The Danger of Comfort

Little children, guard yourself from idols.

These are the words of the apostle John... a man who was given the privilege to walk with Jesus and to be one of His closest companions. Throughout the afflictions and trials that he faced throughout his entire life, during his latter years, John ended his first letter with these words: guard yourself from idols. This is a necessary statement because John knew how subtlely the influences of idols can be on believers; any small attachment to anything outside of Christ serves as the leaven that "leavens the entire lump". John knew that the old man seeks after idols to replace the living God and every believer must constantly be on guard to ensure that our heart develops no dependency or attachment to anything outside of God. This attitude is expressed in the words of Jesus:

He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me; and he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. Matthew 10:37

...No one who puts his hand to the plow and looks back [to the things behind] is fit for the kingdom of God. Luke 9:62

Unfortunately, the words of John have not been heeded these days, as many believers have found various things in their life that have distracted them and, in some cases, drawn them away completely from God. Paul foresaw these days and described them to Timothy:

But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconciliable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of god, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God; holding to a form of godliness, although they have denied its power; and avoid such men as these. 2 Timothy 3:1-4 [Emphasis mine]

We have seen virtually all of these characteristics in many of the churches in this country; in particular, this passage states that in last days, there will be believers who will passionately love one of four things: lovers of self, lovers of money, lovers of pleasure, or lovers of God. In reality, this means that believers will either love God passionately or love everything outside of God. In my observation, most believers are quite aware of the dangers in being self-centered and loving money, but few believers are aware that loving pleasure is extremely dangerous as well. In American Christianity, loving pleasure can be seen in how believers have developed an attachment to comfortable living and entertainment.

In everything that God desires for a believer to claim as His inheritance, the world has a cheap counterfeit in order to distract a believer from God's best. In this case, there is the comfort of the Holy Spirit that brings an abundance of life and peace to a believer and then there's the worldly comfort that comes from loving the cares of this world. There is no inherent problem of having a comfortable life, but the problem lies when a believer begins to set their affections on it or develop an attachment to it. When believers begin to set their affections on the cares of the world, Jesus says that it begins to choke and squeeze out the word of God in a person's life (Matthew 13:22). There is a deceitful nature to easy, comfortable living because it places a person at ease and once a person enters this mindset, they are prime for spiritual deception. For many, the ease of life tends to cause their spiritual acumen to atrophy until they are unable to see their true spiritual condition. 

Like all deception, this process doesn't occur overnight, but it's a slow, gradual process over a believer's life. For some, it may begin as simply as aspiring to get a promotion for their job. This promotion will require them to work extra hours and gradually, their devotion to God wanes as the demands of their job increase over time. Their prayer life decreases, their time in fellowship with believers becomes nonexistant, and after a period of months, they realize that their spiritual life is nothing more than a shadow of what it use to be. For others, this process may start as trying to keep a job and standard of living because of a fear of poverty for themselves and their family. For this reason, they concede small compromises over time, such as participating in activities with unbelievers that they are convicted about in order to keep their job. After a period of months or years, they realize that although their family is no longer poor, their souls have been compromised in the process. They realized that although they are materially well-off, their faith and spiritual development is akin to tasteless salt... useful for none of God's purposes.

For some entertainment is the crutch in their lives. For a large number of Christians, television, movies, and games have distracted many from spending more and more time with Christ. Many Christians find their relaxation and release after a long day of work by watching television or playing games without realizing that our heavenly Father desires that we find our release in Him. For some, it starts by watching a television program every evening until they realize that have developed an attachment to it to the point where they are upset if they miss a show. For others, it starts by watching movies that supports things that God despises (for a list, see Galatians 5:19-21 and 1 Peter 4:3) until they realize that the Holy Spirit has left their lives. In every single scenario, the purpose of every worldly counterfeit is to make a person unfruitful and to ultimately lose their reward in Christ. The deeper issue is that because of comfortable living, many are more afraid of losing their reputation (lovers of self), their standard of living (lovers of pleasure), and their wealth over losing God. Consider the example of Moses:

By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharoah's daughter; choosing rather to endure ill-treatment with the people of God, than to enjoy the passing pleasures of sin; considering the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt; for he was looking to the reward. Hebrews 11:24-26

This passage is not calling for asceticism (another deception for some), but it admonishes believers to constantly examine themselves if their faith is in accordance to the Biblical standard. The reality of the Christian walk is that everyone who chooses to live godly will undergo trials and affliction (2 Timothy 3:12), no matter what culture they live in. For some in the world, it may be physical persecution because of the name of Christ, such as in Sudan and Indonesia (for more information on the persecution of early Christians, read Foxe's Book of Martyrs). For virtually everyone in this country, the suffering and trials will largely be internal. The question that should be asked to every believer in this country is whether they are living their life to avoid trials and affliction. If we look at the examples of the apostles and Jesus, we will find that they were much more concerned about displeasing God than enduring personal suffering. We must be honest with ourselves and with God about this: are we more concerned about losing friends than displeasing Christ? Are we more concerned about losing our reputation than losing Christ? Are we more concerned about living in poverty than grieving God? Are we more willing to sacrifice our needs for men rather than God? If any of those questions apply to you, then it is quite probable that you love pleasure and comfort more than God. 

The fact that we go through periods of suffering demonstrates God's grace and mercy. Through this process, our Father brings us to a deeper love of Christ. Our Father knows that our hearts are prone to wander from Him; He knows that enjoyment and ease too easily satisfy us, which makes us unfit for full fellowship with Himself. He allows us to go through suffering in the hope that when we have found rest in Christ during these difficult times, we will choose to abide in Him through prosperity and affliction. Paul experienced this personally throughout his life and discovered that due to his suffering, he learned the secret of being content (Philippians 4:11-12). During these difficult times, we learn that the Holy Spirit is the true Comforter; we learn that our joy and peace are found in Him and that nothing is a substitute for the communion of God in our lives. However, if we resists God's correction and avoid trials and affliction because we are too attached to our comfortable lives, we will miss God; do not be deceived: godly life without affliction is just as impossible as Christianity without the cross. After a period of perpetual resisting, a time will come when the Spirit of grace will no longer strive with men (Genesis 6:3) and He will no longer correct us. A time will come when God will allow you to pursue your heart's desire and allow you to live in ease (Romans 1:24-32). This is a fearful realization because if God doesn't discipline you, then you are not a child of God (Hebrews 12:8). No man knows when this day comes so if conviction has come to your heart, today is the day to hear God's voice and to respond to it. Repent of your attachment to pleasure and receive the One who will give you the fullness of joy. Repent in order that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord... that you may see that everything is counted as less than nothing in comparison to the surpassing value of Christ.

A New Gospel

Within the past 50 years, a virus has infiltrated the body of Christ which has caused many to fall into ruin and destruction, known as the prosperity gospel. This false gospel has become anathema to the spiritual life of the American church; it is as heretical as Gnosticism yet it is accepted as face value as new revelation from God. However, if we analyze the foundation of its beliefs and see its effect, we will recognize that this is nothing more than worldliness with a whitewash of religion.

As a whole, the American church has become a shallow husk of Christ's original intentions. There are churches on virtually every corner in major cities, yet the cities remain filled with deep darkness. If we take a panoramic view of the American church, we see grand cathedrals around the country, filled with millions of people every Sunday. In the church, we hear millions sing praises to God, as the music brings many to tears. A casual observer would conclude that the growth of membership in the Church is a sign of God's favor on this new gospel, but those will discernment will declare the same words that Amos stated:

“Woe to those who are at ease in Zion, and to those who feel secure in the mountain of Samaria... Those who recline on beds of ivory and sprawl on their couches and eat lambs from the flock and calves from the midst of the stall... who drink wine from sacrificial bowls while they anoint themselves with the finest of oils, yet they have grieved over the ruin of Joseph. Therefore, they will now go into exile at the head of the exiles”. Amos 6:1-7

Jesus echoed these sentiments in Luke 6

“But woe to you who are rich, for you already are receiving your consolation and have taken and enjoyed your comfort in full. Woe to you who are full now (completely filled, luxuriously gorged and satiated), for you shall hunger and suffer want! Woe to you who laugh now, for you shall mourn and weep and wail! Woe to you when everyone speaks fairly and handsomely of you and praises you, for even so their forefathers did to the false prophets.” Luke 6:23-26

Despite the increase in membership and grandiose display of religiosity displayed in churches around the country, this message has caused the American church to become too attached to their wealth, and for this reason, the Church remains in shambles. Christ stated quite clearly that there are two masters in this Earth: Christ or riches. The heresy that many believe is that you can lay your affections on both and still claim to be a genuine believer. Nothing can be further from the truth; Christ stated quite clearly that there are only two choices: to love God and despise money or to love money and despise God. The reality that the American church is facing is that we are mirroring the pattern of the lukewarm church of Laodicea in Revelation. Because God has not exacted judgment on the false teachers of this heresy yet, many remain comfortable by the direction of the church. Religious devotion can be manufactured and contrived for an entire person's life, but the spirituality and character of a person will always reveal itself. If we simply take a casual examination of the life of Christians in this country, we will see that this gospel has produced masses of superficial, half-converted believers.

The testimonies that we hear from believers these days are pitiful to say the least. In churches around the country, we hear people testify how God gave them promotions, new houses, new cars, and new clothes, yet they don't realize that material blessings are nothing in comparison to victory over sin. Where are the testimonies of men and women who say that they have defeated anger and depression? Where are the testimonies of those who say that they have learned the secret of contentment? Where are the testimonies of those who say that they have victory over the fear of man? The gospel of prosperity is a repetition of the Old Covenant way of life: a life of material blessings without victory over sin. It is a gospel that washes the externalities of man while leaving the inner man dead. This is the reality of many churches around.; many do not examine their spiritual lives because their focus on wealth has blinded them. They do not realize that although they are materially well-off, they are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked.

The effect of this insidious gospel has been immediately evident in the current economic crisis. The response of the Church to this has been virtually identical to the response of the world. Like the world, many in the Church became anxious, worried, and mourned about their future. The response of pastors have been even worse; there are programs on Christian television where famous pastors are telling other pastors to preach more messages on hope and God's restoration of their finances over other fundamental issues. This worldly wisdom continues to illustrate how attached people are to their riches and way of life; the Church mourns more over finances than sin! Isn't this the most obvious example of a compromised Christianity? When was the last time that the believers were grieved in their heart because of the sin in their life? When the Church mourns more over houses and cars than a revival of souls in the Kingdom, then we know that the Church has been hopelessly corrupted. Before faith can be applied to hope, repentance must come to the Church. Another result of this gospel is the wide-scale compromise of Christians. The distinction of character between Christians and unbelievers is quite negligible simply because this gospel ignores the development of godliness. Instead of walking the narrow path of godliness, humility, and faith that leads to life, this gospel has produced a generation of believers who do not have a radical hatred or sin and seek comfort over the will of God. When these conditions exist, it becomes impossible for a person to live a godly life since persecution and trials create a godly life. As a result, we see anger, bitterness, depression, strife, gossip, fornication, and a host of other sins as prevalent in a believers' life as with unbelievers. However, since many are comfortable because of their attachment to their wealth, they are blind to their lack of spiritual maturity and remain children.

We see the effect of this gospel in contemporary Christian music. The reverence of God has virtually been eliminated from music because the gospel of wealth permeates through this music. Instead of music that pushes people away from the idol of riches, Christian music continues to chant the accumulation of wealth as the inheritance of believers. Because of this clandestine pursuit of riches, is it any surprise that many believers are incapable of true worship, since they are serving another master? Is it also a coincidence that the musical artists that preach against this era of materialistic Christianity, such as those in Holy Hip Hop, are largely rejected from most churches? In today's gospel, money has replaced the work of the Holy Spirit in the life of a believer. When a man receives the fullness of the gospel of God, instead of the counterfeit produced by this new gospel, you will hear Christian music like this:

Truth of the matter is we're arrogant, spoiled
America's soil has soiled us, sort of
And pastors insist on declaring us royal
And it's true that we are but we take it too far
To the point where we break and we take down the bar
And forsake all the parts of The Faith that are hard
To embrace after all we've outsmarted the martyrs
We race up the charts- if you trace it to the start
You will find that the way to escape from the dark
And your wake is to carve off the weight and the heart
Of the truth, until everybody loves you
Jesus said woe to you old and new saints
That hold a view that you can go through The Faith
With nobody loathing you, that's a view
That you only can hold when your home is the states
So, don't think it strange if a change might occur
If it does, are you ready and prepared for the curve
And a turn for the worst- would you fight, would you fall
Would you die for the Christ, that's the price of the call

When you have accepted this new gospel, you hear music like this:

It's yours; it's yours
Get your inheritance
The head, not the tail
Above, not beneath
A lender, not a borrower
Get your inheritance
Get your inheritance
You are the seed
by faith receive
the blessings of Abraham
the blessings of Abraham
get your inheritance

We observe the effect of the prosperity gospel in the presentation of the gospel. Instead of preaching to others to repent of their sin and believe on the Lord Jesus Christ for the remission of their sin, we preach another gospel where we simply believe on His name and He will begin to bless us. We preach of a Jesus who is an accessory to our life that will help us pursue our own selfish ambitions, instead of preaching the biblical Jesus... One who gave up the riches of heaven to descend to our level and bring us redemption. The cross of Christ is no longer preached in this gospel because it undermines its message. When a believer truly understands the wrath that should have fallen on him and the penalty that Christ took as a substitute on the cross, he will no longer live for himself, but his life will be radically centered on God. This man will regard gold and earthly riches in the same way that heaven regards them- under his feet and out of his heart. However, the man that came to Christ based on this new gospel will serve God joyfully when God blesses his labor, and will make demands upon God whenever his wants aren't satisfied. Truly, this is a man-centered gospel and any gospel where man is exalted above the sovereignty of God is earthly and demonic.

Christ has made it very clear: choose riches or choose Me. To desire both in the heart of any believer is akin to spiritual adultery- anyone who is a friend of this world makes himself an enemy of God, no matter how many pastors declare the contrary. If you have been a believer that has fallen pray to this deceitful gospel, it is imperative that you repent of this sin and give your heart fully to Christ. Remember that anyone who doesn't give up everything to follow Christ is not worthy of Him, but also remember that the riches of Christ Himself outweighs every counterfeit that this world has to offer. This is not mere philosophy; the apostles experienced this, the 1st century Church experienced this, multiplied millions of genuine believers who have passed on experienced this, as well as millions of people living today has experienced this. The spiritual harlotry that we see in America produced in part by this gospel will lead a person to becoming part of spiritual Babylon. If you are convicted by this, you have a chance to escape the judgment that will undoubtedly fall on Babylon. Repent from your attachment to your wealth and material things and receive with all of your heart the Lord Jesus and you will realize what A.W. Tozer realized:

“The man who has God for his treasure has all things in One. Many ordinary treasures may be denied him, or if he is allowed to have them, the enjoyment of them will be so tempered that they will never be necessary to his happiness. Or if he must see them go, one after one, he will scarcely feel a sense of loss, for having the Source of all things he has in One all satisfaction, all pleasure, all delight. Whatever he may lose he has actually lost nothing, for he now has it all in One, and he has it purely, legitimately and forever.”