Why do some professing Christians seem cold?

[frienduff thaylorde]

1 hour ago, Heleadethme said:

You are saying mouthfuls frienduff thaylord.....it leaves me breathless......I wish, I wish we would learn a lesson from what happened to Ananias and Saphira and what that tells us about God even in this age of grace....and whether He ever changes.  How it all makes me long for a return to real Christianity, even though I know we can't turn back the clock and we are hurtling towards the end.  If only the church would return to taking God seriously as GOD ALMIGHTY and fear Him......give Him the reverence that is His due.....if only!  But the Lord's message to me was to forget what has gone before and reach for what lies ahead, so all we can do is plod on.......even as I sit and weep by the rivers of Babylon remembering as it were, the former days before the church was taken captive.

ONWARD peoples onward in the LORD, this life is but a vapor , but for all who endure faithful unto the LORD to the very end...................what a reward on HIS DAY.

ONE DAY peoples all who love and loved the LORD will rise , many that have slept will arise and any who are still remaining will be caught up together AT HIS COMING.

BUT before all that................a severe , dark murderous rage comes against the one true church of GOD..................millions will bleed for JESUS

but fear not man, fear not what is COMING................man can only kill the body.............GOD can destroy both body and soul in hell fire .

Fear only GOD and go out faithfully.  What is coming is coming and will not be stopped..................be prepared to endure an out right bloodshed against the one true

church who refused to conform to the all inclusive world peace mindset.    ONLY JESUS SAVES.................he bled for us................Bleed for HIM amen.

Forgive all who hate you , forgive all who persecute you , forgive even those who would kill you. FORGIVE as we FOR CHRISTS sake have been forgiven.

BUT NEVER CONFROM to this twice dead , evil , full of wickedness , interfaith all inclusive mindset .  ONWARD and fear no man .  amen.

[Heleadethme]

So what's the solution then. Let's close all the church doors and label them heretic or place your name here.   There are plenty of churches i am sure that is determined to preach the gospel and stand firm for truth.  Yes, there are some whole denominations that have sanctioned gay marriages and others has movements to accommodate worldly ways, but a believer has to search out for gems just like he would look for good schools for his kids as an example.  

If painting the church as preaching false doctrines and perpetuating it here, then it is sending the wrong message to believers .  The church has been founded by the Lord and it is his.  Then you become isolated pockets of believers, starting to formulate new ideas of how church should be done, as the ones that has been in existence seems to many now as outdated, as it does not accommodate the settings for their children to find husbands and wives ect. These are some of the arguments i have seen, where young people leave the church to group together with hippy preachers with tatoos ect and form their own so call church.  

What ??? 

____________________________________________

What do we do..........be led by the Spirit, that's what we each are to do.  At the point where churches were being invaded by new age, I found the Lord leading me out of them.  Yes, it is His church and He is judging it just as surely as He judged Israel's Temple of old, not one stone will be left on another......we must not think He will not judge His church in her apostasy just as He judged Israel.  He showed me that by the time it's over there will only be two churches in existence, the global false church of false unity embracing the lie that all religions lead to God....and His scattered remnant true church in the wilderness.   Most of the churches are being swallowed up by the global ecumenical one as we speak.  Jesus said when you see "Jerusalem" surrounded by armies, to flee to the mountains......well I would say it's not only surrounded but being invaded and conquered now.  Go, my people, enter your rooms and shut the door until my wrath passes by. 

Edited July 30, 2017 by Heleadethme

[frienduff thaylorde]

1 minute ago, Heleadethme said:

What do we do..........be led by the Spirit, that's what we each are to do.  At the point where churches were being invaded by new age, I found the Lord leading me out of them.  Yes, it is His church and He is judging it just as surely as He judged Israel's Temple of old, not one stone will be left on another......we must not think He will not judge His church in her apostasy just as He judged Israel.  He showed me that by the time it's over there will only be two churches in existence, the global false church of false unity embracing the lie that all religions lead to God....and His scattered remnant true church in the wilderness.   Most of the churches are being swallowed up by the global ecumenical one as we speak.  Jesus said when you see "Jerusalem" surrounded by armies, to flee to the mountains......well I would say it's not only surrounded but being invaded and conquered now.  Go, my people, enter your rooms and shut the door until my wrath passes by. 

SISTER amen.    THEY IN FLAT OUT LOVE WITH ALL INCLUSIVE non correcting ,

FLEE and never look back.   I know many also outside of the churches as warrior twelve said are false as well.

But that don't mean we go back in to synagogues where truth is not kept.  Their are still some faithful lambs of GOD

and they gather in UNITY of the HOLY SPIRIT , not mans unity , not world unity.......SPIRITUAL UNITY.

these lambs will just have to comfort one another and try and reach as many as we can.   No one said we cant gather.

But when we do..............it will be HOLY BIBLICAL SOUND DOCTRINE Taught , correction done

and all the pattern JESUS said and the apostels taught done just as it was to be.   FLEE any , any IF they refuse correction.

IF they do, its because their is NO TRUTH IN THEM.   FLEE THEM, never look back. BUT we do try and warn and correct FIRST.

we do so in hopes they repent ........but till they do.........YOU , I and all who LOVE THE LORD, must keep the pattern in all things even CORRECTION

we do all for the sakes of others.........the LOVE must be JESUS ABOVE ALL THINGS.............he who loves mother father etc more than me is not worthy of me.

HE WE LOVE FIRST ...........when that kind of LOVE has been shed on our hearts........................THEN WE KNOW HOW TO LOVE MAN PROPERLY .  till then we lost and don't love nothing

but SELF.

[frienduff thaylorde]

I want all to be encouraged in what I say next.  Over the years , specially as of late, I have seen how hate is increasing against ones like me.

I have no doubt soon we will be betrayed , even many of us killed.  YET my PEACE ONLY INCREASES, only more boldness to speak truth.

YALL KNOW WHY................cause whether I live or die..............I AM THE LORDS.......he has me in life and in death . 

In matters not if I die, it matters not if I live...............what matters above all things is that souls are saved, my enemies I wish to be saved only.

GOD IS PERPARING his OWN..............he is giving this peace of mind , this true peace and no fear at all.   GOD is with me and HE IS WITH ALL WHO LOVE HIM IN TRUTH

HE WILL BE WITH US FOREVER , even in the hour of our death............to be absent from the body is only to be present with the LORD.

SING IT PEOPLES SING IT < AND FEAR NOT WHAT IS COMING.........BUT DO KNOW IT IS COMING AND WILL NOT BE STOPPED.  the GREAT TRIBULATION HOUR

does indeed draw ever nigh.  PRAISE BE TO THE LORD, HIS WILL BE DONE AND MAY SOULS BE SAVED AMEN>

[Heleadethme]

4 minutes ago, frienduff thaylorde said:

SISTER amen.    THEY IN FLAT OUT LOVE WITH ALL INCLUSIVE non correcting ,

FLEE and never look back.   I know many also outside of the churches as warrior twelve said are false as well.

But that don't mean we go back in to synagogues where truth is not kept.  Their are still some faithful lambs of GOD

and they gather in UNITY of the HOLY SPIRIT , not mans unity , not world unity.......SPIRITUAL UNITY.

these lambs will just have to comfort one another and try and reach as many as we can.   No one said we cant gather.

But when we do..............it will be HOLY BIBLICAL SOUND DOCTRINE Taught , correction done

and all the pattern JESUS said and the apostels taught done just as it was to be.   FLEE any , any IF they refuse correction.

IF they do, its because their is NO TRUTH IN THEM.   FLEE THEM, never look back. BUT we do try and warn and correct FIRST.

we do so in hopes they repent ........but till they do.........YOU , I and all who LOVE THE LORD, must keep the pattern in all things even CORRECTION

we do all for the sakes of others.........the LOVE must be JESUS ABOVE ALL THINGS.............he who loves mother father etc more than me is not worthy of me.

HE WE LOVE FIRST ...........when that kind of LOVE has been shed on our hearts........................THEN WE KNOW HOW TO LOVE MAN PROPERLY .  till then we lost and don't love nothing

but SELF.

Yes........it's all out spiritual carnage.....imagine the war that went on when Babylon invaded Israel, it's just like that in the spirit, anguishing....the tragic reality of the days we are living in right now.......and Pharaoh (devil) chased them even after they left for the wilderness......he chased me, and no-one said this wouldn't be risky.....we are not to relax our guard just because we're not in churches.....the wilderness had pitfalls too........but the Lord is faithful and if not for Him the enemy would have eaten us all up alive.  Amen, we can gather in simplicity........though I would say many need time to be alone with the Lord and His word and get washed of all the false that they had sat under and been immersed in over the years of hearing false doctrines and depending on Pastors.  They need to shut out all other voices for a while and learn to hear the Shepherd's voice and get their roots down deep in Him.  Some are blessed to meet and gather, but the reality is many may not find fellowship where they live, unless it happens that the Lord causes them to cross paths.  Amen......to love God first......unity is in Christ, rather than the person to person unity that the world knows.  Love with His love, not of our own.

[Heleadethme]

11 minutes ago, Davida said:

I agree. I've spoken this too and people said what are you talking about???!!  oh well what can I say?

Fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom........church has lost the fear of the Lord so they don't have wisdom and can't understand, it's one factor at least.  Unless they are being given over to strong delusion.....Lord have mercy, is all I can say.......these are terrible days.

[Sower]

If there are any that should not become fearful of the coming days, it should be those who are born from above, who know God's view of death:   "O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory"?  If we are walking daily in Christ, faithful to the body by doing our own personal part in the body, a workman not ashamed, we will have the peace God promised to the faithful. Looking up, God is still on the throne. Don't forget where to keep your thoughts; Php_4:8  Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things.

Pro_3:25  Be not afraid of sudden fear, neither of the desolation of the wicked, when it cometh.

1Pe 3:8  Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous:   Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing.   For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile:   Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it.   For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil.   And who is he that will harm you, if ye be followers of that which is good?   But and if ye suffer for righteousness' sake, happy are ye: and be not afraid of their terror, neither be troubled;   But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the hope that is in you with meekness and fear:   Having a good conscience; that, whereas they speak evil of you, as of evildoers, they may be ashamed that falsely accuse your good conversation in Christ.   For it is better, if the will of God be so, that ye suffer for well doing, than for evil doing.

[Guest]

Just now, Yowm said:

What do you expect when God is reduced to a mushy, gushy, slushy grandpa.

A good dose of God's Word + Holy Spirit conviction can change all that.

Amen! Have you ever listened to Voddie Bachmans sermon on youtube?  Its really good.

The Modern Church's Sissified Jesus - Voddie Baucham

[Gemstone777]

I want to thank you all for your thoughts and insights.  As I said before this post was just so I could make three posts to get into chat, lol.  It wasn't meant to be a place of debate, but a loving, heartfelt discussion of how to process these thing that break my heart, and I believe that Christ disapproves of because of instructions in His Word.

 I have too many friends/family that have gotten out of church because of grave wounds, not petty stuff.  Some are bitter, and yes they are wrong and need to heal, but sometimes depending on the level of hurt/offense it takes time.  Being harsh with people that are already wounded won't help them to heal, it will just further show them lack of genuine concern, and they will perceive it as unloving.   This is not coming from a place of complaint, but observation of seeing others wounded and wronged, and saying that it's not how God says it should be.  Jesus took the plight of the lowly, the sinner, and He was not self righteous.  I don't think I'm better than anyone, and stuff like this makes me see how I don't want to hurt anyone and keep them away from Christ, or growing in Christ. I think we all should desire unity, love, and peace in the body, and work towards creating that environment.  Sure, sometimes things have to be confronted that are wrong, and people aren't going to receive that well.  

A few of you have asked for examples of how churches/Christians have wounded other believers/seekers.  I have many, but these are some that came to mind.  After I share these, I probably won't be commenting on every post, as I feel I've already said my perception, interpretation, and ideas on this situation.  I wish you all well on your journey with the Lord.  Let us strive to love the Lord and others!   

* A friend from a previous employer that is not a Christian that I had invited to church said that he wouldn't come.  When I asked him why, he told me he that he was wounded by a church leader.  He went on to share his story of how when he was a little boy he went to church.  He came from a broken home, and his mom had kids by different men.  There was a male leader in the church that took an interest in him and sort of was a mentor.  There was a father/son outing coming up, and his dad was not in his life.  He overheard one of the pastors and his mentor in the church talking.  The pastor said to my friend's mentor, "Why don't you take the boy you have been mentoring (my friend) to the father/son outing?"  His mentor friend said, "Are you kidding me!  That little "bastard!"  Then both the pastor and his mentor began laughing.  After that he said he wouldn't set foot in church again, and he hasn't.  He remains an unbeliever to this day.

* A brother in Christ who was single (20s/never married) at the time was serving as a youth leader in his church.  He was working with the males since he was a male.  He would play basketball with them, watch football games, go out to lunch, help them with school, and also disciple/mentor them.  He had no complaints from children or their parents, and was influencing the kids in a Christ-like way.  Then, the music pastor felt convicted to share with my friend something that was said because his boys were involved in the ministry and he knew my friend's character was being dragged through the mud unjustly.  He disclosed to my friend that the Senior Pastor had said that he had an unhealthy interest in boys because he was spending so much of his time pouring into them, and accused him of homosexual tendency/desires that were not there and untrue.  That pastor damaged my friend's character unjustly by wrongful use of his position of power/influence and the use of his tongue to harm my friend's walk.  My friend was not as strong in his faith as he is now, and he left the church and said, "If this is what Christianity is, I don't want any part of it!"  He left the church for 5 years wounded before God drew him back and used another pastor's love and kindness to help him heal.  Think of what a servant of the Lord could have done in that 5 years!  Thankfully, God helped him to heal.  He went on to be a pastor himself and now he knows how not to treat people because of what he went through.

*A single female friend of mine had a divorced guy from her church that played in the worship band over to help fix something in her home.  After he had completed the project they were sitting on her couch talking and she thanked him for helping her.  He began to kiss her against her will and unzip her pants.  She screamed, yelled, and tried to fight him off and he finally got off of her and left.  She felt if she hadn't screamed loud and pushed/kicked him off of her, he would have raped her.  When she asked me what she should do (because of the nature of the situation) I felt that she needed to talk with the pastor and get him involved, maybe even criminal charges needed to be considered.  The Senior Pastor of her church said, "We don't use the R (for rape) word around here.  You need to drop this."  He was more concerned about the image of his church then he was about my friend's well being and that she was almost a victim of rape.  Because she respected the pastor's authority, she never addressed the situation.  It made it hard for her to trust men after that.  Thankfully, she is still serving the Lord and many years after this incident she did marry.  

*An elderly female friend that's a widow was a big servant in her church.  She had 2 husbands die, one of her children was hit by a car and killed at a young age, and she struggled with depression because of those things.  She is a very caring, loving, serving, giving, and sensitive person.  Some of the other elderly women in the church did not like the attention that she got because people liked her because of how she served the Lord.  They started gossiping about her, damaging her character, and making others turn against her.  My friend went to the pastor for counseling for her depression/thoughts of suicide.  He told other people in the church (including some of these women) in the name of " requested prayer" that she was, "A sad soul, needing help, and that she wasn't right in the head."  He basically gave her enemies fuel to further harm her character and attack her instead of loving her and getting her the help she needed.  The church leadership had a meeting to let both sides confront one another to allegedly squash the issue.  When they had the meeting only the other ladies were allowed to bring people for their side, and she was left alone to defend herself.  She was attacked and belittled in the meeting.  Due to this, she and others left their church, a mild church split, and there are grave wounds and disunity in the Universal body of believers.  She is currently out of church because of how she was harmed, and is still depressed.

*When my husband pastored in the inner city there was a very poor disabled lady that would come to church.  She was often unbathed, unkept, and she lived in a home that in some places would be condemned/torn down.  Some of the elders, their wives, and suburbanite church people would not shake her hand or talk to her.  They would also sometimes give looks of disgust and would not approach her.  She sat beside me every week and would give her dollar each week, which for her was sacrificial.  She did have an odor to her that was unpleasant, but nowhere in the Bible does is say that we aren't to love people that smell badly.  This lack of love would keep some out of church.  Last I knew after we left that ministry, she is no longer in church.  

I could come up with several more, but these are some of the observations that I've seen as to why people have been deeply hurt which can hinder their growth or make them not want to be a Christian at all.  I desire for people to know the love, mercy, and grace of Christ.  They will not hear the words if our actions as Christians are not meeting the message of love, mercy, and grace.  I know God is a just God, and that doesn't mean we don't call sin what it is, but there must be a balance in all things in order for us to accomplish what He has put before us to do.    

Matthew 5:7 Blessed are the merciful for they shall receive mercy.

James 2:13 There will be no mercy for those who have not shown mercy to others.  But if you have been merciful, God will be merciful when He judges you.   

John 13:34-35 "A new command I give you: Love one another.  As I have loved you, so you must love one another.  By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another."  

Love always in Christ, Gem

[warrior12]

Let's put some things into perspective here.  Let's use the USA as a reference. There are supposed to be as below 

According to a 2014 study by the Pew Research Center, 70.6% of the adult population identified themselves as Christians, with 46.5% professing attendance at a variety of churches that could be considered Protestant, and 20.8% professing Roman Catholic beliefs.

Religion in the United States - Wikipedia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Religion_in_the_United_States

 

Let's take for a moment the protestant which is about half at 150 million.    Within that 150 million there are not solid believers that read their bibles, go to church and see t hat it is the word of God being preached.   Yes, there are all type of beliefs that essentially makes up the multi denominations.   So then for most of those people who are in church, they themselves have to have a false belief if they sit and here false doctrines which are supposed to be widespread.   I will stop here for a bit and let's get some response.    

 

Psalm 127    King James Version (KJV)

127 Except the Lord build the house, they labour in vain that build it: except the Lord keep the city, the watchman waketh but in vain.