PEOPLE ARE STRANGE WHEN YOU'RE A STRANGER
Synchronism a.k.a. Moralistic Therapeutic Deism
It's unfortunate, but I've seen, encountered, and probably even at times expressed this phenomenon myself as I began to explore my faith more deeply.
What is the faith of one living MTD?
1. A god exists who created and ordered the world and watches over human life on earth.
2. God wants people to be good, nice, and fair to each other, as taught in the Bible and by most world religions.
3. The central goal of life is to be happy and to feel good about oneself.
4. God does not need to be particularly involved in one’s life except when God is needed to resolve a problem.
5. Good people go to heaven when they die.
These "Christian" people follow a god who is what amounts to a “cosmic genie” a “divine bellhop”. Moralistic therapeutic deism basically gets us off the hook. In fact the only true sin in a faith path that has embraced moralistic therapeutic deism is for people to be too certain about their convictions, and to try and impose them on others. It's a do-it-yourself religion.
Friends,
Have I ever shared with you the scariest verses in the Bible as far as I am concerned?
Now understand, there are a lot of very hard to handle hot potato verses and chapter themes in the Bible and they cause me to shutter at times. But in particular there is a word from Jesus himself that truly frightens me to the bone.
Matthew 7:21-23
21“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ 23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’
The truth is, failure to take Jesus seriously will result in disastrous consequences, and that objective truth weighs very heavy on my mind. We are warned by Jesus in no uncertain terms; that He takes the demands of discipleship, false prophets, misleading teachings, and the notion that one need simply hear His teachings and not put them into practice, very seriously.
I think it's extremely important that we recognize that Jesus doesn't simply seek worship from his followers. It's fair to imagine that of course. After all he is God and if what was ultimate in his design was merely a world filled with creatures worshiping and praising his name only, then that would be his prerogative and rightfully so. But Jesus didn't suggest anything of the sort. In fact he said (again in no uncertain terms) that he seeks those who will worship him in spirit and in truth. Jesus explains in his sermon on the mount that mere outward expressions and professions of religion, however remarkable, will not bring us to heaven. And to drive that point home he shares the very frightening verses I shared above.
So what does Jesus say about discipleship?
First off we are to believe in Christ.
Also that we repent of sin and be baptized.
We are to live a holy life, obeying his word.
And we must love one another as he has loved us.
This is his will, this is our sanctification.
If we are not following him, in him, in this way we are in effect mocking him in our ways. Believers may be a preacher, teacher, helper, administrator, they may have gifts for the ministry, and a call to it, and maybe even some great success in it, and yet still be a wicked one. They may help others to heaven, and yet come short themself.
2Timothy 2:19
Everyone who confesses the name of the Lord must turn away from wickedness.
If you treat the name of The Lord like it's unimportant, it shouldn't surprise you when he shuts the door in your face. It's meant as a wake-up call. Stay awake to The Lord's ways and to your own calling. Be spiritually alert, awake to your calling, and awake to Jesus, to the way of life in Christ.
It's sort of like when I receive a text message from a client or acquaintances who haven't been saved into my contacts list. They often type a bunch of stuff they want from me and then leave off their own name. So of course my first reply is, "who is this?"
“I never knew you” means “I don’t recognize you as my disciple. I don’t acknowledge you as my follower. You are a spiritual stranger to me.” I suppose one of the best examples would be Judas. But I don't think this phenomenon is limited to thieves, deniers and betrayers. It's really about those whose ultimate concern is self love. These "wicked ones" are more concerned about themselves then Christ's kingdom, and those who continue to backslide into the ways of the world. Them who resemble the world more than Christ.
“But now that you have come to know God, or rather to be known by God, how can you turn back again to the weak and worthless elementary principles of the world?” (Galatians 4:9).
Friends,
Remember The Lord knows those who are his. He is essentially saying, "Don’t slip into a greater love for the world. If you do, I won’t know you."
https://www.christianpost.com/news/only-37-of-pastors-have-a-biblical-worldview-barna.html?fbclid=IwAR26zOkuL2lhf9WTiXqw-Kz1Y1D2uzWemPbKu498x8fqudU27Eqmzwr00oI