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| WHAT HAPPENED TO THE
LORD'S CHURCH? |
#408
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The religious scene of the 21st century bears little
resemblance to the church of the 1st century. God’s blueprint
has been discarded and denominational pandemonium has prevailed.
Yet, this development has been no surprise to Almighty God. It
was foreknown, predicted, and even warned against throughout the
pages of the New Testament.
In Matthew 13:24-30, Jesus told a parable about the
kingdom, which is His church. He compared His kingdom to a man
who planted wheat in a field. As the man slept, an enemy came
and sowed weeds in the same field. Later, when these “tares”
were found to be growing among the wheat, the farm hands wanted
to pull them out; but the farmer said to let them grow together,
lest the wheat be uprooted by the removal of the tares. Wheat
and tares look somewhat similar in the early stages of
development; but later, and upon closer inspection, they are
seen to be two different things. Jesus’ explanation of this
parable in verses 37-43, helps us see quite clearly that the
kingdom of God is now occupied by two separate groups. One group
is the product of seeds planted by God; the other group is the
product of seeds planted by Satan. In Luke 8:11, the seed of the
kingdom is said to be the word of God, which Jesus defined as
“truth” (John 17:17). We then conclude that the seed of Satan is
error since Jesus called him a “liar, and the father of lies”
(John 8:44). Those who come from the good seed are called “sons
of the kingdom” and the tares are “sons of the evil one.” Yet,
they are growing together in His kingdom and look a lot alike.
The difference is the seed which produced them. Jesus said the
“harvest is the end of the age” in verse 39. At that time, the
angels will gather out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks, and
those who commit lawlessness, and will cast them into the
furnace of fire (Matt 13:40-43).
The incredible thing is that Jesus knew corruption would
enter His kingdom. He said, “Beware of the false prophets, who
come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly are ravenous
wolves” (Matthew 7:15). Paul knew it too. He told the elders of
the church in Ephesus that after his departure, “savage wolves
will come in among you, not sparing the flock, and from among
your own selves,” Paul said, “men will arise, speaking perverse
things, to draw away the disciples after them” (Acts 20:29-30).
Paul gave fair warning to his friend Timothy. He said the time
would come when people “will not endure sound doctrine; but
wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for
themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires; and will
turn away their ears from the truth, and will turn aside to
myths” (II Timothy 4:3-4). Again, Paul wrote: “The Spirit
explicitly says that in later times some will fall away from the
faith, paying attention to deceitful spirits and doctrines of
demons ...” (I Timothy 4:1). In another passage, Paul gave a
name to this “falling away.” In II Thessalonians 2:3 he called
it “the apostasy,” a word which means “defection from the truth”
according to Strong’s Concordance. Paul said it would be
accompanied by a spirit of lawlessness and vain conceit which
would allow for one to be seated in the temple of God, which is
the church, exalting himself and putting himself in the place of
God (II Thessalonians 2:3-4). In verses 9-12, Paul predicted
that Satanic power would be at work in this movement, that signs
and false wonders would deceive those who perish “because they
did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved. And for
this reason,” Paul said, “God will send upon them a deluding
influence so that they might believe what is false, in order
that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth, but
took pleasure in wickedness.”
Any honest textbook of church history will tell you that
the “apostasy” has taken place. According to Robert H. Brumback,
in his book History of the Church Through the Ages, the fall of
the Roman Empire opened the door to the papacy, and with it came
great corruption in the church. He wrote: “Bribery, corruption,
immorality and bloodshed marked the course of the papal church
among the children of men. Kings habitually sold church offices
to the highest bidders .... the corruption of the clergy brought
about the corruption of the doctrine also. Men drifted away from
the word of God, forgot its warnings, ignored its teaching, and
substituted human ideas to make a religion that was attractive
to the world. Councils legislated for the churches, bound upon
them human doctrines, formed rituals to be used in church
services, introduced new ceremonies and created offices unknown
to the word of God.”
The church became so foul and corrupt that brave and
daring men of God attempted its reformation in the 16th century
-- but these attempts only generated a host of denominations
while retaining most of the unscriptural and erroneous doctrines
of the apostate church. So ... here we stand, at the brink of
the 21st Century, spinning in a whirlpool of religious error and
confusion. It is too late to “reform” the apostate church or the
web of denominationalism it has spun. What can we do now? How
can the People of God in the 21st Century be certain that we are
a part of the same church that began in the 1st Century? The
solution is readily available.
We must look to the seed of the kingdom, the Word of God.
If the same seed is planted in the hearts of people today as was
planted at the beginning, the same fruit will be produced today
- Christians simply and Christians only. Paul recommended a
simple, yet effective, remedy to this dilemma. He said, “Preach
the word” (II Timothy 4:2). We may never undo the confusion and
damage of the apostasy, but we can begin where we are and seek a
“thus saith the Lord” for our doctrine and actions. Each
independent, autonomous congregation of God’s people can make a
commitment to examine their own doctrine and practice and
compare it to New Testament teaching. And we can plant in the
hearts of a new generation the imperishable seed which brings
about a new birth, that is, “the living and abiding word of God”
(I Peter 1:23).
| Bible
Probe |
WHAT HAPPENED
TO THE LORD'S CHURCH? |
408
|
1. From Matthew 13:24-30, briefly summarize the story line of
Jesus’ parable.
From Matthew 13:37-43, list the realities represented by the
following figures:
The sower
_______________________________________________________
The field
_________________________________________________________
The enemy
_______________________________________________________
The harvest
______________________________________________________
The reapers
______________________________________________________
According to Luke 8:11 & John 17:17, what kind of seed produces
“sons of the kingdom”?
Knowing the nature of Satan (Jn 8:44), what kind of seed
produces “sons of the evil one”?
Did Jesus realize that “stumbling blocks” and “lawlessness”
would creep into His kingdom?
When would these things be removed from His kingdom? (Matthew
13:41)
2. What do each of the following scriptures teach about “false
teachers” in the church?
Matthew 7:15
__________________________________________________________
_____________________________________________________________________
Acts 20:29-30
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II Timothy 4:3-4
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_____________________________________________________________________
3. What does the word “Apostasy” mean?
What does Paul say about people falling away from the faith
in I Timothy 4:1-3?
How does Paul describe the “man of lawlessness” in II
Thessalonians 2:3-4?
When will he be punished for his deeds? (II Thessalonians
2:8)
What kind of activity will accompany his appearance? (II
Thessalonians 2:9-10)?
What is the major flaw of those who are being deceived? (II
Thessalonians 2:10-12)
What has God provided to protect us from being deceived?
(Ephesians 6:14; John 17:17)
4. Looking back through history, what kind of behavior has
accompanied the papal church?
5. What has been the result of the “Reformation” movement?
6. How can we restore in the 21st century the same church that
was built in the 1st century?
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Your Bible questions answered here.