Denial
To be in denial is to know something, know it to be true, but will not allow ‘that something’ to move forward in your mind. It probably is an extension of when we were kids and would play games of make-believe. It is sometimes an extension of trauma, and sometimes from fear, but it’s always a tool used to keep from facing the truth. Once in a while we might love someone, or just want to, but will not allow that act of love to prevail, thus believing it to be anything but what it is; love. Denial can come in most any form, and manifest itself to anyone who is unaware, or on those to who just can’t face the simple truth. It’s a tool, and sometimes a weapon, used by many to navigate their way through life, and on rare occasion, seems to work for those that are extremely challenged by what this questioned life can dish-out. But this is not what I want to speak on, and by now you probably have a pretty good idea of where we’re going with this.
If these habits and traditions established by this ‘thing called church’, that have been carried-on, and the deep rooted effects of their repetitious impacts, have scared the human ‘super ego’ with an impression of truth; when in fact, it is far from it, why do we then embellish it as sacred?
As an example, let’s just rehash this worldly festivity of christmas. I have talked with more than a few preachers/pastors that know that christmas is not from God, nor is its roots from the Spirit of Christ, and will speak plainly that it is a practice from the world’s view of what they think is right; thus justifying themselves with such festivities. As I said earlier, that my opinion is, that if the world invented, then let them keep it with delight, but why do we, as children of God procreate it. One of those above mentioned preachers agreed, but understood that it was an event so deeply embedded in the sociology of man, that it cannot be changed; if you can’t whip-‘em, then you just have to join ‘em, he said. That’s nonsense. What would it be like if Jesus went along with the long term practice of using the Temple for the platform of folks selling their wares and exchanging their money? Let them, the world, sell and trade all they want to, but keep it from any attachment of God. We try to justify ourselves with a ‘play’ or ‘nativity pageant’, and then on the same night give the ‘well deserved’ pastor his ‘bigger than most’ and sometimes lavish christmas present, and do it all in the name of Jesus who gave His life for us so we can seemingly get away with it. Besides that, it not the birth of Jesus that we are to celebrate, but His sacrifice on the cross, thru death, that gives us Life, and Life eternal; but at the same time, I’m thankful for His returned presence on earth in the form a His birth.
Another question: How do so many folks associate the true Church of our living God, and the worship of Him with this coordinated controlled system, and then call their services ‘worship service’? For God is Spirit and must be worshipped in Spirit. This outward practice of the flesh, in my opinion, and the appealing to the masses, is a far cry from what God is wanting from the hearts of His people. It is written in the Bible that in the latter days that the people will have a form of godliness, but deny the Power thereof, and they will form a way that seems right, but whose end is destruction. But every week, week after week, year after year, those that are called by His name continue the same-o rhetoric, doing the same formal rituals, and at the same time, are expecting a different result. Only when our hearts change (repent) and we turn away from this worldly procedure, will it turn our sight, and our ears toward God and His Christ; then the foolishness of these traditions will be forgiven; for then our prayers will be heard, and our inward man changed.
Please, stop and take a look around you, look toward your own heart; is this, what we’re doing in these systems, bringing the satisfaction for those that desire an intimate relationship with our God, or are we foundering in denial hoping something will break thru, and in a moment, a twinkling of an eye, all will be changed? It certainly will, but when the trumpet sounds, it will be in the individual heart of the one seeking, not necessarily in the masses. Like I said, this method of playing ‘church’ has stood for centuries, and until God destroys babylon, it won’t change. Only those that hear the call to come out of her my people, or when God’s servant is heard when he screams to let my people go, that some within this ‘organization’ will walk away.
When all that’s being done during these ‘worship’ services, with their singing the same songs outwardly, praying to be heard by each other, collecting their monetary rewards, and receiving and giving their praises to each other, with their postured performances, and then come out of this complete denial that God is pleased with these enactments; will God hear from Heaven and our individual land be healed.
What do these fine tailor-made suits, and the shiny shoes, neck- ties, beautiful dresses and high-heel shoes, have to do with loving our Creator? Again it seems God was drawn to those that many are drawn away from, such as the prostitutes, the halt, the maimed, those of shady backgrounds, instead of the upper-class of pharisees, scribes, and priest. It doesn’t matter to Him, not in the least bit, whether we’re rich or poor, pretty or ugly, weak or strong, God wants those that desire Him with an opened heart; those that have a thirst and a hunger for His fellowship, those that seek His face and have ears to hear, then they will find that His arms are open, and will see that bountiful relationship that has been available from the beginning, but was smothered behind the pretense of this man- made religious order. Gods’ arms have not been shortened, and neither does he refuse anyone, no matter what their condition is, or even if they don’t meet the criteria or demands of this thing called ‘church’.
Those that profit from the many that attend ‘church’, and bind them that want a true fellowship with God, create an atmosphere that perpetuates that ‘they’ are the only source from which it came, causing many to believe that the ‘established organization’ is built around righteousness; but it is not. Jesus had no religious inclinations during His walk on earth, although he did use several of the synagogues as a platform, He walked in the Ways of the Father, and not that of religion. The only things that Jesus perpetuated was the Way, Truth, and Life, and the Love, Mercy, and Grace of our living God, not the atmosphere of condemnation, nor of separation, but the gentleness of a caring Father without prejudice.
It was not intended, from the beginning, to have a physical place to go, a center of refuge built by bricks and mortar, or stick or stones, that we could be fed from or find sanctuary from the world; that place can only be where God lives, in your heart. But the denial and proclamation of these churches has claimed that they are that place that we’re looking for; but that can never happen, for if it could, God would have sanctioned it, but He didn’t. The Kingdom of God is already in your heart. In fact His Word told us that if one said to go to the inner room or even the desert, to find Him; that we were not to go. “For false christs and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect, which is us. See, I have told you beforehand. Therefore if they say to you, ‘look, He is in the desert, do not go out, or look, He is in the inner room, do not believe… Matt. 24: 24-26. So we now see that Gods’ Word teaches us that this place where he is available, is not someplace else, nor can it be captured by our three dimensional world, but lives in our secret place of the heart.
God, in scripture, gave us the story of the people building a tower to the heavens. These folks were united as one, with one goal, and that was to build a monument to reach the high level of God, and to make a name for themselves. They made their bricks by hand, and for mortar, they used slime. Without going very deep into this subject, we can already see that the hand and mind of man can’t engineer enough to build an empire that is pleasing to God. So instead of using natural stone, and regular mortar, the story tells us, with an exclamation, that this tower just wasn’t going to make it; it was destroyed by God, their language scrambled, and then they were dispersed in many different directions. If we look honestly at this ‘system’, it’s not hard to see that this same united mind-set is going on today.
The man-made religions wants us to believe that there is no other place we should go, but to them; they, or we, whichever the case may be, are in complete denial. There is a place we can go where there’s REST to be found in you Lord. There is a place we can go where we find SAFETY in you Lord. That PLACE, both of the above mentioned, can only be the Heart that God gave us in the Garden of Eden, His dwelling Place, which now abides in us. So why do we go searching, and sometimes following, every little entity, whether it be a person or a place, thinking that we might find God, when he was never lost from our heart, only covered up with these silly beliefs? Can God be found in these things called ‘church’? Of course he can, for God is not confined from any, but the ritual foolishness hides Him beyond the insight of many folks. For many are still looking for the living among the dead, as in what he told the women at the grave of Jesus’ tomb, but in truth the living is already among us. Jesus came to give Life, and give it abundantly, that we could live an undefeated Life, a Life here and now, but many are dead-set on the Life after we die, ignoring the here and now, and it kind of reminds me of a funeral.
This world has a lot of hurting people, and it seems that the numbers grow each year that think that there is no other place we can go, to find relief from the pain, except to go to the ‘church’, but to the contrary, we can go to Him. The ‘church’, with all the hype of her beauty and godliness, has, through many generations, sold herself as the only place of refuge or sanctuary for all to go to that want to find truth; and I am also in contradiction to that. This place to go, the place to be, to find God and His unyielding Truth is in the same place Jesus said it was, and still is; in your heart, for God is Spirit. It makes sense that a naive world, that knows little about the things of God, would opt to go to a ‘church, with what they claim to offer, but when they get there, find that the answers are someplace else; but not where can they go? The pomp that is advertised by ‘her’ leaves no other choice; but the Truth of God’s Word has never failed; we are to go to that secret chamber of our heart, the inner most part of our being, and there we can find refuge.
Have you ever noticed how many folks, after newly coming to Christ, and joining a community assembly, drop out after only a few short years? Yes, they’re hungry for Truth, and go there in sincerity, but cannot find the answer that they’re looking for; because it’s not there. And the denial of the ‘church’ with their belief that they have it, keep many from coming into a full relationship with our Christ and His Father. For but seldom do they endorse one to be led by the Holy Spirit. It’s one of those bird-in-the-hand things, as long as they got ya’, they want to keep ya’, it’s more of a money thing than it is about the forwarding of the Kingdom. Are we more concerned about people coming to the knowledge and relationship with God through His Son, or that coveted number that goes on the bulletin board?
Manipulation has been used in various ways, and also in frequency, and is not only a tool, but a weapon. It is, by all definitions, witchcraft, and should have no place in the minds of those that are called by His name. If God’s people, that call themselves His’, will come out of denial, and seek His Truth, many- of our lands will be healed; It’s all about a relationship with Him, not the ‘church’.
God has equipped all His people with all that is needed, and with the exception of two or three at a time meeting together, has provided all that is needed within the heart of His Kingdom, which is within all of us.