
Now that it is clear that that statement is nothing more than illogical babble, then it must be recognized that there is in fact absolute truth. Once you come to that realization, it is your responsibility to seek it out, ask the tough questions, and know why you believe what you believe. Your eternal existence and destination depends on it!
We live in a world that is increasingly anxious about events. In the face of severe worldwide economic crisis and a heightened level of natural disasters, people are seeking answers. More and more movies, books, internet sites, and radio shows have been dedicated to the topic of “end of world” scenarios. People have an internal mechanism that realizes these events are leading to an inevitable culmination. They just don’t know what it is. It is the job of Christ’s disciples, the church, to point people in the right direction! The church is not to become watered down and blend quietly with its surroundings, being pushed into someone else’s politically correct box, and thus becoming ineffective. “You are the salt of the earth!”
Do not misunderstand. Christians are to reach out with love and respect to those who are lost. We are not however to allow or condone false teaching, especially in the church itself! These churches could not have possibly signed onto this event without getting the stamp of approval from the elders and senior members of the church. What a shame. In the Book of Titus, the apostle Paul lays out clearly what qualifications an elder must have. Paul writes the following:
“For this reason I left you in Crete, that you should set in order the things that are lacking, and appoint elders in every city as I commanded you— if a man is blameless, the husband of one wife, having faithful children not accused of dissipation or insubordination. For a bishop must be blameless, as a steward of God, not self-willed, not quick-tempered, not given to wine, not violent, not greedy for money, but hospitable, a lover of what is good, sober-minded, just, holy, self-controlled, holding fast the faithful word as he has been taught, that he may be able, by sound doctrine, both to exhort and convict those who contradict.” ~Titus 1:5-9
Jesus always reached out to non believers with compassion, knowing that they just didn’t know better. However, He never condoned their sinful actions, or let them believe what is false. The result was many of those people were drawn all the more to Him!
On the other hand, His harshest, most stinging rebukes were saved for the religious who DID know better! They were in charge of leading the people and to teach them in all the ways of God, and they were not doing it. Don’t be that believer! Do not be that church! The scribes and Pharisees knew the law and what was written, yet when confronted with Jesus, did not accept rebuke and correction and only became more stubborn, bitter and prideful.
Pray for these churches. A complete list is below. Pray they will see how harmful their actions are. If you are one of these churches, get your act together and stop being conformed by the world! Repent and seek God’s forgiveness. The Book of Revelation records a message to a church that became lukewarm and blended with her environment. Jesus said to that church:
“And to the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write, ‘These things says the Amen, the Faithful and True Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God: “I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth. Because you say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’—and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked— I counsel you to buy from Me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich; and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed; and anoint your eyes with eye salve, that you may see. As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten. Therefore be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. “He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.”’” ~Revelation 3:14-22
Have you ever had lukewarm milk? Cold milk is refreshing. Milk that has been heated is relaxing. However a glass of milk that has sat out too long and has become room temperature, taking on the properties of the environment around it is absolutely disgusting! It evokes a gag reflex. So it is with Jesus. He will vomit out of His mouth a church that has become like the world. Again, if you are one of these churches, change your ways. If you attend one of these churches and they do not change their ways, leave! Leave while you can.
A church that claims to be a Christian church, that claims to stand for Jesus, is the wrong place and venue to open and teach false doctrines, and invite false teachers. Change before Christ takes your lamp stand.
Listed below are all the churches signed up for this event. Notice that while the event is billed as cross-faith understanding and cooperation, not one of the churches listed is an Islamic mosque. So much for cooperation and the “mutual,” in mutual understanding. It all looks one-sided to me. I don’t see any Imams that are inviting in Christian pastors to crack open the Bible.
| Church | Location |
| AnchorageFirst Christian | Anchorage, AK |
| University Presbyterian Church | Tuscaloosa, AL |
| FederatedCommunityChurch | Flagstaff, AZ |
| First UMCPhoenix | Phoenix, AZ |
| All Saints Cathedral | Pasadena, CA |
| First United Lutheran, | San Francisco, CA |
| Light of Christ Ecumenical Catholic Church | Longmont, CO |
| Park Hill Congregational | Denver, CO |
| UnionCongregational | Nucla, CO |
| TempleMicah | Denver, CO |
| RiverfrontFamilyChurch | Hartford, CT |
| The National Cathedral | Washington, DC |
| SeekersChurch | Washington, DC |
| North American Old Catholic Church | Washington, DC |
| National CityChristian Church | Washington, DC |
| NewArkUnitedChurchofChrist | Newark, DE |
| Faith UnitedChurchofChrist | Clearwater, FL |
| UnitarianUniversalistChurchofPensacola | Pensacola, FL |
| UnitedChurchofChristat The Villages | The Villages, FL |
| VirginiaHighlandChurch | Atlanta, GA |
| DecaturUnitedChurchofChrist | Decatur, GA |
| The Episcopal Church ofSt.John the Evangelist | College Park, GA |
| Cathedral of St. Andrew, the Episcopal Diocese of HI | Honolulu, HI |
| Collegiate UnitedMethodistChurch& Wesley Foundation | Ames, IA |
| Congregational UnitedChurchofChrist | Iowa City, IA |
| UrbandaleUCCChurch | Urbndale, IA |
| Hillview United Methodist | Boise, ID |
| BoiseFirst UnitedMethodistChurch, Cathedral of theRockies | Boise, ID |
| First United ofOak Park | Chicago, IL |
| St Thomas Mission | Chicago, IL |
| TheChicagoTempleFirst UMC | Chicago, IL |
| First Presbyterian Church ofFort Wayne | Fort Wayne, IN |
| NorthminsterBaptistChurch | Monroe, LA |
| The Unitarian Universalist Society ofAmherst | Amherst, MA |
| Grace Episcopal | Amherst, MA |
| Church of Our Savior | Arlington, MA |
| St Paul’s Cathedral | Boston, MA |
| OldCambridgeBaptistChurch | Cambridge, MA |
| HadwenParkCongregational Church | Worcester, MA |
| Veritas UnitedChurchofChrist | Hagerstown, MD |
| Trinity United Methodist | Mountain Grove, MO |
| St. Mary’s Episcopal Church | Ely, MN |
| First Congregational | Great Falls, MT |
| MtView/Trinity UM Parish | Butte, MT |
| UnitarianUniversalistOceanCountyCongregation | Toms River, NJ |
| Christ Episcopal Church | Toms River, NJ |
| ZionMethodistChurch | Las Vegas, NV |
| The SacredCenterofNew York | New York, NY |
| CathedralChurchofSt.John the Divine | New York, NY |
| AllSoulsBethelehemChurch | Brooklyn, NY |
| MayflowerChurch | Oklahoma City, OK |
| First Congregational UCC | Corvalis, OR |
| Spirit of Peace UnitedChurchofChrist | Sioux Falls, SD |
| Baha’iFaithCommunity Center | Nashville, TN |
| Saint John’sUnitedMethodistChurch | Austin, TX |
| Hope for Peace & Justice Interfaith Peace Chapel | Dallas, TX |
| Cathedral of Hope | Dallas, TX |
| Wasatch PresbyterianChurchofSalt Lake City | Salt Lake City, UT |
| Grace Episcopal Church | St George, UT |
| UnitedChurchofBellowsFalls | Bellow Falls, VT |
| Cathedral of the Diocese ofVermont | Burlington, VT |
| VermontEcumenical Council & Bible Society | Burlington, VT |
| Dummerston Congregational Church UCC | Drummersto, VT |
| Memorial UnitedChurchofChrist | Fitchburg, WI |
| Trinity Episcopal Church | Janesville, WI |
| First Congregational Church UCCCasper | Casper, WY |
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