What does the visible Church have to answer for? This is the issue under discussion. And this is the 4th "charge" being brought against the visible church in America.
The true Bride of Christ is made up of only those who have been redeemed by the blood of the Lamb; justified in the sight of God by grace, through faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.
This Church meets in a number of different places, under a number of different names. But, regardless of what it's called and where it meets, 85% of what it believes is the same.
Christian doctrine is not evolving over time. It is settled truth. What the apostles believed is what we should believe, today. It is "The Faith" once delivered (Jude v. 3). How else can we be of "one mind?"
The devil, too, has settled "truth." His philosophy and tactics remain consistent throughout the ages.
His sin was aspiring to godhood (Isa. 14;12,13). And his attack on righteous Adam was to encourage him in achieving the same: "you shall be as gods..." (Gen. 3:5)
That he achieved his goal in corrupting Adam and Eve has emboldened him to not only continue on this tack, but to continue preaching the same "gospel." As long as it works, why change? And what it does drives striaght to the heart of God's authority and uniqueness.
The 21st Century visible church has bought into this lie! Influential men and women teach that becoming a Christian means partaking in deity. They teach that believers, becoming what Jesus is: God, can simply speak words to achieve physical and spiritual reality.
As God spoke the heavens and the earth into existence, so too can the Christian. If you want wealth, "speak to the money and it will come" (Gloria Copeland)
The ramifications of this one lie are staggering! They claim the Bible teaches that Christians have power in their tongue over life and death. They believe cancer can be removed by simply speaking words of faith and power.
One day, every human being will stand before the Lord Jesus Christ in judgment. Believers at the bema, unbelievers at the Great White Throne. A judgment without appeal. And many who profess to be Christians will have a lot to answer for.
