My wife and I were watching a movie a week or so ago. It was a clean movie, had
some religious overtones, and a decent story. The main “star” in the movie is very well known in the movie industry, and is an excellent actor. A few days later I went on the Internet to obtain some additional information about the movie, and just prior to exiting noticed there were a few comments. One of the comments in particular caught my eye. Flavored with sprinkles of venom, the individual was apparently quite upset that religious overtones were interjected into the plot of the movie. Apparently, since the movie was a clean, decent movie that also had a religious flavor, the individual just couldn’t stand it. I’m thinking to myself, “What flew up his nose?”
Just the other day I was looking for Bible apps to download to my iPad and was reading the reviews for each Bible app. One of the reviews had morphed into a “let’s defame the Bible” commentary. Needless to say, the comments were quite derogatory against the Bible and anyone who would dare have the audacity to actually read it…the Bible that is. I’m thinking, again, “Who put a bug in his butt?”
Where do these clowns come from anyway? If they don’t like decent movies, why do they watch them and then denigrate them? If they don’t like the Bible, what in Heaven’s name are they doing even looking at Bible apps, let alone going to the trouble to post their crappy comments?
There is much more to this than meets the eye. We find ourselves again considering the real reason behind all this maliciousness toward anything and anyone connected with our Lord … spiritual warfare. We cannot completely realize the all-consuming hatred that Satan has toward God, but we can witness some of it on display in the actions of his followers.
Satan has blinded the eyes of so many people. Just as he did with Eve, he takes God’s words out of context and plays with the minds of those he wants to bring down to his level. It’s very easy to take one verse, or one statement, or one incident from the Bible and in the blink of an eye come to your own misguided conclusion. The Scriptures say,
“But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned.” (1 Corinthians 2:14)
Here is where I need to take a deep breath and remember that they are being deluded by every lie that can come from the mind of Satan, and our puny little human minds are no match against his. I have written before about spiritual warfare, and this is where the real problem lies.
It is sometimes easy for us, well at least for me, to get very annoyed at the unjustified attacks that are hurled against anything good, especially anything with the remotest connection to God. I know the Lord does not want us to be malicious or stoop to their level, but neither does He expect us to be doormats. Even so, I know that Jesus is a much better General than I am a soldier, so praying for our enemies (ref. Matthew 5:44), at this point, becomes a huge factor.
We have to remember that perhaps there was a time when we were like those who are being led around by the nose by the most evil force in the world. Satan and all that embodies him is not a force that we humans can contend with. Only by the power of Almighty God, the ultimate and true omnipotent One, can we ever succeed in this life.
I have seen good people come to Christ, and so have you. I have seen bad people come to Christ, and you have too. We all must come to Christ before those scales of spiritual blindness can be removed. Even then, the Scriptures say,
“12For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known. 13And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.” (1 Corinthians 13:12-13)
Our faith rests in Jesus Christ and Him alone. Our hope (ref. 1 Corinthians 15:19) is in Him and Him alone. Our love for Jesus and others can never be activated apart from Jesus Christ.
“19We love him, because he first loved us. 20If a man say, I love God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar: for he that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he love God whom he hath not seen? 21And this commandment have we from him, That he who loveth God love his brother also.” (1 John 4:19-21)
Some may want to split hairs and say that, “We are only required to love our brother (fellow Christians), because it says nothing about those who are not my brother.” If Jesus loved us before we came to know Him as our Savior, would He expect any less from us?
“But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8)
Those who are lost are going through the same experiences we endured before coming to know Jesus as Savior. They are still enslaved to sin. We are free from it, only by the grace of God (ref. Ephesians 2:8-9). We have experienced Jesus Christ the Son of God as our Savior, now we need to live for Him as our Lord and Master.
“37Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38This is the first and great commandment. 39And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself.” (Matthew 22:37-39)
Let us not think however that being humble before the Lord and having love in our hearts for others mean that we keep silent. We should always speak out loud and clear in defense of the Gospel, with a humble heart yes, but not a bowed back.
“But if the watchman sees the sword coming and does not blow the trumpet, so that the people are not warned, and the sword comes and takes any one of them, that person is taken away in his iniquity, but his blood I will require at the watchman's hand.” (Ezekiel 33:6 ESV)
Yep, these misguided folks will continue to spew their venom of hatred, but let us remember, it is not us they are spitting on, it is the Son of God, and even with all their hatred, He is willing to save their souls. If Jesus was willing to die for them and offer them eternal life through Him, I guess the least we can do is tell them that good news (Gospel) and pray for them.
Grant Phillips
Pre-Rapture Commentary http://grant-phillips.blogspot.com
