Deception: Cafeteria Style Christianity
By Dene McGriff
We
live in a “cut and paste” world. Today, people invent their own religion by
taking a little from here and a little from there—a sort of buffet, where one
can pick and choose among the delicacies offered.
I know a bunch of people like this – a little Christian, plus some Hindu, a little from Buddhism, some New Age – mix, and you have your own personal religion. This seems so cool to create your own personal religion. Mine’s okay and yours is okay too. We are all so open and accepting. That’s the way the world is today—a relativism-style smorgasbord. There are no absolutes—whatever tastes good to you, pile it on! We create our own reality, including god!
Unfortunately, this attitude has infiltrated Christian circles as well. Let’s not rock the boat. Let’s agree on the essentials of the faith but everything else is just a matter of opinion. We keep a measure of the truth that is essential for salvation but put anything controversial on the “let’s not talk about that” shelf. We don’t want to argue or be “divisive.”
We want to “keep the unity” at all costs. So there are just some subjects we refuse to even consider in order to keep the peace in the “body of Christ.” There is tremendous peer pressure in today’s churches to stick to the things we agree on and avoid the rest. Our society and the church have conditioned us to focus on the essentials. And in a sense, I would agree. You have Christians who insist on head coverings for women, on women’s silence in the church, on singing with no instruments, etc., and certainly these are not worth dividing over.
Christians, especially the protesting Protestants, seem to be so divided, there is a move to find commonality and emphasize those essentials that unite rather than divide. This has led to a tacit understanding in Christian circles that the Bible can be divided into essentials and non-essentials, God-breathed truth and opinion, since there are as many interpretations as there are people. This applies especially to the study of prophecy.
Contentious Prophecy
There have been plenty of nuts over the years who have predicted things and been dead wrong … so much so, that as the Bible says, “Where is the promise of His coming? For since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of creation.” (2 Peter 3:4)
Prophecy has been discredited. False predictions. False and conflicting interpretations. And look, He still isn’t here! Where is He? Let’s focus on the gospel, social justice, relationships, strengthening the family—all well and good. Let’s go for what’s tried and true. Let’s avoid controversy, live our best, go to church, fellowship with the saints, read our Bibles, focus on the basics, share the good news. After all, prophecy is way too hard to understand and there are so many conflicting opinions; so let’s forget “the controversials” and move on to “the essentials.” That about sums it up.
It doesn’t matter that a fourth to a third of the Bible is prophetic and “end times” related. It doesn’t matter that God may have some important “need to know” information for “last days” Christians. It doesn’t matter because our leaders have told us it isn’t that important (see Doug Krieger’s “Despise Not Prophecies”). It is complicated and confusing and doesn’t affect our daily lives. It doesn’t matter because I don’t have a Bible School or Seminary education. It may be “good to know” information but my understanding is good enough.
With a few broad brushes, most Christians discredit prophecy or relegate it to the group of crazies who rant and rave about the end of the world, conspiracies and all. When they hear things like they find on our site about war in the Middle East, America – prophetic “last days” Babylon, the rapture at the end of the Tribulation, an apostate, lukewarm Church, etc., they freak out and write it off completely! Especially if these “prophets of doom and gloom” sound the least bit “unpatriotic.”
Proposition
If these are the “last days”—as evidenced by Israel in the land and the alignment of forces against her; and the alliance of the most powerful nation in the world strategically supportive of her—along with dozens of other prophetic clues…
If God inspired the writers of the Bible to say so much with regards to the last days…
If God warned that there would be a great falling away by “believers” in the last days…
If this is likely to happen within our life time … and we could be that final generation….
Doesn’t it behoove us to pay attention to what God has to say to our generation? Shouldn’t we read and understand those prophecies? Shouldn’t we listen to His still small voice and ask Him if He doesn’t have something to say to us? If the last days are characterized by deception, shouldn’t we be alert to not necessarily believe everything we have been told? Shouldn’t we question? Shouldn’t we take a fresh look at what God may be trying to tell us?
Don’t Rock My Boat!
For more than a decade, I have been actively on the internet with a prophetic website and over the years we have reached thousands of people. Some have written us. The vast majority (probably more than 90 percent) tell us that God had been revealing these things to them and our site was a confirmation of what He had already shown them. Some have written to disagree on one point or another. Very few pastors (professionals) have contacted us. And none have ever invited us to share with their congregation. In fact, few dare to dialogue with us. We’re too hot of a prophetic potato for them to handle. And, what’s worse, those pastors who have suggested we share with their congregants always put caveats “out there” just in case we step on anyone’s toes! In other words: “Don’t go too far—my people can’t take too much of this.”
As a prophetic website, we receive as much or more traffic, from time to time, than Tim LaHaye, Hal Lindsay, Jack Van Impe or just about any other mainline prophetic ministry. In contrast to most ministries, we NEVER ask for money. In fact we have NEVER accepted money—we don’t have a mechanism whereby we could take in funds in the first place (e.g., Pay Pal, VISA, a bank account—you know, the “wherewithal”).
The number of people visiting our site from all countries around the world is extraordinary; and, although half our audience (sometimes more) is from the USA (the nation we “harp on” the most—and you know why), at times we’ll have 25% from India, 10% from the United Arab Emirates, 15% from Chile, 10% from Cyprus or Serbia or Viet Nam and Malaysia. At one time we were one of the top sites in Guyana! In all, more than 125 nations have visited the site.
What is it about Babylon of the last days that the whole world understands except those living in the midst of her?
There
is no need to convince Christian readers in Asia, Africa, Latin America, etc.
that
America is prophetic Babylon! There is no need to convince them that our
citizenship is in heaven and not in this world.
But the few ministries we contact here in Northern California who like our message, agree with it, but want us to “cut and paste” it, especially when it comes to the role of America in prophecy. Others are afraid we would create controversy and split their churches, upset their congregations. These are just the facts.
So what are we supposed to do? Water down the message? Cut and paste like they want us to? One brother I have known for nearly 40 years accused me of going crazy on Bush and 9/11 (as a “possible” conspiracy) and contacted the pastors of a local church about it. I raised those issues in the context of a possible strike on Iran or the impact of another terrorist event on the upcoming elections, the possibility of martial law and the onset of a tidal wave of patriotic fervor in America’s churches.
We should be dealing with facts.
Fact: The Bible is clear that Israel will be reestablished in the last days.
Fact: There will be a great end times’ power, that will be apostate Christian and will sign a peace treaty with Israel.
Fact: That country is the great consumer nation of Revelation 18.
Fact: The leader of that nation is the Antichrist.
Fact: The Antichrist will go forth to deceive and conquer.
Fact: Many Christians will be deceived and follow that charismatic leader.
Fact: The Antichrist will sign a treaty guaranteeing the peace in Israel – interpreted by many Christians and Jews as a great victory even though it is a great deception.
Fact: Most Christians are just religious and don’t have a real relationship with Jesus Christ and don’t recognize and obey His voice (See Rev. 3:14-22 - the Church in Laodicea)
Fact: The Bible, including prophecy, was written for our benefit, for our warning – we ignore it at our own peril.
Fact: The main characteristic of the last days is apostasy and deception.
Fact: If this comes down in our lifetimes, it will not be “business as usual.”
Guess What? You’re in The “Left Behind” Series!
Although I didn’t agree with the basic premise, I read every one of the “Left Behind” series by Tim LaHaye and Jerry Jenkins. Since I don’t believe the pre-tribulation rapture is correct, I merely substituted myself and other Christians where he talked about “tribulation saints.”
At
times, his portrayal of what it would be like during
the Tribulation was riveting as you begin to envisage a society that turns
against Christians and Jews. The closest we can come to understanding what it
would be like is to imagine being a godly, upright citizen of Germany during
the war. Your choice? Quietly oppose the government like
Corrie Ten Boom did and be imprisoned with the Jews when caught
or outwardly oppose the regime as the courageous martyr
Dietrich Bonhoeffer did, or go along with the government and
keep out of trouble.
Unfortunately, well over 90 percent of the professing Christians in Germany went along with the Nazis.
It is far easier to go along with the crowd, go along with the culture, go along with your religious leaders – pastors and priests. Very few opposed Hitler and in fact, many supported him thinking he was doing a good thing. How can this happen, you say?
Hitler was very persuasive and charismatic; many people who went to his rallies to oppose him, left as followers. Hitler came to power on a Christian platform, even a moral one to bring the nation back to traditional values (Please see Doug Krieger’s “Hitler’s Positive Christianity.”). Don’t you think the Antichrist will be as good if not better?
You’re Closer Than You Think – Is He Speaking To You?
We raise questions. We present prophecy and discuss different interpretations. We trust the Lord will reveal more to us and you as the time gets closer and we have a greater “need to know.”
We do not give dates. We don’t tell you who the Antichrist is.
The only thing we know is that he will eventually sign the treaty with Israel. We don’t know when that will be. We know from prophecy that it will be after another war in the Middle East (“The Oracle of Damascus”) and before the Gog-Magog War. We feel that the Lord has given us a general outline.
It has never been this close – kind of like a chess game that has been going on for a few hundred years and now the pieces are aligning and we are close to “check mate.” The players are in place: Radical Islam, Israel, a great super-power that supports Israel, and happens to be strategically stationed in the Middle East.
Things are happening on the outside. Deception is all around you. Do you see it? But the real question is: Is anything happening on the inside? ? Do you sense His life flowing through your spirit? Do you revel in fellowship with Him? Do you hear His still small voice, and does the Word of God feed you spiritually? Does He use you to flow His abundant life and encouragement to others? Are you connected to other Christians?
Or, are you one of those “cut and paste” – cafeteria-style Christians – who takes the delicious portions and puts the less tasty morsels aside; who collects doctrines and teachings that make you feel comfortable and safe? Are you one of those “warm and fuzzy believers” who feels that everything will be okay when the time comes? God will take care of you. He may take you out of here. But He surely won’t let you suffer. Right?
Church history should mean something to us—the “souls from beneath the altar” continue to cry out from their persecutions. What is happening to the church in most of the world (the Middle East, Asia, Africa and parts of Latin America), and the fact these Christians are suffering for their faith, has nothing to do with you, right? You are comfortable, even a little rich (relatively speaking) and you don’t need anything. Sound familiar? Could it be that we are those Laodicean Christians? He is standing at the door and knocking and if you recognize His voice, open it—you might be surprised what the Spirit is trying to say to the Church in Laodicea.
Dene McGriff, Sacramento
September 21, 2007