Close Your Church for Good, Chap. 1, Sec. 6.

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Following His victory over temptation, Jesus began His ministry, gathered and taught disciples, then died on the cross and rose again from the dead. In His resurrection, He gained what Satan had promised, but Jesus gained it according to the will and ways of God, not in selfishness, but in service; not in power, but in humility; not in riches, fame, honor, and glory, but in poverty, weakness, shame, and relative obscurity. Before He ascended to heaven, He instructed His disciples to follow His example, and pass on the training that He had given them.

Over the next few centuries, the followers of Jesus did their best. But it was tough. They faced constant threats from the government and the military. Some of them lost their jobs, their families, and even their lives. They were scorned and ridiculed. And yet, as they served and loved others, gave self-sacrificially of their time and possessions, offered forgiveness and grace when wronged, and lived faithfully to the example of Jesus, the message about Jesus continued to spread and lives were changed.

But then something happened. The temptations came back around. As more and more people became followers of Jesus, the focus of many Christians began to shift. The emphasis began to move away from self-sacrifice, service, generosity, humility, and peace, and toward power, influence, prominence, authority, recognition, and control. This is seen in a variety of ways. Out of pure motives to protect and educate new believers, church leaders began to consolidate power and control. They created a hierarchy of religious leaders who helped develop rules of morality and decide which understandings of Scripture were correct. They tried to increase their influence in society by gaining more followers and defending Christian beliefs against the claims of philosophy and other religions. 

One of the greatest shifts came when the Roman Emperor Constantine converted to Christianity after he defeated his enemies under the sign of the cross. As a result of this victory, he declared Christianity the official religion of the Roman Empire. Mass conversions followed. Thousands of pagan temples were transformed into places of Christian worship. Almost overnight, Christianity became rich, powerful, and prominent. It also became a tool of the Empire, blessing the Empire’s wars, approving the Empire’s laws, and installing the Empire’s rulers. In exchange, the Empire gave the church land, money, and buildings. The church had gained power.

In his book, The Myth of the Christian Religion, Gregory Boyd describes the transition this way:

Once the Church acquired power over others, everything changed. A movement that began by viewing the acquisition of political and military power as a satanic temptation now viewed it as a divine blessing. A movement that was birthed by Christ refusing to conquer his enemies in order to die for them now set out to conquer enemies—for Christ. The faith that previously motivated people to trust in the power of the cross now inspired them to trust in the power of the sword. Those who had previously understood that their job was to serve the world now aspired to rule it. The community that once pointed to their love for enemies and refusal to engage in violence as proof of Christ’s lordship now pointed to their ability to violently defeat enemies as proof of Christ’s lordship.

Whereas Jesus has turned down selfish individualism, power, control, riches, fame, recognition, and glory as a means of accomplishing His mission, the church fully embraced such things as a means to spread the Gospel, fulfill the Great Commission, and expand the Kingdom of God on earth.

Close Your Church for Good, Chap. 1, Sec. 5.

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In the first temptation, turning stone into bread, Satan wanted Jesus to act selfishly. Satan wanted Jesus to become self-reliant, self-centered, and to seek His own self-provision. When Jesus multiplies the loaves and fish later in His ministry, it is not for Himself, but for others. God’s will is done by putting the needs and interests of others above your own. So the first temptation is about selfish individualism: what I want and getting my needs met.

The second temptation focuses on authority and power. Jesus came to reclaim authority over the nations, but He had to gain it through death and suffering, not through a deal with the devil. And furthermore, the devil’s idea of authority is at odds with that of God. When the devil exerts authority, he does so with money, glory, power, riches, and fame. This is contrary to the quiet and gentle authority of Jesus. This temptation is also about control. Satan wants to control people. He wants to control the world and the universe. He wants to control God. This temptation was a power grab. In offering Jesus power, Satan positioned himself to gain even more power. Jesus is not opposed to power, but knew that it must be gained through sacrifice and service, and used for the benefit and blessing of others.

Finally, Jesus is offered the chance to receive praise and recognition from men. He is taken to the pinnacle of the temple, and told to throw Himself down. God would be forced, Satan suggested, to rescue Jesus by sending angels to catch Him. Since the temple courts were nearly always filled with people, this angelic rescue would take place in the sight of them all. They would be in awe of Jesus. Many would recognize Him as the Messiah. They would praise Him and welcome Him. All would see that God was truly with Jesus, watching over and protecting Him. It was an opportunity to be recognized. It was an opportunity for Jesus to make His name great, and receive His due glory.

So the three temptations were about selfish individualism, power, control, riches, fame, recognition, and glory. These were offered by Satan as a means to accomplish the mission of Jesus. But Jesus turned them all down, knowing that such things would not help, but would only hinder the goals of God on earth.

Close Your Church for Good, Chap 1. Sec. 4. (I concluded the last section with two key questions about the premise of this book. I now begin to defend the premise that there are Satanic influences in the church.)

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The place to start is the Garden of Eden. God created the heavens and the earth, and all the celestial and earthly bodies to fill them. At the pinnacle of creation, God created Adam and Eve. They were given authority over the earth, to tend the plants and animals, and multiply upon the earth. But Satan, in the form of a serpent, was also in the garden. How he came to be present in God’s good creation is a subject for another time. Satan questioned Eve, challenged the instructions and intelligence of God, and ultimately deceived her into eating fruit from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. As a result, they brought death upon themselves, a curse upon creation, and surrendered dominion over the earth to Satan.

For the next several thousand years, the story of Scripture reveals a constant struggle between the plans of God and the perversions of Satan. God sets something in place, and Satan twists and perverts it so that while it still resembles the original plan, it accomplishes the exact opposite of God’s intent. Eventually, the new Adam, Jesus Christ, enters the story. Among other things, He comes to win back dominion. And so, as in the beginning, Satan sets out to turn Jesus away from the instructions and plans of God.

Satan uses against Jesus the same methods and same tactics he used with Adam and Eve. He questions the word of God and challenges the authority of God. And ultimately, Satan brings three temptations before Jesus. According to Luke 4:1-13, the first temptation was for Jesus to satisfy His hunger by turning stones into bread.  In the second, Satan promised to give authority over the nations to Jesus if Jesus would just worship Satan. Finally, Jesus was tempted to perform a great miracle in the sight of the worshippers in the temple courts by throwing Himself from the pinnacle of the temple so that angels would rescue Him before He struck the ground.

The temptations were not just attempts by Satan to get Jesus to do something contrary to the will of God. On the surface of the temptations, there is nothing overtly “sinful” about them. Satan was not asking Jesus to murder someone or commit adultery. After all, if Jesus is hungry, and He has the power to make stones into bread, what’s the harm? Later in the Gospels, Jesus turns water into wine at a party and multiplies five loaves and two fish to feed a hungry crowd. Is this first temptation so different? If Jesus could multiply fish and loaves of bread to feed hungry people, and turn water into wine to give people more to drink, what’s the harm in transforming a few stones into bread to satisfy his own hunger?

The same dilemmas exist with the next two temptations.  One of the goals of Jesus was to regain authority over the nations of the world. And now it was being offered to Him. Finally, during His ministry, Jesus performed many miracles in the sight of people, and one of the reasons was so that they would recognize Him as the Messiah. What’s the problem with one more?

Ultimately, the temptations are not about the action that Satan suggests. They are actually all very good and noble actions. If Jesus were a pragmatist — if the ends justified the means — then there would be nothing to stop Jesus from doing what Satan wanted. But Jesus knew that God’s will must be done in God’s way. And He also knew that there are no shortcuts to accomplishing the will of God. The reason Satan’s temptations would lead to sin is not exactly in the outcome, but in the methods and motives required to reach those outcomes.

Close Your Church for Good, Chap. 1, Sec 3.

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It’s not an issue of motives. I truly believe that the average Christian church does its best to worship the One True God, teach and obey Scriptures, and help people become faithful followers of Jesus Christ. I also believe, however, that over the years, certain practices have been adopted and elements have crept in which are not only contrary to Scripture, but are contrary to Jesus Christ, His life, and His message. These practices and elements have become so normal and accepted within Christianity that we believe they are “from Jesus” or “by the Holy Spirit” when they are not. Their source is the Deceiver himself. In some ways, “church” has become more like Satan than like Jesus. Nevertheless, these practices have become so ingrained in “church” that any attempt to strip them out results in mass anger and resentment. Those who sound the alarm get accused of trying to destroy the church. 

But maybe destruction is necessary. It is only through death that resurrection to new life is possible. That’s what this book is about: Destroying the church as we know it so that it can be raised to new life. We will challenge some of the long-held assumptions about what the church is, what it does, and how it functions and is organized. This process will feel like the destruction of the church. But as a result, beauty will rise from the ashes, new life from the grave, and light will shine forth in the darkness. 

Before any assumptions are challenged, the premise must be defended. Is it really true that the church has been influenced by Satanic elements and values? How can this be when all that the church stands for is opposed to the devil and his works?

Below are the opening few paragraphs in a book I am writing called Close Your Church for Good. More is on the way. Feel free to comment and provide suggestions (even spelling and grammar corrections) as I go.

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Imagine that a Satanic Church exists in your town. Though they have never done anything overtly Satanic that you are aware of, certain members of the surrounding community are uncomfortable with such a church existing, and want it shut down.

The church members argue that they have the right to exist just as much as any church, and have embarked on a community relations campaign to improve their public image. They change their name to “The Church of the One World Hope.” Their services begin to copy those of a typical Christian church. They meet on Sunday mornings. They sing songs. They listen to an encouraging sermon by one of their leaders. They even start “outreach” programs for the community. They host an after school program for children and volunteer down at the homeless shelter. Some of their members serve on school boards and another gets elected to the city council.

Slowly, the voices of protest fade away, and over time, people forget that the church had Satanic origins. The church is accepted among the other various religious groups in the community, and allowed to coexist with them. For a while, the church actually becomes the most prominent church in the community. It has the largest building, the most people, and the biggest budget. It gains power, prominence, and authority. Nothing, it seems, can slow its growth.

How would you respond to such a church? What would you think about its continued existence? Would you hope and pray for such a church to close?