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PreachParsly
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Joined: 2005/1/14
Posts: 2164
Arkansas

 Three Groups of People

Three Groups of People


Religion, Religion, Religion! It seems that today we have all sorts of religious people. Many have a particular religion, some just do certain things religiously. Everyone has something driving them, but in all honestly very few seem to know who is behind the wheel! I think it may be interesting to look at some different types of people that are in the world. In this short article I'm going to make 3 different groups of people. All these three are mentioned by Jesus when he was talking to the woman at the well (John 4).

The first group we are going to venture across in our tour of the world are those that say, “ye say, that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.” These are the people that have heard right, but either don't have a full understanding or blatantly ignore it. There are numerous people in this group. How many do you know that have heard a few things about the Bible, but don't have any understanding of it? I'm sure you know many. I've ran into so many people that have told me, “I've heard that the Bible...” Hear-say doesn't get you much past the very word “hear-say” all it is is “I've heard, so I say, I've heard, so I say.” In the end no one really knows by what authority they heard it or why they are speaking it, all they know it “I've heard someone say....” Ah! How many base their whole life on this non-sense! They don't know God, just what Grandma said about Him. I say these mocking birds need to stop imitating what they have heard and know the One who is the “way, truth, and the life.” I think a mocking bird shows a great picture of many people. When they are with “sinners” they chirp like them, when they are with “church people” they chirp like them.

It's also interesting that she knew what the Jews said, but didn't seem to have any intentions of doing it. In this time it's commonly known that the Jews didn't like the Samaritans. They were “half-breeds.” So, the reason of her not wanting to obey what she knew could have been two-fold, either she had no zeal for God or the “church people” ran her off. Many times you can see a relationship between the two. Sometimes a lot of the fault does lay in the hands of the “church people” but then other times that is just the easy excuse for the unalarmed sinner. The Bible is plain. It says that if you know to do good and don't do it, then it's sin. Everyone has a certain amount of light, or truth, in their possession. We will be held accountable on the day of Judgment for how much light we have rejected for the darkness of the world. We need to walk in the light as He is in the light.

The second group of people are those that “worship ye know not what.” There are a multitude of people here. This is where the “intellectual egghead” or just your average “egghead” are. I say eggheads because that fits a good description of them. They look all smooth and nice on the outside, so vast yet with no imperfections. But look how thin their shell is! One little bump and they fall to pieces. Then rolls out a bunch of filth and slime! All their wisdom and self-improvement programs meant about as much as dung. So many think they have it all figured out. They know exactly what they are doing, but as it turns out the end up saying “Oh! I didn't know.” They don't know what they are worshiping. This group will talk about how much they love other people, yet they truly love themselves more than everything- whether created or Creator. This is surely the group that rides the boat of life, while not knowing what body of water they are on or the name of the boat. They probably imagine they are flying a sleigh with reign deers! Sheer imagination and self deceived!

The third group is the one who God delights in. They are the ones who “worship in spirit and truth.” This phrase does not mean “worship in sincerity.” No, you can worship sincerely and it not at all be the way God would accept. It says that he wants those that worship “in spirit,” that is “the spirit of holiness” which of course is His Spirit. The only way for God to accept our worship is that we have been born again and are now walking in the Spirit. Galatians chapter 5 can tell you all about that. God desires that we come into union (communion) with Him. This has been his heartfelt cry ever since in the garden He said to Adam“Where art thou?” Adam had distanced himself away from his Creator by sin. This reminds me of what God told Cain before he slew Able. “If thou doest well, shalt thou not be accepted? and if thou doest not well, sin lieth at the door.” Sin is described something like a lion that is waiting to pounce upon men. God in his great love decided to free man from this wild animal and sent Jesus to“condemn sin in the flesh.” He doesn't want those that worship in wickedness and lies, but in the spirit and in the truth. The only ones that can be acceptable to God are those that have come to Christ in faith and now walk according to the truth. Or in other words those that are in His Spirit and are in obeying His Truth.

With so many religious people in the world, it is important that we have a grasp that not every one is right. If truth were not absolute, then it wouldn't be truth at all, but only opinion. Everyone has an opinion but not everyone is right. The Father said that Jesus was his son and that we should listen to him. Who has more authority than God himself? None! Let's hear what Jesus said, “Repent and believe the Gospel.”


_________________
Josh Parsley

 2007/1/4 15:23Profile





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