The Camouflaged Church...

Do not be yoked together with unbelievers. For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness?What harmony is there between Christ and Belial? Or what does a believer have in common with an unbeliever? What agreement is there between the temple of God and idols? For we are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will live with them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they will be my people.” Therefore, “Come out from them and be separate, says the Lord. Touch no unclean thing, and I will receive you.” And, “I will be a Father to you, and you will be my sons and daughters, says the Lord Almighty.” 1 Corinthians 6:14-18 Have you ever been hunting? If so, you know that when you hunt, you try to blend in with your surroundings so as not to be detected by your prey. You dress in camouflage to hide yourself, so you can fade into the woodlands you've entered. Then when an unsuspecting deer wanders near, you take aim & shoot. Well, that seems to be what the church of today is doing. She's trying hard to blend into the culture of the world around her. When I attend church these days, I see a people who are doing their best to fit into the world's mold. We dress like the world, our music sounds like the world's, and we do our best not to offend anyone because nowadays we have to be politically correct & God forbid that anyone's feelings get hurt in the slightest. Heavens, they might cry & need a safe place to run to! While the church should be a safe place for people, we are supposed to be different from the world itself. How do we find that balance? Paul makes reference to being all things to all people in order to reach them (1 Corinthians 9), however, I don't think he meant to actually live their lifestyle in order to open the door. We can't compromise the message of the Gospel, although we can change our method of delivery in order to appeal to our contemporaries. Far too many churches preach & teach a feel good Gospel in order to attract people. The full Gospel is not being presented. When did you last hear a pastor speak against sin, or preach that you must be saved to enter Heaven, or that hell is a real place, or about the shed blood of Jesus for that matter? Romans 12 warns us against being pressed into the mold of the world & tells us that the transformation comes through a renewing of our minds. Well, our renewed mind should be reflected in our relationship with God, our relationships with others & in our lifestyle--our words, actions & choices. We do no one any service if we fail to tell him/her the full Gospel story. If we continue in our quest to be like the world around us, we are simply escorting the lost to the gates of hell itself. We are in, but not of, this world & it's time we got back to our Gospel roots & started living like it. To be true sons & daughters of the Father, we must carry out The Great Commission. We can't be effective at that if we're more concerned about being politically correct & keeping up with the Joneses than we are in sharing the Gospel with the lost. May God forgive & restore us, and may He give us a passion once again to win the world to Him, one soul at a time. Bring REVIVAL, Lord! May it start within the church walls and ignite the earth... That's my thoughts. Blessings! Tony