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Right God, right religion, right Bible—Why then destroyed?
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RELIGIOUSLYINCORRECT.org
They had the right God.
They had the right religion.
They had the right Bible.
And they—Israel—were utterly destroyed by God.
Why?
"How could such an unthinkable thing happen?" Israel asked.
How could the very God Who had promised Israel great blessings, vent the full fury of His wrath upon them? Consider these chilling
words to the nation of Israel:
"They will die of deadly diseases. They will not be mourned or buried but will be like refuse lying on the ground.
They will perish by sword and famine, and their dead bodies will become food for the birds of the air and the beasts of the earth."
(Jeremiah 16:1-4)
"The time is ripe for my people Israel; I will spare them no longer. 'In that day...the songs in the temple will turn to wailing.
Many, many bodies—flung everywhere! Silence!"
(Amos 8:2-3)
Did you catch the phrase: I will spare them no longer? I = God. Yes, GOD Himself was seeking their destruction.
Why did the very God Who had earmarked Israel for salvation, destroy them by His own mighty and terrifying Hand?
And—How could people with the right God, right religion, and right Bible become the destructive focal point of the Creator of the universe?
When we unlock the mystery behind this—which in fact is no mystery at all—it should give the modern
church, "spiritual Israel"— not to mention the denominational world—a serious wake up call.
Why? Because, in many instances, we are clearly making the same mistakes that resulted in their doom.
Here's what had happened...
This is going to be a very, very brief glimpse of a much more detailed picture, but the situation essentially was this:
(a) Israel was earmarked to be "God's people" due to Abraham's faith (the Jews were obviously his descendants and were to reap the
benefits of his faith—see Genesis 12:3).
(b) So, God made a "contract" (or "testament," now called the "Old Testament") with Israel that was this in a nutshell:
"Obey Me, and obey ALL my laws FULLY [not just the 10 commandments, as some today erroneously believe], and I will bless you immeasurably.
However, if you turn away from my laws, and have 'selective obedience' or worse, then I will become your worst enemy."
(c) Israel increasingly took on the values and customs of the surrounding nations, and gradually drifted away from God's will.
(d) Israel was utterly destroyed.
Israel's tragic choices
Of course, being a God of great patience and love, God repeatedly warned Israel—through His prophets—about His promises to them.
Namely, reminding them of their fate if they obeyed—and their fate if they didn't.
The problem is (just like today): Hardly anyone was listening.
They wanted to hear the appealing, undemanding messages of the vastly popular
false prophets, rather than the demanding warnings of the few, true prophets of God. Isaiah wrote:
Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying...
"Go and tell this people: 'Be ever hearing, but never understanding; be ever seeing, but never perceiving.' Make the heart of this people
calloused; make their ears dull and close their eyes. Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with
their hearts, and turn and be healed.'
(Isaiah 6:8-10)
The same was true in the time of Christ's ministry:
For this people's heart has become calloused; THEY HARDLY HEAR WITH THEIR EARS, AND THEY HAVE CLOSED THEIR EYES.
Otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts and turn, and I would heal them.
But blessed are your eyes because they see, and your ears because they hear.
(Matt 13:14-16)
And...the same is clearly true today.
I am convinced that many within our own churches are closing their eyes and ears to the reality of our deteriorating situation.
There seems to be little, if any, urgency. And little, if any, focus in our teaching addressing our fundamental problems and appropriate solutions.
Very, very few people are willing to hear the words: "Your service to God does not please God, your church is not fulfilling God's will
as He specified in the Bible, your traditions are supplanting Christ's will." And the situation in the denominational world is obviously worse.
The message to "get back to God" is, and always has been, an incredibly unpopular but vastly important message possessing the
greatest of implications.
Like many today, Israel had become "religiously correct"
The nation of Israel had become "religiously correct."
They became "tolerant" people (or so they thought)—tolerant of false religions
and of opposing ideology to God's will. They polluted and diluted God's law by merging it with the false religions surrounding them.
No, they hadn't utterly forsaken God, had they? And they still believed in Him, didn't they (along with the false gods of
surrounding nations)? They still had the right religion and Bible, didn't they?
And their prophets were reassuring them that "all was well," weren't they?
How could they be wrong? Would their "preachers" really lie to them—just for money?
Moreover, would their God really destroy His own people?
Israel was indeed keeping a "form" of the Law of Moses. They were obeying some of its commands.
They may have violated the Sabbath, may have modified the Passover, may have married foreign wives, etc, etc—but surely
God would not destroy His own people for these "minor" things, would He?
Israel had the same dangerous attitude so many people today have: "Surely God doesn't requires us to obey everything (or really anything)!"
Frankly, why would God issue any command if He didn't expect it to be obeyed? And why would He warn us
time after time, in essence, to obey His commands? Clearly, 100% obedience should be the active goal of every Christian (that's what
"being 100% committed to Christ as Lord" means). And whenever we fall short—which everyone does—we must repent and change. But
never should habitual sin be condoned in our behavior, or justified by reinventing Biblical meaning.
The people of Israel, like many today, were tragically mistaken, and paid the highest price for their oversight.
Israel no longer had a full respect for God's will
Very simply, Israel no longer respected God's word, nor were they interested in FULLY committing themselves to His laws and commands.
Consider the following:
First, they were warned MANY times that their hearts must be FULLY committed to God, and ALL His commands. Here's one of several examples:
"...if only you fully obey the LORD your God and are careful to follow all these commands I am giving you today...the LORD your God
will bless you as he has promised...[and]...you will rule over many nations but none will rule over you."
(Deut 15:5-6)
Like many today, they were sorry—but their repentance was of the wrong kind:
"They do not cry out to me from their hearts but wail upon their beds. They gather together for grain and new wine but turn away from me."
(Hosea 7:14)
They still went to church, but weren't really honoring God in their lives:
"For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God RATHER THAN BURNT OFFERINGS."
(Hosea 6:6)
Like many today, they were convinced they were "saved" when their souls were actually in danger:
"My people are determined to turn from me. Even if they call to the Most High, he will by no means exalt them."
(Hosea 11:7)
Yet in spite of this, God still would save them if they simply turned to Him, while they had time:
"Even now...return to me with all your heart, with fasting and weeping and mourning...Return to the LORD your God, for he is gracious
and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and he relents from sending calamity."
(Joel 2:12-32)
Instead, they mocked the prophets who told them the truth:
"I became the laughingstock of all my people; they mock me in song all day long."
(Lam 3:14)
Finally, God began to HATE His own people (a terrifying thought!):
"Because of all their wickedness in Gilgal, I hated them there. Because of their sinful deeds, I will drive them out of my house.
I will no longer love them; all their leaders are rebellious."
(Hosea 9:15)
Where were the "preachers" during all this?
Of course, the prophets, priests, and religious leaders of Israel were warning Israel, like they should have been, to "get back
to the Bible, and God's will"—right?
Wrong.
They were leading the charge away from true and full obedience. Consider the following:
"...do NOT listen to your prophets, your diviners, your interpreters of dreams, your mediums or your sorcerers...They prophesy lies to you
that will only serve to remove you far from your lands; I will banish you and you will perish."
(Jeremiah 27:1-10)
"Your prophets, O Israel, are like jackals among ruins. You have not gone up to the breaks in the wall to repair it for the house of Israel
so that it will stand firm in the battle on the day of the LORD."
(Ezekiel 13:4-5)
Just as it is today, Israel surrounded themselves with religious leaders who were willing to tell them what they WANTED to hear instead of
what they NEEDED to hear.
What they needed to hear was simple: "Live a disciplined life by obeying God's will FULLY, teach your children to do the same, and reap
God's great blessings as a result."
But these "soon-to-be-destroyed" religious people were just like modern Americans: If it's not fast and easy, if it's not "new and improved,"
they're not interested.
Mention the words "self control" or "self discipline" or "back to the 'unimprovable' Bible" or "back to the ancient paths"—and expect
to be met with all the warmth of a snow pea.
Expect to be ignored, marginalized, and (if that doesn't work) persecuted, threatened, and murdered.
That's what happened to the (very) few TRUE prophets
of God. (By the way, remember what happened to our Lord, at the hands of the religious leaders of His day?)
Modern Christians are following Israel's disastrous course
Today, modern Christians are looking for the fun, the exciting, the "instant gratification" religion of Israel of old. Micah prophesied:
"If a liar and deceiver comes and says, 'I will prophesy for you plenty of wine and beer,' he would be just the prophet for this people!"
(Micah 2:12)
And, like them, we've developed some of the same serious problems that caused their destruction.
When destruction came, Israel was shocked, having "bought in" to the false messages of the modern "preachers."
Consider the shocking comparison of this fact to what Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount:
"Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of My Father Who is in heaven.
MANY will say to Me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not [do many things for your cause]?'
Then I will tell them plainly, 'I never knew you; Depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.'
(Matthew 7:21-23)
Is faith in Christ enough? It sure wasn't for these people who called Him "Lord." Why?
Because in addition to their partial obedience, they also lived in disobedience to other parts of His will.
Bottom line: They were not fully committed.
100% commitment lacking in many modern Christians
The people Christ preached to did not believe Him when He said that we must "...seek first His kingdom and His righteousness" and warned
"no one can be My disciple unless he gives up everything he has." (Matthew 6:33; Luke 14:33)
A 100% commitment is what Christ deserves, and all He will accept.
That means, a 100% commitment to do everything He commands in His holy word.
Is that what you see in your life, in your congregation, in your church?
Are you willing to join us in this Cause of turning the hearts and minds of modern Christians back to a FULL commitment?
If so, please let us know.
Because it's not enough to simply have the right God, the right religion, and the right Bible.
You must also have the right commitment level.
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