America, the Church and Calhoun’s Mice
What the recent 2022 mid-term elections revealed
This is not a commentary on the November 8, 2022, elections, as illegal and immoral as they were conducted, but it has revealed how spiritually indifferent and blinded some of the voters were. These elections were just the last major piece of the puzzle picture which reveals the true spiritual condition of America. Combined with current gross immorality and lawlessness in society, it is evident that the seven mountains of influence of a society – family, religion, education, media, entertainment, business, and government – have no doubt come under the strongest demonic control to date.
Wrong focus
However, addressing these symptoms is just taking our focus away from the real spiritual issue of America’s heart condition.
Yes, while all that is going on in our nation is totally anti-Christ and an all-out effort to shove our nation down the road to destruction, our focus should not be solely on that fact. Our focus should be more on why this has happened and what to do to correct it.
The national problem
Consider the last days which the apostle Paul wrote to Timothy about, recorded in II Timothy 3:1-4 (NOTE: all scripture quoted will be from NKJV). Here he wrote, “But know this, that in the last days perilous times will come: for men will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, unloving, unforgiving, slanderers, without self-control, brutal, despisers of good, traitors, headstrong, haughty, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God.”
Add to this what Paul wrote to the church at Rome, found in Romans 1:28-32, and if it were not known what time period in which these letters to were written, some 1900 years ago, we could easily be persuaded that these are descriptions of the current condition of America.
Jeremiah spoke these words to the people of Judah concerning the judgment they were enduring from the LORD, “But this is what I commanded them, saying, ‘Obey My voice, and I will be your God, and you shall be My people. And walk in all the ways that I have commanded you, that it might be well with you.’ Yet they did not obey or incline their ear, but followed the counsels and the dictates of their evil hearts, and went backward and not forward” (Jeremiah 7:23&24).
America today is not the moral spiritual giant she was when this nation was miraculously formed, nor the military and economic power that she became just 75 years ago. By controlling the media, education, and government, the devil has succeeded in getting most of America to forget and have no care about where she came from; how the hand of God was upon a special group of Christian men to form the nation with a constitution like the world has never before seen, formed because of men and women who were seeking the free worship of God.
The poet Carl Sanders is quoted saying, “When a nation goes down…one condition may always be found; they forgot where they came from.”
President John Adams made this statement, “Our constitution was made only for a moral and religious people. It is wholly inadequate to the government of any other.” This is especially important in the leadership of our nation, to which Adams also stated, “Because power corrupts, society’s demand for moral authority and character increase as the importance of the position increases.”
Headed for destruction?
I have often wondered why the Old Testament has so many books concerning the destruction of Israel and have come to see that God did this to instruct us for our perseveration (II Timothy 3:16). Just as Israel went down their path to destruction, scripture reveals that America is also headed down the same road which Israel travelled.
It was not the physical enemy on the outside that was the cause of the nation of Israel’s destruction. It was the spiritual enemy within that they yielded to. In Jeremiah 2:17, Jeremiah addresses the despair of the people in Jerusalem for their current devastating condition with these words, “Have you not brought this upon yourself, in that you have forsaken the LORD your God, when He led you in the way?”
America is currently facing the greatest moral, economic, and military decline, as well as the greatest threat to free press and freedom of religion that our nation has ever faced, all aided by a corrupt government that seems bent on doing everything it can to bring about our destruction. But this is all of our own doing because the majority of Americans have forsaken the Lord and His Word, becoming ignorant of His ways.
Micah 6:8, states, “He has shown you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God?”
Our nation is not walking as one with the Lord. In their delusion, some people are trying to operate by their own carnal counsel, hoping that the Lord will be on their side, while all the time living a life that God rejects.
Unfortunately for them, they fail to realize that this will never happen since they live a life out of agreement with Him. Amos 3:3 states, “Can two walk together, unless they are agreed?”
Concerning his leadership during the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln was asked if he was concerned whether God was on his side. His response was, “Sir, my concern is not whether God is on our side; my greatest concern is to be on God’s side, for God is always right.”
The Church problem
The extreme evil that we see going on in our society, some things so perverted and disgusting that they cannot even be mentioned for their depravity, is the result of people unrestrained in their sinful nature. But the problem with America does not begin with our society, it just shows up there.
It is time to face the reality that America’s condition is really an indictment against the Church for her failure to live the life she has been commanded to live and to do what she has been commissioned by her Lord to do. The Church owns this one!
In Luke 19:11, the disciples were asking about the appearance of the Kingdom of God, to which Jesus gave the reply with the parable of the minas. In this parable, the master tells his servants to “Do business till I come.” What Jesus is telling the Church in this parable is for her to expand the Kingdom of God until He returns for her, not to help expand the worldly kingdom of the devil.
The Church, as a whole (both Protestant and Catholic), has become so compromised with the world system that she is ineffective in providing any real spiritual influence and moral change in American society.
A sinner bound by the devil does not look to other bound sinners for a new way of life. The blind cannot lead the blind. Yet the Church in general has become blind because she is trying to serve two masters at the same time: her Lord and the world. She has committed spiritual adultery against her Lord and Savior, and gone after other gods, just like King Solomon did (I Kings 11:1-10).
Don’t think so? All you have to do is read the headlines concerning the different Christian based organizations and denominations that God is exposing this wickedness in. This abandonment of sound Christian doctrine and practices is something even a moderate Christian would never have thought would be going on in the Body of Christ just 50 years ago.
Have you read Barna Groups recent research report, “The State of The Church 2020,” which shows a decline in the percentage of “practicing Christians” from 45% in 2000 down to 25% in 2020? We are not even talking about “professing Christians” who barely even practice their faith.
Just as the Church of Laodicea was found to be lukewarm by the Lord (Revelation 3:14-21) so the Church in America is today. Her love for the riches and comforts of this world had made her blind to her real spiritual condition. If the apostle John were alive today, I am sure that Jesus would have him send the same note of warning to the present-day Church, that He is about to spew her out of His mouth because of her revolting lukewarmness in carrying out the Great Commission.
Except for the few churches that have taken a stand against evil, the comfortable and prosperous Church in America has allowed so much of the world into her that she and the world seem to mirror each other rather than there being a distinction between the two.
The Church has also failed to know who she is, what she has, and what she can do in Christ, and has therefore succumbed to using the wisdom of men to build the Kingdom of God rather than the Lord and His Holy Spirit. Leaving the Lord out of directing His own work also leaves out the declaration of God’s truths and the display of His power.
God warns all humanity, especially directed to His church, “Unless the LORD builds the house, they labor in vain who build it” (Psalm 127:1), and “My people (now the Church) are destroyed for lack of knowledge” (Hosea 4:6).
A “accepting sin as normal” Church has emerged
America is deep in the chains of the darkness of the devil because the Church, who knows the Light, Jesus Christ (John 1:4&9; 8:12), and is supposed to shine the Light to all the world (Matthew 5:14; Acts 13:47), has kept her light under a bushel basket, and has become so dim that it can no longer shine on the hilltop. For the most part, it has become just a sparkler.
As a result, no one is looking to the hilltop anymore!
The Church has been deceived into believing the words of the devil’s description of her as being “just a sinner saved by grace,” while all the time God describes her as “the righteousness of God in Him (Christ Jesus)" (II Corinthians 5:21).
Because of this mindset, she has not confronted the devil. She has not taken a stand to show what is right, leaving most Christians, whom Jesus died to set free, caught up in sinful lifestyle. Like Israel, she has embraced the sin of this world as something to be tolerated and accepted as an expected way of life rather than the holiness to which she has been called and been given the ability to live out.
Holiness is no longer seen as the way the Church is called to live (I Peter 1:15&16), as she has seemingly stopped running the race, no longer pressing “toward the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:14). With Christians practicing sin, the lost world is kept in a life of darkness, eventually sending them to hell because they have no true light to guide them out of their darkness and into the kingdom of Light.
Just as light overcomes darkness, Jesus, the Light of the world, confronted the darkness of His day and overcame it. He has left the Church with the ability to do the same, but she seems to be satisfied not confronting the darkness.
The new church plants, and even old churches which have succumbed to social pressure to rename themselves, no longer have any association or connection in their name with the denomination or theological truth upon which they are founded. It is evident that they are ashamed of the gospel of which they are supposed to preach, which is the only hope for man’s salvation.
Paul was so successful in his missionary journeys because, as he told the church at Rome, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes” (Romans 1:16).
Churches have become “seeker sensitive,” not wanting to offend possible new members from having them confront their sin and need of a Savior. Like Disneyworld, they offer entertaining events, magnificent campuses, catchy slogans, feel good services, and the acceptance of any lifestyle, and any other thing that which appeals to the flesh. The reality is that they are offending the Lord by not giving the full gospel to those whom He sacrificed and died for.
But oppressed sinners are not looking for another social club, nor for good advice. They are looking for truthful answers on how to overcome life’s problems, which is the full, or complete gospel. While they may initially join a seeker sensitive church, they will eventually leave disillusioned because they did not find the truth which they so desperately needed and were expecting to find.
It is easy for churches to get members when they focus on filling carnal needs. Jesus exposed this truth about the multitudes who were following Him because of being healed and being fed, who then left following Him when He told them the cost of discipleship, leaving Him with just twelve loyal men.
Jesus did not come to satisfy the carnal nature and desires of the flesh that would keep man in sin. He came to save men’s souls from their sin, which is the most important message the Church was created to proclaim.
The Church displaying the power of the gospel is getting very hard to find
The Protestant denominations which were the foundations of the Full Gospel movements of Holiness and Pentecost have all but abandoned the demonstration of their beliefs. They are operating out of the spirits of unbelief and fear rather than as the early Church did, “out of power and of love and of a sound mind” (II Timothy 1:7).
Jesus said that these signs would follow those who believe, “And these signs will follow those who believe: in My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover’ (Mark 16:17&18).
The apostle Paul wrote to the church at Corinth, “And my speech and my preaching were not with persuasive words of human wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith should not be in the wisdom of men but in the power of God” (I Corinthians 2:4&5).
Signs and wonders have always been the verification of the preaching of Gospel, yet the manifestation of these signs, along with the gifts of the Spirit, is now hard to find being exercised in Pentecostal based denominations, even in the Bible Belt where these denominations were formed.
The major reason for this is that the Church has failed in her engagement of the Holy Spirit. No longer is there emphasis on being baptized in the Holy Spirit to obtain the power to be effective witnesses, as the Lord commanded the early Church to do (Acts 1:8). No longer is He given free rein in worship services, in church affairs, and in church ministry.
It seems that many see the Holy Spirit as non-essential, and has been relegated to the back pew, if even allowed there, when from the very beginning He has always been the essential element of the success of the Church and her calling.
Self-Centeredness has captured the nation
What this last election and the current condition of our nation have revealed is that the spirit of self- centeredness is in full operation in this nation.
This election has revealed the corruption of both political parties who are more concerned about gaining control for their own benefit rather than serving the people for whom the Constitution was written and by whom they were elected.
Not only did this election reveal the evil spirit of self-centeredness, but attention has also been drawn to all the other evil that is being revealed in our society. Abortion, child and sex trafficking, pornography, theft, riots, cheating on government programs, lotteries – an endless list of words and actions that reveal the heart of America desiring to satisfy the lust of the flesh rather than live a life that pleases God. This nation can no longer say that the Christian religion guides its destiny.
Self-centeredness has also captured the Church
But society is not the only place that this spirit has invaded as self-centeredness has led the Church to be indifferent and apathetic to those lost in sin. The church has become loveless, too comfortable to get out of her comfort zone to serve and to sacrifice so that others can have the abundant life which she has. It is the “us four and no more” attitude.
Edmund Burke, a member of the British Parliament, 1766-1794, made the statement, “Nothing is so fatal to religion as indifference.”
Burke also made this statement concerning the triumph of evil, “All that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good men to do nothing.” A fox can’t get into a chicken coop unless the farmer leaves the door open.
Sinners don’t know what is going on because the devil has them blinded to the truth, because the Church has failed to speak the truth. As the prophet Jeremiah spoke the words of the LORD concerning Israel, “Truth has perished and had been cut off from their mouth” (Jeremiah 7:28b).
With truth removed from society, the vacuum created is then filled with the lies of the devil.
Most surely, as the Church goes so goes the nation. In other words, the condition of our nation is a direct reflection of the Church not proclaiming the truth.
After the French social scientist Alexis de Tocqueville visited America in 1831, he published a two-volume work titled Democracy in America, in which he made this observation concerning the influence of religion in American society, “There is no country in the whole world where the Christian religion retains a greater influence than in America.”
Because our Constitution was written for a moral people, the influence of Christianity in this nation will be the only thing that will ensure its survival.
Gone are the days when the church was the main influence on society. (But Jesus was, as He changed people’s lives wherever He went. Are we not His disciples?)
Gone are the days then the Church was noted for holy living, changing lives by the spreading of the Gospel, and the demonstration of the gifts of the Spirit. Why? Because there is a cost to become true disciples. (But Jesus did this for us! Are we not His disciples?)
Gone are the days when pastors would make a stand against evil and rescue those oppressed of the devil. Most are afraid that if they did, they would offend someone, and as a result lose church members and then the empire that they have created for themselves would fall. (But Jesus stood against evil and delivered us from it. Are we not His disciples?)
A different Church today than in the beginning
It is time for the Church to awake out of its stupor of complacency and apathy. She has been lured into the devil’s lie that the Church now has now reached the point where she has a right to slack off in reaching the lost and take time to seek after prosperity and comfort as a benefit of being the Church.
The problem is that the mindset of the Church today does not reflect the mindset of the early Church. The early Church was not self-centered and defeated, but was victory minded, which made her love minded, which in turn made her servant minded. They gladly sacrificed even their lives so that the gospel could be proclaimed and demonstrated to the lost.
Some may say that they don’t believe this a correct perception of today’s Church, yet I challenge you to search where you live and see how few churches operate as the early Church did in holiness and in the demonstration of the power of God.
This self-centered spirit that was at the heart of the devil’s fall has also been a plague on all mankind since the beginning of Adam’s sin in the Garden. Jesus even had to deal with His disciples about this spirit, and He did so by turning their focus off of themselves and onto loving the lost and in serving others.
Jesus talked to His disciples about the greatness of being servants rather than rulers and He constantly demonstrated that servant character in His ministry to others, and even to them when He washed their feet (John 13:1-17).
Mark 10:43-45 quotes the words of Jesus as He said, “…whoever of you desires to become great among you shall be your servant. And whoever of you desires to be first shall be slave of all. For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”
The great evangelist Charles Spurgeon made this statement regarding purpose of the Church, “Not for yourself, o church, do you exist, any more than Christ existed for Himself.”
The fact that the church has lost the “servant” vison is no more easily revealed than in the quest of churches to become mega churches for their own glory, and for pastors and Church leaders to make a big name for themselves to bring in the financial rewards that accompany it, using godliness as a means of gain (I Timothy 7:5).
It appears that the Church is only relying on her members for financial gain rather than having faith in God to keep her church programs financially secure. Jesus directed us to “seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you” (Matthew 6:33).
The love of money has replaced the love for lost souls, which Paul warned Timothy that the love of money was a snare leading to destruction (I Timothy 6:6-10).
In the context of scripture, this current Church attitude looks a lot like the attitude of the irresponsible shepherds of Israel, whom the LORD condemned for seeking their own good above that of the sheep who were weak, sick, broken, and scattered (Ezekiel 34:1-10).
Jesus lifted up the Father in all that He said and did as He completed the purpose for which He was sent. The Church is supposed to do the same thing by lifting up Jesus as she completes her purpose (John 12:32). Unfortunately, because pastors and churches are more interested in lifting themselves up rather than Jesus, a host of lost sinners are not being drawn to Jesus and their lives changed so that they can escape hell.
What the devil has succeeded in his mission to “steal, kill, and destroy” in society has now become evident as succeeding in the Church as well.
Even the liberal “woke” and “progressive” attitudes of society have infiltrated the Church and have replaced the standards of truth and righteousness that the Church once championed.
The church, at large, also seems to have also taken on society’s attitude of apathy towards God and His Word, as current research has revealed: a steady decline in church membership and attendance; the rejection of God’s Word as absolute truth by church members, pastors, and even some denominations; prayer and Bible reading has become less relevant; and the desire for the demonstration of the presence of the Holy Spirit through the gifts of the Spirit has all but disappeared.
Calhoun’s utopia mice experiment
In a recent article found on the Naturalnews.com website, dated November 28, 2022, by Mike Adams, the author goes into the analysis of John Calhoun’s mouse experiment. (Reading the full article is recommended to get a proper analysis of comparing this experiment with America and the Church.)
In this article, Mike Adams wrote, “In the 1960’s, a scientist named John Calhoun created a “mouse utopia” where populations of mice would enjoy everything they needed, essentially without effort: unlimited food, water, living space, population growth without predators, and so on. It started with eight mice, who began to reproduce quickly, enjoying their newfound “utopia” with unlimited resources. Within 4 years, however, the population had become extinct through self-annihilation even though all the resources it needed for survival were readily available, including ample space to live.”
In analyzing this experiment, it appears that once the mice were fat and happy their self-centeredness produced the actions of the mice which brought about their destruction. Regarding this experiment, a bioethicist named Jan Kuban is quoted as believing that the lack of challenges to their existence was a major reason for the behavior which brought about their lack of desire to reproduce to survive. As a result, they became extinct.
Humans, also being animals, react in parallel fashion.
Is America and the Church at a crossroads?
Comparing this experiment with human nature, both America and the Church appear to be in the same situation, travelling together down the same road to their own self-inflicted annihilation.
America has all that she needs and has few physical adversaries. Because she has become self-centered, she is satisfied with her prosperity and comfort, having nothing to really strive for. The republic has been established, and the sacrifice paid by our founding fathers and former leaders, so it seems all that America needs to do is just sit back and enjoy the prosperity.
Like Laodicea, today’s Church in America also has no real challenges facing her as religious leaders of the past have paid the price for her existence. She too is established, prosperous, and comfortable with where she now is at, coming to the conclusion that she no longer needs to strive to make true disciples as commanded by her Lord. Just making members is good enough.
In each of their current directions of travel, only by God providing a great move of His glory can this pathway to destruction for America and the Church be avoided.
However, I am convinced, because of this time of overwhelming spiritual attack which we are under, that God, in His mercy, will very shortly provide a great move of His glory to deliver and restore His Church, America, and the world before the devil is able to destroy us.
We have been given this scripture as hope, “When the enemy comes in like a flood, the Spirit of the LORD will lift up a standard against him” (Isaiah 59:19).
But this will only happen if our hearts line up with God’s heart. We cannot forsake Him and expect Him to respond to our situation. The prophet Azariah gave King Asa this word from the LORD, saying, “The LORD is with you while you are with Him. If you seek Him, He will be found of you; but if you forsake Him, He will forsake you” (II Chronicles 15:2b).
Before Jesus is sent to get His Bride, His Bride will have to be on the same spiritual level He is on (Ephesians 4:13). Jesus is not coming for a wimpy, dirty, unprofitable Bride. Jesus is looking for His bride to be overcomers (His directive to all the churches on Revelation chapters 2&3), “holy, and blameless, and above reproach” (Colossians 1:22), and faithful servants (Matthew 25:21).
My concern is that when this move of God’s glory happens the Church will not be ready to handle this great harvest of souls that is coming. Will those who will be saved during this great move of God know how to endure to the end, or will they end up as casualties because the church has no disciples ready to guide them to be overcomers?
Time to wake up! This is not a drill! This is a call to arms!
The Church and this nation have been invaded! Organized spiritual forces are on the march to destroy this nation and will complete their mission unless the Church wakes up and rises to the occasion, aligning with the Holy Spirit to stop this invasion.
It is time to armor-up, become the soldiers Christ has given us the ability to become, and take the fight to the enemy. The Church needs to return to being the powerhouse for the Kingdom of God that she was at the beginning. If we don’t do it now, both the Church and this nation will become POW’s and will be destroyed.
Steps to becoming a better nation and Church:
First is a personal relationship
Christians should evaluate their personal relationship with Jesus. Being the Bride of Christ, is it the close relationship of a bride being as one with her groom? Since He is our Lord, is it the proper relationship between Master and obedient servant? Is the Holy Spirit, who was sent by Jesus, in full control of our lives to make us one with Him?
Maybe it is time for both the Church and each Christian to take seriously what the apostle Paul directed the church at Corinth to do, “Examine yourselves as to whether you are in the faith. Test yourselves” (II Corinthians 13:5). Are we in the unity of the faith and knowledge of Jesus that results in us being like Christ (Ephesians 4:13)?
Second is family relationship
The church is actually a reflection of each family that makes up the church body. As the family is, so is the church. The Church is made up of “living stones” (I Peter 2:5), “many members” (I Corinthians 12:12), not lifeless brick and mortar.
All major moves of God have started with the individual person and the family, not just the individual. Once the family was right with the Lord, then the Church also followed in righteousness and purpose. Peter directed his quote of scripture, “be holy, for I am holy,” to many believers, not to just one person (I Peter 1:13-15).
Third is for the Church to refocus on God’s purpose, not man’s
Just as Jesus trained the twelve for them to do what He was doing, the Church as also been called, with the help of the Holy Spirit, to make disciples (those who know how to wage spiritual warfare against the devil with the tools He has left us) and not just members (those who are ignorant of their position in Christ and the power from God that give them victory over the enemy).
The Bride of Christ will always be in spiritual war with the devil until Jesus comes back to get her. Being composed of “just saved” members will not make her an overcomer in this life and death warfare. It takes a warrior mindset.
Jesus went to those oppressed of the devil, to the gates of Hell itself, where He fulfilled Isaiah 61:1-3 as He proclaimed the Kingdom of God, set prisoners free, and destroyed the works of the devil (Acts 10:38). He gave His command and the ability to the Church to do the same (Mark 16:15-18), and in obedience to this command the early disciples carried out His will (Acts 2:40-43).
Fourth is remain focused
Make sure the main goal is calling for repentance from sin, declaring the salvation message of the gospel with signs and wonders that would follow, and make disciples to also carry on that work. The devil will always be working to distract, to hinder, to sidetrack, and to stop God’s plan for mankind to hear the gospel and be saved. The Church cannot rest from spiritual warfare as this is a perpetual fight as long as there is one unsaved person for whom Christ died who has not heard the gospel.
The battle for the souls of men does not stop until the Lord returns and lets us know that the time for proclaiming the gospel is over.
Only through the gospel can each life, each family, and each nation be changed to be the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus.
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