In this paper, there is first a a brief outline of the problems of the Western church. Next, there is a look at our Western cultural view of the world, and it's origins, which I propose is the major cause of the problems which are frustrating our efforts for success. A plan is then offered towards solutions.
There is a observation that the Western church oversight has not seen the need for its followers to change their world view, in order to become victorious and effective members of the world wide church of Jesus Christ.
And as some have said, our present day gospel presentations are not powerful enough to change our western view of the world, that we learn from the beginnings of cognitive development - we need a fuller gospel, and it needs to be applied to the whole person, relearning - repatterning by working through the natural growth stages... It could be said that the material involves a radical shift in thinking - to change a world view is to change the way reality is seen.
The material is still unpolished, generalised and condensed, I wish to present it for further discussion and development.
OUTLINING THE PROBLEMS
These could be summed up with two clear concerns: 1) Why are so many church members sick and troubled, where are the miracles of old? 2) Where are the mature Christians that are able to bring new spiritual children into the family of God, and why are so many Christians and their leaders failing the Lord and the church?
A somewhat troubling scripture is:- "Yet when the Son of man comes, shall he find faith on the earth?" (Luke 18:8b). Is this a sign, then of these last days?
In Paul's letter to the Romans (15:18-19), we see that it was "in word and deed, that he made the `non-believers' obedient - that in mighty signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God, he fully preached the gospel of Christ." Here we see two principles at work: that signs and wonders were integral to the presentation of the gospel; and that it was Christians who lived right in the way they spoke and acted, who were able to disciple others to obedience.
Whereas Paul and the other believers of that time were accustomed to seeing people drawn by signs and wonders, Pentecostals and Charismatics amongst us, while agreeing that miracles and gifts have not ceased, would admit that the experiences of these first disciples are not common today. We believe in all the Bible teaches, and we have the same Holy Spirit; so what is wrong?
Leaders are more often chosen by stability, due to functional homes, rather than by the maturity of character developed through overcoming suffering. These leaders do not relate to, and are rarely able to help with the problems which are increasing dramatically in all of society.
And there have been too many of our leaders that have come crashing down from the pedestals on which we were too willing to place them, with family problems, sexual problems, financial problems, control problems....
In fact, for most of us, the fight with "the flesh, the world and the devil" is so overwhelming, that we opt out of the battle to extend the kingdom. It is true that consistent prayer warriors, effective counsellors, power evangelists, good shepherds and willing servers, can be hard to find.
Then, Christians who do participate in successful outreach, could reasonably be discouraged by statistics which show a national [NZ] average of nil growth in church membership 1. This has to mean that there are an equal number of people leaving our churches - through the `backdoor' - unable to find support, friendships, or a purpose in the church.
In all this, the comparison of the Western Church with the church of the Bible, brings only confusion and sadness.
How many of us dare to look at I Corinthians 13, - the "Love Chapter" in the face? Yet to `love one-another' is the core of Christianity, and fulfils all the law by writing it on our hearts. [1 John 3:23; Romans 13:8;10; Galatians 5:14, Jeremiah 31:33] 2
There is a teaching comparing our last days church age with the Laodicean church in Revelations 3:16-17. This says, "So then because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of my mouth:- because you say, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and don't know that you are wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:" Is this a description of a `successful' Christian today?
This is an age where comfortable living is the expectation, and where resources are overwhelming in variety, in the church. Yet also in the church the rates of divorce, abuse, depression, and mental illness equal non-churched levels; loneliness is the experience of the majority; and personal and moral struggles are constantly defeating most of us. The result is condemnation, fear of rejection and exposure. Instead of faith, we tend to rely more on material things for security. We are usually far more concerned with clothing the outer than the inner man. And although knowledge has increased until we have an information overload from so many sources, with massive media industries, and of course - the internet, foundational Bible truths are misunderstood and misconstrued.
Is it this age where we need the advice of Rev 3:18? "I counsel you to buy of me gold tried in the fire, that you may be rich; [cf."the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold." I Peter 1:7] - and white raiment, that you may be clothed, and that the shame of your nakedness does not appear; [cf..."linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.] - and anoint your eyes with eyesalve, that you may see." [taking `see'ing as referring to the revelation of truth, - are we missing it; despite the overwhelming volume of tapes, books, conferences, videos etc? John 17:17 "Your Word is truth" - are we missing the meanings of foundational doctrines such as confession, repentance, and grace?]
Mostly, we put up with the situation, even while continuing to hope and pray that God will do something wonderful: that there will be a revival, that the world will end... - Anything to get us out of the bland and ineffective Christianity we resign ourselves to... This hope is sometimes all we have to propel us on, and occasionally things do happen! But when we see the cycle repeat - renewal/ revival/ and fade... we begin to wonder - is this all we can expect for an answer for our lives as Christians, as churches?
The question has been a burden to many, but I conclude that the reason is deeper and darker than we think. I believe that we are not clearly seeing the hindrances we bring into Christianity from our cultural background - today’s unredeemed Western culture - and are not aware of the nature and strength of the spiritual forces deploying their deceptions against us. It does have to do with how we teach the basics of our Christianity, but it has even more to do with the way see reality, and with our ignorance of the spiritual battle raging over our comfortable, escapist world.
I would like to offer a fuller diagnosis of the problems of Western culture, in the light of it
being a potent tool in the hands of Satan, the spiritual enemy of mankind, based on the activities of
the highest rank of demonic forces which are operating over our culture in these days where
Judeo-Christian influence has largely waned. But I go on to propound a line of research that can lead
to a cure for those already in church; and a prevention of the problem for those who are just entering
it. It is an approach which is based on a mission procedure to non-Christian cultures - that of
confronting people's perceptions of the world, with the full Gospel, the truth from the Word of God.3
I
have looked at Gospel presentations to the unbelieving Gentiles - which are are much fuller than to
the Jews of Jesus' day, and made an attempt at discovering what are the essential elements needed to
pull down the lies Satan has fed into our culture. There is also a method of application given, which
can reprogramme our spirit and our soul, taking the truths of the Gospel into the reality of God's view
of the world.
What follows should give a clearer picture of what we are up against, leading to Biblical solutions... We can then look to achieve positive results from our efforts for success, and greater motivation in our fight for victory.
THE WESTERN WORLD VIEW
When looking at cultures for study, we first see behaviour, that is, what is done. Then we look at values - what is considered good or best; and these are based on our beliefs, or what we see as true. Our world view is one stage deeper - what is seen as real. 4
Our world view, which is our perception of reality, is what we learn about life from our earliest moments of consciousness. These are ideas we accept without question as being the truth about the way the world is... A Hindu for instance, `knows' that he will be reincarnated after death; and that there are a myriad of spirit-beings which require appeasement. His reality is that life is a matter of fate; uncertain, restricted, impassive.
The western world in general, conforms to the beliefs or philosophies of materialism, capitalism and humanism. Materialism teaches its children that matter alone exists, and that everything is caused by physical processes. Capitalism teaches that wealth should produce more wealth, which produces political power which in turn produces policies which empowers the production more wealth. And humanism teaches that man is all important, and every person should be respected, that man is not naturally sinful, but has great potential and is capable of self-control and of making moral decisions which will lead to the forming of an ideal society. 5
What do these philosophies actually achieve? If we believe that matter is all that exists, it follows that we will be brought up on concepts such as commodities being life's reward; the more pleasurable and perfect (faultless), the better. We understand that people are also part of the physical universe, seen also then, as objects of gratification and profit. How many of us are immune to looking for a `better’ partner if we could get one? We also learn to value the kind of performance that will produce possessions, power, and prestige. We learn to value the perfect machine - whether it be body, product or method - and learn to look down on the weak, and to use and abuse them for our own ends. Our behaviour then, and this will include most Christians, will be motivated by three core concerns:- 6
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CONSUMERISM PERFORMANCE-ISM PERFECTIONISM |
These issues look harmless, but I will explain why I see the concepts as the significant last day's deception; in the following section.
SPIRITUAL ASPECTS TO THE WESTERN WORLD VIEW
[The full page diagram, fig. 1 is a graphic illustration of this topic. There is also a condensed version of some of this material. Use the back space to return to this page]
Here I am laying a scriptural base to examine what is central to a Christian world view, and is the reality that is the crux of such, indeed any world view. Who we determine is the one who owns everything, who is the master of everything, and the one who is the supreme being, is what we base our life on. Again for the Hindu - there are a few million gods to choose - but Brahman is the highest - unknowable to the passing world - the only reality - everything else is illusion. 7
But for the Westerner, who spends most of his time in a non-spiritual reality, it will be himself he will be wanting to place in such a position - to own as much, to control as much, and to be as great as he (or she) can. What I want to show, is that Satan will use this `non-spriritual’ reality for his own ends.
For this enemy of God and people, the evil seizure of all creation, all power and all glory - is a good definition of what he is about. But what is actual reality? If you believe in the existence of God, take a good look at His book:-
1 Chron. 29:11-12 "Yours, O LORD, is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is yours; yours is the kingdom, O LORD, and you are exalted as head above all. Both riches and honour come from you, and you reign over all; and in your hand is power and might; and it is in your hand to make great, and to give strength to all. Ps 145:11-12 "They shall speak of the glory of your kingdom, and talk of your power; to make known to the sons of men his mighty acts, and the glorious majesty of his kingdom.
Matthew 6:13 "For yours is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever."
It will be shown that the Western worldview opposes the crucial issues concerned, that:
Examining the three key words highlighting Western behaviour, I saw that CONSUMERISM, was really a way to gain one's own kingdom; that PERFORMANCE-ISM was a way to have power for oneself; and that PERFECTIONISM was to have one's own glory, and therefore appropriating that which belongs exclusively to God. Because behaviour is shaped by values, and values by beliefs, and these are grown out of our view of the world - we have here a further verification of where we are coming from.
Christians are not exempt from following these three practices, one reason being it is how we learnt to act from the beginning. In fact - contrary to humanistic thought - we are born self-focused. Uncontrolled children exhibit what the Bible calls the carnal or fleshly nature. Human nature is not basically good - in terms of looking after others. We are born self-seeking, self-willed, and self-important. Anyone who expects anything else from an infant is foolish. We are disciplined by both positive and negative means, by encouragment and discouragment, to learn what is expected of us. We teach our children to look after things, to work for them. We teach them to do things well which will add material, positional and prestige value to theirs - and our- lives. And we are constantly telling them to be good, to not be bad. These are the results of our philosophies or beliefs of materialism, capitalism and humanism.
For we all need security, a place to belong, and accepting relationships, and these are the ways our world meets these needs. On the surface there seems to be nothing wrong, and they fit in with our view of reality. But let us look deeper. Can security come from things - which can be broken, breached or stolen? Does our place in this universe depend on how well we perform? [No wonder the newly disabled want to die, the newly retired does often die; and children, their stay-at-home mothers, and the elderly are minimised; abortion is not a problem, and euthenasia touted.] Are we only acceptable when we are `good’, whatever that means in terms of the maturity of those who decide our standards?
Is it a wonder then, that Christianity seems so hard? We don't realise we work against ourselves. This is a key point in the lack of success - because there is such a strong emphasis on our efforts, rather than an understanding of our weakness and dependence on the mercy and grace of God. The scriptures that follow express the three concepts in various ways.
1 John 2:16 "For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world." In the Greek the last term means to boast about one's livelihood.
In the garden of Eden, we see the first man and woman failing before these three things; in the wilderness of Jordon, we see Jesus overcoming each one.8
On thinking about it, it can be seen that our human nature is born grasping for the kingdom, power and glory - in that we are naturally selfish, self-willed - wanting our own way, and proud. Anyone working with little children can see the evidence of this in the kind of things they fight over, the things they have to be trained out of. The association of materialism, capitalism and humanism, to the three areas is also intriguing, for they line up exactly - meaning that Western philosophies of life are based on corrupt human nature. The definitions of these three philosophies are interesting, partly because they are to some degree, working against each other - which could be one reason for the increase of anxiety in our culture. The definitions are from the Encyclopaedia Britannica. Materialism is defined as the philosophy that all facts (including facts about men's minds and wills and the course of human history) are causally dependent on physical processes. It is thus opposed to ...dualism and idealism and, in general, to belief in God, in disembodied spirits, in free will or in certain kinds of introspective psychology. (Science is very important to the materialist.) Capitalism is the economic system where private owners of non-personal means of production (land, mines, industrial plants, etc., collectively known as capital) and free but capital-less workers, who sell their labour services to employers. Decisions concerning production are made by private businessmen operation for private profit. Wage bargains determine the proportion in which the total product of society will be share between the class of labourers and the class of capitalist entrepreneurs. Early capitalism required a shift in religious thought which condemned capitalist ideology as mammonism and avarice. But with Protestism came a new work ethic - hard work, frugality, sobriety and efficiency in one's calling - every occupation was seen as noble... for those with limited talents, unstinting labour for low wages was in the service of God . Accumulated wealth should produce more wealth. (This philosophy cannot be maintained indefinitely - eventually the wealth must end up in so few hands that there is no-one left who can afford what is offered. Overseas markets are an indication that this is happening world wide - and the system must eventually collapse the whole world economy.) Humanism is an attitude of mind which attaches primary importance to man and to his faculties, affairs, temporal aspirations and well-being. Renaissance humanists reacted against the Medieval idea of the insignificance of man's life on earth, and asserted the intrinsic value of man's life before death and the greatness of his potentialities.
These ideas are no longer confined to the Western realm - they have their effects in other cultures, that have been influenced by the West.
Because they are all owned by the Lord, our world view should be one where giving, serving and honouring others is the behavioural standard. The diagram shows the opposing behaviours, attitudes etc, which by their contrast show up the 'lower' examples. John Dawson’s concept of moving in the opposite spirit was my inspiration for these thoughts - that it's not enough to tear down the negative, something positive must be put in place - for even in the spiritual "nature abhors a vacumn"...
I then began to explore the possibility of powerful spiritual forces being behind the adoption of the three areas of consumerism, performance, and perfectionism as a lifestyle...
Bill Subritzky, an evangelist from New Zealand, speaks about three powerful spirits, or `strong men' - Jezebel [Babylon], Antichrist, and Death [and Hell] 9 , and shares the suggestion that they are the counterpart of the Holy Trinity 10 . This information was used to help create the following diagram.
The following descriptions explain each aspect of the diagram more fully - first horizontally, and then showing the vertical relationship between the terms, ie. Babylon and Jezebel:-
The description of Babylon in the book of Revelation 11 is of a female being ruling over a highly materialistic and immoral world system. Does this sound like the West? I am defining the West as basically European in origin, and English as a language as being its common demoninator - being that it a conglomerate of European languages. It is interesting to compare the West with ancient Babylon 12 - from which many Western cultural practices originated: eg. money and banking with interest charges; an advanced legal system, government and civilisation in terms of a city based society held together by economic enterprises. In fact, it was when political power came to Babylon that the entire plain of Mesopotamia, the cradle of civilisation, became known as Babylonia - and thus the first nation was born.13 The `end times' book of Daniel takes on a special significance, as we look at the great statue King Nebuchednezzar dreamed about (chapter 2), and see which other cultures followed on from Babylon, namely Medeo-Persia, Greece and Rome,14 which have all contributed to the make-up of the culture we now have in the West - eg. democratic government - a Greek idea, utilised by Rome; and philosophies such as Grecian Aristotle bestowed on us: that all knowledge was to be gained by using the five senses and logic alone - so we have the legacy of a non-spiritual reality, and a great struggle to find the faith that opens the door to God's supernatural kingdom.
Antichrist in the original Greek, means not against Christ, but `another' Christ - one set up in place of the anointed one of God. Many Christians are expecting to see a leader of a One World Government arise, supposedly for the sake of peace. But only Jesus has the true name of the Prince of Peace. Empire building is something to look out for when looking for the operation of this evil spirit: - characterised by domination by force; exploitation, cultural weakening; and limited educational opportunities which keep the people oppressed and poverty stricken.
In the name of colonisation we have seen the western domination of large areas of the world and its beginning, in more recent history, with the British Empire, which has been the most widespread and enduring [1670 - 1917]... It was said that `the sun never set on the British Empire'. In this day of the late '90's, another dominion is saying this - namely the Islamic world. In the light of this, I want to present another possible interpretation of Daniel's vision (chapter 7), of the four beasts which ascended from the sea, apart from the more usual one of aligning them with Nebuchednezzar's dream It is not an entirely original interpretation - but it is intriguing in this light. The fact that Revelations 13 repeats the vision, is one reason to suggest it has present day applications... What captures the attention are the national symbols of present day nations, and the co-incidence of significant dates in reference to the power bases of these nations. So, for interest look at these:
The spirit of Death has been rampant this century... wars and rumours of wars, of enormous wickedness and destruction; such as the Holocaust, communist atrocities in USSR, China and Cuba; the killing fields of Cambodia, African civil war massacres, more Christian martyrs than at any other time in history (up to 500 a day) - and behind the scenes, even the `goodies and baddies' get quite mixed up, for example, the USA brutalities during the Vietnam and Iranian wars...
And then there are child deaths which are enormous. The Asian practice of having boys in preference to girls, coupled with one child family laws in China, has caused girls and disabled children to be killed or abandoned. South Korean families are using scans to determine sex, and aborting girls - this is an economic and lifestyle choice alone. Ironically, abortion rates are beginning to concern governments around the world, who are now wanting to stem the tide. As Christians, we can hardly bear to think about these deaths - there seems so little we can do effectively...
Murders are common on big city streets - with gang warfare, robberies, organised crime in East and West, North and South raging uncontrollably... And so many are committing suicide, some by the slower methods of various modern drugs, alcoholism etc. Governments and monarchies at the highest levels have been implicated in drug running for money, and for the control of the masses.18
I looked at some of the most often mentioned gods of the ancient world... Ashteroth, Baal, and Molech, and found that their meanings corresponded to the above three demonic rulers...
Ashteroth was a female god of fertility and increase... Ashtar and other names were also used, plus the worship of the "queen of heaven", the concept of "mother nature", or "earth mother"... `She' was often worshiped in groves of wood. I see this as related to idolising the natural and material world, and that materialism is the lust for possessions and pleasure. The increase in witchcraft and forms of manipulation, is a more feminine style of gaining these things. The rise of hostile feminism is an obvious outworking of the operation of this ruling female demon. More subtle is the way some have made causes into a religion by focussing all their time and energy upon them: eg. the worthwhile protection of nature (the Greenpeace organisation is as much a religion as a cause), sport and health issues, (eg. some homeopathy uses occult powers).
Baal means `master/ lord'. I see this `god' as one being concerned with dominating leadership. I see it operating by means of control and intimidation, by battles and wars of strength; and being driven by the lust for power. But the truth is Deut. 8:17-18 "You may say to yourself, `My power and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me'. But remember the LORD your God, for it is He who gives you the power to produce wealth...". Capitalists are said to gain power by `climbing on the backs' of others, exampled by present day communist China, where capitalism is rampant - with its attendant ills of virtually slave labour, heartlessness, scheming, price undercutting of other economies, etc.
Molech is remembered most for the sacrifice of children by fire. Many children have been suffering terribly in lots of ways, but none so much as thousands upon thousands of unwanted prebirth babies who are being disposed of in horrific ways, including being incinerated - sometimes still living.
Then I looked at the spiritual personalities that matched these three areas and found reference to a group of three in Revelations. Rev. 16:13 "And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon[Satan], and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet [Jezebel]." Rev. 20:10 "And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever." Revelations 2:20 tells of the false prophet, Jezebel, which is another name for this demon.
The Jezebel personality fits the first area, and many men and women, cities and nations, find they are being troubled by this manipulative, deceptive, materialistic, lustful, feministic force. Idolotry is another characteristic as well, and it may be hard to see where this fits in our culture - but the concept of worshipping something in the hopes of receiving what we need, is all around us: the material possessions that we place our security and self-esteem in; and if humanism says we are our own gods - is it surprising we worship each other? Whether it's pop idols, polititions - at least around election time - doctors - or in the church, pastors and other ministries are looked up to as being somehow better than the rest of us humans - if we are honest, most of us have placed too much reliance on them...
The personality of the beast mentioned is revealing. The idea of a `beast' is one of being a non-human, a non-thinking, non-feeling animal - the reason given for enslaving people in the past. This is coupled with the idea of controlling people by numbering them - to the point of imprinting this number on forehead or hand by inserting a computor chip - already being done with dogs in New Zealand. It speaks of depersonalization, of making the souls of men of no account... I recall a strange dream I had, where the century opened with great glory - the age when mankind, with the aid of science, was going to cure all the ills of the earth. But soon came the wars, the great depression; and I saw evil spirits coming up to people, telling them "It's no use, you may as well just shut down your feelings, and indulge in escapism." One came to me and I looked composedly and briefly at it, and shook my head, turning aside. Then I began to sing in the Spirit - using a language such as I had never heard before; I was singing out the love of the Lord, and soon another picked it up - and then another. It then spread to all those who believed and wanted God with all their hearts. The evil spirit seemed to jump down from a height as this happened.
Revelations 17: 16-17; 18; 13:16-18 and 6:6 seems to imply a time when martial law and great hunger, will overpower our materialistic Western culture, soon after a world leader is revealed.
Satan, the dragon, the devil himself is the supreme spirit in the triad, and is the utmost personification of evil that can be imagined. To be worshipped by those he is intent on destroying is his greatest joy and aim. To kill babies, and enjoy it, is just a small part of his nature. For those in his control who gain leadership over others, great evil is to be expected.
If these most powerful demons are ruling and operating over the West, and the signs are definitely there, what does this mean for the church? Rick Joyner's book "The Final Quest", inspired by a series of powerful visions, gives a powerful and extra-ordinary description of what is going on in the heavenlies, and how it effects us here on earth. Some of us are so deceived as to be doing Satan's work for him - so distraught about ourselves that to point the finger and condemn other Christian ministries is a form of relief. 19
Truly the battle is far greater than we have imagined, let alone begun to fight. How can it be done? The answer is the same as always - use the weapons of our warfare:- praying always in faith, humility and obedience, Eph 6:18; the authority we have to speak out in Jesus' name, Mark 16:17, Phil 2:9; the Blood of the Lamb, the word of our testimony, the laying down of our lives, Rev 12:11; that sword of the Spirit, the "rhema" (a specially applicable word) in the belt of truth which is the "logos", the whole word of God, Jn 17:17, Eph 6:10-18; praise, Acts 16:25; fasting, Mt 17:21; and agreement, particularly as to binding and loosing, Mat 18:18-20, 16:18-19. These are all crucial - only together can we wisely and safely enter into warfare at this level.
SOLUTIONS AND STRATEGIES FOR THE CHURCH
For missionaries approaching any other non-Christian culture, the strategy for changing world views is to present them with the truth, with the full gospel. I see that our Western world view is now no longer influenced by Judeo-Christian ethics as in the past, and needs the same full presentation. The four spiritual laws are not enough to combat the power of the deception we are up against. In fact - because we want to be `good' more than others, we work harder at being `good' consumers, at performing better than others, at being faultless (when we should be aiming for maturity through God's power working in us:- meaning, giving, serving and honouring others - in short, loving!). This illustrates the weakness of Western Christians, and the failure of the church to be a true representative of Jesus to our world. And it is, I believe, the result of us being unchanged at the deepest level of awareness - our world view.
We have already had ones such as Ray Comfort and Keith Green, along with the Signpost Seminars group, say that we are getting a watered down version of the gospel, one that presents an escape from suffering, a `get saved and you'll be happy ever after' idea. They would like to see God's Holy laws, and the costly price of discipleship presented as part of the gospel, in order to establish a lasting desire to follow God. I agree, but wonder how this would impact a world that has been taught that the spiritual world does not exist. I also wanted to know what could be done about those already in the church - do we need to re-learn, to fill in the gaps, to go beyond head knowledge and to apply the Gospel in a deeper way?
I decided to check the question "What is the gospel?" at its source, because the full gospel should have the ability to confront and change people's false world views, just as it must do for other non-Christian cultures, and exchange them for the reality of the true worldview as God made it...
Several facts emerged... The gospel given to the Gentiles was much fuller than that given to the Jews. Mars' hill is an example, and Peter's visit to Cornelius (Acts 10, 17:16ff)...
This indicates that the gospel must be presented at the level of understanding of the people. (Not a new thought - the Engels scale is a description of steps.) So, what do we with our culture which is teaching no belief in a spiritual world? (Although there is an increasing tendency to insist on a respect for `gods' of other cultures, and an increasing interest in psychic beliefs of future telling!)
We need to start at the beginning... "In the beginning - GOD - created the heavens and the earth..." The fact that there is a person who can do such a thing as create the universe, is the beginning of a definition of "GOD". And the next question is "How can we know about Him?" ... The answer - "His Bible tells us He is LOVE"
And this is where I stop and say... I
agree with my church leader, that it would take a team of theologians to work it out properly!... Having at a later stage tried to get this help, I've done my best, had different ones check it, including my husband, but I'm not fully satisfied, and would welcome comments
Only recently have I incorporated my training and years of working with children of all ages into the correcting of inaccurate world views. In the explanation of these truths, there needs to be a re-learning, much the same way we first learnt as a child... Mark 10:15, Luke 18:17 "I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it." I have found that in relating each gospel message to the normal developmental stages of intelligence, that my thought patterns are changing at the world view level. I have needed to begin at the first stage of development - and work forwards - asking myself "How does the fact that God created the universe relate to what I was like as a baby - one who is like a sponge soaking up every impression?"; "How does it relate to the my immediate environment, my family and community?"... and so on, until I am asking,. "How does God's creating everything relate to what I am doing now?" It has been wonderful how beautifully relevant thoughts and scriptures have come into my mind.
Looking at the growth stages in a little more depth may help you to relate to each one...
For myself, the process of taking the first truth - God is the Creator - through these learning steps, taking note of how this truth affects each area, my innermost doubts about there being a spiritual world have ceased... I was not brought up in a spiritual atmosphere, yet have experienced miracles of provision and healing. This whole concept has be wonderful for me personally.
I am continuing to work through the programme in greater depth, and it is revealing areas of my life that have not lined up with what God wants, and I am being continually healed through the process. I'm not expecting to become perfect this side of heaven, but each hard won step brings more freedom, and more glory to God, as I become more like Him!
I am hopeful it will help me fully overcome in the three areas of consumerism, performance-ism and perfectionism that I still see - for I still find myself looking for security in material possessions [and isn't this idolatry?], still find myself hoping for positions of importance, to help me accept and value myself through work... I'm beginning to suspect this does not happen - a false carrot, that I must find my security, value and acceptance throught right relationships with God and people. I've recently learnt to ask God not "What should I be doing?", and asked instead: "Who should I be with?" - and what I am to do will come naturally from my desire to bless those I am with, and will strengthen my relationships, give me the people around me that I need to grow. This will solve so many problems in itself.
For our culture is a breeding ground for competition, inferiority, loneliness, isolation, fears, and terrible rejection. Its effects keep us apart - teach us to value our "stuff" more than each other, or just see each other as conquests, trying for a "better" partner is fair game to many, valuing our escape mechanisms above the pleasure and pain of human contacts.
But Christianity can only be worked out in relationship to God and each other... Jesus never sent the disciples out alone, but always in pairs. We need each other for the different gifts. We need each other for balance and accountability. And we need to practice servant leadership in the fear of God [II Sam 23:3-4] - being the foundation stones which hold up the wall, and which relate to each other as a ministry team [Eph 2:20-22] - not in the worldly way of one man at the top controlling everything, which derives more from pagan worship styles, than from the Bible. In fact there is some indication that this is a doctrine which God hates, from the meaning of the word "Nicolations" (to conquer the people) in Rev. 2:6 & 15; as no other accurate picture has been offered by historical records. No, not one poor man trying to do the whole work of the church, - and burning out, - and getting the gold, the dominance and the glory, - and their exceeding temptations; - but the body of Christ `fitly framed' together - founded on Christ the chief cornerstone, resting on [not weighed down] by those who have developed and matured into apostolic and prophetic ministries, supported ably by shepherds (pastors) tending flocks of 10, of 100; by teachers giving us the whole word of God, doctrines, history etc; by evangelists seeking to give the Gospel to the lost in relevant ways here and overseas... (Perspectives chapter 1); and by myriads of other ministries developing their ability to learn and grow, and their spheres of influence alongside with their maturity, and continually adding to their ministry capabilities...[Eph 2:20-22, 4:4-16]
It is only together that we can truly be Christ to our lost and dying world...
And only together can the people of the church be safely allowed to minister of the glory of God - and be unleashed into whatever God calls them to!
So, in the meantime, I won't allow this to stop me proclaiming what I know, and what I have experienced as the truth, the Word of God in its entirety...
DEVELOPMENT OF CHARACTER AND CONCEPTS
I have always been a thoughtful person. As young as seven I was seeking God on my own - I did not have a family that talked to me much, for various somewhat traumatic reasons. I was put down and left out to the extent that I still dream about a neglected child at times. Thank God, He has a way of using the worst situations for immense good when we can open them up to Him. In consequence, now I am passionate about seeing people grow, to mature and reach to their potential. I long to see broken people made whole, and the body of Christ ministering to each other, and to the world...
My life as a Christian was a series of both experiences and revelations from the age of seven when I realised I didn't believe in God. In my family, God was an embarrassing word along with sex, money and politics! However, I did know that I would go to hell if I didn't believe - a seven-year-old's logic... So I determined in my heart to seek for the truth - and within a week I found a story in a Reader's Digest about the star of Bethlehem. This made me think that someone who could move a star - must be God! I was also reassured by the many people that believed in Him... Until I was ten... This is about the age I remember realising that adults weren't perfect! I decided to make an experiment - I wouldn't pray the Lord's Prayer that day as I usually did [and it was Sunday] - if He was real - something would happen to me...
Running around our big farm garden that day - my toe caught on a pitchfork... No, I wasn't hurt - the tine went through the skin of my big toe just like with a needle! All I got was a big fright, and the relief and amazement that such a thing could happen, helped me believe in God until my teen years...
Then the loneliness and uncertainty of those times had me doubting myself - and I got into an almost occult habit of asking God for "yes" or "no" answers. "If the wind blows the trees, it's `yes' - if not - it's no..." It eventually became a real bondage... One night when I was baby-sitting, and Billy Graham was on television, I asked Jesus to be my Saviour - about '66-'68...
My late teens, leaving home, going to university/ teachers training college was an intense time - not just for me, it was the era of protests - we were going to change the world! For the first time I was surrounded by people who loved to talk, and think... and I got involved...
I met:- foreign students, political players, `straight' people and `hippies' - and Christians! - I got on with them all - yet kept the deep loneliness of not really belonging... [Healing for that is only coming now, through my ever deepening relationship with God...] And of course I got involved with boys! I had a morality that came somewhat from my given upbringing - but more from the good books that I read over and over - Little Women, Heidi, My Friend Flicka - all had some sense of a belief in God, a love of people... I had also begun to read the Bible - a chapter a day...
But it wasn't enough to keep me pure. Though I had been filled with the Holy Spirit, I was still essentially alone - and during the holidays there were no Christians around me. My mother was leaving my step father... I met more boys... and drifted into several brief relationships that went too far... By my third year at 'varsity I had met my husband to be, and was living with him. At the end of that year we were married, and our first child was born half way through the next year. During this time I went through the greatest crisis of all. Rick was anti-christian - he'd seen too many hypocrites to want to join them! However, he was searching for the truth - trying various things. But he gave me a hard time... I decided I would give up my faith, without thinking too much about it. Only a few days later I was baby-sitting again, and I had an asthma attack. I had had asthma since a child, but this time I had it badly - I began to be afraid I could die! "I don't want to die without God!" I thought. From that time, I held on - occasional doubts not withstanding... It seemed safer that way! But God was gracious to me, my husband came to the end of his search, and tried Jesus - and found Him well able to save and help him.
We joined a church together, and I got involved: learning, ministering, working on myself!
Through all of this, the significant experience of getting to know the fringe hippy people gave me a different view of society from my "middle-class white" upbringing. They were rebels - but some of what they rebelled against felt right - their philosophy was anti-materialistic, anti-capitalist - but they kept the humanistic ideal that, through their own means, they could save themselves. They dropped out - but didn't have what it took to create the new world of peace and love they longed for. In a fog of drug induced dependencies, occult bondages, broken hearts, illegitimate babies and sexually transmitted diseases, the movement died...
SUMMATION
The era of the sixties has been defined as the sexual revolution [make love and not war], the seventies - the `me' generation [drop out and find myself], and the eighties - the `yuppy' era when we decided to give up trying to be `good', to get rich instead! Each one has been a reaction to the pain caused by our world's fleshly philosophies - each has resulted in the removal of the last vestiges of inherited Judeo-Christian ethics. Alarmingly, these ethics were the only things that had the power to keep the evil spiritual aspects of our western world view in check.
Now the whole world is being drawn together by the media, into a "global village", under this deceptive, deeply evil Western System. Other cultures are being absorbed, retaining some of their customs, but making no impact on Western culture. The history of mankind, and prophecy, indicates that world dictatorship is inevitable, leaving all at the mercy of a single leader, and inescapable, horrifying distress. As English historian, Lord Acton said "Power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely". There is no mortal answer for the world. Don't be fooled by those offering to bring peace. Hilter was a great proponent for peace - if we did what he said!
No, only the Prince of Peace can give us true peace, arising from a change in the hearts of man. And only the second coming of Christ will have the power to change the world. Jesus alone has the proven strength of character, the ability, and the right to reign over all the earth.
Deborah Burton
New Zealand
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FOOTNOTES:
1. Pg 5, Signpost Evangelism Seminar, © Signpost Communications 1995, PO Box 7057 Wellington , NewZealand
2. Jeremiah 31:33 "But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, says the LORD, I
will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people."
Romans 13:8;10 "Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loves another has fulfilled the law. "Love
works no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law." Galatians 5:14 "For all the law is fulfilled in one
word, even in this; You shalt love your neighbour as yourself." 1 John 3:23 "And this is his commandment, That we should
believe on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one another, as he gave us commandment."
3. This point (pg 363, 404 etc) and others following I owe to the course and book "Perspectives on the World Christian
Movement" edited by Ralph D. Winter and Steven C. Hawthorn © 1981 by the Institute of International Studies, Published
by Willian Carey Library, PO Box 40129, 1795 . Sierra Bonita Ave. Pasadena, California 91104.
4. From a paper by Lloyd E. Kwast, Understanding Culture, from Perspectives on the world Christian Movement © 1981 by
the Institute of International Studies. Pub. William Carey library, California. Chapter 37, pg 361
5. References to materialism, capitalism, and humanism were found in Encyclpaedia Britannica pp1059, 839, 825 © 1966 pub
William Benton U.S.A. and The World Book - Childcraft International Inc ©1981 U.S.A. pp 237, 384
6. These concepts came after prayer for revelation about our western world views. The words came to my mind with a
resounding click, falling into place like the last three pieces of a jigsaw, which revealed the significance of the whole picture.
I had never had this happen before, and it did indeed bring together many concepts that I had been working on over the
years. [Note: If an understanding of the environment which gave rise to these concepts will help you accept the results, my
story is included before the end of this paper...]
7. From Perspectives ibid., diagram p376
8. Genesis 3:1-6; Matthew 4:11
9. "Demons Defeated" by Bill Subritzky, Chapter 4, pp 25-38. © 1985 Dove Ministries Ltd, PO Box 6742 Auckland, NZ. A
Sovereign World International Book
10. viz. pp 37-38
11. Revelation chapters 17 & 18
12. Isaiah 13:9, Jeremiah 51:6-9. The little history I know confirms this - it is an area for fuller research - eg. "En Route to
Global Occupation" Gary Kah, "Babylon or Jerusalem" Jan Willen van der Hoeven. This latter book reminds us that
Babylon is the site of ancient Babel - man's first attempt at global domination.
13. Note Rev 18:4 "Come out of her (Babylon) my people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive her plagues..." vs 24
"In her (Babylon again) was found the blood of prophets and saints, and of all who were slain on the earth."
14. Again, fuller research is invited. [Concerning the last world kingdom represented by the iron/clay feet of the statue; [Dan
2:41-43] clay pottery came into Persia from China along the ancient Silk Road, and may have been known of, even in
Daniel's time... Perhaps watch for the end of earthly kingdoms, when China makes an uneasy peace with a one world
government.
15. Encyclopaedia Britannica ©1966 William Benton, Publisher. p702A
16. "Armageddon, Oil and the Middle East Crisis" John F Walvoord. ©1974 Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids. P 47
[Sudam Hussein is rebuilding Babylon - according to Jeremiah 50: 39-40, this is not to happen. Is he going to
be wiped out, and will this signal the advent of the next power?]
17. eg "Babylon or Jerusalem" Jan Willen van der Hoeven. Again, an area for more extensive and verifiable research.
18. "Drugs Inc."
19. © 1996 by Rick Joyner, Morning Star Publications, 16000 Lancaster Highway, Charlotte, NC 28277-2061