THE GREATEST THREAT TO THE CHURCH

“So Christ Himself gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip His people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of Him who is the head, that is, Christ. From Him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.”  (Ephesians 4:11-16 NIV)

What do you think is the greatest threat to the church of Jesus Christ? Hypocrisy? Apathy? Bad preaching? Sexual immorality? Persecution?

My take? Thanks for asking. I think it is immature faith. Paul is especially concerned with those who lack maturity in faith – “infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming.”

In terms of faith, maturity has little to do with how long one has considered oneself a Christian. Many times, people who have ardently followed Jesus a short time are more mature than those who have sat around in church all their lives. Maturity is the fruit of a life consistently immersed in the Word of God and the Spirit of God. It is not signaled by a certain level of knowledge but by a growing discernment. The metric for Christian maturity is not competent skills or great gifts, but humility and holy love. The secret to maturing in Christ comes in the quality of one’s trusting abandonment to Him.

When Paul says “infants” don’t think kids, but people who aren’t yet mature in their faith. Immature faith works like a magnet to attract false teaching. Immaturity can be like a weak immune system. False teaching is like a virus, taking advantage of the body’s weakness. The trouble with false teaching is it has an air of plausibility to it. People not steeped in Scripture and the Spirit are most susceptible to buying into false teaching or following after false teachers. There’s only one way to deal with false teaching: maturity.

We must grow in maturity by consistently immersing ourselves in the Word of God and the Spirit of God so that we can discern the truth from the lies, “attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ.” 

-- Excerpted and adapted from “Wake-up Call” by J. D. Watt

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OUR SHEPHERD - Part 2

In the New Testament Jesus uses [the term shepherd] and applies it to Himself. He says, “I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep. The hired hand is not the shepherd who owns the sheep. So when he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf attacks the flock and scatters it… I am the good shepherd; I know My sheep and My sheep know Me.” (John 10:11-14)

Note four things about Jesus the Good Shepherd. He owns the sheep: they belong to Him. He guards the sheep: He never abandons them when danger is near. He knows the sheep, knows each by name and leads them out. And He lays down His life for the sheep, such is the measure of His love.

How thankful we should be, weak, wandering, and foolish as we are, that we have a shepherd. Let’s learn to keep close to Him, to listen to His voice, and follow Him. This is especially important in times of spiritual peril. Jesus tells us not to be misled (led astray) by the voice of strangers, and there are many strange voices being heard in the religious world of our day. Don’t be deceived by false teachers. Jesus is the Good Shepherd: trust Him. And Jesus is the door of salvation: enter by that door and you will find the full and abundant life He came to bring. 

-- Billy Graham in “Who’s in Charge of a World That Suffers?”

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WHAT SHOULD I DO?

Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life." (John 14:6a NRSV)

The way implies that which is to be followed in order to get to a specific place. We are always going somewhere in life. It is like having a map that enables us to get from where we are to where we want to be. Such a condition raises the question, "Where do we want to be?" The Westminster Catechism answers the question, "What is the chief end of man?" (i.e. What is the purpose of life?) "The chief end of man is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever." The prophet Micah asked the question this way, "... what does the Lord require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God" (Micah 6:8). To walk with God means to follow the pathway that He would have us travel. Jesus is the way.

That way must be the true way if it is to lead to fullness of life. Jesus warned, "Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them ..." (Matthew 7:15,16). What a clear object lesson. The sheep are gentle, who would be afraid of them? But a violent, angry, savage wolf is a creature to fear and avoid. False ideas, false ways, a false inner spirit, leads astray. When we are mislead we cannot get to where we want to be, where we ought to be. The false prophet, the false leader, the false witness, all seek to injure us or at least manipulate us for their own advantage. The true guide in life seeks the good of the ones he or she is leading. As Jesus said, "The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full" (John 10:10). Jesus not only teaches what is true, He is the truth. Jesus said, before Pilate, "...for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to Me" (John 18:37). So it is our faith that the way Jesus leads is the way that is true; and being true, it is the way that leads to life. 

-- Rev. Kenneth A. Mortonson in “What Do You See?” 

#4972

SPIRITUAL JUNK FOOD

“These people are blemishes at your love feasts, eating with you without the slightest qualm -- shepherds who feed only themselves. They are clouds without rain, blown along by the wind; autumn trees, without fruit and uprooted -- twice dead.”  (Jude 12 NIV)

Godless men had slipped into the church, misleading the [congregation], seducing them to believe they could continue to sin and never receive God’s correction. Jude called these false teachers “shepherds who feed only themselves.”

Can you imagine a shepherd sitting on a barren hill, hungry animals all around him, enjoying his lunch? The baas and bleating would be almost deafening. He’d have to care for them.

Unlike sheep, people who fall in with wrong teaching rarely recognize the emptiness of what they’re taking in. Instead, they keep following, filling their hearts with useless calories of spiritual junk food, never understanding that they’re barely being fed after all.

Don’t follow these teachers. They’re here today, gone tomorrow. Nothing they do can last, because they aren’t founded on the bedrock of God’s Word.

-- Toni Sortor and Pamela McQuade in “God’s Word for Surviving the Real World”


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