“One foot in the church and one foot in the world” is how the old saints used to categorize a “half-steppin Christian”. The truth of the matter, is statistically, you will get pulled into the world before you get pulled back wholly into the church. A half-in, half-out appearance, is in actuality a whole spirit death sentence. It is for this reason the scripture says a little leaven, leavens the whole lump.
1 Corinthians 5:6-7 Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens all the lump? 7 Then purge out the old leaven so that you may be a new lump, even as you are unleavened. For also Christ our Passover was sacrificed for us.
We have allowed proponents of the false doctrines of prosperity, Eternal Security and Pre-Trib Rapture to woo us on the one side; Telling us that being righteous doesn’t mean we have to dress frumpy, have a religious spirit, be super spiritual or be holier than thou. “You can never out sin the grace of God” and “we are living in exciting times! Christ’s return could be at any minute!” These ministers of demonic doctrine usually want your support in some way, either through the purchase of their merchandise or your financial support. Normally trendy dressed and slick speaking, offering a “new word” that always amount to a one foot in, one foot out type of appeal that usually has some form of “we have to look and act like the world to win the world”.
James 4:4-5 You adulterers! Don't you know that friendship with the world means hostility with God? So whoever wants to be a friend of this world is an enemy of God. 5 Or do you think the Scripture means nothing when it says that the Spirit that God caused to live in us jealously yearns for us?
Then on the other side; my brothers and sisters have committed themselves emotionally and spiritually to shows like the Basketball Wives, Kardashians, Love and Hip Hop, Real Housewives of some town near you, etc. You all know the latest Carver hits that have dropped, the newest dance/social media craze and are trying to incorporate it somehow into godliness and youth service. The shows you love to watch can almost be classified as soft porn and the language can be worse than foul. Yet you watch these shows without a shred of guilt. Did you ever have any? So of course the sisters are dressing for church as if they were dressing for the Club and the male leadership loves it so! Their “praise dancing” seems to be more about attracting attention and potential lovers, no longer only looking for husbands. We have allowed the normalization of whoredom and homosexuality. Even in our churches, it has become normal to have sexual partners before and outside of marriage, and it no longer need be of the opposite sex!
We have allowed the devil to dull our senses. We have allowed our senses to become numb, turned off and killed by what we consciously choose to watch, listen to, and give of our time.
We have allowed the devil to dull our senses. We have allowed our senses to become numb, turned off and killed by what we consciously choose to watch, listen to, and give of our time.
Our sense of Christ-likeness and spiritual morality has become pliable, fogged and dulled because we have allowed our hearts to become far from God and separated from Him, His Spirit and the truth of His Word.
1 Corinthians 10:13
There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear it.
The appeal and temptation the devil throws at us, are the same from both sides. It’s riches, worldliness, materialism and pride. And what we love we spend more time nurturing. What gets nurtured, whether sinfulness or godliness, grows and matures.
What draws you to these prosperity hucksters is what draws you about the shows you love: Worldliness. Your heart belongs to the world.
1 Timothy 6:9-12 But those purposing to be rich fall into temptation, and a snare, and many foolish and hurtful lusts, which plunge men into ruin and destruction. 10 For the love of money is a root of all evils, by means of which some having lusted after it were seduced from the faith, and they themselves pierced through by many pains. 11 But you, O man of God, flee these things and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, patience, and meekness. 12 Fight the good fight of faith. Lay hold on eternal life, to which you were also called and confessed the good confession before many witnesses.
Demonic spirits are in our churches because we have not evicted him from our hearts and ways, or we have allowed him to return to what was once swept clean.
Matt 12:43-45 44
When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest, and findeth none. 44 Then he saith, I will return into my house from whence I came out; and when he is come, he findeth it empty, swept, and garnished. 45 Then goeth he, and taketh with himself seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man is worse than the first. Even so shall it be also unto this wicked generation
Our walk with Christ is not supposed to simply be a matter of having good morals, values and principles. All spiritualities, religions and ways of life have these! All of these things are by their very nature subjective, changes frequently according to times, culture, societies, etc, and can be different for a myriad of reasons.
Salvation is not about principles. It’s about coming to believing faith in Christ Jesus to obtain and maintain a relationship and walk with God. Principles, morals and values come OUT OF that, not the other way around.
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