Category: Narrow Way

Narrow Way  with Steve Phillips Leaven

 Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees which is hypocrisy –Luke 12:1

Leaven is corruption and works hidden within. It is a living fungus and feeds upon its host. It progressively transforms the whole by its internal spreading. Leaven puffs up filling the mass with air.

It adds lightness to what is weighty and makes palatable what is distasteful. Unchecked, it inflates to enormous proportions. “A little leaven, leavens the whole lump; clean out the old leaven of malice and wickedness” -1 Corinthians 5:8. And that corrupting process is active in the church.

“Beware of the leaven of the teaching of the Pharisees” –Matthew 16:11. Their instruction injects leaven into the hearts of the unsuspecting. Beware! If not arrested, it will certainly transform you into “twice as much a son of hell” –Matthew 23:15 as the Pharisee who rules over you.

Beware! Pharisees are neither sincere nor true. Behind their mask they peddle deadly Traditions: “the precepts of men” –Mark 7:7. Be warned against their influence, their pretensions, and their doctrine.

Leaven’s effect is visible from without. Though it has permeated the whole, it betrays its presence by what it does on the exterior. Visible, outward, and tangible are the hallmarks and preoccupation of Pharisees. Everything revolves around the external; a pageant could not be otherwise.

Having not the inward reality of a “broken and contrite heart” –Psalm 51:17, they can do nothing else but emphasize the external act. “Why do you do what is not lawful on the Sabbath?” –Luke 6:2, is the rallying cry of their wretched hearts. Censure, condemnation, and self-justification formulate their “ministry”: “The Pharisees’ disciples often fast and offer prayers, but Yours eat and drink” –Luke 6:33.

Without joy, void of compassion, the slightest affront to their self-generated scruples launches an assault upon any who dare to transgress: “It is the Sabbath, and it is not permissible for you to carry your pallet. And for this reason the Jews were persecuting Jesus” –John 5:10,16. Loveless Leaven.

There is joy in the presence of God over one sinner who repents [Luke 15:7,10], but the heart of the Pharisee, as a deadened stone, is unmoved in its malice: “And the ruler of the synagogue, indignant because Jesus had healed on the Sabbath, began saying in response: ‘There are six days in which work should be done; therefore come during them and get healed, and not on the Sabbath day’” –Luke 13:14.

Christ, the Lord of the Sabbath [Mark 2:27,28], steadfastly refused to stoop to the bankrupt rebukes of these petty scrupulous fools. Their tangled maze of requirements sprang from the polluted Leaven of their own depraved hearts, and not from that blessed Spirit of Light and His unchanging Word.

“Why do Your disciples not walk according to the Tradition of the elders?” –Mark 7:5 is their exclusive touchstone of reality. All is arraigned, tried, and convicted in the supreme court of Self, with lord Tradition presiding. In that tribunal, their intricately inscribed volumes “nicely set aside the commandment of God” –Mark 7:9. Their burdensome weight of multiplied codes “invalidates the Word of God by your Tradition which you have handed down” -Mark 7:13.

They teach “as doctrines the precepts of men” –Mark 7:7. Because Pharisees receive nothing from above, they merely reshuffle useless fare received from fellow scribal mongers. Their doctrine is “safe,” but it cannot save. It is ever-so-balanced, but not piercing to the conviction of soul and spirit: having the approval of men, but not that of Heaven.

Their doctrine and their very lives are Leaven, and leaven corrupts. Their teaching permeates the heart and transforms the lives of those infected. To be seen before men and not by the Father in secret becomes the motivation in life; pleasing lord Pharisee now is the governing principle of the heart.

“Nevertheless many even of the rulers believed in Him, but because of the Pharisees they were not confessing Him, lest they should be put out of the synagogue; for they loved the praise of men rather than the approval of God” –John 12:42,43. The Leaven had done its work in them and continues up to today.

They did not glorify God because they feared men. They dared not transgress the determination of the “reputed pillars” –Galatians 2:9 lest they incur their wrath and thereby lose their standing before them.

A puffed up religion of external empty folly is all one is left with after Leaven has done its work.

 

 

 

Narrow Way  with Steve Phillips Hypocrisy

 Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees which is hypocrisy –Luke 12:1

Hypocrisy is a masquerade, a clever drama. A role is assumed and performed with impressive persuasion to the admiration of onlookers. And religious leaders have perfected this theatre art.

The character portrayed by the Pharisee is that of “Man of God.” The role is studied minutely; long hours of laborious concentration to perfect the part issue in its well-rehearsed performance.

It is a calculated show: The costumes are donned, facial expressions are carefully studied, accents are adopted, and lines are memorized. Props are employed to lend credence to the act. All is a synchronized flowing sequence of convincing portrayal. But it is just that, an act of Hypocrisy.

With a ceremonious swish of sanctity in a flurry of tasseled blue [Matthew 23:5], they exit the church’s stage until the next curtain call. There, unmasked, in private counsel with fellow pretenders, their deeds of darkness are forged. “Then the Pharisees went and counseled together how they might trap Him in what He said” –Matthew 22:15. With serpentine twists of the Bible itself, they would contradict Christ.

“The chief priests and the Pharisees convened a council, and were saying, ‘What are we doing? If we let Him go on like this, everyone will believe in Him and the Romans will come and take away both our place and our nation.’ So from that day on they planned together to kill Him” –John 11:47,48,53.

No unhallowed union is spared by these supposed separated fools in formulating their hateful schemes. “And the Pharisees went out and immediately began plotting with the Herodians against Him, as to how they might assassinate Him” -Mark 3:6. Corrupt Politicians and corrupt Pastors are really one and the same: Hypocrites, pretending to benefit the people while avarice and pride are their necklace.

“Ah, but now, the temple, the synagogue, and the market place are calling; the show must go on.  There are trumpets to be blown, mint to be tithed, fasts to endure, prayers to recite, Scriptures to be shuffled, seats to ascend, greetings to acknowledge, ceremonies to perform, hands to be washed, and Christs to be contradicted, condemned, and crucified.

“We must honor God with our lips though our hearts are far from Him [Mark 7:6]. We must worship God in the utter vanity of our own opinions of man-made Tradition [Mark 7:7].  We are constrained to be as eyes to the blind so they too can plunge headlong into our pit [Matthew 15:14].

“Oh yes, and the key of knowledge: the door must be barricaded and guarded fast lest any should enter therein [Luke 11:52]. And, certainly, prayers: we believe they should be long, very long [Matthew 23:14], and when at all possible on the street corner or in the synagogues [Matthew 6:5], and by all means with wholehearted thanks that we are unlike other men [Luke 18:11].

“Indeed, sacrifices must go on! How else could we continue to finger the Mammon of unrighteousness [Luke 16:13-15]! And where shall tithes and offerings be placed if not in our den of thieves [Matthew 21:12,13]! What other source of revenue is there to fund the deeds of a Judas unless it be the shekel of the sanctuary [Matthew 26:14,15]!  “We must love our money [Luke 16:14,15]!

“We have to exalt ourselves! Our opinions must prevail! And of course we actually despise the Lord of Glory! You see, we are Hypocrites. All is a masquerade. The lord of light governs our every move [2 Corinthians 11:14]. Surely this is no cause to marvel, is it?”

“‘It is not surprising if Satan’s ministers also disguise themselves as ministers of righteousness’” -2 Corinthians 11:15. But, then again, ours has been an unrivaled performance for centuries now.

Hypocrites shall be turned into hell, “for the congregation of Hypocrites shall be desolate, fire will burn the houses of those who love bribes” -Job 15:34. And Jesus is characteristically blunt in addressing all such religious pretenders, asking: “How can you escape the damnation of hell?” –Matthew 23:33.

The truth is, you can’t: that is, if you’re a Hypocrite.

Hypocrisy is a religious mask that will be unceremoniously ripped off the face of every pretending fool, leaving the wearer naked, ashamed, and terrified before the all-searching eye of the holy God of Light. Lay aside your mask and costumed folly now before trembling seizes the Hypocrites [Isaiah 33:14].

 

 

 

Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees which is hypocrisy –Luke 12:1

Religion is a mask for hatred of God.

The ways of the Lord are judged according to their own with no thought of His ever judging theirs. Quickly they find fault and slowly, if ever, do they hear rebuke. “Healthy,” needing nothing from the Great Physician, they are progressively devoured by the cancer of Cain.

Cain was the father of Pharisees [Genesis 4:1-11]. Hating, rejecting the way of righteousness, a self-conceived substitute was offered in its stead. A bloody execution upon sin and self he would have none of, and with brazen face the fruit of his own cursed toil was laid in haughty confidence before the God of Heaven. Yet when the Lord cast aside his tainted fruit as worthless, his hardened heart forged war.

Reproof was spurned. His neck stiffened against the God whose ways he despised. His fist clenched against the righteous and struck with murderous rage. He loathed in the depths of his rancid soul the sacrifice that the Lord approved of [Hebrews 11:4], and slaughtered him who brought it [Genesis 4:8].

“Cain was of the evil one, and slew his brother” -1 John 3:12. Then with insolent disdain, he mocked Omniscience by his sullen lying reply as to Abel’s whereabouts [Genesis 4:9]. He was a true child of his father, the devil, who is “a murderer…a liar” –John 8:44.

The Pharisees follow in his train. Rejecting the way of righteousness “and seeking to establish their own, they did not subject themselves to the righteousness of God” –Romans 10:3. The very name Pharisees means “the separated ones.” But they are not separated unto God at all. The only separation they know is a self-imposed isolation into the squalor of their own darkened hearts’ chambers.

What was handed down from ancient tradition dictates their every carefully rehearsed step. And their steps, like their forefather, Cain, led them to kill “those who had previously announced the coming of the Righteous One” -Acts 7:52. Their religion, Unmasked, compelled them to betray and murder the Son of God whose blood “speaks better than the blood of Abel” –Hebrews 12:24.

“They do all their deeds to be noticed by men” –Matthew 23:5, “to be seen by men” –Matthew 6:5, “to be honored by men” –Matthew 6:2, and to “receive glory from one another” –John 5:44. “They loved the approval of men rather than the approval of God” –John 12:43. The face is fair while the heart is foul.

See them nod acknowledgment for respectful greetings: “Hail, Pastor, Reverend, Doctor, Rabbi” [Matthew 23:7]. Gaze at them solemnly seated above their fellows at the head of their halls of weekly ceremony [Matthew 23:6].Watch as their hoarded coins clink impressively into coffers which eventually filter down into their awaiting left hands [Matthew 6:2-4]. Hear their lofty swelling oratory to the skies: a magnificent volume of multiplied words unheard by heaven [Matthew 6:5-7].

Observe them, morose and downcast, fasting by denying bodily demands in order to feed the cravings of insatiable pride parading as humility [Matthew 6:16-18]. Learn from them seated in Moses’ chair. Learn the peril of knowing what God says without doing it [Matthew 23:2,3]. Learn well the damnation upon knowing where to meet Christ without arising, finding, and worshipping Him [Matthew 2:1-11]. Count precisely their tithes of dill and see gnats that have been purged [Matthew 23:23,24]. Admire their expanded encasements of Scriptures brandished before approving eyes [Matthew 23:5].

Rather, weep with broken heart for the devoured widow [Matthew 23:14]. Grieve for multitudes enrolled and seduced by them, now sons of hell [Matthew 23:15]. Gasp in amazement as the camels of greed, arrogance, and hypocrisy are devoured by their ravenous gaping appetite [Matthew 23:24]. Shudder in disgust over the vermin-infested stench of their decomposed heart of death [Matthew 23:27].

Shrink in horror at the tombs of the righteous from every generation murdered by their forefathers.  And appalled and aghast, witness them fill up the measure of their guilt as spikes are driven into the outstretched arms of the Son of God Himself [Matthew 23:29-37]. Witness the sure end of all religion.

“‘Behold, your king!’ They therefore cried out, ‘Away with Him, away with Him, crucify Him!’ ‘Shall I crucify your king?’ The chief priests answered, ‘We have no king but Caesar’” –John 19:14,15.

Solemn: in zeal for “Jehovah,” they slaughtered Jesus -Jehovah’s salvation. Of these the Lord Jesus said: “Outwardly you appear righteous to men, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness” –Matthew 23:28. And there you have the final outcome and verdict against all religion Unmasked.

 

“Extortion turns wise people into fools: And bribes corrupt the heart” –Ecclesiastes 7:7.

Now that should be pretty clear to even a primary school student. But just to remove any uncertainty, let’s provide some definitions. Extortion: using one’s position of influence or authority to demand favours or money unlawfully. Bribery: offering favours or money to influence others unlawfully.

The extortioner demands; the one bribing offers. The first compels others against their will. The second willing gives in order to obtain his own will. Extortion and Bribery are really terrible twins.

Let me illustrate. The professor demands sex from his female student or he will not grant her a passing score: That is Extortion. Conversely, the student freely offers to have sex with the lecturer in order to obtain a high mark in his course: That is Bribery. Becoming clearer? Consider these further.

In the office of the Federal Minister of Internal Affairs, an inquirer is told by the clerk at the desk that the Minister is not on seat. Naira passes between two hands. The clerk then “checks” with the P.R.O. and announces, “Oh, he has just returned to his office; you can go in.” Extorting Bribes.

At the MVD office the clerk is awakened from her slumber at the desk in order to file a routine request. “There’s a N1,500 processing fee for that.” When a receipt is requested, the reply is: “We don’t issue receipts for those small amounts.” Stacks of dusty paperwork testify to those who did not comply.

“Park well!” Road Safety forces you off the road into their tangled spider-web of imaginary regulations. “Where is your approved red reflective triangle affixed to your boot? Your tires are 1 cm too shallow for safe travel. There is a pit on your windscreen.” The next vehicle overloaded with passengers and goods, smoking, and barely able to move, places N100 into an awaiting hand without even stopping.

The contractor submits his carefully prepared bid along with his brown envelope of “appreciation.” The bid includes kickback for the minister awarding the contract. Everyone is happy. Extorting Bribes.

Extortion and Bribery are evils that the God of Truth will never bless or approve of. “Your rulers are rebels, companions of thieves; they all love bribes and demand payoffs. Therefore the Lord Almighty declares, ‘I will avenge Myself on My enemies. I will turn My hand against you’” –Isaiah 1:23-25.

“In you they take bribes to shed blood; you are loan racketeers taking excessive interest. You have made unjust gain of your neighbours by extortion everywhere. You have forgotten Me and never even think of Me and My commands, says the Lord God” –Ezekiel 22:12.

“Their homes, enriched through bribery, will burn” –Job 15:34. “The unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom: Extortioners will not inherit the kingdom of God” 1 Corinthians 6:10. Repent or perish.

Who then will be qualified to enter that holy place? “He who walks honestly and righteously and speaks with sincerity; he who refuses to profit by extortion and stays far away from bribes” –Isaiah 33:15.

“The wicked accepts a bribe in secret to pervert the course of justice” –Proverbs 17:23. And should you do, you will also be taken away “with sinners whose hands are dirty with wicked schemes, whose hands constantly take bribes” –Psalms 26:9,10.

Extorting Bribes makes otherwise sensible people into fools, corrupts their heart, and destroys all sense of justice. Nothing can be normal and right when these are practiced. They corrupt the ones who demand them, those who give them, the ones who receive them, and the people who tolerate them.

In all of the Bible passages cited, those people claimed that they were the people of the God of Truth: the Holy One. But they were self-deceived; no true believer can practice Extorting Bribes.

And their rulers led the way. It is systemic in the so-called church of our generation. “Men of God” use their positions of authority and oppressive rule to Extort money from congregations under threats of cursing. They and their “church” will refuse “proper” burial of members who fail to meet their demands.

Congregations bring their “seed-faith” offerings, firstfruits, and prophet’s gifts in order to Bribe the God of heaven to receive their longed for “breakthroughs” and obtain lustfully pursued “prosperity.”

“Greed brings grief to the whole family, but those who hate bribes will live” –Proverbs 15:27.

Root and branch alike are fools and corrupt. No heaven awaits those Extorting Bribes.

 

 

 

Eden’s coolness spawned the first Sect. The twisted propositions proceeding from the twisted serpent produced a predictable procedure employed ever after. They are most effective.

1-Question, 2-Contradict, and 3-Replace are the threefold steps to establish any Sect. 1-Question: “Indeed, has God said?” -Genesis 3:1 introduces the shift from what the Scriptures actually say to entertain an alternative perspective: an open-mindedness to see things from a not-so-narrow viewpoint. Once questioning, doubt, and confusion arise, the stage is then set for part two of the process.

2- Contradict: “You surely will not die” –Genesis 3:4 ushers in the contradiction. It is not resisted, but entertained while reasoning along with the devilish representative. Quickly following, however, is the tantalizing allurement of part three. 3-Replace: “God knows…your eyes will be opened” – Genesis 3:5. Here is a novel prospect to a breakthrough to hidden sweets known only to the initiate biting its bait.

A Sect, following this original serpentine protocol, proffers exclusive insight, a lightened path, and fulfilling benefits unknown elsewhere. A man or a movement subtly shifts from the sufficiency of Christ Himself and His Word, to proffer a view of Christ and slant on His Word obtainable only therein.

The Lord Jesus becomes less and less the practical Head of His church while the group’s emphasis predominates. Alongside the Scriptures, certain views and writings arise and are counted as necessary to spiritual health. Questioning of its stance, leaders, and literature is discouraged or not tolerated at all.

Searching “the Scriptures daily to see if these things are so” –Acts 17:11 is feared by its hierarchy. Invasive directives about members’ finances dominate in a Sect. Suspicion of other persuasions prevails. Isolation from others creeps in. Pride of superiority infects each heart. Denominational tribalism reigns.

And as Adam and wife discovered in an instant, the promised goods were not delivered; only bondage, shame, and remorse were their portion when they joined that Sect. Death overtook them.

Welcome to our Sect! We’re so glad you joined us. Here’s what you can expect as our new member:

[1] Tithing Sect: “You have been alienated, estranged, and severed from Christ, you who are seeking to be justified by Law; you have fallen from grace” –Galatians 5:4. “You were not redeemed with perishable things like silver or gold from your futile way of life inherited from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ” -1 Peter 1:18,19. “May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money” –Acts 8:20.

[2]  Prosperity Sect: “You who want to get rich have fallen into temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful lusts which drown men in ruin and destruction; by longing for it you have wandered away from the faith and stabbed yourselves with many sorrows” -1 Timothy 6:9,10.

[3] Warfare Sect: “‘Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?’ But Jesus turned and rebuked them: ‘You do not know what kind of spirit you are of; for the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives but to save them’” –Luke 9:54,55.

[4] Traditions Sect: “Hypocrites: In vain do they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the precepts of men. Forsaking the commandment of God, you hold to the tradition of men. You reject, make void, and nullify the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition” –Mark 7:6-9.

[5] Signs & Wonders Sect: “A sinful and adulterous generation seeks after a sign; and a sign will not be given it, except the sign of Jonah. And He left them and went away” –Matthew 16:4.

[6] Deliverance Sect: “Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your Name and in your Name cast out demons?’  ‘I never knew you; depart from Me’” –Matthew 7:22,23.

[7] Home Church Sect: “God, I thank you I am not like other men. I am of Christ! You are still carnal: fleshly: are you not walking like mere men?” –Luke 18:11; 1 Corinthians 1:12; 3:3.

How long will it take us to realize that by the Divine power of Christ, everything necessary for life and godliness is granted through Him and His precious and magnificent promises [2 Peter 1:3,4]?

“There is one body and one Spirit, one hope, on Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all” –Ephesians 4:4-6.  Get out of your Sect: Get into Christ.

 

 

 

We long for an Oracle priest to connect us to the spiritual world: one that has broken through to the spirit in a way that the common person cannot. He alone knows the mind of the deity. He understands the prescribed rituals to join us with unseen powers. He can provide the means to achieve our desires, whether good or evil. The words of this juju man are thought to be the very words of the god.

As such he becomes the necessary mediator between the god and the “laity” common people: a sacred spiritual priest. In short, the words of the Oracle are the words of the god.

By a subtle but evil association, we have conceived that the “Man of God” is the Oracle of God. Somehow, we have replaced the juju man in the bush with the “Pastor” in our minds. Thus this inbred thinking of African Traditional Religion [ATR] has been transferred into the “church.” By so doing, clergymen have actually become antichrists in a very practical sense by competing with Christ Himself.

“Prayer Points” have their origin in this mentality: that the Oracle priest speaks for the unseen god. The “Man of God” tells the people what God wants them to practice, believe, and pray; this is ATR.

Many believe that the “pastor” hears from God and then transmits to the people the “word” from God that he has received. This is the traditional mindset in ATR. Here is how it works. The people have no direct access to the deity. They therefore come to the Oracle priest who alone has entrance there. The priest, through sacred ritual, divines the message from the deity. He then brings the message of the god to the people for a price. The people pay the Oracle/priest and leave with the message of a god they have never known and never encountered. It is what is done in the village; it is what is done in the “church.”

Of this mentality, we must repent. “There is one God, and one mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus” -1 Timothy 2:5. A pastor is not your mediator. If he is, then he is an antichrist, a substitute for the One and only Mediator, Christ Jesus the Lord. A “Man of God” has no more access to the Lord than any other true believer. Heaven is open to the lowliest and weakest Christian.

“Therefore, since we have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. This High Priest of ours understands/sympathizes with our weaknesses. He is One who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly to the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help in time of need” –Hebrews 4:14-16. There exists no separate and special class of Oracle priests among believers in Christ.

All are priests. All have equal and direct access to the Majesty in heaven, the true and living God, apart from human mediators. You need no Oracle to intercede for you or to tell you what to pray.

The Lord Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit both intercede for you; seeking human mediators is turning back to the deception and bondage of ATR. Jesus is “able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them” –Hebrews 7:25. What will the mediation of a “Man of God” add to that? He is not your Oracle.

The Holy Spirit Himself guides us in what to pray. “Likewise the Spirit also helps in our weaknesses. For we do not know what we should pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself makes intercession for the saints [holy ones/true believers] according to the will of God” –Romans 8:26,27. Why do you need a “Man of God” to give you “prayer points”? You don’t. You are a priest and heaven is open.

In ATR, the Oracle is “anointed” with supernatural abilities and access to the god that the common people do not possess. Therefore it is only through him that “average” people can experience the supernatural. This we need to repent of. In Christ Jesus, all are anointed with the same Holy Spirit, equally and fully. No one’s anointing passes that of another. There are no “super” Christians.

We share in the same life, spiritual blessings, and anointing. “Little children you have an anointing from the Holy One, and you all know. The anointing which you have received from Him abides in you, and you do not need anyone to teach you; but as His anointing teaches you about all things, it is true and is not a lie. Just as it has taught you, abide in Him” -1 Jn.2:18,20,27.

These truths are what are known in the Bible as the priesthood of all believers and the anointing of all believers. Practice these; abide in these. Throw aside the bondage of ATR’s Oracle mentality.

 

 

African Traditional Religion [ATR] has infiltrated the church. Incantation, conjuring spiritual powers and favors through ritual language, has replaced prayer. PC, the fake substitute of “Positive Confession,” has deluded the church. But the true and living God cannot be manipulated with ritual words.

Christendom’s PC is nothing more than the foundational assumption of all ATR: The mind of man through images creates reality by spoken ritual words which releases powers either positive or negative.

Prayer has become Incantation. We now invoke, “In the name of Jesus” as our most powerful Incantation. ATR employs such methods. But that is sorcery, not Christianity.

The church has been deluded by deceivers to use the techniques of PC that have been borrowed from ATR and gleaned from Satan. Often Isaiah 45:11 is quoted in the King James Version to support their false claims: “Ask Me of things to come concerning My sons, and concerning the work of My hands, command ye Me” [emphasis added].

We have foolishly believed our “Oracle” men of God, but have not examined the Scriptures to see if these things are so. The NIV translation says: “Concerning things to come, do you question Me about My children, or give Me orders about the work of My hands?” Again, the ESV translates: “Ask Me concerning things to come; will you command Me concerning My children and the work of My hands?”

Trust is to be put in the written Word of the Living God, not in our own positively confessed words. “It is written!” That is faith, and that is how to resist the devil. “Warfare” prayers are Incantations that take the name of Jesus and of God in vain. No such prayers are found anywhere in the New Testament.

Shouting, “Back to sender,” is a popular method used by “deliverance” ministers to transfer spirits, curses, or problems to a sacrificial victim. In this case, the curse is “returned” to the “enemy” who is the “source” of the spiritual affliction. But this is sorcery, not prayer; and we curse those Christ came to save.

Presently, using the name of Jesus as an Incantation is widely practiced in the ATR “church.” Such deception was actually noted in the NT. There certain men attempted to use the name of Jesus as an Incantation in their “deliverance ministry.” It failed miserably because the name of Jesus has no power in itself. “In the Name of Jesus” is not an Incantation used to guarantee the results of what a person confesses.

“Some of the Jewish exorcists tried to use the name of the Lord Jesus in an incantation over those who had evil spirits, saying, ‘We command you [to come out] in the name of Jesus whom Paul preaches.’

“And the evil spirit answered and said, ‘Jesus I know, and Paul I know; but who are you?’ Then the man with the evil spirit, leaped upon them and overpowered them [violently], so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded” -Acts 19:13-16.

Using the name of Jesus as an Incantation is what the many “deliverance” ministers were actually doing in Mt.7:21-23. But in reality they were taking the name of Jesus in vain. He never knew them. Never once did a demon depart from anyone under their “ministry.” They are 419 hollow trees.

Jesus said, “I never knew you” [Matthew 7:23, emphasis added]. His name was on their lips, but their hearts were far from Him since they were actually lawless: deceptive masquerades. Since they themselves were not delivered from the power of darkness, how could they ever deliver others? They cannot, and did not, and all perished. And Jesus says there are “many” like them [Matthew 7:22].

Lucifer said in his heart, “I will ascend to heaven; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit on the mount of assembly. I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the Most High” –Isaiah 14:12-14. This is the origin of PC: the decrees, commands, and confessions of this wicked deluded spirit, Lucifer. PC is satanic. PC is an insult and assault upon the Most High God. It is lawless revolt that is rooted in pride. Did Satan’s PC work? Did what he decree come to pass? Did he possess what he confessed? No, it did not work then; neither does it now. God is not manipulated by Incantation.

Satan said, “I will ascend to heaven!” The Almighty said, “You have fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, brought down to hell, maggots are spread under you, and you have been cast out” –Isaiah 14:12-19.

PC is an arrogant satanic delusion. The God of heaven rejects it as the devilish deception that it is. Prayer is to ask, not command: to desire, not decree, to plead, not proclaim. Prayer is not Incantation.

 

“Can any good thing come out of Nazareth?” – John 1:46: so reasons those who rise no higher than their own prejudice. God’s ways are not our ways; neither His thoughts, our thoughts [Isaiah 55:8.] Should we have commissioned and sent the King of Glory into the world, we would not have chosen an animal stable for His birthplace, nor a despised bush-village for His obscure years of development. But God did.

Jesus learned and developed by prolonged quiet reflection through the means available to all. His character thrived in the care of godly parents, through meditation upon the wonders of the natural creation, habitual gathering with the people of God, secret communion with the Father, by pondering the depths of the Scriptures, through selfless deeds of service, and by engaging in useful labor.

This became the Pattern for Christianity through the example of our Lord during His days in Nazareth: to flourish in the commonplace, in the home in contrast to the lecture hall or public concourse.

Here quiet strengthening of the inner man is cultivated. Consistency of life, regular recourse to secret devotion, and practical usefulness becomes ingrained in such a “school.”

Out of His thirty-three years of earthly life, only three were engaged in what we consider to be ministry. The remaining 91% were passed in quiet development of character and obtaining a comprehensive grasp of eternal purposes into which the unique contribution of His life would fit.

Though at age twelve He was fully conscious that He must be about His Father’s business [Lk.2:49], that business for the next eighteen years was that of simple submission in the carpenter’s shop [Mk.6:3].

In such humble scenes one learns the discipline of the often repeated mundane tasks that fit the soul for future larger responsibilities. “He that is faithful in a very little thing, will be faithful also in much” – Luke 16:10. If a wooden bench cannot be fashioned well, how can an eternal human soul be entrusted into one’s hands? If humility in serving God honorably is not instilled there, pride will soon spoil all.

And when emerging from His carpenter shop to the banks of the Jordan, heaven gave its verdict on whether those were wasted years. “This is My beloved Son in whom I am well-pleased” –Matthew 3:17. And that commendation was voiced long before He performed even one miracle or preached one message: His first miracle is recorded in John 2; the beginning of His preaching was in Matthew 4:17.

Faithfulness and integrity are cultivated, not in dramatic public exploits, but in the daily sweeping of planer shavings. Through such menial chores one learns the discipline of self-restraint even though one’s thoughts and ambitions are grand, lofty, and godly. It fosters humility, apart from which all is loss.

In the wisdom of God, preparation precedes service. God must first make the man before He can use or send him. His servant’s soul is of greater concern than service. It is why true laborers remain few.

Character is the bedrock of usefulness in the design of heaven. And it is here that we have failed to follow the Pattern of Christ, both personally, and in our approach to training others. We have foolishly rushed into service, both while being ignorant of the whole counsel of God and also being unlike Christ.

Our programmed curriculum does not take place in Nazareth. 3 years of “training” before launching into a lifetime of “ministry” exposes our deluded state. Christ did precisely the opposite. Abraham entered Canaan at age 75. 40 years of Egyptian learning must be purged by 40 years in Midian’s wildlands ere Moses leads the flock of God. David, anointed as a youth, must dwell in Adullam’s cave, hounded and hunted, before ascending the throne. John the Baptist, filled with the Holy Spirit from the womb, needs yet to abide in deserts until the dawn of his brief ministry. We have abandoned Nazareth protocol.

A N 2,000 Prayer House Prophesy “anoints” a President and Founder. Empty hands laid on empty heads “ordains” to ministry. Unemployment is rampant so we beg money to rent a hovel, collect a few white plastic chairs, and secure a band-set: and yet another jamboree travesty “church” is born.

We are unlike Christ. Our ideas about service have been absorbed by observation and imitation of the religious status quo, but not gleaned from the Word of God itself by reflecting upon the Lord Jesus.

Rather, we adapt from our surrounding religion what we hope will further our agenda, but we have not grasped the Pattern of Christ and hence have no convictions. And the “church” is in shambles by scrounging in the dustbin of denominations without spending one day in the carpenter shop of Nazareth.

 

Pattern: we almost hate the term – demands, regulations, compliance. Another set of wearying intruding obligations upon time, effort, and resources. But that not what I’m meaning; no, not at all.

“Everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and you who have no money, Come! Buy and eat without money and without cost. Why do you spend money for what is not bread, and your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to Me, and eat what is good, and delight yourself in the best food of all. Come to Me with your ears wide open. Hear Me that your soul will live!” –Isaiah 55:1-3.

OK, that’s a new Pattern altogether. All the patterns of men demand, but do not supply. They require but do not relieve. Standards are set without assisting. Laws are pronounced without power to comply. The patterns of men are subtle bondage, resented requirements, and joyless duty.

But not this Pattern; it gives, secures, overflows, and satisfies. And that Pattern is Christ Himself.

All that God requires of us, He provides to us in the Lord Jesus: freely, fully, and forever. Christ Himself is our standard, and Christ Himself is our saving satisfying supply. The very life that must be ours in order to please God, is infused in us by Christ Himself. What we are to be, Christ becomes in us.

He loved to the uttermost: the outcasts, unclean, and despised as well as the respectable and rich. Pagans and priests, harlots and Herods, along with slaves and sovereigns, liars and lechers were all loved. And we must do the same; He is our Pattern. But how is that possible?, you say. He is also our provision.

To the command: “Love one another, even as I have loved you” –John 13:34, comes the counterpart: “Love is from God. We love because He first loved us” -1 John 4:7,19. But is that practical? Yes, because what He requires He supplies. “The love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us” –Romans 5:5. “The fruit of the Spirit is love” –Galatians 5:22.

But how can we meet up to Christ’s Pattern of loving the unlovely, the wretched and reprehensible? Simply because “the love of Christ controls us” -2 Corinthians 5:14. And “whoever loves the Father, loves the child born of Him” -1 John 5:1. And this love produces holiness, a real purity.

It is not comprised of fake religious restrictions and regulations of character: not a ceaseless round of meetings, fastings, tithes and offerings, taboos on dress or adornment or association. No; holiness is Christ in us: “our Life” –Colossians 3:4, “our sanctification” -1 Corinthians 1:30. He is the “life-giving spirit” -1 Corinthians 15:45 who imparts all that He is to all that are His. But is this really possible? Yes. “He who is joined to the Lord is one spirit” -1 Corinthians 6:17. Ok, so what’s the catch? No catch.

“Come to Me, all who are weary and heavy-laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am meek and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and My burden is light” –Matthew 11:29,30. Ah ha! So there’s a yoke and a burden after all!

But the yoke is easy because Christ provides the power. The burden is light because “His commandments are not burdensome” -1 John 5:3. It is not a yoke of bondage extracting from us what we do not possess. The commandments are not grievous because of love: “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My Word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him” –John 14:23. It’s a Pattern with a provision. A standard attended with a supernatural Spirit of supply.

Undergirding it all is truth. But I still don’t understand. How am I supposed to be loving, holy, and full of truth? Don’t worry; Christ has anticipated all this and has made a super-abundant supply beyond anything we could ask or think. “The Father will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever: the Spirit of Truth” –John 14:16,17. “He will guide you into all truth. He will glorify Me. That’s why I said the Spirit will take what is Mine and will disclose it to you” –John 16:13-15. Yes, “the anointing of Christ’s Spirit which you received from Him abides in you, and teaches you about all things, and is true, and just as it has taught you, abide in Him” 1 John 2:27. Supply is sure in Christ our Pattern.

“Abide in Me, and I in you. No branch can bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine; so neither can you unless you abide in Me. I am the Vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing” –John 15:4,5.

This is why patterns are hateful, but the Pattern of Christ is not. Abide there and His life will flow.