Do Not – And I Repeat – Do Not Drink The Poison

It is called the silent killer.  It has no odor, no color and emits no fumes.  Several hundred people die from it each year and because of it many more suffer debilitating illnesses. I am talking about carbon monoxide poisoning.  It can strike anytime anywhere and, unless there is a detector present, you do not see it coming.

It is a terrible thing to encounter a deadly poison like this, but it is even worse to have it present with you and not know it.  You are just living your life but at the same time breathing toxic air that could kill you.  You are in the presence of death, but you are unaware.

This is a very dark and morbid illustration to begin my blog and very different from the pattern I usually follow but, today, my spirit is stirred.  I believe there is so much God wants to do among His people, and I want to see and be part of it.  But the more I pray and the closer I look, I keep seeing forces at work to hinder the breakthrough God wants to give.  These barriers have existed for so long they are no longer recognized as problems by many.  They have become ingrained into our fabric and accepted as normal.  Truth is, they are a trojan horse that has been allowed to come into our camp with an intent to stymie and eventually destroy us. 

We are sometimes reluctant to take a critical look inward.  It is very uncomfortable to admit the greatest problem in our lives, and in our churches, does not lie outside but looks back at us in the mirror every morning.  It is only when the realization of this fact strikes a chord in our heart that we will address it with sincere repentance and a strong willingness to change.  Now is the time for this realization to be made.

I do not pretend to know all or have all the answers, but as I pray, three big problems keep coming to my mind as tools the enemy is using to hold us back and keep us from being as effective as we need to be in this troubled world.  These are not problems around us, but in us.  They do not exist everywhere, but they are prevalent enough to be concerned.  Here is what I hear the Lord saying to me.

Failure To Be The Church. We focus on having church and have strong opinions as to what that means. We give much attention to logistics and mechanics that make us relevant to the present culture. We fail to realize these things do not matter nearly as much to God as they do to us.  His desire for us is that we BE the Church He purchased with His own blood.

We are not this Church through our denominational connection.  We are not this Church because we used to be this Church.  We are not this Church because of our published doctrinal positions.  We are this Church when we do three things:  preach the Word, live the Word and experience the Word.

We are told in Scripture the end times will be marked by preaching that lacks truth and is meant to please people.  There is no doubt we are there.  In too many places, preaching is no longer seen as important, and its watered-down content is no longer productive.  The true Church must make the decision to swim upstream by boldly and lovingly preaching the full Gospel.  We can leave nothing out.  We must reprove, rebuke and exhort with long-suffering and doctrine. I believe we will be judged as much for what we do not say as we are for what we do say.  We must preach the Word.

Preaching the Word must transition into living the Word.  The practical application of the Word into our everyday lives will impact the world and bring souls into the Kingdom.  This must be more than a feel-good campaign at Christmas or a monetary contribution to a ministry.  We must accept our mission as the Church is to be the hands and feet of Jesus in a world that desperately needs evidence God is real.  Sunday morning worship is important, but in the Kingdom, so is a cup of coffee with an unsaved friend, a warm coat for the homeless man under the bridge and a kind word to the stressed mother in the check-out line.  Opportunities to live the Word are endless…we must stay prepared to see and do.

When the Word of God is preached with conviction and the people of God take seriously their mission in the world, the Holy Spirit is ready to reveal Himself in powerful ways by bringing the experiences of the New Testament Church into our reality.  We cease to be a weak anemic body whose past is brighter than our future and we become a Church alive in the power of the Spirit.  Miracles, signs and wonders stop being talking points and begin to happen.  Answered prayer is no longer a surprise and expectancy replaces uncertainty.  This is God’s plan for His Church.

For so long there has been a wide chasm between what we preach and what we experience.  Many have slipped into a “form of godliness with no power” existence – we know how to have church, but we are weak when it comes to being the church.  It is time for this to end.  We must, again, become a force in this world by being the Church all the power of hell cannot prevail against.

Carnality Within the Church.  Many local churches, as well as denominations, have been weakened by carnality within the ranks of leadership.  In most cases, I am sure, it is unintentional, but it is happening, nonetheless.  This move to do the work of the Spirit in the flesh has brought the church more in line with the world than with the Word.

In the world, alliances are created to elevate men and agendas.  People are used for selfish gain.  Voices of the mighty drown out the voices of the weak.  Who you are, who you know and where you are from are the determining factors for promotion.  What seems right by a powerful few becomes the law of the land.

Sadly, these things are becoming more and more prevalent, not only in the world, but in the church.  They have crept in under the guise of protecting and moving the church forward.  The back room has replaced the prayer closet, and the politician has replaced the prophet.  The goal has become the majority vote, and the voice of the Spirit has been silenced by the will of the people.  Instead of the church standing out, it is blending in.  This carnal, fleshly approach to ministry and church business is producing discouragement among those who see it, division among those involved in it and grave danger to those affected by it.  God cannot be pleased.  

The Church is in the world but not of the world.  We will face the temptation to operate according to what seems right to us but this carnal approach to leadership must be avoided at all costs.  Flesh cannot take the Church where God wants it to go, and the unsanctified will of man will always be an adversary of the Spirit.  The prayer of our Lord just before His crucifixion must be ours as well – “…not my will, but yours be done.” (Luke 22:42) The sacrificing of our will and our submission to His is the only way to defeat the enemy of carnality.

Self-preservation.  A telltale sign an organization has become an institution is when the vast amount of our time, energy and resources are used simply to maintain said organization.  Mission and vision become secondary to personal agendas and self-promotion.  Purpose becomes diluted by gratuitous and self-serving decisions.  An institution is all about self-preservation.

Churches and other religious organizations battle this spirit every day.  The passion and fire that birthed us gives way to survival mode.  We hesitate to launch out into uncharted waters because we are “playing not to lose.”  Our fear of losing is greater than our confidence of winning.  We just want to be standing at the end of the day – however that looks. 

The church of today cannot fall prey to this mindset.  We must catch a fresh vision of who we are and why we are here.  We are the Body of Christ.  We belong to Him.  We represent Him.  He bought us with His blood, filled us with His Spirit and called us into His service.  We have a job to do but our only responsibility is to obey Him.  Nothing we are called to do is about us, it is all about Him.  Our role is not as important as His and our commitment is to follow His lead not our ambition.  We must decrease that He may increase.

One of the saddest stories in the Bible is that of Samson in the book of Judges.  This mighty man who had been used greatly by God reached a point where he took his anointing for granted and placed himself in a compromising position with a woman whose goal was to destroy him.  That fateful night as he slept in the lap of Delilah, his power was taken from him and Judges 16:20 says, “…he did not know that the Lord had departed from him.”  He did not know…he did not know…he did not know the Lord had departed from him.

There is poison running through the church, and like Samson, many are not aware.  Its intent is to render us powerless and, eventually, destroy us.  In some places it is disguised and other places it is accepted as no big deal.  But be sure, whatever the opinion and whatever the response, poison makes one sick and, sometimes, it kills.  It must be detected, and it must be eliminated.  We simply cannot tolerate its existence.

Not everyone is deceived by the poison.  There is a remnant that is standing strong and determined to remain faithful.  This remnant will not be distracted and will not be overcome.  They will remain attached to the Word, committed to the Lordship of Jesus and determined to complete the tasks for which they have been commissioned.  They understand they are their brother’s keeper and future generations are depending on them.  Nothing is more important than their assignment.  They are determined to finish strong.

These are critical times.  Gamesmanship and manipulation in the Body of Christ must stop.  Spiritual leadership must rise to the top and His Kingdom must replace ours.  We do not have much time left and there is still much to do.  Our goal must be to “…lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us.” (Hebrews 12:1)

And by all means, do not drink the poison.