Keep your arms. The fact is that all of these great Bible stories of lawful, God-ordained defiance of unjust authority are totally ignored by the vast majority of today’s pastors and churches. None of these great Bible truths are made relevant to attempted acts of tyranny in today’s America. None of them. Again, it is all about success. To the average pastor, nothing is as anathema as controversy. And nothing is more controversial than politics. Therefore, pastors are taught to avoid politics like the plague. Of course, they won’t tell you that the controversial nature of politics is the reason they avoid it; they will tell you that “God has not called me to get involved in politics,” or, “I’m trying to build a church,” or, “That’s not our mission,” or any number of other pious-sounding clichés. But the reality is they are trying to be successful, and they believe controversy hinders success. That’s also why you seldom, if ever, hear “hard” sermons from the modern pulpit--even though that is exactly the kind of sermons that Jesus Himself preached. (See John 6:60) To the success-driven, religious CEO, people must always feel good; they must be permanently ensconced in their comfort zone; and they must never be rebuked or informed of misconduct or irresponsibility. And as far as freedom goes, the shallowness of the average pulpit refuses to acknowledge the responsibility of the church to do anything to preserve it. All they talk about is praying for your political leaders and being good little subjects of the state. Plus, don’t forget that most churches are up to their eyeballs in debt. Therefore, pastors are afraid if they offend people offerings will go down and they might not be able to pay for all of those fancy buildings and exorbitant staff--not to mention their own personal financial perks might be endangered. And, yes, I must also add that the 501c3 non-profit tax-exempt status most churches operate under poses a serious intimidation against the pastor and church, which keeps them from taking a stand or speaking out on issues that might be construed as political. But here is the bottom line: as long as Christians in the pews continue to attend and financially support these stand-for-nothing churches, the churches will continue to languish in their indifference. After all, by the attendance and offerings of all of these people in the pews, pastors are being continually convinced that everything they have been taught is working: their churches are successful. The ONLY WAY Christians can start making a difference in their country is to GET OUT of these clueless, cowardly churches and find a pastor who is not afraid to be politically-incorrect, who is not afraid to preach and teach the Biblical principles of liberty, and who is not afraid to preach and teach the principles of righteous defiance against any act of tyranny. Find a pastor who is not trying to be successful. You don’t need a successful pastor; you need a truthful pastor. But this means that people in the pews must truly WANT to be in a church that takes a stand, doesn’t it? We have the kind of pastors and churches that we are willing to support. If that’s the case, Christians should stop complaining about the indifference of their pastors and simply accept the imminent slavery to which they are being led. Chuck Baldwin.
Posted on: Sun, 06 Oct 2013 12:58:28 +0000
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