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[Separation] Compromising Evangelicals
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John Henry
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Mar 18, 2005 05:13 PST
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COMPROMISING EVANGELICALS
By Vic Sears
(Atlantic Beacon - November 1983, p. 1)
In Jeremiah 12:9, God’s people had become, so degraded and
idolatrous that He calls them a “speckled bird” which is literally a bird
with a vulturous nature. Judah had surrounded herself with similar birds of
prey, lost her separated and distinctive character and now God had
temporarily forsaken her and permitted her to fall in the hands of her
enemies. The words of verse 10 give the painful picture of compromise.
“Many pastors have destroyed my vineyard, they have trodden
my portion under foot, they have made my pleasant portion a desolate
wilderness.”
The Way of Least Resistance
What a vivid but tragic picture of present day! Many say: It
doesn’t make any difference what you believe as long as you are sincere!
We’re not interested in doctrine, we just preach Jesus! Associations are
not important, it’s what you believe that counts! There is much loose,
unscriptural thinking and practice on the prowl today and many Christians
are falling for it. The way of least-resistance becomes the philosophy of
many who follow the way of compromise and disobedience in this apostate,
Laodicean age . . .
I see these things happening in a crescendo that is moving
surreptitiously toward the darkness of the anti-christ. I’m moved with awe
and fear as I see men who a few years ago stood for fundamentalism now
falling into the insidious clutches of compromise and disobedience . . .
What has happened to such scriptures as the following: “Can two walk
together, except they be agreed?” — Amos 3:3; “Have no fellowship with the
unfruitful works of darkness but rather reprove them.” Eph. 5:11; 2 Cor.
6:14-18; James 4:4; 1 John 2:15-17.
It is sad to watch, but several of the American Fellowships
and associations that a few years ago stood soundly as fundamentalists are
now fractionalizing all over the nation. Instead of having several large,
strong groups, we are splitting into scores of small organizations. What
has caused this fragmentation or fractionalization? There is no doubt in
my mind that our leaders, many of them envisioning dreams of personal
greatness and bit by the virus of bigness, have been led astray into
unscriptural channels of compromise. Many of them laugh and scoff at
old-fashioned scriptural standards of separation. Many have lost completely
the scriptural concept of the local church. As a result, there has been a
steady “grass—roots” awakening and turning back to biblical PRINCIPLES and
STANDARDS and SEPARATION—and I say AMEN!
Let’s not support compromise! Let’s arise to the need of the
hour, pay the price whatever the cost, and “stand in the gap before men for
the land.” It may cost! It may hurt! We may lose some friends! I may lose
meetings over the issue, but I have spent 45 years in the gospel ministry
and I don’t want to spend my sunset years of my life walking arm in arm
with ecumenical compromise and dishonoring associations. We may not walk
with the majority but we can be a fundamental minority. This was true in
Christ’s day as well as Paul’s and it can be true of us being
faithful.
-- by Vic Sears
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<div align="center"><b><br>
COMPROMISING EVANGELICALS<br>
By Vic Sears<br>
(Atlantic Beacon - November 1983, p. 1)<br>
</div>
<br>
In
Jeremiah 12:9, God’s people had become, so degraded and idolatrous that
He calls them a “speckled bird” which is literally a bird with a
vulturous nature. Judah had surrounded herself with similar birds of
prey, lost her separated and distinctive character and now God had
temporarily forsaken her and permitted her to fall in the hands of her
enemies. The words of verse 10 give the painful picture of
compromise.<br>
<br>
“Many
pastors have destroyed my vineyard, they have trodden my portion
under foot, they have made my pleasant portion a desolate
wilderness.”<br>
<br>
<div align="center">The Way of Least Resistance<br>
</div>
<br>
What a
vivid but tragic picture of present day! Many say: It doesn’t make any
difference what you believe as long as you are sincere! We’re not
interested in doctrine, we just preach Jesus! Associations are not
important, it’s what you believe that counts! There is much loose,
unscriptural thinking and practice on the prowl today and many Christians
are falling for it. The way of least-resistance becomes the philosophy of
many who follow the way of compromise and disobedience in this apostate,
Laodicean age . . .<br>
I see
these things happening in a crescendo that is moving surreptitiously
toward the darkness of the anti-christ. I’m moved with awe and fear as I
see men who a few years ago stood for fundamentalism now falling into the
insidious clutches of compromise and disobedience . . . What has happened
to such scriptures as the following: “Can two walk together, except they
be agreed?” — Amos 3:3; “Have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of
darkness but rather reprove them.” Eph. 5:11; 2 Cor. 6:14-18; James 4:4;
1 John 2:15-17. <br>
It is
sad to watch, but several of the American Fellowships and associations
that a few years ago stood soundly as fundamentalists are now
fractionalizing all over the nation. Instead of having several large,
strong groups, we are splitting into scores of small organizations. What
has caused this fragmentation or fractionalization? There is no
doubt in my mind that our leaders, many of them envisioning dreams of
personal greatness and bit by the virus of bigness, have been led astray
into unscriptural channels of compromise. Many of them laugh and scoff at
old-fashioned scriptural standards of separation. Many have lost
completely the scriptural concept of the local church. As a result, there
has been a steady “grass—roots” awakening and turning back to biblical
<i>PRINCIPLES</i> and <i>STANDARDS</i> and <i>SEPARATION</i>—and I say
<i>AMEN!<br>
</i>
Let’s not support compromise! Let’s arise to the need of the hour, pay
the price whatever the cost, and “stand in the gap before men for the
land.” It may cost! It may hurt! We may lose some friends! I may lose
meetings over the issue, but I have spent 45 years in the gospel ministry
and I don’t want to spend my sunset years of my life walking arm in arm
with ecumenical compromise and dishonoring associations. We may not
walk with the majority but we can be a fundamental minority. This was
true in Christ’s day as well as Paul’s and it can be true of us being
faithful.
<br><br>
-- by Vic Sears<br>
<br>
<br>
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