Who Are Believers to Worship With?
There is a great "push" for the Spirit baptized children of God to include those who have
not received the baptism of the holy Ghost (with the evidence of speaking in other
tongues) in their worship. This evil is fostered under the guise of "reaching the lost",
but it is nothing more than "unfaithfulness" to the truth, and disobedience to the Spirit of
God.
Because of their unfaithfulness to the Law, the Old Covenant people of the
Lord were taken captive by heathen kings, and carried away from their homeland to be
settled
in distant places (2 Kgs.17). Among these ancient places
where God's people were held captive, Babylon is most
notable, and symbolizes them all. At that time, Babylon
was an earthly city. In this New Covenant, however,
"Babylon" is used figuratively to represent places of
spiritual bondage for the children of God. Babylon is in
God's sight an abomination, a filthy place, full of unclean
spirits. Yet, in the sight of men, Babylon holds a place of
great respect and admiration. She is called, the "glory of
kingdoms" (Isa.13:19), the "lady of kingdoms" (Isa.47:5),
"the praise of the whole earth" (Jer.51:41), and "thou most
proud" (Jer.50:31). This highly honored place of spiritual
wickedness is religion which is of man, not God.
Jesus said, "that which is highly esteemed among men is
abomination in the sight of God" (Lk.16:15). And what is
it that man holds most dear, but his lofty religious creeds
and ceremonies, which omit or relegate to a secondary
position the power of the Spirit of God? Men learned long
ago that to proclaim a gospel with no real power and truth
is the most lucrative business on earth. People will pay
enormous sums for a gospel which offers them an appear
ance of holiness, and which allows for an incomplete
submission to the real Spirit of God. A gospel which
merely claims to bestow righteousness, rather than actually
providing it by the power of the Spirit, is the single most
valuable product in the marketplace of human hearts. And
the more eloquently a man is able to expound upon and
justify such a gospel, the more praise and money will be
extended to him by a very grateful congregation.
This is Babylon. An attractive place filled with unclean
spirits and with ungodly, deeply religious men. This is
Babylon, the proud, beautiful city of lies. Babylon, the
pretended friend of righteousness and truth. Babylon, the
great hiding place of sin, which offers a haven to souls
who desire the benefits of Christ, but disdain the reproach
of his holiness. This is Babylon, where God is
worshipped, but not in Spirit and truth, where men sing
praises to a God they hate, where ministers are hired to
proclaim "doctrines of devils" concerning a Lord they do
not know, and where those who come seeking God are
slowly poisoned into confused submission to spiritual
death. All who practice, or financially support, Babylon's
self-willed worship also must partake of her reward from
God.
This is the condition of every Pentecostal who worships, or is encouraged to worship,
with those who have never received the holy Ghost baptism. It is "confusion" (Babylon)
for the Spirit baptized child of God to be told that a person who has NOT received the
baptism they have recieved, is nevertheless, their "brother". We are not saying that non-
Spirit baptized people cannot attend our meetings... we are saying that non-Spirit
baptized people are not the children of God yet. And if they ARE told they are children
of God without the holy Ghost, then we are also telling them their sins have already
been washed away (when they have not); that they have been "sanctified" (when they
have not); and that they are obedient to God (when they are not). And that is why the body of Christ is lifeless, dying, confused, and in complete darkness. For deliverance, we must
flee EVERY meeting place which tells those who have not received the baptism of the
holy Ghost that they are born again without it: "My people, go ye out of the
midst of her, and deliver ye every man his soul from the fierce anger of the
Lord." God hates this "mixed worship", and so should God's people.
The 1973 edition of one Pentecostal denomination's
minute book reported that during the 1972 convention in
Dallas, Texas, there was an interpretation of tongues
given to the assembly. The Lord addressed his remarks
to those "in whom is my Spirit", saying, "Come
out of her, my people", and then he continued to quote from Revelation 18.
Yet, there was no mass exodus from that denomination by those who had received the holy Ghost, because the saints are taught by Babylon's
ministers that "Babylon" is the world and that repenting of
fleshly sins is "coming out of Babylon." But God spoke to
those who had already come out of the world, those in
whom His Spirit already dwelt! They were the ones He
was calling out!
Babylon is where God's Spirit-baptized saints worship
together with those who cannot worship in the Spirit because they don't have
it, or don't want it, or in some cases, don't even believe in it. Babylon, then, is where
the perfect lusts of the devil are performed, where men
worship God in style, rather than in Spirit and in truth.
When Jesus said, "Ye are of your father the devil, and
the lusts of your father ye will do", he was speaking to
respected "pillars of the community" who despised the
adulterers and murderers of their society. What then were
the "lusts of the devil" which they would do? Jesus explained: "For
a pretense make long prayers", "rob widows'
houses [for their ministry]", "compass land and sea to make
one convert", "love the chief seats in the synagogues, and
greetings in the markets, and to be [given weighty titles] by
men." This is what happens in the meetings, and among the
Spirit baptized people who worship with those who do not have it. Obvious sins such as
theft and
whoredom are not Satan's "lusts" for men, for they are
unworthy of his cunning. Even the ones committing those
sins know they are wrong. Satan despises those who do
obviously evil deeds, and his ministers rail against them.
Satan's successes are those who have acquired his
appearance of righteousness, and serve God as Satan does -
in their own way - and who are so deceived that they
"preach" that deception to others (cp. 2Cor.11:13-15; 2Tim.
3:13). They promise liberty in Christ to others while "they
themselves are the servants of corruption." These are
Satan's successes: highly-regarded ministers who eloquently
persuade people to believe that their sins are washed away
by the blood of Christ before, or even without ever, receiving the baptism of
the holy Ghost! That is why we hear the familiar "get saved" call from these false
ministers. If men will do what these ministers tell them to do, and these ministers
pronounce them "saved", then Satan's work is done. That soul will quite possibly stop
short of receiving the Spirit altogether. And if they should press on to receive the holy
Ghost, certainly they will not be led by it once in submission to such unclean doctrines.
Yes, Satan's successes are Christianity's ministers, and Jesus warned us of these men:
"Many shall come IN MY NAME and shall deceive many." .
When the "charismatic renewal" took place in the
1960's and 70's, those who received the baptism of the
Spirit were usually told not to come out of Christianity,
and many obeyed that foolish commandment. As a result,
that movement, which held such promise, foundered upon
the rocks of confusion. Children were born to God in
charismatic meetings, but afterwards they were
encouraged by the leaders to return to the same religious
system which those babes in Christ had to escape in order
to find life in the first place! This is Babylon. Stained-glassed snare of
souls, where death is loved. For those who yearn deeply for spiritual life, Christianity
will never suffice.
"The man that wandereth out of the way
of understanding shall abide in the
congregation of the dead" (Proverbs 21:16). Child of God,
please obey God and come out from among the spiritually dead. It is your calling. Do
not be
afraid to leave Babylon. Let God be your fear. Let God
be your dread. Jesus waits for you, outside the gate of
that cursed city. "Let us, therefore, go out to him,
outside the camp, sharing the contempt that he endured."
If we obey his pleading voice now, we will be cleansed and
received by the Father. Long ago, souls who truly hungered and thirsted
for
righteousness separated themselves from Christianity's sects
to meet in homes to pray in earnest for spiritual power and
knowledge. Now, as those humble little groups have
themselves grown into large pentecostal denominations, the
distinction between them and the sects their fathers forsook
is negligible. The very things that separated those old
saints, the baptism of the holy Ghost, the power of God,
the liberty and joy of the Spirit, and the boldness and
gentleness of Christ, are things which hungry souls must
now go outside pentecostal denominations to find.
My brothers, this definition of false religion applies to
every situation in every place, all the time: False religion
is religion without the holy Ghost. If the holy Ghost is left out, it
is false. What difference does it make as to which label
men give to their errors? If worship is not sanctified and
led by the Spirit of God, it is in vain. If doctrine is not
revealed from heaven, it is heresy. If sins are not washed
away by the baptism of the holy Ghost, they are not gone.
If we truly love people, we will by example
show them the way out of sin. If you are "unequally
yoked" in worship with those who deny in any way the holy
Ghost, you are missing God's greatest blessings and
disobeying His most clearly revealed will: "Be ye not unequally
yoked together with unbelievers, for
what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness?
And what communion hath light with darkness?
Wherefore, come out from among them, and be ye
separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing;
and I will receive you, and will be a Father unto you, and
ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord
Almighty" (2 Cor.6:14, 17-18).
Questions? Log onto the Internet, Click Here, |