Reference: Acts 5:38-39
If you will read a few more verses of thefifth chapter of Acts along with the ones we have used in the above text, youwill find that a man named Gamaliel had spoken these words to the Jews whenthey were about to take councel to slay the apostles. Gamaliel told those Jewsthat if what those apostles were doing was the work of God then they would findthemselves fighting against Almighty God.
Thiswas a very true statement that Gamaliel had made, because he knew that if Godwas with the apostles then nothing could stop them and God would actually bethe one that they would be striving against. Now what I want you to notice mostof all in these verses of scriptures is what Gamaliel said concerning if thework was of men.
Notice carefully that he said if the workwas of men then it would come to nought, meaning that it would soon begin todeteriorate and it would actually accomplish nothing. Now if you will take agood look at all the works that man is involved in concerning thedenominational orgainzations, you can see that many of them has already come tonought and has done so for many years.
If you will check history you will findout that many of the denominational organizations began hundreds of years ago.About the turn of the century, which was about the year of 1906, there arosewhat has been called the Pentecostal movement. When this movement first beganit was very strong and many people followed and joined it. As the years went bythis movement as well as a lot of others began to die in strength. There hasbeen thousands of individuals today and in times past rise up and beginpreaching a way that was different from other ways being proclaimed.
Today there are more than five hundreddifferent denominational organizations and each one of them teaches somethingdifferent than the others. When they first began they had many people to jointhem and it seemed that each movement was surely a work of God, but looking ateach and every one of them today and you will find that they are spirituallydead as can be.
They are spiritually dead meaning thatthey do not possess spiritual life, which is of course possessing Christ. Adead church is a church that does not teach the truth of God's redeeming planof salvation. Only the truth will set a person free giving them eternal life.The denominational churches today are full of the works of men, but of coursethey would not believe this if you tell this to them.
You may wonder how a person or a movementcan so easily get involved in the works of men and not in the works of God. Onewould think that the denominational churches are full of zeal seeing all theprograms that they are involved in. They are of course full of zeal, but notaccording to knowledge as God's word reveals it. If today's churches did nothave their programs I would say that nearly all of them would have to closetheir doors and cease to call themselves a church.
Did you know my friend that there is avery good reason as to why a person gets involved in the works of men and notin the works of God? If you will look at all the denominations today you willfind them coming up with more and more ways of trying to get people to come totheir church. Many of them have what is called a singsperation. Once a monththey will hold a certain day as a special singing and invite all who wants tocome and take part in it. Others will hold suppers and many other so-calledspecial events. Without these so-called special events the average church wouldfold overnight and become an empty building up for sale. If you will attend ameeting of the average church you will hear the same type of preaching andteaching that has been preached for many many years.
They don't teach and preach the fulness ofthe gospel no matter how much they may confess to be full gospel type churches.The names that they average church has today is nowhere close to what theyclaim to be. If you go to a church that calls itself a faith tabernacle youwill not hear them confess the faith that we are told to earnestly contend for,but rather you will hear them give more glory to Satan.
We are told in God's word that we areovercomers by the word of our testimony, but listening to the averageconfessing christian today will lead you to think that God is dead. The reasonwhy many are thinking that God is dead is simply because of the condition ofthe church today.
They are full of the feeble works of manand the truth is not being proclaimed in them. The reason why a person can beso easily deceived into getting involved in the works of man is simply becausethey fail to wait on God and study his word like we are told to do. The averageperson has been led to believe that salvation is received on a mere confessionon Christ as Lord and Saviour and then they are to get actively involved insome church and take part in trying to get others converted to their church.
If a person takes memebrship in somedenominational church they will in time begin to get bored of all the programsand they will either cease going to that church or else they will get involvedwith other activities. This is why all the things are coming in the churchestoday. The work will soon come to nought just like Gamaliel had told the Jewsin our text of the fifth chapter of Acts. If God is not in whatever you or achurch gets involved with, then it will soon come to nothing and you willsearch for something else to get involved in. A person who has not done whatthe word has told them to do will intime get to the point that they willforever more search for something to get involved in so that they can be atpeace with themselves.
A person who does not truly know Christcan't possibly experience the true peace that Christ has to offer. The sinneris forevermore searching for something to fill the longing and the emptiness ofhis or her soul, but Christ is the only way to completely satisfy the soul andits desires.
Theaverage church today is full of zeal in the work that they are doing, butmostly because they are doing it for their own good and satisfaction. The Bibleof course says that we will be witnesses to the world, but this does not meanthat we have to be very active in programs that's trying to get peopleconverted.
If a person has to be involved insomething so that they can have what they call peace and satisfaction, thenthat person in reality does not truly know Christ as their Lord and Saviour.There are thousands of people today who keep themselves so busy hoping thatthis will help to keep them satisfied, but this will soon come to a point wherethey can't find true peace and happiness no matter what they get involved with.
The world in general today is full ofpeople who cannot find peace of mind. Many of them end up committing suicidenot being able to cope with the pace of life. Many of these people are membersof some denominational church, but yet they don't have true peace in their heartand the reason for this is simply because they are void of knowing the truth. Aperson who is void of truth is in reality also void of Christ.
Only the truth can give a person truepeace and happiness, but few there be that will receive and obey it. They allowthe flesh to control them and fulfill its desires not truly being willing tocrucify it and follow Christ....