Blasphemy
Col.3:8 - But now you also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth.
Rev.13:6 - And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme His name, and His tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven.
Blasphemy. The word is genuinely defined as disrespect for God and things that are sacred. There are many examples of blasphemy exhibited today in evangelical circles and even within the house of worship. Everyone of course defines blasphemy in their own subjective way and so do I. Inappropriate dancing, questionable joking, vulgar language, and overwhelming light shows that incite the emotions and not the Spirit, these and others are forms of disrespecting the Spirit otherwise known as blasphemy. And these things are not just happening in the privacy of some homes and exhibiting our cultural blending amidst the general public, these are happening in the house of God as believers are supposed to be gathering to worship God Almighty and His Risen Son.
But among those things are much more serious expressions of blasphemy. Believers speak about the things of God in flippant and careless ways in direct contrast to our Jewish heritage which considered God’s Name so sacred it was only to be spoken under special circumstances. Of course we can call upon God’s name every day but we still should have a sense of sacred respect and even fear of our loving Savior. Much of the evangelical community has lost any sense of reverence much less fear of the Lord God Almighty and they speak and treat the things of Christ with a cavalier and careless attitude.
Among liberals there was always a movement to feminize God and even some Bibles have either de-gendered their divine references or made them feminine. All orthodox Bible believers recognized that as blasphemy, not so much that God was a man or even masculine, but that God had chosen to reveal Himself within that gender context. To indiscriminately change God’s name and the essence of His revelation concerning Himself is blasphemy and very, very serious. The limited revelation we have of our Creator can only be accepted as truth and accurate when we receive it directly from Him and not our convoluted linguistics constructed upon the language of culture and pseudo-intellectualism.
Just recently it was brought to my attention that someone referred to the Holy Spirit as “she”. This of course is an attempt to be cute and create another dialogue that is meaningless and seeks to give evidence of an elevated spiritual intellect. It is quite evident that God the Son refers to the Spirit as “He” and the word “parakletos” which is translated “comforter” is a masculine noun that means someone who comes beside us and helps. It refers to a lawyer in court as well but the word itself is masculine. So is the Holy Spirit a masculine spirit in gender as we understand masculinity? I am sure God transcends gender and in fact created it, but His revelation about Himself must remain within His own linguistic framework or He becomes distorted in our hearts and minds.
Just as God is our Father and Jesus is the Son so is the Lord consistent in His teaching about Himself to us. Of course the noun “Son” can give the impression that Jesus was created but the Scripture assures us He was from everlasting to everlasting, the Word from the beginning. So why does God assign these family titles to Himself? It is for our benefit and understanding not His, but His reasons are surely His own and must not endure linguistic violence to satisfy some fleshly and carnal desire of man’s heart. Many are committing blasphemy today and professing believers endure such Biblical treason. If this doesn’t present ample evidence of the new age mindset that has infiltrated the evangelical church I am not sure how to convince you. When I hear someone speak so flippantly of God’s Spirit is sends chills up my spine.
Many preachers energetically pursue the new and reject the tested. Men ask questions like, “If we proved the virgin birth of Christ was a lie would the Christian life still be an attractive way to live?”. There are at least two fundamental problems with musings like this. First, the virgin birth is an essential part of the gospel and who Jesus was when he came to earth. Secondly, it reveals that these new preachers concentrate more on our lives than on the Risen Lord. The question should not be would you still live as a Christian but would you still worship Jesus. The entire new theology centers on man and his life and experience, and in reality, that in itself is blasphemy. To speak against the virgin birth, even hypothetically, undermines people’s faith, reduces the value of the virgin birth in the minds of believers, and is a blasphemous way to use the virgin birth in a carnal and fleshly illustration. These type of intellectualisms undermine the Christian faith and do not edify.
This is now a post modern round table that mixes the sacred with the profane, and more than that, these things do despite unto our precious God in all His attributes and His gracious revelation. Bible schools that once were champions and protectors of God and His truth are training dismantlers that have no concept of the seriousness of their wayward journey. And instead of standing firm and humble and with a devoted heart concerning God’s Word, many are now enablers to the wicked spirits that seek to bring the greatest deception of all. It is not coming, it is here.
I am convinced that Lucifer has dispatched all his demons out of hell and they now roam the world with great numbers and intensity, he knows his time grows short. And the devil loves to distort God’s Word and even make a mockery of God’s Name while cloaking it in evangelistic circles. We must surrender to our prayer closets and be on our watch, many of our precious brothers and sisters have been sucked into this spiritual black hole which eventually will lead to complete apostasy. Many churches are already apostate in their teachings, let God be true and every man a liar.
Heresy is now Bible study, prayer is chanting, salvation is now universal, atonement is now feeding the poor, and God Himself is a many faceted caricature that continues to be a creation but surely not the Creator. You must be faithful and aware that this is what was foretold to us by God’s prophetic Word. The so called teachers are tickling ears with lies and soothing fables, but we ourselves must fervently seek God’s power to come and revive us and glorify Himself. I do not believe a world wide revival will take place, but God will honor personal seekers with His anointing if we get hungry enough. We have a long way to go.
All those who are emergent are liberal in either or both their doctrine and/or their lifestyle, which is also doctrine. Men like Mark Driscoll claim a form of doctrinal orthodoxy while exhibiting a liberal and careless lifestyle. Men like Rob Bell have little resemblance to orthodoxy in either, and men like Brian MacLaren are wolf pack leaders in heretical studies. It does little if any good to even dialogue with these emergent/purpose/seeker types, prayer is more effective and edifies the one who prays. Arguing is counterproductive and in reality I have come to the conclusion that God would have us avoid them which walk disorderly. Some have pleasant personalities, in fact Brian MacLaren seems to have a humble and kind spirit that should shame all of us, but that does not absolve anyone from teaching things contrary to the Scriptures. Perhaps that kind of man is the most dangerous of all.
So have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather rebuke them. The days are evil and God’s Name will continue to be dragged through the mud of heretical slander, but let us remain in the love of God, humbly confessing our unworthiness before our gracious and wonderful Lord. He is worthy to be praised in the night watches. Do not lose your joy in these times, but continue to press toward the mark of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.
That my friends is our destination, the Celestial City and its King!
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