WHEN SILENCE ISN'T GOLDEN

Most Churches are now overrun with such superficiality and shallowness, such self-idolatry and fleshly and unbiblical worship, that it is hard to even justify calling those places Churches. Places that once existed as places where Jesus was wholly met and worshiped, and where the Word of God was fully and faithful expounded, now mostly just exist as marketplaces, themeparks and kingdoms of men rather than kingdoms of God. In a word, much of the Church, that will here be referred to as 'the modern day Laodicea', is asleep. Jesus still loves this Church and this people, but do we? Jesus' love for them is seen in ACTION in that He stands at the door and knocks at the hearts of these people (Rev 3), but where is our love actioned for them? By and large, nearly all of the Church that knows what now takes place, is COMPLETELY SILENT about it. This not only amounts to being extremely selfish (caring only for self), but also it shows that many do not care for those that now have been lulled to sleep in the modern day Laodicea and they do not care that God's peoples' spiritual lives are being attacked. These same people are quite happy to enjoy their lives and be taken up with such enjoyment, rather than speaking out and pleading with a Church that is rapidly shipwrecking men's faith, and polluting their relationship and worship of the Lord. Jesus KNOCKED; He tried to get the Churches attention; are we trying to get it's attention? Are we trying to pass on what the WORD says about what is going one? Or are we content in seeing our brothers and sisters turn the Church of God into an idol? And in the process seeing the Holy faith turned into a unholy and unclean thing?

Although it is God that is the one who speaks and confronts when His Church goes astray, it is men that He uses to PASS ON HIS WORD. This is clearly shown in the book of Revelation. Though the message of confrontation came from God, God revealed that word to John to PASS IT ON. God said, 'To the Church of Laodicea write…' Whether in the Old or the New Testament, God still used men to confront His Church when it was needed. Yes, in love, yes, in humility, yes, in patience, but also WITHOUT COMPROMISE and in BOLDNESS. John did not mince his words with those Churches. How could he? God had revealed His will by HIS WORD, and John was compelled by the Spirit to pass those words on. How must he have felt when he passed on such words like, 'If you do not repent, I will come and fight against you with the Words of my mouth'? We are not told, because IT DOESN'T MATTER. Similarly, we as the people of God cannot be influenced with how we FEEL about this, because the truth will sometimes be hard for our feelings to accept. And we cannot remain silent and inactive because of those same feelings. Many feel the truth is too harsh now. We cannot speak out because it will be perceived as unloving. I wonder, if everyone in the Church today read the scripture I just quoted, how many would dare call such words unloving? And yet if a person today was to say such words, that if His people didn't repent, that God would FIGHT AGAINST THEM with the Words of His mouth, how many would accuse that person of being unloving? This shows many have a distorted view of what true love is. Furthermore, we are not told how Laodicea responded to John's words, why?, again, because that's not the point (let God be the decider there, let Him be sovereign- He is His peoples' shepherd). But nevertheless, our calling, like John's, stands; if we love the people of God, we must call out with the Word of God; we must shine the light on the travesty that is now unfolding before our very eyes. If we say nothing, whether we like it or not, we become complicit in what is going on ourselves. Jesus didn't overturn the tables in the temple of God for no small mistake that the Church was making, He did it because He does not stand idly by while His Church of prayer is turned into a den of thieves. God does not stand idly by while men rob Him and His Church of its glory. Don't be complicit in the crime that now, by and large, goes unheralded and unchecked. Today's silence, will be tomorrows tragedy, not only for the spiritual life of our Church, but for the preservation of our very society. Much is now at stake. Will we sit back in silence and selfish inaction, or will we take a stand for the truth?