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The Unity Hoax

Warning. Proceed with caution. Continue at your own risk or I may have to steal the quote, “I’m afraid the strain was more than he could bear.” (Doc Holiday, Tombstone) I’ll just come right out and say it. Enough of this “Christians are supposed to love everyone” nonsense. The people who say this either are timid by nature, have been taught only part of the Bible or have never read it for themselves. The entire book is filled with recorded wars and battles. Whether on the battle field or in society, Christians are fighting for their inheritance and freedom from oppression.

Those who want to dominate and control love to throw around comments like “I thought you were supposed to be a Christian.” or “Jesus is love.” I hate to burst your bubble but Jesus himself said in Matthew 10:34-39 (NKJV) “Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword. 35 For I have come to ‘set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law’; 36 and ‘a man’s enemies will be those of his own household.’ 37 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. 38 And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. 39 He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it.” That’s not sweet baby Jesus. That’s the ruler of the whole earth.

Now don’t get me wrong. Jesus is the Prince of Peace. Jesus is love. But Jesus is not just love. Nor is He just peace. He is a King. He is Just. He is not a people pleaser. He stood up to and harshly name called the hypocritical Pharisees. He crafted a whip and drove out the money changers while violently flipping their tables over. The only time Jesus allowed Himself to be controlled was at His appointed time to die for our sins. And even then, He handed himself over, allowing them to do what they wanted to do. Had He not done that they could not have held Him.

Jesus knew when to fight and when to heal the sick. He knew when to argue and when to keep silent. He was masterful with His words. He could not be tricked or manipulated. Jesus is awesome!

In like manner, we are to know when to stand and fight and when to keep silent. Ecclesiastes 3:1-8 (NKJV) clearly says not all times are the same.

3 “To everything there is a season,
A time for every purpose under heaven:

2 A time to be born,
And a time to die;
A time to plant,
And a time to pluck what is planted;
3 A time to kill,
And a time to heal;
A time to break down,
And a time to build up;
4 A time to weep,
And a time to laugh;
A time to mourn,
And a time to dance;
5 A time to cast away stones,
And a time to gather stones;
A time to embrace,
And a time to refrain from embracing;
6 A time to gain,
And a time to lose;
A time to keep,
And a time to throw away;
7 A time to tear,
And a time to sew;
A time to keep silence,
And a time to speak;
8 A time to love,
And a time to hate;
A time of war,
And a time of peace.”

There are those who are crying “Unity.” Unity yes, but first it must be defined. The body of Christ must be in unity in order to function as the body. However, we are not to be in unity with the world.

James 4:4 (NIV) says, 4 You adulterous people, don’t you know that friendship with the world means enmity against God? Therefore, anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God.”

We cannot think that if we play nice with those who oppose God that we are pleasing the Lord in the name of Christianity. You are fooling yourself. You make yourself an enemy of God. We are not to be timid and afraid and bow to those who want to rule over us. We are to be like the three Hebrew boys who under threat of death would not bow down. They believed in their God to deliver them. And even if He didn’t, they would not bow down.

Me loving my neighbor is me telling them the truth even if they hate what I’m saying. Me loving my neighbor is wanting blind eyes open both in the natural and spiritually speaking. Loving them is not me bowing to Godless demands and edicts. Jesus said they hated Me, and they will hate you. John 15:18

Now don’t misunderstand. It is the goodness of God that leads us to repentance. Of course, we are kind in nature and don’t go around starting senseless or meaningless fights. We defend the defenseless and care for the hurting like the “good Samaritan.” But we definitely don’t cower in the name of Christianity. David was a kind shepherd boy but when it was time to fight, he was the only one brave enough and bold enough to run straight at the giant in front of him. He knew this enemy was standing and threatening in opposition and defiance of God. We must do the same.

Do we love? Yes. Are we kind? Yes. But please, do not forget we also fight! Paul taught us to put on armor. We are told to act as good soldiers. Even our faith is a fight and we are told to fight. The freedom Christ purchased for us is worth fighting to keep. Let us not put our swords down and lower the standards of the Word. May we be like Paul when we come to the end and say, “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord the righteous judge, will award to me on that day and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.” 2 Timothy 4:7-8 (NIV) 

So, let us unite as the body. Not with this world or its corrupt ideas. We have a treasure worth fighting for. We are carriers of the presence and power of God. We are to pray “Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven.” (Matthew 6:10) We can only bring healing and restoration through fighting for the Word and fighting for the church. If we don’t fight for her who will? So I challenge you. Pick up your sword and fight! 

Blessings to you and yours,

Jaime Luce

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WISDOM LOST…THE FEAR FACTOR

 

If the fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, then it is clear that wisdom is lost. We are living in a time when every man does what seems right in his own eyes. (Judges 17:6) God is not only not feared, but He is detested, reviled and disdained. Those who claim to be aligned with Him are labeled the enemy or even worse, mentally ill. In case you haven’t noticed, the body of Christ is under attack. 

What has changed? How has such a dramatic turn happened? If we look to Scripture, it becomes abundantly clear. When you lose the fear of the Lord you remove all wisdom. When you lose the fear of the Lord you invite chaos to fill that void. Even to Christians, fearing God seems a thing of the past. For the last couple of decades, we wanted to make our all-powerful, all mighty God a very nice and approachable God instead. We wanted the God who created the expanse of all galaxies and the earth we live in, to be our buddy that we can hang out with. We wanted a God that we were familiar with. The problem with familiarity is that it breeds contempt. 

Jesus said in Mark 6:3-5 “Isn’t this the carpenter? Isn’t this Mary’s son and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon? Aren’t his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him. Jesus said to them, “A prophet is not without honor except in his own town, among his relatives and in his own home.” He could not do any miracles there, except lay his hands on a few sick people and heal them.”

Because of their familiarity they did not believe. In fact, they were indignant. This very thing has happened in the world. Even those in the church take offense at things in scripture. They believe the parts they like and discard the ones they don’t. This same diluted approach asks why would we want a God that we fear? Why would we embrace such a thought?

To answer that, you must first know what the fear of God is and why you need it. Fear is audaciously just that. Fear. Ministers shy away from the fact that fear means fear. We like to put the emphasis on how it is also awe and reverence. I grew up in a home where my dad is known as the one who loves everyone. Every person I know who meets my dad says the same thing. “I love your dad.” And I reply, “Me too.” His nature is one of grace, long suffering and abundant mercy. All of these are characteristics of our Heavenly Father. But there are other character traits my dad has that also mimic my Heavenly Father. He is fiercely brave and unafraid. He would fight any devil naturally and spiritually. When pushed, he is a force of strength and might. He served in the United States Army and understands what fighting is all about. Growing up, I knew you don’t mess with dad! And I was grateful for having him be like that. I felt safe and secure whenever dad was there.

Well I don’t know about you but in times like this I need a God that fights battles and wins. I need a God that the enemy is afraid of. I need a God that keeps my road clear, straight and narrow, for that is what leads to life. Matthew 7:14 “But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” I don’t need a God that I simply make sure to be quiet around or respect from a distance. I don’t need a Father who winks at my sin and doesn’t teach me how to live and survive in this world. I need a God that is infinitely bigger, stronger and smarter than I am. One that can control the elements when I need Him too. One that fights battles on my behalf and wins. One that insures I get where I’m supposed to go. I don’t need a mamsy pamsy weak and helpless God who just goes around saying nice things to everyone. I want a God that I can say “You don’t mess with Him.”

Proverbs 1:7 says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and instruction.” It’s literally the beginning. You don’t pass go or collect $200 dollars without it. Proverbs is replete with wisdom. But it must be laid hold of in order to produce. One must seek wisdom as if for treasure. One must seek council and lean on those whose lives have proved their words. Multiple times we are taught to head to the instruction of our father. Here is what scripture says.

Proverbs 1:20-29

20 Out in the open wisdom calls aloud,
    she raises her voice in the public square;
21 on top of the wall[a] she cries out,
    at the city gate she makes her speech:

22 “How long will you who are simple love your simple ways?
    How long will mockers delight in mockery
    and fools hate knowledge?
23 Repent at my rebuke!
    Then I will pour out my thoughts to you,
    I will make known to you my teachings.
24 But since you refuse to listen when I call
    and no one pays attention when I stretch out my hand,
25 since you disregard all my advice
    and do not accept my rebuke,
26 I in turn will laugh when disaster strikes you;
    I will mock when calamity overtakes you—
27 when calamity overtakes you like a storm,
    when disaster sweeps over you like a whirlwind,
    when distress and trouble overwhelm you.

28 “Then they will call to me but I will not answer;
they will look for me but will not find me,
29 since they hated knowledge
and did not choose to fear the Lord.

That, my friends, is something to be afraid of. The God I serve has all power. I don’t get to choose the way I want to do it. I get to choose who I follow. 

We shouldn’t be surprised. We have raised a generation of children who mock their parents, refuse instruction and are praised for it. This is shameful. We are reaping what we have sown as a society. Our music, television and media defy all wisdom and instruction. We let a carnal godless world indoctrinate our children because we didn’t want to rebuke them. Now we are upset that they won’t listen to reason and stop their out of control behavior. What we need is to regain our fear of the Lord. We need to repent and follow His instructions and gladly listen to His rebukes. He has given them not because He is a tyrant, but because He loves us. He cares what happens to us. He knows what lies ahead if we refuse.

I challenge you today. Bravely look at how you see God. Do you have a right fear of the All Mighty? Or is he so familiar that you can disregard what He has said? If we want to see change, we must be changed. Our lives, our families and our country will not be affectively impacted without it. We need the fear of God. We need to remember who He is and what He can do. We need a revival!

Blessings to you and yours,

Jaime Luce

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