Sadly enough, for many years, Christians have been adding a "little" of the world's teachings with the gospel to make it more palatable and accepted. That practice has watered down the truth of the message. The message of the gospel is so powerful and pure that even false truth cannot stop it. But why hinder it by adding or subtracting any of it? We even have those who are "called" to share this message who have quit following their initial calling because the message seems outdated and offensive. First of all, the Word of God is a living truth that only gets more powerful and relevant every moment of every day, so it cannot and will not be outdated. Secondly, it doesn't need anything added to it to make it more powerful. Romans 1: 16 For I am not ashamed of this Good News about Christ. It is the power of God at work, saving everyone who believes—the Jew first and also the Gentile. 17 This Good News tells us how God makes us right in his sight. This is accomplished from start to finish by faith. As the Scriptures say, “It is through faith that a righteous person has life.”
Segue to Acts 16: 16 One day as we were going down to the place of prayer, we met a slave girl who had a spirit that enabled her to tell the future. She earned a lot of money for her masters by telling fortunes. 17 She followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, “These men are servants of the Most High God, and they have come to tell you how to be saved.”
18 This went on day after day until Paul got so exasperated that he turned and said to the demon within her, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her.” And instantly it left her. This girl was telling fortunes and she was demon-possessed. It is amazing how Satan will take something so pure as the gospel and distort it or make fun of it to stop it. He wants to stop the message by distracting the messenger. We messengers cannot let this happen and trying to water down the message of the gospel is allowing the enemy in our camp. It is no wonder that the Word of God says in 1 Peter 4:14 If you are insulted because you bear the name of Christ, you will be blessed, for the glorious Spirit of God rests upon you. 15 If you suffer, however, it must not be for murder, stealing, making trouble, or prying into other people’s affairs. 16 But it is no shame to suffer for being a Christian. Praise God for the privilege of being called by his name! 17 For the time has come for judgment, and it must begin with God’s household. And if judgment begins with us, what terrible fate awaits those who have never obeyed God’s Good News? 18 And also,
“If the righteous are barely saved, what will happen to godless sinners?”
Remember, we are IN the world but not OF the world, so yes, we are to be separate. Not in a judgmental way, but with a heart of love, that is prompted by the Holy Spirit in each of us. Revival is possible and in the words of G. K. Chesterton from his book The Everlasting Man Chesterton says “Christendom has had a series of revolutions and in each one of them Christianity has died. Christianity has died many times and risen again; for it had a God who knew the way out of the grave.” God knows the way for the church to rise again and speak the true message of salvation, and we must once again make the gospel the main message in the church, from the church, and through the church. In Acts 16, the demon-possessed girl was mocking the message of the gospel and the ones who were proclaiming it, so Paul cast out the demon inside of her, and she was changed. I wonder how many compromising demons need to be cast out of churches who have shunned the gospel message and traded that message for compromised, worldly half-truths? Like her masters profits, the money may flow less, but the message has to be true to the Word of God and nothing else matters. You know our world is too apathetic when we are ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ and believe there is a better way to present life change. Don't worry about the world mocking us because that is Satan's demons and they were defeated by Jesus. We must always be on the right side of righteousness!! The great revivalist Leonoard Ravenhill said it this way:“A man who is intimate with God is not intimidated by man.” The closer we move toward God the more His ways are seen by our eyes. O Lord, Open the Eyes of Our Hearts!!
Vesselogical Out,
David Warren
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