DIVINE VOMIT: Courtesy of Neutral Pastors, Churches and a Complacent Nation
“I know your works, that you are neither cold nor hot. I could wish you were cold or hot. So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth.” (Revelation 3: 15-16)
I love the Book of Revelation. When I was a new Christian, it was the first book I read with the help of the J. Vernon McGee commentary. I had no clue the McGee was a great place to start and no clue that most people start in Romans or John. My prayer was simple, “Lord, please help me to learn the Bible. So many people are saying different things that seem to contradict each other. I have two year old triplets, please spare me the B.S. and lead me to the real deal. I have no time for non-sense. Thank you. ” Not a very eloquent prayer I know, but God answered.
I am no Revelation expert or Bible scholar either, but these two verses are striking! God is actually telling the church of Laodicea that it is worse to be neutral and complacent than hot or cold! A hot church is a church with a lot of spiritual passion. It is great to be on fire for Christ, as long as we don’t lose sight of Christ Himself and just do “busywork.” A cold church is one that denies the Bible and actively opposes the gospel of Jesus Christ. You would think that the cold church would be the one that God wants to puke out, but it is the neutral one. The one that just doesn’t seem to take a stand on anything and takes the middle of the road position literally makes God sick. I think it is pretty clear that the Lord is saying… Pick a side! Are you going to stand with me and My Word or not?
When are we going to learn that neutrality and appeasement never works. I think by now all the pastors and preachers across the nation have had ample opportunity to clarify the Biblical views about traditional marriage and the right to life to their congregations. Planned Parenthood has put the pro-life issue front and center! Now we are up to seven very incriminating videos that give very convincing evidence that the horrific act of aborting human beings has clearly been taken to the next level. The Supreme Court ruling that legalized homosexual marriage shined a bright light on that topic too. I repeatedly talk to churched people who do not have solid stands on these issues. I am not surprised.
With all that is going on right now, it is easy to figure out who the neutral leaders are that will eventually get spewed if they don’t change. If your leader gets puked out, what do you think will happen to you? I watched a local mega church pastor tell his congregation of about 8,000 that this ruling isn’t going to change a thing. He equated the ruling to when abortion in the United States became legal and mentioned that this ruling didn’t change his stance on abortion. He said the ruling about legalization of homosexual marriage won’t change his stand either. Well? Have you seen that now baby body parts are being sold and harvested after the abortions and sometimes when hearts are still beating? Isn’t that a pretty drastic change? Don’t you think the millions of lives that were aborted since 1973 is a drastic change too?
He assured his congregation that it doesn’t matter and everyone’s point of view is welcome at his church. Read Romans 1 and see if you think these changes would matter to the God of the Bible. After that, maybe check out the story of Sodom and Gomorrah. What is he going to do when his first homosexual couple comes to his church to get married? Shouldn’t this man be talking about what the Bible says about homosexual marriage?
This is a neutral pastor teaching his congregation to be neutral! “But Peter and the other apostles answered and said: We ought to obey God rather than men.” Acts 5:29. Shouldn’t a pastor be more concerned about teaching God’s Word than pacifying his church and trying to make his congregation feel better if they don’t quite agree with God? Seems to me that many pastors are more worried about church attendance and making sure their congregations are comfortable, than what the Bible says and teaches. Why not tell the congregation the truth instead of risking being vomited out by God Himself?
I believe we have been living in the “age of neutrality” for quite some time now. Too many don’t want to take a stand on anything. Leaders without guts or that distort truth, or tell half truths, belong in the pews of courageous leaders so they can learn and take notes. We don’t have to guess at all at the stand our spiritual leaders took and how they educated their congregations about these significant issues; traditional marriage and the right to life. Hoping for them to change is unlikely. Change takes time.
If you want to help your pastor out of his slumber, it’s best to exit now. They either did or didn’t have the correct Biblical answers and have the courage to speak truth. It doesn’t get much clearer than this. We don’t have to guess who the worthy leaders are anymore. If you are confused or take a neutral stance, check yourself first, then your pastor. You either aren’t sitting under a good teacher and/or you aren’t doing your own homework. It is that simple. Who really wants to be Divine vomit?
