Confusion

I admit, I am rambling a bit here, but since so few people actually read this thing, I don't care. It's my blog, and I will ramble if I want to. :) 


"[F]or God is not a God of confusion, but of peace, as in all the churches of the saints" ~1Corinthians 14:33


I have wrestled with this notion for a very long time: why are we so confused? I grappled with it all weekend, laying awake late into the evening, meditating on the fact that Christianity is a boiling pot of confusion. Does that sound too harsh? To broad? Take a look at the scope of the church today: Catholics are changing the Bible to read that Mary was not a virgin, but a "young woman;" Christians are suffering from the ill-effects of this world's economy - even though Jesus told us that we shouldn't; churches are suffering from increasing debt - mostly because the congregants ignore God's direct command to tithe; the people of God are battling (many of them losing) with addictions, divorces, suicides (that's when you lose)... Um, what is going on here??


"My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I will also reject you from being My priest" ~Hosea 4:6


Many of us are aware that, the more we know about God the more victorious our lives will be. However, God makes it clear that for many of us the issue is not our lack of knowledge, but our rejection of knowledge. What do I mean by that? Well, last time I checked, those "prosperity preachers" so many Christians despise (Kenneth Copeland, Joel Osteen, Creflo Dollar, etc.), yea... They're rich. You're broke. Who's rejecting knowledge here? Now, do TV stations use the spiritual law of sowing and reaping to try and con people into funding their ministries?? Yes. Does that mean they all do that, or that the basic biblical principle is untrue or "out of context"? Of course not! The Bible makes it plain that God is out for your good in all things - including finances. You can stay broke if you want too, but it has nothing to do with whether or not God is moving or intervening in your life. He has sent us men and women with a calling to bring the people of God out of the financial mess they are in. If you reject these ministers of the Gospel, because what they say does not fit with what your religion or life experience testify to, get over it. Stop rejecting the revelation knowledge God has provided for you, because it "just doesn't make sense," or "I do not God wants us to live like that." He does, go read His Word.


The same thing applies in the realm of healing in our bodies. The Scripture tells us what to do in times of illness in our lives. "Is anyone among you sick? Then he must call for the elders of the church and they are to pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord; and the prayer offered in faith will restore the one who is sick, and the Lord will raise him up" (James 5:14-15a). What part of that do we still not understand? The Scriptures tells us to pray over those who are sick, anoint them with oil in Jesus' name, and believe for them to be made well. We don't do that. The churches I have attended in my life do not do this, at least. Instead, I hear Christians pray for - the doctors... Um, when did the Bible instruct us to pray for the doctors to avoid errors? That is called doubt; it is double-mindedness. It tells me that the individual is too nervous to pray for healing, because "what if it doesn't happen?" James teaches that this type of attitude will render you fruitless and ineffective, "For that man ought not to expect to receive anything from the Lord, being a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways" (1:7-8). Doubt will kill you.


Why do we all use the same Book, and yet come up with countless ways of thinking and living in regards to our life with Jesus? Because we are rejecting knowledge; we are not operating in the Spirit of the God of peace; we are not spiritually discerning. Sadly, we are not taking the Bible as seriously as we should.


How do I know this? Because I am constantly experiencing Christian people telling me that I take too much stock in what the Scriptures say. I have heard it said that many Christians put too much gravity on Jeremiah 29:11, and that God really does use hardships as teaching tools in our lives (from the stand-point of He is the author of our pain - in direct opposition to Isaiah 54:15, I might add). We are a confused people. We have all the answers we need in the Bible. We claim it is God's Word, yet we reject the parts we do not like. The odd part about this is that I am not talking about the uncomfortable part regarding our sin nature, but the wonderful parts about all that God is trying to accomplish in our lives.


Who could possibly see a problem with the teaching of Jesus redeeming us from the Curse of the Law?? The Curse of the Law is the list of curses found in Deuteronomy 28. Galatians 3 tells us that Jesus was made that curse for us so that we would not have to walk in them. Yet, I have encountered many Christians who oppose this view-point, because, after all, "we join in Christ's suffering" (Romans 8:17-18). Jesus went to the cross so that we do not have to, so it is obvious that this line of thinking is confused. We suffer the pangs of watching this world slip deeper into darkness, that's what suffering with Christ is all about. We suffer with Jesus, in that we are partakers of His victory (now, not when we get to heaven). "The only suffering for a believer is the spiritual discomfort brought by resisting the pressures of the flesh, not a physical or mental suffering. Jesus has already borne for us all the suffering in the natural and mental realms" ~Kenneth Copeland Ministries. Jesus isn't suffering in any other way (physically or mentally), and He doesn't expect us to die on another cross.


There shouldn't be Catholics, Methodists, Lutherans, Calvinists and Episcopalians. There should be the Church of Jesus. Jesus prayed that we would be one in the same way He and the Father are one. Do you understand just how united that is? It is a single entity. We aren't even close. We try; we claim our differences are not that big of a deal, it's simply a style-thing. What happens when we get to heaven? Do you think there will be a Catholic Corner, Wesleyan Wing, Lutheran's Loft? It's going to be one big Pentecostal Party. How do I know that? Because I have read the New Testament. Peter was a Pentecostal preacher. We need to get on board with what Jesus desires for us. We need to "get it" regarding how He wants us to live our lives, and all that He has offered up for us. He sent us the Holy Spirit to guide us into all truth (John 16:13). He said that if we continue in His Word we would know the truth and the truth would set us free (John 8:32). He said we have everything we need for life and godliness in a full knowledge of Him and our Lord Jesus (2Peter 1:2-10). Time to throw a lot of the academia out the window, and get back to Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith ~Hebrews 12:2 (that was a great churchy-last-line! Too bad I am not done yet).


Hopefully I will get into some of the topics that has many Christians so confused. We should have more money, we should have more direction, we should be healthy, with life-spands reaching triple-digits. I'm sick of being confused. I am tired of guarding myself against teachings in my own Church that are in direct opposition to the written Word of God. I am fed-up with academics watering down the precious promises God has given us. I am tired of the sleepless nights, the headaches, the hopeless moments. I am tired of losing, especially when God has given us the tools to live in absolute victory. Time to walk in truth. Time to end confusion (meh, that line was just ok...).