Countless believers attend church in order to receive comfort for the hardships of their lives, or to have their worldly worries and problems resolved, or from the standard of their own desires, hopes, ideals, and pursuit of success. Most regard their own wishes, will, determination, self-confidence, conviction, and attachment as if it were faith in God. Yet this is no different at all from worldly people and Gentiles who chase after perishing things of this world. Because they try to serve both God and material things together, they end up repeating useless repentance that only piles up more sin and excuses, and most remain in a faith that is always unstable on the path of sinners.
Lest there be any fornicator, or profane person, as Esau, who for one morsel of meat sold his birthright. For ye know how that afterward, when he would have inherited the blessing, he was rejected: for he found no place of repentance, though he sought it carefully with tears.(Hebrews 12 : 16~17)
Within a faith that seeks and pursues the perishing things of this world, there can be nothing but greed—chasing after worldly ideals, desires, and cravings—and the sins that result from them; in such faith, the true faith and hope of Christ, which bears the cross and follows the love of the cross, cannot exist unto salvation.
Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.(1 John 2 : 15~17)
Ye ask, and receive not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts. Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.(James 4 : 3~4)
Therefore, within a faith that has nothing to do with salvation, because it is tied to the world and only produces more sin, many believers are deceived as though their worldly desires, ideals, and problems could be quickly solved, or as though God exists only to comfort them in life’s hardships and burdens, or as though His blessings and peace were given merely for their sake. Thus, sermons stir momentary inspiration and moral lessons, awakening, urging, energizing, convincing, and exalting the believers. Yet through such sermons, humanity can never break free from its human limitations. In other words, just as a person who makes hundreds or thousands of resolutions cannot escape the proverb “a resolution lasts only three days,” or as it is said, “a habit formed at three remains until eighty,” so it is that human habits cannot easily be changed. Therefore, humanity is devilish (John 8:44). This is why the Lord declared that He came to destroy the works of the devil.
If human beings could truly change by their own resolve, awakening, conviction, determination, and self-confidence, then they would have been transformed from their earliest childhood. Of course, those who awaken and resolve may show some small profit or change compared to those who never do, yet at the root, they can never turn away from the endlessly repeating sins of envy, jealousy, strife, hatred, pride, lies, and lust. That is why, though they repent and reflect, they always return to sin again. Repentance is meant as a resolve and determination not to commit sin. Yet if sin continues to be produced endlessly even after repentance, then this is not the repentance of Christ, but only the worldly regret, reflection, and remorse that anyone in the world can have.
The repentance of Christ is for those who pursue the life of Christ—the life of the Spirit—as the goal, striving toward the hope of Christ, and not for those who follow their worldly desires, ideals, and cravings. It belongs only to those who live according to the love of the cross, for only they could cast away the root from which sin arises. Therefore, those who cling to worthless repentance while continually producing sin cannot be changed or born again by sermons filled with teachings, inspiration, tears, awakenings, resolutions, or self-confidence. It is only through the gift of God’s power that the human limitation—whereby willpower, awakening, resolutions, and self-confidence are powerless—is overcome. The gift of God’s authority and power enables believers to obtain divine strength that helps their human weakness, brings transformation, and causes them to be born again.
If there had been true shepherds who led believers to receive the genuine gift of power, then all the abominable tongues, false powers, and pretended gifts—which spread like leaven throughout the whole earth, deepening the poverty and anguish of people’s hearts instead of leading them to be born again—would never have prevailed. Sermons that stir human will, passion, determination, and self-confidence through moral and ethical lessons and inspiration, or under the name of “blessing and peace,” offering comfort to believers in the world—even though they may move hearers to tears and stir their hearts—can never break through the limits of man to bring about transformation. They result only in worthless reflections and false repentance that endlessly repeat sin.
Beloved, what do you truly believe in, and upon what do you rely and call faith? Like Esau, are you not seeking perishable worldly blessings, fleeting happiness, prosperity, ideals, and desires—always driven by self-interest, always repeating sin, and never being born again? Are you not mistaking this vain repentance and reflection, which can never stop the endless repetition of sin, for the faith of a true Christian, while in truth you remain like Esau, endlessly repeating sin, bound to the perishing blessings of this world?
That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God; Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness; Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:(Colossians 1 : 10~14)
Because sin is always repeated according to self-interest and gain, and because repentance remains vain and powerless while sin is never cut off, you must now take this as an opportunity and turning point to clearly discern whether your faith has become nothing more than lies and falsehoods—rationalizations born of your own assertions and pride—exalted as if they were the Word itself and God Himself, rather than the true faith. For the reason that sin cannot help but be repeated according to self-interest, rebirth cannot be attained; yet today’s Christianity is filled with the tragic reality that falsehood and pretense—claiming to have achieved the repentance of Christ or to have received the Holy Spirit—have spread over the whole earth like leaven. Now is the time to examine with soberness, by the standard of the Word, whether your faith has strayed from pursuing the true repentance of Christ and from following the love of the cross—leading to the spiritual gifts and fruits of God that are fitting for salvation—or whether it has become nothing more than your own assertions, thoughts, and judgments, deceiving you into believing they are accurate, true, and righteous.
And we have known and believed the love that God hath to us. God is love; and he that dwelleth in love dwelleth in God, and God in him. Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.(1 John 4 : 16~17)
Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love. In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.(1 John 4 : 7~11)
How can those who spend their entire lives chasing after selfish desires, blessings, and cravings while continually committing sin ever obtain a heart that bears the love of the cross, and thereby receive forgiveness of sins and salvation? The teaching of the cross is this: that if one also bears the cross and practices and follows the love of the cross as the Lord did, then salvation will be attained. This is to abide in the love of God, who is the very source of love. Those who seek to serve God while mingling with the world and material things cannot belong to the love of the cross. They remain bound to the path of sinners, adding only more sin according to their self-interest, never turning back, never being born again, and therefore repeating sin as slaves of sin. Within a faith that prays only for their perishing success, happiness, and blessings, there is no love; and for that reason, they can never receive the forgiveness of sins, the faith, the wisdom, the gifts, or the Holy Spirit of Christ, which are given in union with love. Therefore, the inspiration you feel for the sake of your own blessings and happiness is by no means the inspiration, teaching, or grace of God. It is instead the work of pastors who disguise themselves as God’s shepherds, but in truth bear the spirit of Satan: pastors who lead you to desire more of this perishing world, pastors who masquerade as shepherds of Christ but are gods of words and theories, deceiving spirits that tempt with worldly things, and blind shepherds governed by the god of materialism, leading you to seek after possessions.
Most churches today are filled with this corruption: distorted, heretical sermons and words that seem sweet to the ear, leading people to chase worldly desires, happiness, and blessings, deceiving them so that their entire lives are spent merely going in circles. They cling to worthless repentance—repeated thousands of times—without ever being born again, never escaping their sins, but only growing accustomed to sin, making light of sin, or even becoming bold and arrogant toward sin. Such are the churches where pride teaches, where inspiration, moral lessons, and tears fail to lead anyone away from the sinner’s path according to self-interest. These are not God’s grace, not God’s teaching, but merely the legalism of moralists, the hypocrisy of pretenders, and the corruption and leaven of those who attempt to serve both God and material things together.
Such teachings, which have nothing to do with salvation, exist only to justify worldly living that opposes the holy will of God and stands as an enemy of the love of the cross. They exalt human moral and ethical values, such as the lesson of gaining sweet fruit through toil and hardship, under the guise of “God’s blessing.” They inflate believers with comfort and hope as if all their desires, ideals, and problems could be solved at once. But this comfort and hope, like leavened dough that quickly swells, soon collapse and vanish, leaving nothing. For they do not seek the love that is fitting for salvation; rather, their prayers, faith, and belief exist solely for their desires, happiness, ideals, and worldly success. Such faith is no different from that of unbelievers, existing only to pursue selfish desires, cravings, and ambitions. This is why, according to self-interest and gain, sin must inevitably repeat until death, leaving them unable to experience rebirth or true repentance that cuts off sin. The inspiration and teaching of such people, whose faith and prayers are but vain, are nothing but the tears and false inspiration of Esau, who sold eternal glory for the sake of his own perishing blessings and fleeting happiness.
Brethren, if any of you do err from the truth, and one convert him; Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, and shall hide a multitude of sins.(James 5 : 19~20)
They say still unto them that despise me, The LORD hath said, Ye shall have peace; and they say unto every one that walketh after the imagination of his own heart, No evil shall come upon you. For who hath stood in the counsel of the LORD, and hath perceived and heard his word? who hath marked his word, and heard it? Behold, a whirlwind of the LORD is gone forth in fury, even a grievous whirlwind: it shall fall grievously upon the head of the wicked. The anger of the LORD shall not return, until he have executed, and till he have performed the thoughts of his heart: in the latter days ye shall consider it perfectly. I have not sent these prophets, yet they ran: I have not spoken to them, yet they prophesied. But if they had stood in my counsel, and had caused my people to hear my words, then they should have turned them from their evil way, and from the evil of their doings.(Jeremiah 23 : 17~22)
And now, O ye priests, this commandment is for you. If ye will not hear, and if ye will not lay it to heart, to give glory unto my name, saith the LORD of hosts, I will even send a curse upon you, and I will curse your blessings: yea, I have cursed them already, because ye do not lay it to heart. Behold, I will corrupt your seed, and spread dung upon your faces, even the dung of your solemn feasts; and one shall take you away with it. And ye shall know that I have sent this commandment unto you, that my covenant might be with Levi, saith the LORD of hosts. My covenant was with him of life and peace; and I gave them to him for the fear wherewith he feared me, and was afraid before my name. The law of truth was in his mouth, and iniquity was not found in his lips: he walked with me in peace and equity, and did turn many away from iniquity.(Malachi 2 : 1~6)
The truth, word, wisdom, and mysteries of God and of Christ never rely on human intellect, reasoning, interpretations, wordplay, or parables. This is the very reason that humanistic thinking and preaching have prevented you from bearing the perfect fruit of Christ according to the Word. By exploiting the difficult circumstances and pains of believers, under the pretense of “God’s blessing” and in the name of “peace,” preachers have stirred the tears and sorrowful hearts of believers as though God were merely a comforting deity who knows their weary lives. Yet such inspiration and teaching have nothing to do with salvation; it is the work of the so-called “god of inspiration,” the “god of tears,” and the “god of sorrow.” The Spirit of Christ never works in those who, no different from the world, pursue worldly desires, ideals, and cravings. He adds peace and blessing only to those who take up the cross and seek the love of the cross, which alone leads to salvation.
He that hateth dissembleth with his lips, and layeth up deceit within him; When he speaketh fair, believe him not: for there are seven abominations in his heart.(Proverbs 26 : 24~28)
The meaning of this word is that no matter how good the sermons may sound from those who harbor the seven emotions of envy, jealousy, hatred, falsehood, strife, pride, and lust, such preachers are in truth distorting and corrupting the very essence of the Word by using it for their own purposes. They conceal deceit within themselves, exalting their own assertions, and they teach nothing but deceit, vanity, and emptiness.
God is love. Therefore, every gift, prophecy, and work of the Spirit proceeds from the Spirit of love, being united with love, and is manifested as ideals, values, truth, and gifts joined to the Spirit of Christ. For this reason, those who do not have the Spirit of love—the true Spirit of Christ—can never be born again. Instead, they continually commit the sins of murder through envy, jealousy, hatred, pride, falsehood, lust, and strife, always according to their gain and self-interest. This is not the Spirit of God nor the Spirit of Christ; it is the spirit of envy, the god of jealousy, the spirit of hatred, the god of pride, the spirit of lust, the god of falsehood, and the spirit of strife—disguised as though they were the Holy Spirit, or the Spirit of God, or the Spirit of Christ. Thus, the faith led by such deceiving pastors remains bound in the vicious cycle of sin, unable to escape the yoke of sinners. They flounder within this bondage, and instead of repenting, they justify their sins that arise from worldly living and the pursuit of perishing desires. Their excuses and assertions are exalted as faith itself, while even their good conscience is gradually ruined and desolated. The hungering and weary cries of a troubled conscience already bear witness to this truth.
For I long to see you, that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift, to the end ye may be established;(Romans 1 : 11)