Might be Time for You to Change Churches

Here is appalling news. The United Methodist Church “will be considering divestment resolutions and other anti-Israel measures at its General Conference that takes place in Texas April 23-May 2.” And they’ve already done other rotten things, like putting out a children’s book that teaches kids Israel is to blame in the Israel-Palestine conflict. Funny, I thought electing terrorists and shooting an endless rain of rockets at innocent civilians might somehow be contributing to the problem.

I know other denominations claiming to be Christian have demonstrated this kind of hostility and unfairness. I am really ashamed. Of course, many of these churches are no more Christian than an EST seminar.

It seems like you can tell a lot about the validity of a “Christian” church by checking a few things. Acceptance of gay pastors? Bibles rewritten to support a feminist perspective, with no scriptural basis? Endorsement of other faiths, especially Islam? Where you see things like that, you can pretty much assume you’re dealing with a church that has nothing to do with faith or salvation, and which leads people farther away from God. And don’t be surprised if they tell their members Israel is evil. Jesus called the church of his time the synagogue of Satan, and these are the modern-day churches of Satan. Deny that the God of the Bible exists, deny that Jesus is the only path to salvation, deny the clearly defined morality of the Bible, and you have a fetid abomination that prevents people from finding peace and salvation, and from feeling the indescribable pleasure of being in the presence of God.

I don’t know if the UMC fits this description, but a whole lot of churches do. They fool ignorant people who think Jesus and Buddha and maybe Richard Simmons are interchangeable, and that nice people all go to heaven. Or that there is no heaven at all, and that Christianity is just a philosophy. All that stuff is nonsense. Christianity means believing there is a person we call God, and that he is an immortal spirit who rules the universe, and that He gave us one and only one Messiah, also immortal, and that Messiah is Jesus. It means believing a Gentile can only be saved by accepting the sacrifice of Jesus, and that there is an afterlife. And by extension, that Buddha and all the other non-Christian saviors were tragically ignorant and mistaken.

It must be very hard for Jews to figure out which Christians are on their side. The Catholics have always been a problem, and I think to many Jews, they represent Christianity. The general rule is, fundamentalists and charismatics are one hundred percent behind Israel. I used to think “evangelical” was a clue that a church preached the true message of Christianity and supported Israel and the Jews, but at least one church with “evangelical” in the name is attacking the chosen. So I don’t know how strong an indicator “evangelical” is.

It’s funny, but a lot of people want everything about Christianity except its essence. They want to go to church and feel like good people. At the same time, they want to have unlimited sex outside marriage. They want to be materialistic and arrogant and selfish. They want to make up their own commandments. And they don’t want to bum anyone out or seem less cool, by calling sin what it is.

You have to be cool! Cool is the only thing that matters! You have to have lots of sex and listen to immoral music and snort a little coke or smoke a doob once in a while. You have to have the option of killing your children in their mother’s womb, making it a sort of portable abattoir, so the uncomfortable subject of sensation-killing rubber devices doesn’t spoil your super-important fun. You can’t ever say someone else’s sinful behavior bothers you. You can’t even admit sin exists, or that shame is a good thing. No, no. You have to have your tattoos and piercings and vile entertainment, and you’re not allowed to judge anybody’s behavior. Except of course for people who try to please God. The actual, real God. Not the chloroformed, confused version your church talks about. God is fine, as long as you put Him in a box and make Him behave. Come on; you can’t let Him be a buzzkill! After all, He’s not important. He’s just God. And anyone who talks about Satan, angels, or demons is a psycho! The Bible mentions them over and over, but you’re not supposed to actually believe the Bible. It’s just supposed to make you feel good! Like dope!

Look, God is not something you can edit, regardless of what irrational people say. The other day I saw something on the web about a far-left nut claiming the Bible was “an open document.” What? That’s like saying the formula for salt is subject to alteration. There is nothing “open” about a book that was finished almost two thousand years ago. You may translate it differently, if you have sound linguistic arguments. But you can’t just cross out “Jehovah” and write “Gaia” or, worse, “Me” all over the pages. It is what it is, and God is what He is. Salvation, sacrifice, sin, eternal life, hell…these things are realities. If you disagree, that’s swell. But you’re not a Christian, and if your church disagrees, it’s not God’s church.

God is what He is, and one thing He is, is a Jew. God is a Jew. And regardless of how many Gentiles accept Christ, the Jews will always be closer to His heart than we are. That’s in the Bible. And Eretz Israel is in the Bible. God promised the Jews a nation with Jerusalem as its capital and center of worship, and it’s bigger than the nation they have now, and they’re going to get it, and I support it wholeheartedly. Every Christian should. I don’t want to hear the secular arguments. Number one, they’re filled with error and tacit anti-Semitism and hostility toward Christianity and God. Number two, I don’t care. God is right. Everyone who disagrees is wrong. I will not oppose God. Your opinion on this matter means nothing. End of story. You will die, and your opinion will die with you, and God and the truth will still be here. Why should I care what you think?

Funny coincidence: I’ve been considering investing in Israel. I want to bless the Jews, and I want to link my fortunes with theirs. I’ve been thinking about buying Teva Pharmaceuticals stock. Great company. And it’s outside the US, where Hillarycare can’t do much to destroy it. It’s amazing how liberals want to destroy pharmaceutical companies and take their profits. Here’s a question. How many life-saving drugs have come out of the USSR and Communist China?

Vodka is not a life-saving drug, before you say it.

I keep trying to improve myself. I was born into a miserable family followed by misfortune, and over the last few years, I have been striving to pray and obey my way out of the curses that seem so hard to shake. And things have improved, slowly but surely. I once compared constant prayer to the stone-cracking force of a plant growing between rocks, and I still think that’s a good analogy. Things don’t change overnight, but the trend is clear and unstoppable. I feel like the dividends are really rolling in now. The other day I realized I was finally losing all desire to be cool, and I was losing my fear of being good and of being perceived as religious. I feel like I dropped a backpack full of lead. And I know it was not me, but God working within me. Giving me exactly what I asked for, I should add.

It is becoming more clear to me what I need to fix in my life. Here is something I just came across tonight, from the book of Galatians, chapter 5: “When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these.” That’s really helpful; I found it a little disturbing, as a matter of fact, because I saw little pieces of me in there. It’s easy to think you’re okay if you try to observe the Golden Rule and avoid the obvious sins, so a list like this is literally a godsend.

I think I’ve mentioned the fact that I’ve had concerns about being too hostile; it has been on my prayer list for quite some time, and possibly on the prayer lists of people at whom my hostility has been aimed. Between Internet rage and road rage, it’s a wonder any of us have a moment when we’re not furious and consumed by contempt. I think my moments are becoming longer and closer together.

It’s funny, but back when I was going to a charismatic church, I thought I was being diligent, but I really didn’t read the Bible nearly enough. I listened to preachers a lot, and unfortunately, a lot of them were self-serving, greedy, and completely lost. Lately I have found that there is no substitute for going to the source on your own. And again, here is a great website where you can do it. A computer tends to become an instrument which distributes and feeds lust, anger, greed, pride, and so on. But it can also be a tool for learning about and pleasing God. You can study online, you can write things that are helpful to others, and you can even vet and donate to ministries and charities. That’s fantastic! That is real power; beating the devil with his own weapon. Finally the web is truly good for something.

I feel very different from the way I felt a few months ago, even though I was pleased with the progress I was making at the time. With regard to some issues, I look back and feel as though I used to be brainwashed. I can’t believe I thought as I did. That’s growth. And if it happened to me, it can happen to you. Pray regularly, and try to remember, it’s not all about asking for things you want. Ask for wisdom and knowledge and help with obedience. Use a list, so you know you’re being consistent and persistent. Set aside time in the morning and time before bed. It works. I know. I was right about homemade pizza, wasn’t I? It’s not a hard job. The more you change, the more you want to change, and the easier it gets. Have faith that in the future, as you improve, you’ll want and enjoy the things God wants you to have. Don’t expect a perfect life. But do expect more peace. Relief. Comfort. And more satisfaction with yourself. And of course, help with your problems.

If you’re as disgusted as I am by the anti-Semitic propaganda coming from churches that aren’t really churches, maybe you’ll want to do something about it. Invest in an Israeli company. Write something positive about Israel on your blog. Give money to the IFCJ and help an oppressed Jew move to Israel; that would really hurt the enemy.

Israel will win in the end. Eretz Israel will be established. The only question is, whose side will you have to say you were on when it’s over? I’m very, very comfortable with my choice.