For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. - 1 Corinthians 1:18 (ESV)
The meme sounded benign enough - "Something is seriously wrong when the world is offended by everything but sin." The responses were the expected outrage and contempt for the unsaved and how depraved the apostate church views them as such. This was of course the goal of the meme. To continue to turn the church into an aggrieved party. We need to realize that this is an outcome the devil is always pursuing. To be able to convince the church that the people who need the gospel are their enemy. To loathe the lost. To be easily offended by them. This is of course the desired result of dominionism as well. Sure, lip service is paid to Jesus and the gospel, but it never ceases to amaze me when those who claim the mantle of Christianity are so offended or surprised that the world behaves like the world. In case we need reminding, the key verse today spells out very specifically that the things of God - the cross, are utter foolishness to those that are perishing! The things the church gets so upset at can only be spiritually discerned! Now, the 800-pound gorilla in the room is that the reason why the "church" does not get this is that it also cannot understand what is spiritually discerned for the majority are not actually saved. The apostate church is littered with false teachers who do not preach the gospel and the result are untold numbers of people who are told they are saved but are actually the people God speaks about in Matthew 7, who will say "Lord Lord" on Judgment Day.
The problem is that many well intended Christians are caught up in this wave of NAR propaganda against the lost. Consider this simple meme above. First of all, the world is absolutely concerned with sin issues although they would not acknowledge them as sin because of the key verse. When they rail about the sins committed against the creation of God for example. When they advocate for the poor in all nations. The caricature is that the lost are somehow demonic creatures roaming the earth. The reality is the moral norms they have established are also based upon biblical norms! They just refuse to connect the two because of the key verse. What can change this disconnect? According to Romans - the gospel! Not the church wagging its disapproving finger at them. Not the church passing specious legislation that might force a behavioral change but not save a single soul. When we focus on carnal solutions to earthly problems, nothing changes eternally.
That said, is the world behaving somehow differently than the bible says it will? No! It is behaving exactly how the bible says it will! This should not be a source of anger, vitriol, condemnation or disgust. It should be a source of compassion for those walking in darkness. It reminds me of when James and John asked if Jesus wanted them to call down fire on the Samaritan village that had rejected Him. Christ of course rebuked them. The modern apostate church through its NAR dominionist desires, tries to call down fire upon the lost each and every day. Corinthians actually teaches us to judge those in the church not the world and to leave room for His judgment. So do not hide behind the hate the sin argument. The church is actively engaged in hating the lost and it needs to stop. It is a contributing reason why few find the narrow road. The bible implores us to not be ignorant of the devil's schemes:
so that we would not be outwitted by Satan; for we are not ignorant of his designs. - 2Corinthians 2:11 (ESV)
Yet those who claim the mantle of Christ are outwitted every single day. I saw a man who calls himself a pastor joke on Facebook that his next sermon was going to be entitled, "Try That In a Small Town." The reference of course is to a new song that encourages violence and death against other people. It is a vile, reprehensible song that no Christian should even want to be associated with, let alone joke about preaching on. Beloved, Christ looked out amongst the people and wept for they were like sheep without a shepherd. The church today looks out and is devoid of compassion because they are being taught to hate the very people who need the gospel the most. Infamous dominionist teachers Greg Locke and Mario Murillo have both taught this year that people who do not vote the way they do are irredeemable, and hell bound. Locke flat out said that anyone who voted Democrat needed to leave his church, a certainly odd evangelism plan.
I will close with a story I have told before. I once had two women working for me who did not get along. One was a Jesus is everything believer and the other hated her for it. She made trouble for her. She complained to Human Resources about her to try and get her fired. My friend simply responded with a smile and a "Jesus loves you." This went on for over a year until the other woman was facing her life falling apart and the person she turned to was who she thought was her enemy. Why? Because she wanted the peace my friend had. They become friends and she became saved and that is how it works. Someone under dominionist teachings would have condemned her. Hated her. Wagged their finger at her and called her a sinner. Then when everything went sideways in her life, she would not have turned to her. She would not have been saved.
It is not about heaven for dominionists, it is entirely about this world and this life. That is the devil's scheme which many remain woefully ignorant of. The bible says we are but pilgrims and sojourners traveling through this world and that heaven is our true citizenship. God does not allow dual citizenship. Just see the first Commandment! Be very careful and wary of anyone trying to get you to look upon the lost with anything other than compassion. When the world behaves like the world, they need the gospel, not condemnation and hatred.
Reverend Anthony Wade - July 25, 2023
