Studies in the Epistles of John the Apostle
Chapter Eight
Antichrist Inculcation to
Worldliness
Inculcation
is a simple word that means to teach and impress by frequent
“15 Love not the world, neither the things that
are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not
in him. 16 For all that is in the world, the lust of the
flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father,
but is of the world. 17 And the world passeth away, and the lust
thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever. 18 Little
children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come,
even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last
time. 19 They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they
had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they
went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us” (I
John 2:15-19).
Any
degree of worldliness is a degree of inculcation into antichrist doctrines and
practices. Christians are to be peculiar
people. The way they are to be peculiar
is that they are to be completely separate from any degree of worldliness. This separation from worldliness in fact what
defines holiness. We can see that the
avenues for antichrist inculcation of worldliness into a person’s life is
mainly through “the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride
of life” (I John 2:16). This means we
are very susceptible to this inculcation of worldliness because these three
avenues for worldliness are a natural part of our fallen nature. We all have flesh that lust, eyes that lust,
and we all deal with the heart and soul of sin in the pride of our lives. The failure is that Christians gradually
accept varying degrees of worldliness with each new generation until that which
is acceptable has gone far beyond God’s standards of holiness
(unworldliness). However, because other
Christians now accept these new standards, Christians are being progressively
inculcated with Antichristism and its corresponding worldliness.
Inculcation
of Abnormal Sexuality
Paganism
is the inculcation of varying degrees of porneia
into a culture. Porneia is the Greek word that describes any form of aberrant
sexual desire or behavior. In our KJV
Bibles the word porneia is usually
translated fornication.
“9
Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not
deceived: neither fornicators {pornos – used of male prostitutes,
a whoremonger, or a debauchee}, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor
effeminate {malakos – used of a catamite,
which was a young boy who was an intimate companion of an adult man}, nor abusers of themselves with mankind {arsenokoites, ar-sen-ok-oy'-tace – used of a man who
defiles himself by sexual activity with other men}, 10 Nor
thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners, shall
inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And such were some of you: but
ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the
Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God. 12 All things are lawful
unto me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but I
will not be brought under the power of any. 13 Meats for the belly,
and the belly for meats: but God shall destroy both it and them. Now the
body is not for fornication {porneia - any form of aberrant
sexual immorality}, but for the Lord; and the Lord for the body. 14
And God hath both raised up the Lord, and will also raise up us by his own
power. 15 Know ye not that your bodies are the members of Christ?
shall I then take the members of Christ, and make them the members of an
harlot? God forbid. 16 What? know ye not that he which is joined to
an harlot is one body? for two, saith he, shall be one flesh. 17 But
he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit. 18 Flee fornication
{porneia – any form of aberrant sexual immorality}.
Every sin that a man doeth is without the body; but he that committeth
fornication {porneuo –commits any form of aberrant
sexual immorality} sinneth against
his own body. 19 What? know ye not that your body is the temple
of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not
your own? 20 For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God
in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s” (I Corinthians 6:9-20).
Keeping
sex within the moral confines of a marriage relationship is important to
God. The world mocks this idea with
statements like - why would God care about whom or what we have sex with? God cares!
In fact, God cares a lot! God
says He will not save anyone who refuses to repent of sexual immorality. Repentance means it becomes a priority of our
lives to live separate from sexual immorality.
Satanic
inculcation of sexual immorality has been going on since the beginning of
time. It was sexual immorality that
Satan used to draw people into idol worship.
Idol worship took the form of ecstatic music and ritual fertility rites
in extreme forms of sexual immorality.
Even those within the nation of Israel, who had detailed biblical
instruction from the Word of God, were enticed into idolatry and into sexually
immoral worship practices. This happened
again early after the exodus of Israel from Egyptian bondage as the Jews came
out of Egypt with a “mixed multitude” of semi-pagans. These semi-pagans believed in Jehovah, but
retained their pagan worship practices.
“37
And the children of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred
thousand on foot that were men, beside children. 38 And a
mixed multitude went up also with them; and flocks, and herds, even
very much cattle. 39 And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough
which they brought forth out of Egypt, for it was not leavened; because they
were thrust out of Egypt, and could not tarry, neither had they prepared for
themselves any victual” (Exodus 12:37-39).
Be
careful of “mixed multitudes.” These are
professing believers who do not understand holiness and God’s expectation to be
separate from worldliness. “Mixed
multitudes” integrate varying degrees of pagan worship methods into the worship
of Jehovah. Later in Israel’s history,
Eli’s two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, were integrating the pagan worship
practices of Baalism as they “they lay with the women that assembled at
the door of the tabernacle of the congregation” (I Samuel 2:22). These were a special group of women who were
especially devoted to maintaining and cleaning the structure and utensils of
the Tabernacle. Hophni and Phinehas
defiled these women, the Tabernacle, themselves, and every sacrifice offered to
Jehovah because the offerings were defile by their perverse practices.
The “mixed multitudes” of the Egyptians and
descendants of Jews who had intermarried with pagan Egyptians, which came with
Israel out of Egypt, simply believed that Jehovah was the real name of their
supreme god. They knew nothing of
holiness and separation. Neither did
most of the Jews that had now spent about 400 years under Egyptian
captivity. They would have rejected the
idolatry of Egypt, but were easily deceived into worshipping Jehovah in pagan
worship practices once Aaron, a man chosen of God, gave his permission to do
so. Their spiritual leader was deceived
who in turn deceived them. As Moses
returns from the top of Mt. Sinai, he finds the children of Israel dancing
naked to music in revelry. They had
forged a golden calf as a form in which to worship Jehovah. The children of Israel had adapted Egypt’s pagan worship music,
dancing, revelry, and fertility cult practices of dancing naked before their
gods.
“The Israelites ‘in Egypt’
had served the Egyptian idols (Jos
24:14), including the sacred living bulls Apis, Basis, and Mnevis, and sacred
cows Isis and Athor; worshipped for their utility to man, and made symbols of
the sun and Osiris. In fact Nature, not
the personal Creator, God, was symbolized by the calf and worshipped. But Aaron’s golden calf he expressly calls,
‘thy Elohim which brought thee up out of Egypt’; and the feast to it ‘a feast
to Jehovah’ (Ex 32:4-8, 17-19).
Israel too had just seen that ‘upon Egypt’s gods Jehovah executed judgments’ (Nu 33:4). What they yearned for
therefore was not the vanquished Egyptian idols, but some visible symbol of the
unseen Jehovah; the cherubic emblem, the calf or ox, furnished this. So Ps 106:20, ‘they changed their glory
(i.e. God) into the similitude of an ox that eateth grass’; indeed the
Egyptians used to offer a bottle of hay to Apis.
“The rites of Mnevis’ feast at Heliopolis,
boisterous revelry, dancing, offerings, etc., which the Israelites were
familiar with in Egypt, they transferred to Jehovah’s calf image. Ac 7:40-41 marks this first stage of
idolatry.”[1]
Ecstatic
music, dancing, revelry, and nakedness were all used to inculcate pagan
worldliness into national Israel. Satan
uses the same methodology by degrees to inculcate local churches with neo-pagan
worldliness in the corruption of the worship of Jehovah. Therefore we can see four different formats
for the inculcation of worldliness into a culture and into the lives of people
– believers and unbelievers alike. The
difference is that believers should know better and separate themselves from
the influences of worldliness.
1. Ecstatic music is sensual music of a form and rhythm
that captivates the human body motivating it to move according to the sensual
rhythm.
2. Dancing with the opposite sex (pre-sex)
3. Revelry is what is known today as partying. The ultimate purpose of partying is
fornication. Worldliness in itself is a
form of spiritual fornication.
4. Nakedness is the uncovering of the human body by
varying degrees for the purpose of sensual arousal.
None of
these practices are new. They are as
ancient as paganism. Every one of these
practices is being introduced in numerous cultures inculcating those cultures
with worldliness. Many of these
practices are being welcomed into Christian churches today. Nakedness is defined biblically as uncovering
for public display any portion of the human body from just below the neck down
to the knee. To expose any portion of
the human body in the in-between is
to expose your nakedness.
In the simplest form,
worldliness is merely a preoccupation with material and temporal things. Therefore, spirituality is the opposite – the
preoccupation with spiritual and eternal things. Worldliness is a figure of speech called a metonymy. For instance, we might call a business
executive or a professional person a suit. Worldliness
as a metonymy is intended to represent anything that is a corruption of
personal holiness. Therefore, the word worldly is a metonymy for any degree of
being satanically influenced. The
greater the degree of corruption away from holiness, the more worldly that person can be said to be.
Capturing the thought-life
Satan’s inculcation of
worldliness is intensely involved in capturing a person’s
“3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do
not war after the flesh: 4 (For the weapons of our warfare are
not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) 5
Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against
the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the
obedience of Christ; 6 And having in a readiness to revenge all disobedience,
when your obedience is fulfilled” (II Corinthians 10:3-6).
“8 Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are
true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just,
whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely,
whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and
if there be any praise, think on
these things. 9 Those things, which ye have both learned, and
received, and heard, and seen in me, do: and the God of peace shall be with
you” (Philippians 4:8-9).
Capturing the Sight-life
The believer lives in the world, but is not to be of the world. Christ prayed to the Father in John chapter
seventeen that He would keep believers from worldliness while they were in the
world. Satan seeks to inculcate us with
worldliness by capturing our sight-life.
“11 And now I am no more in the
world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep
through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as
we are. 12 While I was with them in the world, I kept them
in thy name: those that thou gavest me I have kept, and none of them is
lost, but the son of perdition; that the scripture might be fulfilled. 13
And now come I to thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they might
have my joy fulfilled in themselves. 14 I have given them thy word;
and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world, even as I
am not of the world. 15 I pray not that thou shouldest take them
out of the world, but that thou shouldest keep them from the evil. 16
They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world. 17 Sanctify
them through thy truth: thy word is truth. 18 As thou hast sent me
into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world. 19 And
for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through
the truth” (John 17:11-19).
In order to avoid being
inculcated with worldliness, the believer must carefully guard his sight-life
(the “lust of the eyes”). The minions of
satanic influence will bombard our sight-life at every turn. We are highly susceptible and easily tempted
by the “lusts of the eyes.” David
understood this. Because David did not
guard his sight-life, he was enticed into adultery with Bathsheba. After that failure, David makes a covenant
with God about his sight-life.
“1 I will sing of mercy and judgment: unto
thee, O LORD, will I sing. 2 I will behave myself wisely in a
perfect way. O when wilt thou come unto me? I will walk within my house with a
perfect heart. 3 I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes:
I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me. 4
A froward heart shall depart from me: I will not know a wicked person. 5
Whoso privily slandereth his neighbour, him will I cut off: him that hath an
high look and a proud heart will not I suffer. 6 Mine eyes shall
be upon the faithful of the land, that they may dwell with me: he that
walketh in a perfect way, he shall serve me. 7 He that worketh
deceit shall not dwell within my house: he that telleth lies shall not tarry in
my sight. 8 I will early destroy all the wicked of the land; that I
may cut off all wicked doers from the city of the LORD” (Psalm 101:1-8).
Capturing the Pride of Life
It has been said that pride
may be at the center of all sin and the ultimate source
“12 How art thou fallen from heaven, O
Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which
didst weaken the nations! 13 For thou hast said in thine heart,
I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I
will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: 14
I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High”
(Isaiah 14:12-14).
If we were honest about our
motivation for doing the things we do, at the heart of those motivations is the
basic desire to be appreciated. However,
that desire is never content with a mere thank
you or a testimony of appreciation.
The “pride of life” wants to be adored, praised, and worship. If you do not guard your heart against the
“pride of life,” it will capture you and ultimately destroy you, because the
“pride of life” is an insatiable beast.
What might be some of the ways
the worldliness of the pride of life might be visible through simple actions of
life?
1. A child arguing with a parent after being told to do
something or after being told not to do something.
2. A smirk of derision or rolling of the eyes when some
issue of holiness that is now viewed as archaic is spoken of.
3. Ask a teenager (boy or girl) the question; what is
the one thing in this world that you think would really make you happy if you
had it? Some of the worldly answers are
a car, money, a boy or girl friend, a sports star, a rock star, and etc.
4. A smirk, a snort, or rolling the eyes when someone
talks about worldly music, inappropriate or immodest clothing, inappropriate
contact with the opposite sex, or preoccupation with the pursuit of pleasure or
fun.
5. Parents who think that there are age appropriate practices they can participate in, but their
children are too young to see or do.
Inculcation with Worldliness Infects and then Reflects
Worldliness spreads by
infecting a culture with social acceptance of carnality. God is marginalized by worldliness. Worldliness manifests the reality that God is
not loved. It is an either/or
proposition. Worldliness is spiritual
adultery. The worldly Christian cannot
be allowed to claim he loves God. He
certainly does not. This would be like a
wife having an affair with a man other than her husband while arguing that she
loves her husband too. Her thought life
has been so corrupted that her infection with worldliness reflects in the
corruption of her heart. The problem is
that worldliness reflects one’s love of self above anything else or anyone
else. It is amazing how many Christians
have varying degrees of worldliness while living in self-delusion in their claims
of loving the Lord.
“If any man love the world,
the love of the Father is not in him” (I John 2:15b). This statement presents a contradiction in
practice and a paradox to a profession of faith. This issue is the definition of
double-mindedness. Double-mindedness is
to love the things of the world while professing to love God. The love of the world and the love of God are
incompatible to one another. Loving the
world is antithetical to loving God. We
might go as far as to say every problem in our lives and every struggle in
humanity are directly connected to and the outcome of this antithesis.
“1
From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not
hence, even of your lusts that war in your members? 2 Ye
lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight
and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not. 3 Ye ask, and receive
not, because ye ask amiss, that ye may consume it upon your lusts. 4
Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world
is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is
the enemy of God. 5 Do ye think that the scripture saith in
vain, The spirit that dwelleth in us lusteth to envy? 6 But he
giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth
grace unto the humble. 7 Submit yourselves therefore to God.
Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Draw nigh to God, and
he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners;
and purify your hearts, ye double minded. 9 Be
afflicted, and mourn, and weep: let your laughter be turned to mourning, and your
joy to heaviness. 10 Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord,
and he shall lift you up” (James 4:1-10).
Another aspect of worldliness
is body worship. Body
worship is not really about good health.
Body worship is about the
vanity of personal appearance and sexual
“1
My son, keep my words, and lay up my commandments with thee. 2
Keep my commandments, and live; and my law as the apple of thine eye. 3
Bind them upon thy fingers, write them upon the table of thine heart. 4
Say unto wisdom, Thou art my sister; and call understanding thy
kinswoman: 5 That they may keep thee from the strange woman, from
the stranger which flattereth with her words. 6 For at
the window of my house I looked through my casement, 7 And beheld
among the simple ones, I discerned among the youths, a young man void of
understanding, 8 Passing through the street near her corner;
and he went the way to her house, 9 In the twilight, in the evening,
in the black and dark night: 10 And, behold, there met him a
woman with the attire of an harlot, and subtil of heart. 11
(She is loud and stubborn; her feet abide not in her house: 12
Now is she without, now in the streets, and lieth in wait at every
corner.) 13 So she caught him, and kissed him, and with an
impudent face said unto him, 14 I have peace offerings with
me; this day have I payed my vows. 15 Therefore came I forth to meet
thee, diligently to seek thy face, and I have found thee. 16 I have
decked my bed with coverings of tapestry, with carved works, with fine
linen of Egypt. 17 I have perfumed my bed with myrrh, aloes, and
cinnamon. 18 Come, let us take our fill of love until the morning:
let us solace ourselves with loves. 19 For the goodman is not
at home, he is gone a long journey: 20 He hath taken a bag of money
with him, and will come home at the day appointed. 21 With
her much fair speech she caused him to yield, with the flattering of her lips
she forced him. 22 He goeth after her straightway, as an ox goeth
to the slaughter, or as a fool to the correction of the stocks; 23 Till
a dart strike through his liver; as a bird hasteth to the snare, and knoweth
not that it is for his life. 24 Hearken unto me now
therefore, O ye children, and attend to the words of my mouth. 25 Let
not thine heart decline to her ways, go not astray in her paths. 26
For she hath cast down many wounded: yea, many strong men have been
slain by her. 27 Her house is the way to hell, going down to
the chambers of death” (Proverbs 7:1-27).
Non-Verbal Communication
A person begins to communicate long before he ever opens his
mouth. How one cuts his hair, dresses,
grooms himself (or does not groom himself), and a hundred other nuances of
appearance identify him with a culture within a culture. In general, the overall culture of the world
can be said to be worldly. The Christian
should be peculiar in appearance to any aspect of a culture that communicates
worldliness.
“1
Ye are the children of the LORD your God: ye shall not cut yourselves, nor make any baldness
between your eyes for the dead. 2 For thou art an holy people
unto the LORD thy God, and the LORD hath chosen thee to be a peculiar {shut up treasure, the idea is of protected
wealth} people unto himself, above all the nations that are upon the
earth” (Deuteronomy 14:1-2).
Every
culture is inculcated with various customs that can be traced back to heathen
paganism. One such custom was cutting
one’s self after the death of a loved one.
This shedding of blood was supposed to placate and appease the pagan
gods so as to provide the dead loved one some kind of favor with the gods in
the afterlife. This is what the priest
of Baal did when Baal was put to the test by Elijah in I Kings 18:28. They cut themselves to the point “the blood
gushed out upon them.” The point of the
matter of Deuteronomy 14:1 is that Christians ought not to mourn their saved
loved ones like the heathen mourn their dead.
Christians who believe in salvation by grace through faith should not
see the death of a saved love one as something to mourn about. There is no doubt in the mind of a person of
faith about what happens to that saved loved one at the moment of death. Although a believer might mourn over the
vacuum left in his life in the passing of someone that was a major part of his
life, he should balance that mourning with rejoicing. There should be as many cries to God in
gratefulness as are their tears over the present emptiness due to the loss of a
loved one. This provides a balance
between the faith of godliness that knows because of the light of God’s Word
and the hopeless despair of the heathen who has nothing to do but cry out into
the darkness of his superstitious ignorance.
The
central meaning of the word “peculiar” is a protected treasure. God has given His children dignity of identification. With dignity comes sophistication. God’s children are the children of the King
of kings. They should not be dressing
like the world and looking like a bunch of bums. Even in poverty, a Christian can be clean and
sophisticated in his appearance. He
should be one that sets standards and not be a mere follower of fads. If you do
not want people to think you are worldly, stop dressing like the world and stop
adapting to every new fad.
“27 Ye shall not round the corners of your
heads, neither shalt thou mar the corners of thy beard. 28 Ye shall
not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you:
I am the LORD” (Leviticus 19:27-28).
Worshippers
of various pagan gods defined and identified themselves by the way they cut
their hair and trimmed their beards.
Some shaved their heads. Others
shaved everything from just above the ears down creating a haircut like a
bowl. Some had what we call goatees.
Others shaped their beards and facial hair according to certain patterns. The Jews were forbidden from any of this lest
they be identified with the pagans or confused the heathens regarding their
holiness before the Lord by having similarities in appearance to those holding
to pagan beliefs and customs. To
understand holiness was to understand that peculiarity meant to be
distinctively different than the customs of the heathen. Haircuts, beard trimming, ritual scarring of
the flesh, and tattoos were all forbidden because they identified a supposed
distinctive child of God as a heathen.
“9 But ye are a chosen generation, a
royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew
forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his
marvellous light: 10 Which in time past were not a people,
but are now the people of God: which had not obtained mercy, but now
have obtained mercy. 11 Dearly beloved, I beseech you as
strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul;
12 Having your conversation {behavior}
honest {proper or morally good} among
the Gentiles: that, whereas they speak against you as evildoers, they may by your
good works, which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of
visitation” (I Peter 2:9-12).
Radio,
Music, Vinyl Records, Cassette Tapes, DVD’s, and Musack
In 1897, Guglielmo Marconi received a patent on a piece of
equipment that provided the wireless transmission of radio waves. This made it possible to send sound through
the airwaves to be heard through a radio receiver. It was not long before every home of moderate
income in the world had a radio. Family
evenings were no longer spent reading around the fireplace or an oil lamp. The age of electricity and cheap, immediate entertainment was introduced into the
world. Satan would begin to use these
two mediums to introduce levels of worldly influence into the world like never
before in history. Whole generations
could be captured by worldliness through the medium of entertainment. Bible reading
and Bible study became secondary in importance to entertainment. Entertainment gradually began to consume
all free time and dominate the culture into which it was introduced.
Not all forms of entertainment are
worldly. God created humanity to be creative and He provided
us with many ways in which we can enjoy life and its simple pleasures. God’s has always intended that humanity’s
central source of enjoyment would be interpersonal relationships such as the
husband/wife/children relationship known as family. This source of enjoyment should always be
primary. Family should never be
sacrificed by allowing one’s self to be carried away by personal forms of
self-gratification apart from family. There is subtle deception regarding this
when family members participate in joint entertainment ventures that do not
provide personal interactions such as conversation about current events,
sharing of ideas and dreams, or actual exchange of life values.
Much of what
is done for family entertainment is
absent of those things that develop moral character and the ability to present
ideas or the ability to defend one’s values against challenges. In many cases, entertainment is viewed as neutral by the viewer or listener while
the producer actually has an agenda of social
engineering. This has been going on
in the music and movie industry since their inception. In that sense, the entertainment industry is
a large part of Satan’s agenda to advance and promote worldliness above God’s
moral values for humanity.
The entertainment industry has never
been the friend of family values.
The electronic media driven entertainment industry has gradually lowered
moral values and standards of righteousness for almost a century. This lowering of moral values has caused
Christians to be absorbed into an increasing immoral culture of worldliness. Families have come to view the entertainment
industry through electronic media as something merely to be controlled and patrolled. Parents are
failing miserably in trying to curb the influence of the entertainment industry upon themselves and upon their
children. They do not understand the
undercurrent of its agenda to move a culture away from biblical values. The entertainment
industry accomplishes this through social manipulation and the progressive
acceptance of varying degrees of immorality through progressive exposure and
toleration. There is an observable
process by which the media change and pervert the moral values of a culture
away from biblical norms to new cultural norms.
These new cultural norms than become the new absolutes by which those
who continue to hold to biblical norms are ostracized, radicalized, and
marginalized.
1. Present
the contradiction against the biblical norm in a humorous way fostering
exposure without complete abhorrence of the immorality. The person believing in the contradiction
against the biblical norm is progressively desensitized to the immorality
through humorous exposure.
2. Present
the contradiction against the biblical norm in such a way that creates sympathy
towards a person under a difficult situation of life. The person believing in the contradiction
against the biblical norm is normally sympathetic towards any form of
injustice. Thereby, the moral values are
lowered by toleration of the immorality by creating sympathy towards the
immoral person.
3. Saturate
the media with the contradiction against the biblical norm exposing the
immorality in everyday situations of life that now present the abnormality as a
commonly accepted normality while at the same time representing anyone that
still opposes the immorality as a judgmental, hateful bigot. In this last stage of normalizing cultural acceptance
of immorality, those who continue to hold to biblical norms are ostracized, radicalized,
and marginalized.
People become
progressively worldlier through the process without even knowing that they have
been manipulated into acceptance and toleration of unrighteousness. This is especially true of those with very
shallow understanding of the Word of God and who are ignorant of the devices of
Satan. We have an invisible and evil
enemy whose goal in the world is to corrupt and destroy as many lives as he
possibly can.
“10 Finally, my brethren, be
strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. 11 Put on the
whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the
devil. 12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but
against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness
of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. 13
Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to
withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand” (Ephesians 6:10-13).
Music has
certainly been a tool to manipulate a culture towards worldliness. Music has always been a gift from God and it
has been used for good and bad since the beginning of time. Music has been used for relaxation,
entertainment, times of rejoicing, and certainly as a vehicle to express
worship towards God for many millennia.
Music has also been use to illicit
carnal emotions, revelry, pagan licentiousness, and sensual stimulation. These are all things forbidden by God and are
things that define worldliness. If you
can dance to it, or want to dance to it, it is not Christian music. It
certainly is not worship music.
[1] Fausset,
Andrew Robert. Fausset’s Bible Dictionary.
SwordSearcher Software 6.2. Module
file time: 7/31/2011 7:15:26 PM UTC.
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Numerous studies and series are available free of charge for local churches at: http://www.disciplemakerministries.org/
Dr. Lance Ketchum serves the Lord as a Church Planter, Evangelist/Revivalist.
He has served the Lord for over 40 years.
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