Friday, July 08, 2005

# 14: Wrong Motives in the Back Pocket

Here is what I call a holy crying shame: then charismatic men and women who know little or nothing of God’s purpose read the Bible with the wrong motives (self-betterment) and decide to start a new religion, cult or denomination. Most will emphasize certain pleasing sections of the Bible that tickle them pink and downplay other passages which rub them wrong. What becomes the end product is a religion that is man-made to please the desires of sincere but gullible people. To repeat, this is the crime I am attempting to expose. You may ask, “Why?” Because this is the crime that God desires to expose through anyone who has the intestinal fortitude to go against most of what religion has been teaching for the last 2000 years. Words alone will not have the power to expose anything. Words alone will be the start of a new religion. Unless the power of Christ to perform miracles and other supernatural phenomenon is incorporated in the exposing, it will not happen.

Many may say that the words in this paper are the groans of a disgruntled lunatic. I don’t know if I am such, but one thing I know for sure is that life has no permanent value or contentment, living on the natural plane. If, for some reason I can’t live as the designer planned (as a living Christ), I don’t desire to live at all. Living as a Christ is everyone’s potential destiny, if we just can believe it.

It is difficult for the religious to seek God because the “goodness” of their religion (being saved, being born again, having the Spirit of God, and many other religious goodies) stands in the way. What reason do they have not to believe their church leaders? With all these “valuable assets” in their back pocket, what would motivate them to seek God when they already have Him?

As Christ’s followers, with all the goodness and belief we could muster, we deserve only one title: good-for-nothing wretches—hopefully God’s wretches! If we see ourselves as any better than that, we had better have a good look at real goodness (Jesus Christ).

Our natural desires, which feel totally normal and which we certainly couldn’t live without, are a stumbling block and hinder many from seeking God. In other words, how could these natural desires which give us a great and necessary feeling of satisfaction be a hindrance to seeking God? You may be asking, ”What are these desires that are so harmful?” The answer is anything the physical world gives that seems to give inward satisfaction by making life feel great.

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