In this blog series we have touched upon some of the major issues concerning Christianity today. These include bad Bible versions, seeker-sensitive churches, the Prosperity and Word of Faith movements, the New Apostolic Reformation and charismania, religious traditionalism and legalism, the embracing of abominations, CRT and social justice, and Progressive Christianity. We only covered the Protestant aspect of it. In these last days, all branches of Christianity are in trouble, and some, such as Roman Catholicism, have long been flawed. The situation is overwhelming and seemingly hopeless, yet there is something we can do to stay true to God. By being genuine disciples of Jesus Christ, we will be counted by God as part of His faithful remnant, and there is good that we can do.
A. Is the Institutional Church Redeemable?
This is a valid question, the answer of which might be found by looking at history. Remember, God has had a remnant of faithful believers throughout history. When Cain killed righteous Abel, God gave Seth to Adam and Eve. Seth had a son named Enosh, and men began to call upon the name of the Lord (Genesis 4:26). One of Seth’s descendants was Noah. It was this righteous man, his wife, his three sons, and their wives that God preserved when He destroyed all other corrupted individuals on the earth with the Flood. After the Flood came the tower of Babel debacle, when it looked like mankind was going to abandon the worship of God once again, but God intervened. The people of the earth were scattered to different lands and given different languages, but out of one of Noah’s godly sons, Shem, came Abram (later Abraham), the man whom God would make a covenant with in calling out a people for Himself. Meanwhile, Shem may well have been Melchizedek, a type (foreshadowing) of Jesus Christ.
Later, Jacob (Israel) and his family were preserved in Egypt through Joseph. About four centuries later God raised up Moses to lead His people out of that land. Joshua and the next generation of Israelites conquered the Promised Land, inhabited it, and over time, even after choosing to have a king over them, the children of Israel grew strong. Rehoboam, the successor to King Solomon, took bad advice when he was still young and easily influenced, and as a result the nation split into the northern kingdom of Israel and the southern kingdom of Judah. Moral decline set in. Eventually both nations went into captivity, Israel via Assyria and Judah via Babylon. At least in the kingdom of Judah there had been a few godly kings, and God also preserved some of His people through His prophets and other faithful believers. After the captivity some of His faithful returned to Jerusalem, rebuilt the city, and built the second Temple. By the time of Christ, Judaism had become riddled with legalism and traditions, although there were those in it who were true worshippers of God, such as Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea (Matthew 27:57; Mark 15:42-43; John 3:1-2, 7;50-51, 19:39-40). With Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection came a whole new covenant, what we call Christianity.
From its outset the Church has been under attack. In the eastern part of the Roman Empire Gnosticism was strong and various old Bible manuscripts were either altered or destroyed. In the western part Gnosticism never really caught on, and other manuscript copies were preserved in accurate condition, many being translated into Latin. Fascination with ascetic lifestyles developed in the Church in the early 200’s, and a century later the Roman Catholic Church was born. Time went on and not only did the Roman Church become corrupt, the Orthodox Church formed after a split from Rome in 1054. Meanwhile, the monasteries and the cloisters, less impacted by the politicization and religious corruption of their mother churches, became places of preservation for godly men and women. By the early 1500’s even this protection was eroding, and it was at this time that Martin Luther, part of God’s remnant, opposed the Catholics. He did not intend to start a new branch of Christianity, but that is what happened. Protestantism was born through the actions of part of God’s remnant. Over time the Protestant Church became fractured with thousands of denominations and bound up in legalism. In the first decade of the 1900’s the rise of modern Pentecostalism occurred, and today, in the face of the withering institutional Church, a remnant of believers has yet again been preserved. God’s remnant people are being prepared for a great last days revival that is either about to happen or is already beginning (Joel 2:28-32).
The takeaway from all this is that throughout history God has allowed what has been corrupt to wither on the vine and die, either through active destruction as in the Flood or as bypassing it with the new covenant and, later, the Protestant Reformation and the rise of modern Pentecostalism. Although God has all power to redeem, based on our review of history He is not likely to do this with the institutional Church, instead likely bypassing it and raising up a remnant of dedicated believers to do His work and His will on earth, this time in light of the impending Rapture that, though we do not know the date it will come, we can all recognize that this is the season for it (Luke 17:20-30). Besides that, in its beginning the Church was not institutional in structure. Yes, there were elders and various congregations, but there was a fluidity and a spontaneousness in pre-Roman Christianity that has been, for the most part, lacking ever since, mainly manifested in areas of heavy persecution where the institutional Church either cannot exist at all or, if it does, is forced to be little better than another government apparatus. Why would God redeem something He never intended in the first place? Rather, an endtimes remnant on fire for God and doing His will on earth could very well be the redemption He has in mind, a return of the Church to its form and mode of operation in the first couple of centuries of our faith.
B. Meanwhile, What Can We Do?
If you are thinking about changing the face of the institutional Church, stop. It is all over the place, deeply entrenched, and is frequently the only means of regular corporate worship available. Lots of people are so steeped in traditional “Churchianity” that they cannot see past it. Like the multitudes of enslaved humans in “The Matrix” who would rather stay plugged into and continue living in a computer-generated dream world than wake up and face reality, many churchgoers and ministries are happily plugged into the Churchianity matrix, content to carry on with what (little) they know. We of It Ain’t Over Ministries used to be the same way, but thankfully the Lord “red-pilled” us. Our paradigm of Christianity has been progressively blown up and rebuilt, and sometimes it has been painful, but we are so glad God is showing us the truths in His Word versus the religious dream world we had been plugged into!
You must read the Bible, and read it daily. Read a good version of it. If you do not have an NKJV or a KJV then get one. We do not say that as cultists, but as experienced believers who have explored Bible history and versions and have learned which ones can really be trusted. Do not just read the Word but meditate on it as well. Live it out. Be a true, devoted disciple of Jesus Christ. Pray often. Fast as the Lord leads if your doctor says you are medically able to do so.
Dare to be different. Chances are you are attending a regular church for the reasons stated above. That being said, denominational and routine Christians will not always understand you. As a member of the remnant there are times that you will not fit in with the religious crowd. This is inevitable, but who would you rather please, man or God? Now, you do not need to be pushy or overbearing about what you know. Just be bold enough to stick with what you know even if no one else understands or gets it. If you are the only one in your church who believes in a prayer language, so be it. Keep right on using your prayer language. If you are the only one in your church who believes that the baptism in the Holy Spirit is real, again, so be it. Keep on believing in and operating in Spirit baptism. Be kind but firm, and be consistent. You never know. Some of these Christian automatons might become curious enough to ask what makes you different, and if so, you have an opportunity to share with them the same truths that God has shown us to be in His Word. Even if they do not change their minds, keep on doing what you know the Lord has shown you.
Pray for those who have been deceived, including false teachers. It is our desire to see such erring teachers repent and those who have been deceived to come to the knowledge of the truth. I do not mean just those who are blatantly wrong, such as those who uphold gay marriage and abortion, but also the more traditional believers who mistakenly think that man’s customs and doctrines are Biblical truth. Also, ask God to protect you from deception. No matter how smart you are intellectually, how wise you are in life, and how mature you are spiritually, Satan and his demons are more clever than any human being and will do whatever it takes to get you to go astray.
Finally, pray for God to help you and other likeminded believers to find each other so that you all can stick together and grow in Christ together. The remnant is out there. Be prepared to go and do what Jesus and His disciples did, and what the early Church did. Except for the presence of modern conveniences, the Church of the last days is going to look a lot like the Church in the book of Acts if the Lord moves like we believe He will, as in Joel 2:28-32. God is getting ready to call His children home in the Rapture, but for now He is still working to reach the lost because of His longsuffering and great mercy (2 Peter 3:9). Occupy until the Lord comes!
Matthew 10:1: And when He had called His twelve disciples to Him, He gave them power over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease.
Matthew 28:18-20: And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.
1 Thessalonians 5:12-24: And we urge you, brethren, to recognize those who labor among you, and are over you in the Lord and admonish you, and to esteem them very highly in love for their work’s sake. Be at peace among yourselves. Now we exhort you, brethren, warn those who are unruly comfort the fainthearted, uphold the weak, be patient with all. See that no one renders evil for evil to anyone, but always pursue what is good both for yourselves and for all. Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you. Do not quench the Spirit. Do not despise prophecies. Test all things; hold fast what is good. Abstain from every form of evil. Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it.
Jude 1:20-23: But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life. And on some have compassion, making a distinction; but others save with fear, pulling them out of the fire, hating even the garment defiled by the flesh.
Philippians 4:6-8: Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God; and the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever thingsare of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy—meditate on these things.
