Deception in the Pews
2/07/2013
“Strive to enter in at the strait gate: for many, I say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be able.” Luke 13:24.
There is a prominent view these days among Christians which seems to
have crept into the mainstream of Christianity. It is the view held by
many professing Christians that sitting in a pew every Sunday morning is
a good indication that a person is born again. Sadly, what we’re
confronted with here is another of the enemy’s many deceptions.
Before
continuing with the above deceptive view, I’d like to remind everyone
that Satan came to kill, steal, and destroy. He will do everything in
his power to keep people from God’s truth. He’s discovered that
combining some truth with some lies brings about the results he wants.
He’s also discovered that many of those he’s determined to destroy are
willing accomplices.
From
Jesus’ own words we know that there will be many who have been deceived
into believing they are His, when in fact they are not. “When
once the master of the house is risen up, and hath shut to the door,
and ye begin to stand without, and to knock at the door, saying, Lord,
Lord, open unto us; and he shall answer and say unto you, I know you not
whence ye are: Then shall ye begin to say, We have eaten and drunk in
thy presence, and thou hast taught in our streets. But he shall say, I
tell you, I know you not whence ye are; depart from me, all ye workers
of iniquity.” Luke 13:25-27.
The master of the house is God, and at this point He has locked the
door to Heaven. Yet there are many who are outside still knocking,
claiming they should be allowed entrance. Why would God not allow them
to enter? I know you not… depart from me, all of you who work…for Satan.
Interestingly, when it comes to eternity humans are afforded only two choices. “He that is not with me is against me...” Matthew 12:30.
We either say yes to Jesus, in which case we are with Him, or we refuse
Him, in which case we are against Him. In regards to the above
mentioned door knockers, they heard Jesus’ words as He taught in their
streets, they even ate and drank with Him. Yet Jesus considered them workers of iniquity – in other words the opposition.
The
unsaved are often taught that simply being a good person or doing good
deeds is in accordance with God’s will, therefore God will not deny them
their part in Heaven. This is a deception that in many cases resonates
throughout many churches. All the “door knockers” works and good deeds
were nothing to the King of kings. If we don’t believe in Him then His
response to us will always be “I know you not.”
Many will continue their bewailing and knocking as they are falling
into the depths of Hell, all because they allowed the enemy to deceive
them with the notion that all God desires is your good intentions and
your good works. On the contrary, what God desires from each of us is a
personal relationship with His only begotten Son.
Our
relationship with God is twofold. First of all we must understand what
constitutes a relationship. A relationship exists between people when we
have established a link between us and them – there’s a connection.
When Jesus said He never knew these folks He meant He had no knowledge
of them ever attempting to establish a connection with Him. Secondly,
what I mean by twofold is that both parties must acknowledge that there
exists a relationship. No acknowledgement by one of the participants
means there is no relationship. The people spoken of in Luke 13:25 who
are crying Lord, lord were deceived into thinking they had a
relationship with Jesus, but in fact the relationship they were
convinced they had was only one sided.
What
was it that was missing? Belief. They never got to a point that they
actually believed in who Jesus was and is. Since Jesus plainly states He
never knew them we can be assured something was missing that would link
them to Him. Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved. It
doesn’t get any simpler than that. The key here is belief. There is
nothing to works or good deeds when we are considering our eternal
salvation. There is only belief in the One who God sent.
When
we first believe in Jesus as our Saviour and Lord, and that He alone is
our hope for salvation, we are then brought instantly into a
relationship with the God of all creation. Believing who Jesus is, and
what He did for us is the means to establishing an everlasting
relationship with Him – only then do we have a connection. Many sitting
in those pews on Sunday mornings have never established that connection –
relationship. How’s that possible you might ask?
The
deception that has been burgeoning for many years in most cases
involves the attributes of God. Is God real? Did He create the universe?
Did He create the earth in 6 literal 24 hour days? Did He create man as
it plainly states in His word or did He use evolution and millions of
years? Jesus didn’t really walk on water, there’s no such thing as a
virgin birth, He’s not really God Almighty, and on and on the deceptions
flow. The enemy owns the field of deception and doubt. First he
introduces the doubt “Did God really say” and then he introduces the deception “You shall not surely die”.
With these two phrases that make up the core content of the enemy’s
lies he has managed to convince many that the God of all creation, Jesus
Christ, is only a myth. In some pseudo-Christian circles we are
confronted with those who believe in Jesus but only as a lesser god, or
in some cases merely a wonderful teacher. This attitude towards our God
and Saviour does not lend itself to a twofold relationship with Jesus
Himself. Many profess they know Jesus, but if He refers to them as
workers of inequity (children of Satan) they are deceived. When we
listen to mere men and glean our faith in God from what many teach we
run the risk of coming away with a skewed view of who God is. We must
always wash what we are taught by men by running man’s teachings through
the pages of Scripture for accuracy.
“That
if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe
in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be
saved.” Romans 10:9.
Here Paul gives us the simple truth on how to become a born again
follower of Jesus Christ. Believe it or not, as simple a gesture as this
seems many sitting in those pews have never confessed Christ. And if
they never confess Christ it’s a good bet that they don’t believe in
their hearts that God raised Him from the dead.
What
does it mean to confess Christ? It means we’re saying that we trust
Jesus to be perfect in all His ways, and we’ve completely and
unswervingly given ourselves over to Him. He alone paid the price for
our salvation, thus He is our redemption. He owns us; we are no longer
Satan’s possession, but Christ’s.
As
I sojourn in this world I walk in God’s precepts and I adhere to His
doctrines. Nothing is going to lead me away from my Lord. But if I can’t
trust Him to tell me the truth about who He is and what He’s done then
how can I pretend we have a relationship? No pretentious relationship is
going to give me everlasting life in Heaven with my God.
There
are many who sit in a pew on Sunday morning erroneously believing that
because they diligently attend those services and tithe from their
income that they are born again. Because they do good deeds and they
are, for the most part, decent people they’ve earned their way to
Heaven. The very fact that people have this type of mentality should
tell the rest of us that a huge deception has infiltrated those
sanctuaries. “For by grace are ye
saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
Not of works, lest any man should boast.” Ephesians 2:8-9.
All the good deeds in the world will not suffice as payment for
entrance into Heaven. The only way to avoid finding ourselves standing
outside and knocking, asking to be let in, is to believe on the one God
sent. “Then said they unto him, What
shall we do, that we might work the works of God? Jesus answered and
said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he
hath sent.” John 6:28-29.
Only by believing in the One who came once and for all to reconcile us
to God can we ever obtain entrance to that most glorious abode called
Heaven.
There’s
a catchy truism I’ve read lately that goes something like this, “Going
to church makes you as much a Christian as standing in your garage makes
you a car”. Granted, attending services might help you decide to say
yes to Jesus, but in many congregations today you might be just as
inclined to say no to Him, or nothing at all. Many things taught by
cults and false teachers concerning who Jesus is quite often contradicts
God’s inerrant word. A person might more easily be led astray than to
be lead to the strait path and thus through the narrow gate which is
Jesus Christ our Lord.
If we consider again that verse from Luke 13:24 it must be pointed out that the Greek word “polys”,
which is translated into our English word “many”, actually means “a
great number”. The numerical equivalent of that great number isn’t
mentioned. However, we must see this as a mass of people. When combined
with those who out and out reject Christ the numbers are innumerable.
Thinking
we have a relationship with the One who created everything without
actually believing who He really is, is folly. Many are caught up in
this foolish mindset. Attending Sunday services and doing good deeds are
not prerequisites for salvation. This incredibly pervasive deception
continues almost unabated while taking a horrible toll on multitudes of
folks around the world.
“Many
will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy
name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many
wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you:
depart from me, ye that work iniquity.” Matthew 7:22-23.
There’s that word “many” again. As I’ve stated, numerically we have no
figure to place here but the language of those two verses indicates a
vast number of deceived individuals all headed in the same direction,
ultimately to destruction.
It’s
interesting that we are given the words many and few to describe how
many will perish vs. how few will enter Heaven. Jesus tells us few will
enter in through the strait gate and narrow way. “Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.” Matthew 7:14. Our English word “few” is translated from the Greek word “oligos”, which is another numerical term and means little, small, few, slight. In other words, Jesus will be saying “I know you not”
to a multitude of very disappointed people. Believe on the Lord Jesus
Christ and you will be saved. When we believe in Him we are
acknowledging Him as God and Saviour and we can depend on our entering
into a personal relationship with the King of kings.
Jesus, speaking to the Pharisees of His day, was very blunt as He responded to their disbelief “I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am…, ye shall die in your sins.” John 8:24.
Call Him a liar, deny His deity, write off His word as myth while
sitting in your pew and your eternal destination will not be what you’ve
planned – you will die in your sins.
God bless you all,
Ron Graham
All original scripture is “theopneustos” God breathed
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