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(PLAYING CHURCH)
SCRIPTURE - MATT. 15:8
MAY, 1996
THIS PEOPLE DRAW NIGH UNTO ME WITH THEIR MOUTH, AND HONOUR ME WITH
THEIR LIPS; BUT THEIR HEART IS FAR FROM ME.
SUBJECT - PLAYING CHURCH !!!
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Praise the Lord!!! Glory to God!!! Thank you Jesus!!!.
Hallelujah!!! Bless His Holy Name!!! God is Great, and Greatly to be
praised!!!
What do all of the above have in common?? If you have guessed that
they are all things, that Christians say, you would be absolutely
right. However, Christians, are not the only ones that use these
phrases. These phrases, are also used by a group of people, that are
like some twenty, or larger dollar bills. They are counterfeit. That's
right, counterfeit. To the untrained eye, they look genuine. At a
glance, they have all of the correct markings. Yet, if you put them
under close scrutiny, and you know what to look for, their flaws, are
quite evident. Many would say,' then you are talking about hypocrites.'
Then I would say, 'no I'm not. For a hypocrite, as far as God is
concerned, is a person, that preaches, or claims to believe something,
then goes against what he has said.' The people I'm referring to here,
don't fit in to that category at all. You see, they don't believe much
of anything about God, they just want to make you think that they do.
To them, this is nothing but a game. They are, PLAYING CHURCH.
To explain myself further, let me give you some examples. There
are people in churches today, that claim to love Jesus. They go to
church every Sunday. Some of them even stay all day long. They sing in
the choir. They are on the deacon board. They may even be ministers.
It is not unusual to have a pastor, that is like them. Anyway, they
enjoy hearing about all of the good things that the Lord has in store
for them. As mentioned earlier, that is when they really let loose,
praising the Lord, running down the aisles, and such. They can really
get it on. But, when you start talking about the prerequisites that God
says they must follow, i.e. repenting of sin, living a holy and
righteous life, and all of the other things that Jesus said you must
do, in order to partake in those blessings, then you see a totally
different reaction. They don't shout as loud. They seem to start
missing church a lot. They begin to murmur and complain about how the
preacher needs to get with the 90's. Next thing you know, they are
looking for a new church. Why? It is because, as long as the preacher
was saying things, that made them feel good, they were there all the
time. But, those of you that know the Lord, know that sometimes, we get
into situations, or mindsets, that we feel are perfectly acceptable,
and God, in all His love and mercy, has to do something to get us back
on the right track, lest we continue and perish. So, we accept the
chastening that He sends [JOB 5:17-19,PROV. 3:11-12,HEB. 12:5-8]. But,
those that are playing games, are what as known as bastards [HEB.
12:8]. And how does God chasten us? Through the preaching of His Word.
And that is where the players, can be discovered.
If you will read the passage of scripture, that appears on the
letterhead of this tract, from which, the name of this ministry, was
taken, you will see that the Word of God, is a discerner of the
thoughts and intents of the heart. In other words, if you want to know
if a person is as loving of God as they say, use the Word on them, and
see how they react. We have people that go to church on Sunday, and
live like hell, the rest of the week. They gamble. They drink liquor.
They are involved in adultery and fornication. You have some that are
gay. You have others that follow psychics and astrologers. Others are
full of self pride. Still others are in to racial separation, and
discrimination. Witchcraft, idolatry, rock music, rap, pornography and
such. All of which, God says are
sin, and will lead you to destruction. But, those that play church, see
it as judging them, and they don't like it. So they will leave that
church, and find one that plays the same games they do.
These churches are not all that hard to find. All you have to do,
is look for a church, that is the most popular in the community, and
you have found one. Why do I say this??? It is because, the truth of
God's Word, is never popular. The truth of God's Word, cuts down to the
innermost parts of our being, like a twoedged sword [HEB. 4:12], and
most people don't like it. Therefore, they seek a church, that sugar
coats God's Word, and overlooks sin. When is the last time your pastor,
has addressed any of the things I named above, as sin??? If you can't
remember, then you are playing church, or you are in a church, that is
playing games. You see, as a minister, called by God, I have to follow
what God tells me, and not what is popular to man. God says, 'PREACH
THE WORD; BE INSTANT IN SEASON AND OUT OF SEASON; REPROVE, REBUKE,
EXHORT WITH ALL LONG SUFFERING AND DOCTRINE [2 TIM. 4:2-5]. If you will
read verses [3-4], you will see what those that are playing church have
been caught up in.
When talking to other preachers, I tell them, the same thing I was
told, and that is, 'if you are preaching the Word of God, as it was
meant to be preached, and everybody likes it, you better check yourself
and see what is wrong.' There is no way that anybody, that is a sinner,
can sit up in a church, and feel comfortable in their sins, when the
truth of the Word is being preached. The main thing that sinners need
to do, is repent of their sins. And, people are not going to do that,
when they are comfortable with what they are doing. One example of
people playing church, is found in [1 COR. 5:1-13]. Here is a church,
that had a man in it, that was involved sexually with his step-mother,
something that the heathens didn't do [vs.1]. And the church knew about
it, and even boasted about it [vs. 2]. The apostle Paul, told them,
to, what in effect was, cast him out of the church (excommunicate), if
you will, so that he might be destroyed physically, before his soul was
lost [vs. 5]. And you see, there was also the danger, that if this was
allowed to continue, then others in the church, would get involved in
other sins, and everybody would be lost (go to hell) [vss. 6-8]. Am I
saying you need to physically throw people out of the church, that are
sinners? No. If that was the case, then how would anyone get saved? The
church is the hospital, if you will, where those that are sick with
sin, come to get delivered. However, when the truth is preached,
anyone in the congregation, who is there with the wrong motives, will
be placed under so heavy a conviction, that they will either repent, or
leave. That is what church is supposed to be about. But, that is not
what is happening today, in most churches. We have preachers, some of
them gay, performing same sex marriages, and giving these people, the
idea that God backs this action. Let me tell you up front, THAT IS A
LIE FROM THE PIT OF HELL. And these preachers, are in far more a
damnable situation, than those that they are leading to believe it is
all right. Any preacher, that is doing that, needs to get out of the
pulpit, and get in the congregation, and let a true man of God, take
over.
It is time that those of you, that are playing church, realize,
that Jesus is return-ing soon. And when He comes, He will remove His
Church, from the earth, and those of you that are left, won't think
about playing games. You will be wishing that you had taken advantage
of the truth, while you had the chance. It's not too late to get right.
All you have to do, is ask Jesus to forgive you of your sins, and to be
Lord of your life. A simple prayer from the heart, is all it takes.
Say, 'JESUS, I AM SORRY FOR MY SINS. I REALIZE THAT I AM A SINNER, AND
I ASK YOU TO COME IN TO MY LIFE, AND SAVE ME. I BELIEVE THAT YOU DIED
ON THE CROSS FOR MY SINS, AND THAT GOD RAISED YOU FROM THE DEAD. WITH
MY MOUTH, I CONFESS YOU AS LORD OF MY LIFE, FROM THIS DAY FORWARD. HELP
ME TO LIVE THE TYPE OF LIFE THAT YOU WANT ME TO LIVE. AMEN.' With that
simple prayer, you are now saved. Now begin to study the Bible, and
learn just what God says about what Christians should, and should not
be doing. One thing you should do, is get water baptized, 'in Jesus'
name', and seek the baptism of the Holy Spirit. But, as of right now,
you are saved.
NOTE: NO MORE MESSAGES, UNTIL WE COME BACK IN AUGUST. SEE YOU THEN, IF
THE LORD WILL'S
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