(please read these Reformation articles in numbered order)

The two biggest pitfalls of the church today:

—the effect of evolution

—the effect of money

The first one here:

The very possibility that Christians could entertain combining Genesis and evolution in any way, proves the church is not clearly teaching that the Bible alone is enough.

The church has succumbed to equal opportunity infiltration.

The church has relinquished its Biblical mandate for training the next generation, by sending the children to public schools.

The long-term weakening of the American church by brainwashing a generation through the teaching of evolution, without full-scale in-your-face rejection/correction by the church in the culture, now leaves the church powerless or voiceless against the relentless onslaught of more unimaginable perversions.

Jesus loves the little children, in his arms.

So, satan hates the little children, in his arms—molech.

I don’t know how we did it, substituting/progressing from the unthinkable burning to death of infants in the arms of a red-hot statue, to the “not-see” holocaust of doing the same with chemical weapons and knives.

The never-again nazi holocaust pales in comparison—just check the numbers.

WHY DID THE CHURCH NOT STOP THIS IN AMERICA?

Because we did not stop the teaching of evolution.

Because we did not stop the banning of prayer and the ten commandments.

Because we thought “the old-deluder-satan act” was out of date.

That was a law requiring the Bible taught in all schools, so satan could not delude our children, and the next generation.

He kills the littlest children—hissing to the parents,”they are an inconvenient accident.”

He destroys the survivors—hissing to the children, “you are just a random accident.”

He carries his hatred of the children, from subversion, to perversion—hissing to the children, “you are not stuck with what God made you—a boy or a girl in the wrong body by a mistaken accident.”

Say what?

How can that ancient lie line work in our scientifically enlightened world?

Oh, we know so much, and we know nothing.

 

So what does this all have to do with Reformation, Again?

We have made the middle ages—the dark ages before the Reformation—look like a Sunday School picnic compared to what we have allowed right in front of our eyes.

Horror that rivals any other in history—horror that we have largely condoned—horror that we are supposed to stop in the name of Christ. (Telemachas***)

We “have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood, striving against sin.”

The church got comfortable in America, and lost its Godly influence for change against sin.

Lot got comfortable in Sodom, and lost his Godly influence for change against sin.

And how did that turn out?

Who had the last volley in the culture wars in Sodom?

The frog, comfortable in the gradually boiling pot of water, does not jump out, he says nothing, and he dies, useless.

 

***Telemachus was a fourth century Christian monk from Asia (Turkey).

An inner voice led him to go to Rome, not knowing why.

He followed the crowds and ended up in the Coliseum.

Two gladiators were fighting, and Telemachus jumped into the stadium and tried get between them to stop them.

He shouted three times, “In the name of Christ, forbear!”

He immediately got the attention of thousands, and he immediately got his reward with Jesus.

But that is not all—because of the bold act of Telemachus, the emperor immediately decreed an end to these “games.”

(please read these Reformation articles in numbered order)

Over the years, and over the centuries, people in the church have been accustomed to accepting and depending on leaders and theologians adding to the Bible with wording and labels and high-sounding doctrines that are more man-made than Biblical.

Not long after Christianity started, it became common practice for church doctrine to combine the Bible and church edicts—making the average church member unable to distinguish between God’s Word and man’s teaching.

And this continues today—blatantly in the Catholic church, and more subtly in others (although often not so subtle any more).

Satan’s original lie is alive and well and effective, today,

“Did God really say?”

 

Many doctrinal defenses are more about separating churches to maintain distinctiveness (and power/control), than about the simple Word of God.

The Reformation shook the world with the re-discovery of two words that were in the Bible all along—“faith alone.”

The church had hidden them from the people with all their high-sounding mumbo-jumbo about heaven and hell tied with purgatory and indulgences and praying to saints.

How did the church get away with that?

Surely we learned our lesson—it’s so obvious.

Apparently not.

—Human nature always looks for new opportunities for control in the church.

—The influence of the world always looks for new compatibility with Christianity.

And both are working in the American church today.

 

Reformation again, today ?

If we remember and accept that we are not much different than Israel in the Old Testament, then perhaps we will not be so resistant to reformation again.

Israel went round and round, and round and round again—blessed, wayward, punished, repentant, returned, revived, forgiven, and blessed again.

The Bible tells the stories over and over, in the history books, in the psalms, in the prophets, in the New Testament.

Somehow we think we arrive at doing better, and don’t have to go through reformation again.

We don’t really believe we have to “turn from our wicked ways” again, because we’re already Christians.

And God help the person who gets specific about the “wicked ways” of His people in the church today—you might not fare better than the guys five hundred years ago.

 

After years of agonizing inside the church, Luther finally and suddenly sees the errors of the Catholic church.

He corrects some of them—thank God.

So Protestant churches grow.

Then people get tired of all the new name-brand churches that develop, and start independent churches.

Some of them stay small and intimately dependent on the Bible.

Some grow and still stay intimately dependent on the Bible.

And some grow big and popular and outgrow that intimate dependence on the Bible.

There is often something innately dangerous about big and popular churches—not exactly what Jesus promised repeatedly.

 

Specifics next—no risk of popularity here.