Never put Religion before Jesus.

Have I mentioned beware of false teachings lately?

We are seeing it in one of the largest "religious" organizations in our country. It is very important to know where your church and denomination stands in relation to the Bible. If you've never asked, I'd start asking.

In fact, the Bible forewarned of these days:

"God’s Spirit specifically tells us that in later days there will be men who abandon the true faith and allow themselves to be spiritually seduced by teachings of the devil, teachings given by men who are lying hypocrites, whose consciences are as dead as seared flesh. These men forbid marriage, command abstinence from food—good things which, in fact, God intends to be thankfully enjoyed by those who believe in him and know the truth. Everything God made is good." (1 Timothy 4:1, 3-4)

Right now, there is a speaker slated for a major youth gathering later this year that is actually anti-marriage and for permsiscuous sex. Wow. Hard to look at 1 Timothy 4:3 above and not draw a parallel.

People (even Christians) all of a sudden want Jesus to conform to this world instead of shielding and saving us from it. How this must grieve our Savior, as He warned us all well in advance of what was to come:

"This is what the LORD Almighty says: “Do not listen to what the prophets are prophesying to you; they fill you with false hopes. They speak visions from their own minds, not from the mouth of the LORD." (Jeremiah 23:16)
and
"Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves." (Matthew 7:15)

We are not in some new age of enlightenment folks. A life of walking with Christ is not about what "we" feel first and what the Bible "says" second. Quite the contrary.

Those that know me, know I'm not a "religious" guy, but an "it's all about you and a personal relationship with Jesus" guy. That said, I will follow the Apostle Paul's God inspired word in 1 Timothy, and speak out against such false teachings:

"You will be doing your duty as Christ’s minister if you remind your church members of these things (false teaching), and you will show yourself as one who owes his strength to the truth of the faith he has absorbed and the sound teaching he has followed. But steer clear of all these stupid Godless fictions. Take time and trouble to keep yourself spiritually fit." (1 Timothy 4:6-7)

We should not sit in judgement of anyone, as "only" Our Lord and Savior sits in that seat, but rather pray that those who are promoting this doctrine, seek counsel from the Spirit on this path they've started down.

It's not too late. Be a voice to "halt" what your church leaders are doing. Get back to sharing about the goodness of Jesus's sacrifice. A sacrifice that provides people hope, in an otherwise broken world, rather than relenting to wordly pressures, and sending people down a path of possible damnation.

Yours in Christ.
Nathan