PROVERBIAL CHRISTIANITY
This is a message that may be hard to swallow, but it's based on
scripture. Christianity in America has been gradually changing over
the past 50 years. Because of the gradual aspect of change, few people in the church world are aware of the change and the consequences that may follow. Mixed in, and making the changes more dangerous, are the carnal egos and personal agendas of some leaders.
Anyone who professes to be a Christian should be a follower of Jesus Christ and MUST follow His teaching. His teaching in the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John MUST be the guidelines and practice to follow. These books have His words. No other books in the bible have His words. There are the words of kings, prophets, disciples and others, but none of these people are Jesus Christ. While the Epistles are important, they do not contain the words of Christ. For the most part, they are cultural guides as people enter into the practice of Christianity.
There have been two major problems introduced into Christian churches and congregations. Most church people have no idea of these growing problems. A sermon based on one or just a few verses of scripture usually will not reveal the problem. That is especially true if scripture is taken from the Book of Proverbs. Christ did not speak the words of Proverbs, and you must understand exactly who did write this book. The book has much wisdom and good advice, and is certainly of value. But, you must be careful to understand the difference between a carnal writer's advice and the very words of Christ.
Sometimes one word in a verse of Proverbs which, by and large, is good advice, is EXACTLY THE OPPOSITE OF CHRIST'S teaching in the four books of the gospel. I'll get to that word and other examples shortly, but first we need to examine who is writing this advice in the book. Many of the proverbs were written by King Solomon. We are told he was the wisest man who ever lived. He was wise, as indicated by his decision on the mother of a child. But there is much more you should know about this wise man. After he was anointed king, he set about killing all those in the court and leadership who had opposed his being king. This you will find in 1 Kings 2, where the closing verse 46 states in part, "Thus the kingdom was established in the hand of Solomon." His fame spread, and people said (1 Kings 4:31), "For he was wiser than all men." Note carefully, they said he was wiser than all men. He was not wiser than the Son of God. He obtained great wealth, but fell victim to carnal desires--a large herd of horses, and hundreds of wives and concubines. The women worshiped strange gods, and this was Solomon's main undoing. Even the wisest man
cannot be blameless and equal the Son of God. It was Solomon's
excesses that caused God to split the Jewish kingdom.
Not all of Proverbs is attributed to Solomon, and little is known of
some of the other writers such as Agur and Lemuel. Not one of these
writers wrote with the knowledge and wisdom of Christ, and their writings do not make up the Christian manifesto. If you surrendered your life to Jesus Christ, you are not a Christian unless you carefully follow Christ's teaching. While the proverbs contain some good advice, they are not Christ's rules.
We have three types of ministers. Each relies on a certain aspect
of the bible. Some ministers stress the epistles, especially the letters
of Paul. This results in confusion, because some of Paul's directions
to newly established churches deal with cultural differences. Some of
the problems from this includes such things as the use of color, which
has separated some denominations from others. Another problem is
forbidding women to be pastors or church officers. Women's leadership
in the church began way back when Moses, Aaron and Miriam were
selected by God to lead His people. Remember, the Jews are His original
people. You (and some pastors) need to study a little history so you don't make these types of mistakes. God appointed man to be the leader of a household, not a tyrant (Yes, I'm familiar with that word). If you know anything about the primitive years of world history, you should know why He made that appointment. God constructed men to be physically stronger and better able to protect and lead a family. It was not because man was wiser.
Some ministers teach strongly from Proverbs. This is basically advice
on how to live for success and to please God. The Pauline teaching
creates confusion and separation. Proverbial teaching creates violence
separation. Ridiculous, you say? I direct you to Proverbs 6:16. "These six
things the Lord hates, Yes, seven are an abomination to Him." The
problem here is the use of the word HATES. Jesus Christ was sent by
the Lord to instruct and heal. Christ NEVER used the word Hate. He
described various sins, but covers each and all with His shed blood.
In fact, He said just the opposite of hate. Matt. 22:39 states, "And the
second is like it. You shall love your neighbor as yourself." If you don't
know the First Commandment, it is "You shall love the Lord your God
with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind." Christ
taught only LOVE, never hate. It's unfortunate the writer of Proverbs
6:16-19 used the word hate because God and Christ are the opposite
of hate.
Ministers who like the word hate use passages such as I quoted,
and add their own pet hates such as homosexuality or other sex related
situations. I have heard several such ministers, and they really get
into ranting and raving. They don't rave about infidelity (some are
guilty of this), theft, or, worst of all, (6:19) "A false witness who speaks
lies, And one who sows discord among brethren." They equate same
sex marriage with dirty sex and ignore the need for companionship,
especially among the elderly, and the program benefits that are
available only to married couples. These ministers either don't know
the Word of God, or they are deliberately using an emotional appeal
to gain vigilante or mob support.
These antics, such as the West Baptist congregation and others, are
driving a wedge between actual Christians of the bible and professing
Christians who are ignorant of the bible, following a pied piper. If you
aren't aware of Christ's teaching and listen and follow this false
teaching, you are in deep trouble. God expects you to study scripture
and understand His Son's teaching and sacrifice.
At least part of the general public has realized the difference between
Christ's teaching and this Proverbial teaching. The growing result is a
black eye on Christianity. It is difficult for a minister of Christ to convince
someone that the hate proverbs aren't Christian rules. You'd be surprised
how many non Christians know a lot about the bible, and have decided
they want no part of the hate cult. And folks, that's exactly what this
type of teaching is--a cult. It is separating Christians in the church by
forcing them to take sides on the issues. If the pastor preaches hate,
you're expected to grab hold of the rope and yank. So much for love.
As Christ once said, (John 8:7) "He who is without sin among you, let
him throw a stone at her first." All sins are equally bad and may be
forgiven.
So, why not teach the hate verses? They are part of showing you
not to do things and, like most of the bible, are there to encourage you
to use your mind and reason. The church today is full of people who
are self righteous, believing they have all the truth. In reality, they have
little truth. If you doubt this message thus far, turn to John 3:16, "For
God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever
believes in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life." Now, one
last word about hate. Turn to Matt. 5:44 for the last direction from Christ
about hate. "But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse
you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully
use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in
heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and
sends rain on the just and on the unjust." If your speaker or pastor
talks about hate, ask him about these verses. This is Christ speaking,
not just a man.
You have a choice. You can follow Christ in love, or you can base
your hatred on the few verses of Proverbs written by a man who became
the victim of tremendous success and wealth. If your choice is to join
in the muck racking of the Proverbial Church rather than the true
Christian Church, at least refrain from calling yourself a Christian.
It's difficult enough to win souls for Christ with all the wrong teaching
by some "Christian" leaders and churches. Remember, when you
accepted Christ you pledged to follow Him, not King Solomon. Your
Christian walk will either be accepted by the Savior, or you will be
rejected as warned in Matt. 7:23. "And then I will declare to them,
'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness."'
Be careful who you follow, because you will answer for your actions. You should have a personal relationship with Christ that supersedes any relationship with a mere man, no matter how famous he may be in the "church" world. You do have a choice.
Rev. Walbear
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