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Topic: Satisfied (10/11/04)
TITLE: The Satisfied Christian By Kathleen Shelton 10/16/04 |
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Marvelous-brilliant!! Lucifer danced jubilantly as he envisioned the plan he had devised. Gleefully, he summoned his hoard of demons. “We will create the satisfied Christian”, he exultantly announced. “But master”, one little demon injected “there is no such thing as a satisfied Christian”.
“Exactly” sang Satan. “Christians are never satisfied. They continually desire to perfect themselves and their world. They seek to become more ugh-spiritual. They are not content just to have a relationship with Yahweh and his (shutter) Son, Yahshua; instead they have to preach His message to others. But, if we ingrain satisfaction into the Christian culture, “our Christians” will become lax, compliant and pathetic.”
Excitement encased the devilish clan as they discussed the means of creating this so called satisfied Christian. As they hammered out the details, they became more and more eager to set to work. If they could carry out this ingenious plot, Christianity would become altered and possibly destroyed. But, they had to be cautious in their approach. The Christians had to be pacified in order that they would not become angry and rise up and act. Defenses had to be systematically and slowly stripped so that a lone Christian could not or would not dare to think or speak. If this scheme was to succeed, it had to be enacted slowly, methodically: so that the Christians would not become overwhelmed to the point that they resorted to prayer.
Time was monopolized, with distractions from reading the Bible and prayer. Entertainment became more readily available and exciting; jobs more demanding. Anything and everything to consume time was utilized.
They initiated ways to alter the perceptions of the conscience. Sin was pictured as being invariable; therefore, inescapable and even expected. Sins became categorized from lesser to worse. So if one committed one sin, he could always look around and see someone who did something worse. The senses became dulled and those little twinges and pricks of guilt escapable. It was perceived and recognized that everyone had their own “thorn in the flesh” and therefore, basically, each person, was entitled to his “little vices” and flaws. Discernment became distorted into judgment. To speak out against sin became unethical and “morally” wrong. “To each –his own” became the universal theme. Acceptance became the unwritten law and norm.
To become involved in the social issues and affairs of others became meddling. Mediocrity became the way of life. Mankind became conditioned to believe that one person could not make any valuable contribution or difference. It became the job of the government to decide what was right or wrong, morally as well as legally. Churches became scenes of entertainment and social gatherings. “Religious freedom” was enforced to the point that the use of Yahwehs or Yahshuas name became unthinkable. “God” became a generic term for any higher power. It became offensive to preach against sin. Since acceptance and tolerance was now the way of life, encouraging sinners to repent became a thing of the past. Programs were instated to take care of society; therefore, the Church no longer had the responsibility or incentive to reach out to the poor, hungry, afflicted or those in prisons. Its senses became numb, placid.
Lucifer, clothed in the radiance of an angel and the appearance of a lamb created the satisfied Christian.
Kathleen Ann Shelton