Prey Without Ceasing
Now faith is the substrate of things
hyped for, the edifice of things obscene
But what I do, that I will do, that I
may cut off occasion from them which desire occasion; that wherein they glory,
they may be found even as we. For such are
false apostles, deceitful workers, transforming themselves into the
apostles of Christ. And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an
angel of light. Therefore it is no
great thing if his ministers also be transformed as the ministers of
righteousness; whose end shall be according to their works (2ndCorinthians11:12-15).
Believe
it or not brethren, there are men in
The Church who love the people of God. There are men who lay their lives down for their congregations. There are men who labour in God’s Word &
endeavour to feed the flock of God. There are
men who fear The Lord & take their call to service very seriously & quite
literally. However, there are also
men in the ministry who bear none of
these qualities whatsoever.
I
have to be honest with you. I have to be candid & tell you that every now
& again, more out of frustration than faith, I have to ask The Lord why it
is that faithful men of God [that I know
& know of], who love, live & preach the truth, seem to struggle so
in their bodies, in their circumstances & in their finances. Yet the
wicked, lying, deceitful, false & self-seeking abusers of God’s people,
seem to hop, skip & jump their merry way through life without a care in the
world. They’re getting away with crimes akin to murder. On this point, I’ve
been accused of perpetuating gross exaggerations & perhaps my critics are right.
I do have a tendency to take matters [like demonstrably false doctrine & its
lying, thieving, scheming, grinning, scamming, coat waving propagators] far too seriously. However, in answer to
the question I have repeatedly asked The Lord, there are abundant I-told-you-so statements in Scripture.
We
willingly engage in attempting to name & shame groups like The Mormons or
The Watchtower when it comes to that which is false. We point out their
doctrinal unorthodoxy & questionable orthopraxy without hesitation. Yet
within our own ranks there are men
who are heretics! We tolerate them. We laud & applaud them. We fawn over
them. We hang on their every word without a second thought. Why? Because we are
downright daft, that’s why.
The
Apostles Peter & Paul said some hard words to The Church & in this, I
believe they took their lead from Christ Himself. Jesus said to His disciples,
‘…Have not I chosen you twelve, and one
of you is a devil?’ (John6:70). Lord, is it I? Lord, is
it I? He told His disciples quite clearly, ‘…Verily I say unto you, that one of you shall betray me.’ (Matthew26:21).
Lord, is it I? Lord, is it I? He informed Peter [that] ‘…this night, before
the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice.’ (Matthew26:34). I can just
imagine the chorus of protests, but Jesus was right. Hard though it was for
those men to hear, He said it & what’s more, He said it to their faces.
Lord is it I? Lord is it I? Lord, will you stop verily-verilying & just
tell us, please!!
Of
course, Mr. Iscariot knew full well
what he’d arranged in return for thirty pieces of silver, but he donned his
cloak of maliciousness & joined in with the other disciples anyway. ‘Then Judas, which betrayed him, answered and
said, Master, is it I? He said unto him, Thou hast said.’ (Matthew26:25).
Don’t try to tell me that men of this ilk don’t know that what they’re perpetrating & perpetuating, is pure falsehood.
They know. Like Judas, they’re in it for the money & they make a fair show
in the flesh. ‘But evil men and seducers
shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived (2ndTimothy3:13).
When
Paul was leaving Ephesus, he called the Elders of The Church to him & gave
them an impassioned exhortation, saying, ‘Take
heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost
hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased
with his own blood. For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous
wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall
men arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after them.’ (Acts20:28-30).
That isn’t an off-the-cuff remark. There were men who were right there, listening to Paul speak. Men who knew that he was speaking about them, but they hugged his neck
before he left, they kissed him & patted him on the back all the same. They
were chomping at the bit, waiting for him to go so that they could attend to
their own agendas.
Just
like Jesus, Who had said ‘Beware of false
prophets, which come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly they are ravening
wolves. Ye shall know them by their fruits.’ (Matthew7:15-20), the
Apostle Paul speaks the truth to these men & he speaks it to their faces.
He gives them an I-told-you-so statement
for reference, then lo & behold, when The Lord Jesus Christ Himself drops
them a line in Revelation, it seems that some of the elders had taken Paul’s
strong words of Apostolic admonition.
The
Apostle Peter gave no quarter either. He had heard The Lord speak those words
concerning false prophets & told The Church quite clearly, ‘... there were false prophets also among the
people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall
bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring
upon themselves swift destruction. And many shall follow their pernicious ways;
by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of. And through
covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose
judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not.’
(2ndPeter2:1-3).
Lord, is it I? Lord, is it I? Peter is telling it straight as he writes his
epistle, inspired by The Holy Spirit.
Despite
these [& other] warnings given to
us in God’s Word, some of us still
find ourselves dazzled & hypnotised by men [& women] who make extravagant claims to & even more extravagant demands of, us. Just
like Judas, it seems that EVERYTHING comes down to money. Do you want to be
blessed? It’ll cost you. Just sow a seed! Do you want to be healed? It’ll cost
you. Just sow a seed! Do you want the latest revelation? It’ll cost you. Just
sow a seed! Do you want to be a part of what God is doing? It’ll cost you. Just
sow a seed! Go to the ‘phone with your credit card details & it’s all yours!
Do
you know what it means to be viewed & treated as a mere commodity? Do you
know what it is to be viewed & treated as a means to an end? ‘And through covetousness shall they with
feigned words make merchandise of you.’
The
prosperity message is a biblical one. It’s biblical
in that Scripture contains references to prosperity. However, does The Bible teach us that God will
bless us financially in return for our giving money to ministries? Does The
Bible teach us a ‘law’ of prosperity?
No, it does not. If we listen to some
proponents of that message today, we will have another impression though. We
will be told something completely
different to that which Scripture actually
says. These men [& women] preach
& teach a false gospel. They are greedy dogs who are never satisfied & they will lie to you in order to tease money
out of your pocket into theirs.
Covetousness.
Feigned words.
Merchandising.
This
is their stock-in-trade & yet despite the wagging finger of God throughout
His Word, hundreds, thousands & millions of believers fall for the rhetoric
of these evil, seductive, deceitful workers. They fall for it hook, line,
sinker, fisherman, boots n’all. Lord have mercy.
I really like what Paul says to the
Corinthians in his second epistle to them. He tells them straight, declaring [that] ‘…what I do, that I will do, that I may cut off occasion from them which
desire occasion…’ (2ndCorinthians11:12a).
What was it that the Apostle was doing & was determined to continue doing?
What was the occasion or opportunity that he wanted to ‘..cut off..’ from the infamous ‘..them..’
he refers to? This theme is threaded throughout his epistle. This appears time
& time again as he hints at, alludes to & then bluntly points these
individuals out as false apostles, deceitful workers & ministers of satan
himself. How unloving & judgemental of Paul. I had another look at what the
Apostle stated before making his statements in verses 12-15.
Would to God ye could bear with me a
little in my folly: and indeed
bear with me. For I am jealous over you with godly jealousy: for I have
espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. But I fear, lest by any means,
as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtilty, so your minds should be
corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he that cometh
preacheth another Jesus, whom we have not preached, or if ye receive another spirit, which ye have not received, or
another gospel, which ye have not accepted, ye might well bear with him. For I suppose I was not a whit behind the very chiefest
apostles. But though I be rude in
speech, yet not in knowledge; but we have been thoroughly made manifest among
you in all things. Have I committed an offense in abasing myself that ye might
be exalted, because I have preached to you the gospel of God freely? I robbed
other churches, taking wages of them, to
do you service. And when I was present with you, and wanted, I was chargeable
to no man: for that which was lacking to me the brethren which came from
Macedonia supplied: and in all things I
have kept myself from being burdensome unto you, and so will I keep myself. As
the truth of Christ is in me, no man shall stop me of this boasting in the
regions of Achaia. Wherefore? because I love you not? God knoweth. (2ndCorinthians11:1-11).
It’s
after these statements that Paul says
‘..y’know what you Saints down there in
good old Corrie, I love you lots & I do what I do & will continue to do
what I do in order to chop the legs out from under those lot you’ve been giving
your tithes, offerings, time, attention & energy to, so that they end up
even as we are..’. Extremely bad paraphrase mine.
Those
who we listen to more readily that we
do to our own God-ordained
leadership, are not jealous over us
with a godly jealousy. They are NOT. It’s my opinion & belief that Paul
said the same things that he’d said
to the Ephesian eldership, to every
church he established, ‘..guys, as soon
as I’m out the of here, I know that there are going to be wolves sniffing
around the door & some of you are going to go nuts too..’. Again, the extremely bad paraphrase is mine. He
spoke to the Galatians concerning another
gospel. Here, he admonishes the Corinthians concerning another Jesus, another
spirit & another gospel. Didn’t
they stop to check what was being taught to them? Didn’t anyone ask questions?
Didn’t they remember anything Paul
had said?
Paul
reiterates in words what his manner of life had demonstrated & it is
diametrically opposed to that of the ‘super-apostles’
who had swept through town, captivating the hearts & minds of those willing
to listen. Lord have mercy. Where are those who will swing the crosier in order
to fend off predators today? Where are those who will oversee their flocks
& see off internal power struggles, or see the wolf coming & stand to
defend the sheep instead of running
like a cowardly hireling? It is a travesty, an indictment, a shame & a
disgrace that there seem to be more
wolves than ever, attempting to
steal, kill & destroy & fewer true shepherds than ever, who will
jealously guard the flocks over which The Lord has made them overseers.
Paul
continues to pour his heart out, saying, ‘..I
won you to Christ, I won you for Christ. You lot are in danger of becoming a
bunch of nutcases & going down the same road as Eve if you allow yourselves
to be deceived by the devil into abandoning the simplicity that you’ve found in
Jesus. Why do you put up with these idiots who preach such demonstrably false
claptrap..’. Yes, the paraphrasing is shameful, I know, but bear with me in
my folly.
Paul
continues, saying, ‘..when these blokes
come along teaching & preaching another completely different Jesus, another
completely different spirit & another completely different gospel, y’all
willingly roll over, nod away & put up with it. Goodness me, what’s wrong
with you? I’m not in any way, shape, form or fashion inferior to those flimsy
charlatans & even though I might be a bit rough in the way I speak, there’s
nowt wrong with what I know & teach..’. By the way, when Paul refers to
these men as ‘..the chiefest apostles..’,
it isn’t a compliment.
Just
stop & think for a moment. Stop & think about what The Holy Spirit is
saying through Paul to the Corinthians & to us by extension. Y’see, the
very same thing has happened in our day & age because we’re just as stupid. Because of our itching
ears, we like to hear new things. Doctrine is so boring & study is so
inconveniently time consuming. Prayer is so
labour intensive. If only there were some
way of simplifying the whole process so that we didn’t have to put as much time
& energy into… hmmmm.
Before
you & I know it, we’re reading books & watching DVDs by so-& so,
who teaches such-&-such, offering their
keys to unlocking the things of God & steps to guaranteed success. All of
these ‘principles’ are available for
a love gift of any amount. Just go to
the ‘phone or pop your money into an envelope & God will bless you thirty,
sixty or a hundredfold. Covetousness. What’s even more distressing is the fact
that we’re blinded to their avarice by our own! We drift away from sound,
biblical Doctrine & we begin consuming the detritus of men [& women] who simply don’t care for
the flock of God & see The Church as a means to an end.
Most
of these people couldn’t run a hotdog stand outside in the street, but they can
readily employ theatrics, wax lyrical & drizzle their eloquence in order to
rinse a few quid out of the you & I. Feigned words. Lies. Paul tells The
Church at Corinth, ‘..we’re not like
those lot, we have been thoroughly made manifest among you in all things.’.
He
then goes on to catalogue the difference between himself, a true Apostle & those others, the ‘super-apostles’. He says, ‘..have I done something wrong by going without
so that you can be lifted up & so that I could preach the Gospel to you for
nothing? I feel as if it was robbery to accept money from churches just so that
I could continue serving you & even when I was there & needed stuff I
didn’t raise an offering. As a matter of fact, the guys down the road in
Macedonia sorted me out, not you. I didn’t give anyone a bill. No one
reimbursed me. I wasn’t a burden then & I never will be. Hand on heart, no
one is going to top me or stop me blowing my trumpet because of my track record.
Why? Because I don’t love you? God knows I do, ya dummies!’.
The
‘super-apostles’ then & the false teachers now, are exactly the same. They are diametrically opposed to true
Apostleship. They exalt themselves,
they don’t preach the Gospel freely,
they’re chargeable to all men wherever they go. They don’t consider it robbery to take their extortionate wages or exploit their
compensation packages. Indeed, they view it as a right & a privilege. They are
a financial burden, because when the money slows down or stops coming in
altogether, it’s YOU they reach out to. Their dear friends & dear
partners have to bail them out. Why don’t they practise what they preach? If what
they teach & preach is true, they ought to believe God instead of sending
out begging letters & making appeals for cash. Why don’t they sell their
houses & downsize? YOUR money pays their salary. YOUR money pays for their homes. YOUR money pays their expenses. YOUR money. Why don't you open your eyes? These are all rhetorical questions. They’re making
merchandise of you.
After
saying all of that, Paul quite clearly makes his statement, telling the
Corinthians that he does what he does & will continue to do what he does, in order to remove opportunity from
those who seek the opportunity to equate themselves with true Apostolic ministry. Sadly, there are few who will do this
today. We bear with these fools & suffer their insufferable deceits gladly.
We give them occasion. We believe their boasts with no proof whatsoever of
their validity & we give them our money. As long as we allow ourselves to
be victimised, lied to, robbed blind, manipulated & deceived, these people
will continue to prey without ceasing.
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