Before I get to where I am going in this section I suppose we should delve into some definitions. Iniquity is the easy one. It’s that same word from 2 Thes 2:3 which read as “man of Sin” as translated in the King James and is anomias. Also, in other versions it is translated as lawlessness. The other word I think we should look more closely at is “cold”. There are different forms of the Greek word that get translated to cold. The church of Laodiceans is referred to as “not cold” in Rev. 3:15. The word psuchros is intentionally or refreshingly cool like the use by Jesus in Matt 10:42 in “a cup of cold water to these little ones…” Here in Matt 24:12 we have different form of the Greek word which is psucho which denotes being cooled as by a breath or wind being blown over it. I think of it like a warm, tasty bowl of oatmeal or soup. Then, imagine it after sitting on the table for 4 hours and then eating it …Yuk!
We live an a would where “political correctness” is the unwritten law of the land. Well, I guess if you include “hate speech” laws in many countries then it is written. We seem to in the U.S. at least have a media that is fomenting division in this country with mainstream media giving one narrative and alternative media giving another. People may be living or working next to each other but depending on where they get their news living in different worlds. There are others that don’t want to know what is going on outside of their own little world and just want to “go through the motions”.
Not only in the secular world we see this division and isolation but we also see it in the church. Though I can’t say division is totally a new thing because we saw already in the first chapter of Paul’s first letter to the church of Corinth that people were diving over who baptized them. Yet we could say that was just some growing pains of a new church where solid doctrine had not been established or are we continuing the same behavior. One groups says “I’m of Calvin” and another group say “I’m of Luther” yet there is only one Bible. Even beyond the doctrinal divides we have I believe, now, we are at a new level of coldness in our division.
I personally have observed too many christian brothers and sisters be victims of “church hurt” and that can be extreme. Should not churches be a “hospital for sinners”? Yet, often I see them operating more like a social club where people who appear different or are experiencing hardship in their lives or are not accommodated for their differences but are ostracized, even excommunicated from the family of God. I’m not talking about members who voluntarily leave for personal preferences, or got their pride hurt. They are a different story. I’m talking about outright rejection.
One poignant example I’ve witnessed of this rejection stems from an ignorance of spiritual oppression. People who have accepted Christ as their Savior have been rescued from death and on fire for the Lord and this is a good thing. This is a very good thing! But, somebody losses out on that deal. Who might that be… Yes Satan and his demons. I’ll tell you he doesn’t take that loss sitting down. Oh no! He and his minions go on the attack to harass and attempt to render that Christian utterly useless as a soul winner and a glory bringer to Christ. What danger is an apathetic, lukewarm, Christian to him? He prioritizes Christians who are “worth the effort”. That being said sometimes Christians are aware that they, themselves, are being demonically oppressed and many times they are not.
An explanatory word: Christians are not possessed because Christ’s presence in a believer can not be taken away by anyone, even Satan. But they can be oppressed and harassed by the satanic realm. If a follower of Christ is experiencing depression, anxiety, emotional pain or behaves strangely we should be asking questions and determining the needs. It’s not the time for the church to be pushing them off to the medical/pharmaceutical community but it’s time for the pastor and the elders to be praying over and providing deliverance if necessary from the oppression on our brother or sister. Only if the follower is breaking civil laws is it time to bring in law enforcement authorities. Christians shouldn’t let fear dictate their actions. Remember the teaching about fear in the last section.
Who do we trust in? God or man? Why do many people advocate a man synthesized pharmaceutical “quick fix” which is really no fix at all. Pharmaceuticals are not our savior. In fact, several times in the bible pharmakeia is mentioned and never is it presented in a positive light. Most are highly addictive and at the very least just mask a physical condition that can be ameliorated by another means. Two references that stand out are Gal 5:20 and Rev 9:21. Starting with Gal 5:19. (KJV)
“Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, uncleanness, lasciviousness, idolatry, pharmekia;…”
I know this is not how it reads in the KJV but is translated as sorcery. But don’t you think it strange that synthetic pharmaceuticals were created long after the Bible was written and they couldn’t come up with better word for them? Regardless of the current definitions, to me, a mind altering preparation is not a good thing. What about Romans 12:2? (KJV)
“And be not conformed to this world : but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”
Is pill popping renewing the mind biblically? (It appears the old Dupont company slogan from the 50’s “Better living through chemistry” has been widely embraced.) It is Godly council through his word or his people through the holy Spirit himself that renews the mind.
What are the most prescribed mind altering pharmaceuticals? It is antidepressants. Depression happens and it is a part of life. People have ups and downs. We go through periods of hope and periods of despair and that is natural. Proponents of antidepressants say that once you cross a specified time period of depression you are clinically depressed and you get a highly addictive drug. If you are depressed for an extended time God may have allowed you to go through a desert experience to teach you something. Or maybe he is allowing it just for you to build your trust in him. Should we take away his opportunity to draw us into a deeper relationship with him? This makes me think about Isaiah 40:31. It’s best to read it all the way from verse 28. I thought about cutting to the climax but it wouldn’t do the passage justice so here it goes. 28-31 (KJV)
“Hast thou not known? hast thou not heard, that the everlasting God, the Lord, the Creator of the ends of the earth, fainteth not, neither is weary? these is no searching of his understanding. 29 He giveth power to the faint; and to them that have no might he increaseth strength. 30 Even the youths shall faint and be weary, and the young men shall utterly fall: 31 But they who wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not be faint.”
And what about that person who is “hearing voices”in their heads. Do they not need deliverance? Why do we label them as schizophrenic? Remember what I was saying in the first part of this section. Satan and his demons are working hard on these people. If Satan already had them in his quiver he can just keep encouraging them in his ways and they don’t rebel against it. Christians, on the other hand, find Satan’s messages tormenting because it is contrary to the Holy Spirit in them. Again in this case, at best, pharmaceuticals only mask the problems.
Consider Mark 16:17 (KJV) “And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name they shall cast out devils; and they shall speak in new tongues.”
This is right after Jesus says to “go ye into all the world”. We are still going in to all the world long after the ministry of the founding apostles so this does still apply. And boy is the casting out part needed now too! I believe Jesus is referring to the church collectively and not to believers individually in Mark 16. Remember Paul’s rhetorical statement in 1 Cor 12:29-30 (KJV) “Are all apostles? are all prophets? are all teachers? are all workers of miracles” 30 Have all the gifts of healing” do all speak in tongues” do all interpret?
Couple that with What Paul says a little earlier in that chapter. This is where Paul focuses on the body of Christ in 1 Cor 12 from verse 14 all the way up to the end of the chapter. I encourage you to read the whole section but speaking to my point here consider verses 17, 21 and 25.
1 Cor 12:17(KJV) ‘If the whole body were an eye, where were the hearing? … 21 And the eye can’t say to the hand, I have no need of thee… 25 That there should be no schism in the body; but that the members should have the same care for one another”
Jesus spreads out the different gifts to different members of the church all for the common good. People with different gifts are going to look different! Why do we see many people with the same gift huddled in the same church? I’ll ask this more plainly, why are all the people with charismatic gifts all huddled in the same church? Have they been ostracized by non-Charismatic Christians or have they separated themselves because they believe other don’t measure up because they don’t have the same gifts? Or do they do it out of a superiority complex because of the gifts they have? I don’t claim to know the reason why but I’m just sad there is such division because I believe each camp could learn a lot from the other. It just appears dysfunctional to the world. We, the Church, with all of our imperfections and whether we like it or not are a representation of Christ to the world.
John 13:35 (KJV) “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another. ”
On a side note, not pertinent to this teaching but it goes a little further on the concept of unity. (This is my ADD kicking in) Each person needs to come to terms with the unity of their own body, mind and spirit. Our spirit can’t just say to our mind “I have no need of you” (remember .. be transformed…) Nor can the mind say to the body. “I have no reason to take care of you” (Remember … our body is a temple of the Holy Spirit)