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Here4Him
Member



Joined: 2006/9/23
Posts: 212
England

 The sad demise of the Salvation Army

[b]The sad demise of the Salvation Army[/b]

After my recent visit to a Salvation Army hall and my observation of the movement I have become so very grieved at what has become of them, and so impassioned about this grief that I simply must speak out, or in this case vent my grief through writing.

We all know of the great William Booth, a humble man from Nottingham who the Lord took and set on fire for Him. He put such a fire in that man that we are still benefiting from the impact of his life today. He was mightily used by the Lord in the worst parts of London, as the Lord sent Him with compassion in his heart and tears in his eyes to the worst of humanity. Filled with the love of Christ and a burden for the lost so great that it nearly consumed him, he went to redeem the helpless, poor and sinful masses of the capital city. How that man fearlessly preached the gospel of repentance and life in the open air and trained and exhorted hundreds of others to do the same. Booth and his team were too radical for his day. They were alienated and frowned upon by the church and mocked by the world but smiled upon by God as He blessed them with power and countless conversions. These new converts would then join the others in taking to the streets to sing their redeemers praise and boldly proclaim His gospel, testifying of His power to change lives.

What Booth started became a movement, a mighty army of men and women filled with the Holy Ghost enough to put fear into all the host of hell. They became known as the Salvation Army and did much to push back the frontiers of evil and build up the kingdom of Christ on the earth.

But now when I look at the Salvation Army they are not even a shadow of what they once were. How the mighty are fallen! Their motto is still ‘blood and fire’ coined by William Booth and displayed proudly on flags, plaques and badges, yet now their motto would more appropriately read: ‘gas and brass!’. There’s nothing of blood now, not in risking their lives for the lost or in the proclamation of the precious blood of Christ, and they certainly lost the fire long ago! What started as a mighty spiritual army has become an organisation, a club.

Oh, the Salvation Army still take to the streets at Christmas time: To preach? No! To set up stalls and perform Christmas carols with a fine array of brass instruments, collecting coppers for charitable causes. Commendable, but a mere whimper of the glory days. No longer are the Salvation Army concerned about salvation, but are instead content to dress up in red military wear and entertain Christmas shoppers while filling their tins with coins. Oh how sad!

What would the General think? Surely he would turn in His grave and his blood would curdle at what has become of His Salvation Army.

This was all pressed home to me with force as I happened to see on display in the Salvation Army hall the latest Salvation Army magazine. To my amazement- who was on the front cover, but an arrogant, self confessed atheist and hater of God who presents a night time news program in England. It turns out that he has some ‘army’ blood in his veins, and so he was invited to address the Salvation Army at their annual conference prior to Christmas. Apparently he cajoled the audience with jokes and wit. He joked that the Salvation Army blood in him has been some what watered down by all the beer he has drunk. I could not believe what I was reading. Would William Booth have ever asked a self confessed God hater to speak to his men and women- I think not- not over his dead body, I reckon! And yet here less than one hundred years after his death, the Salvation Army are being entertained and charmed by an atheist, the main speaker at their conference. What a joke!

How very sad. But oh that God would again raise up men like William Booth in our generation and women like His godly wife Catherine. Oh for one man with half his fire. I reckon he could set England ablaze with the power of God. Where are the men who like Booth and his army would be prepared to risk their lives and go down into the very pit of hell to redeem lost men and women? Where are the young people who will get fed up of ‘church’ and all our programs and meetings and who will take to the streets to win the masses in our day?

Oh Lord, we pray that you will raise up this kind of people in this desperate hour for your Name’s sake, and grant dear Lord that we who read this may be in that number. Amen


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George Platt

 2006/12/18 13:22Profile
InTheLight
Member



Joined: 2003/7/31
Posts: 2850
Phoenix, Arizona USA

 Re: The sad demise of the Salvation Army

Some good observations here, it is sad indeed.

But this seems to be the pattern with movements, organizations, and denominations. What was begun in the power of the Holy Spirit is perpetuated by man long after "Ichabod" is written over the door.

In the end, I don't think God puts much stock in a man or a movement, it's all about His Son, the faithful and eternal One. Let us not speak about William Booth, let us speak about William Booth's God!

In Christ,

Ron


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Ron Halverson

 2006/12/18 14:44Profile
death2self
Member



Joined: 2006/9/28
Posts: 192
Washington DC area

 Re:

I've been blessed by William and Catherine Booth. His series of letters entitled "Purity of Heart" were a great encouragement to my heart and his wife wrote a very concise and sharp word on entire sanctification that I have spent some time going through and have been blessed by.

When a work of the spirit is attempted to later be sustained by a work of the flesh, it quickly loses its power. That's why the Booths left the Methodist church, because the church had lost its fire for Jesus.

Remember what happened to the Israelites, who had entered Canaan one generation later. Judges 2:10-15 10 After that whole generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation grew up, who knew neither the LORD nor what he had done for Israel. 11 Then the Israelites did evil in the eyes of the LORD and served the Baals. 12 They forsook the LORD, the God of their fathers, who had brought them out of Egypt. They followed and worshiped various gods of the peoples around them. They provoked the LORD to anger 13 because they forsook him and served Baal and the Ashtoreths. 14 In his anger against Israel the LORD handed them over to raiders who plundered them. He sold them to their enemies all around, whom they were no longer able to resist. 15 Whenever Israel went out to fight, the hand of the LORD was against them to defeat them, just as he had sworn to them. They were in great distress.

God has no grandchildren and am trusting Him to raise up some warriors in this generation.


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Ed Pugh

 2006/12/18 15:14Profile
PaulWest
Member



Joined: 2006/6/28
Posts: 3405
Dallas, Texas

 Re:

I don't even think you have to be genuinely born-again to be a part of the Salvation Army today. At least, not the Salvation Army guys that stand in front of Wal-Mart and ring a bell wearing a Santa hat. Begging, like you said, for change. How sad, how utterly humiliating to solicit heathen shoppers and literally [i]panhandle[/i] without one mention of the gospel. You'll be lucky if you even get a "God bless you" after giving something. You are right - General booth would turn in his grave. As a matter of fact, the spiritual climate of the Salvation Army was already in the decline before Booth died. He was moved to issue his now-famous prophetic warning of dead fundamentalism of what Christianity would become in our day and age.


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Paul Frederick West

 2006/12/18 15:52Profile
KingJimmy
Member



Joined: 2003/5/8
Posts: 4419
Charlotte, NC

 Re:

I know the Salvation Army does a lot of good charitable work these days still, by helping people pay their bills, get food, etc. In fact, my fiance's family was once without money, and the local Salvation Army gave them some money to help pay their bills.

However, even with that said, would it be better if perhaps we boycotted giving any money to the Salvation Army altogether? After all, technically they are a church in the loose sense of the word. So, should we knowingly fund such an organization? And if anybody caught one of the Thanksgiving day football half-time shows, I noticed that the Salvation Army funded the show, and had their balloons all over the place. They sponsored some country girl singing about whisky of all things!

It should be noted that I do give money to various non-Christian charities e.g. The United Way. However, these charities are clearly secular, and aren't making any pretense about being a Christian organization.

And a site note, the folks that ring the bells for the Salvation Army are simply local volunteers from the surrounding community. You don't have to be a part of the Salvation Army to do it. All you have to do is call up your local division and ask.


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Jimmy H

 2006/12/18 16:08Profile
PaulWest
Member



Joined: 2006/6/28
Posts: 3405
Dallas, Texas

 Re:

Yes, you are right. Jimmy. The Salvation Army gives away money to charitible causes. I deal with this firsthand in the funeral industry, as indigent and pauper families often appeal to the SA for additional funds, and are usually awarded checks for $150.00-$200.00 to help.

I realize the bell-ringers are just volunteers. I think this is just the perfect example of how far the SA fallen. Anybody is welcome now to just join the ranks under the banner of "Blood and Fire" (so to speak) and represent Booth's vision. It just seems wrong to me. I don't mean to nitpick or to sound judgmental, but when I go out to represent the gospel of Jesus Christ by either street-preaching or giving to the poor, I want only the best and genuine shining examples of a life transformed by the power of the gospel to go with me. Only the believers who are on fire and living holy and demonstrating the fruit of repentance I'll take with me. No phoney-baloney church-goers will I allow who can blight the good report from those who are outside. To align yourself with the SA today, though, you don't even have to be a professiing Christian! I've seen some of these bell-ringing Santa-hat wearing beggars actually put down their buckets and light up cigarettes!

I always think of Booth and Brengle when I see things like this. And I recall the scriptures that speak of the old paths, and how men will not walk in them anymore, the paths of their forefathers.


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Paul Frederick West

 2006/12/18 16:28Profile









 Re: The sad demise of the Salvation Army

In all honesty, I grew up not knowing that the Salvation Army was ever a Christian organization. It wasn't until about two years ago when I was fifteen that I made a connection with the Christian meaning of the word 'salvation' and the Salvation Army. Had I not sat down and thought about it for a good ten minutes and then done a little research then I probably never would have known that the Salvation Army once proudly bore the name of our beloved Jesus Christ.

It's quite sad knowing the direction the Salvation Army has taken. Quite sad indeed.

 2006/12/18 21:48
crsschk
Member



Joined: 2003/6/11
Posts: 9192
Santa Clara, CA

 Re:

Quote:
Let us not speak about William Booth, let us speak about William Booth's God!


Rather like that Ron, very much so. Certainly that is the proverbial [i]not to say[/i] ...

Guess we could also just as well add, "God's William Booth"


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Mike Balog

 2006/12/18 22:58Profile
NLONG
Member



Joined: 2006/8/17
Posts: 111
Middlebury, Indiana

 Re:

I grew up not knowing that it was a 'Christian' organization either. Does the army lead the lost to salvation anymore? Or is it another 'church' group living in and of the world. To be a Christian church don't they need to be called out (of the world that is)?

Another sad fact, the begging bell ringers don't even know who William Booth was!!! Ask any of them, I've asked several and nobody's met him :-)
Makes you just want to cry.

I appreciate the connection with Judges 2. What a testimony to us all! It should make us all the more dilligent to instruct our children in the ways of the Lord.


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Neil Long

 2006/12/28 15:13Profile
DoulosQuinn
Member



Joined: 2006/7/6
Posts: 131


 Re: The sad demise of the Salvation Army

I love that move of GOD, and am still apart of it.

That is the case with every thing the LORD does, a number of people stay serving the "Move" in faith with the LORD's favor. While other add to its corruption.

I donate by faith to the Salvation Army...its one up on the Goodwill because of The NAME of Jesus Christ. Plus its just that much more support from the LORD, not Uncle Sam, or people who donate to gain favor from a god who is so broke he even begs non believers for money. (bad witness with bells)

I pray that light shines through when the REAL need is there.

I also am apart of Calvary Chapel still even though its going down...it will be a while until believers will have to abandon ship, like the Episcoples just did.

Do what you can serving as unto the LORD.

New wine, new wine skins

 2006/12/28 23:37Profile





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