THE TRAGEDY OF SIMULATION
What can be called a tragedy in families where disasters such as drug abuse and satanism occur, is that the parents were mostly married in a Christian church. If asked, both usually confirm that they are Christians, regularly attending church services. Yet – the power of the Lord is obviously absent in their everyday existence. Now, being raised in the atmosphere of such simulated religion, the children, and each coming generation, will lose all notion of the necessity of religion in their lives. They will probably accuse their parents of hypocrisy and might even turn their backs on the parents. The result is serious social problems, as are being experienced in once religious countries such as England, Germany, the Netherlands and in South Africa.
BE VICTORIUS IN TROUBLED TIMES
2 Timothy 3: 1-5 tells us about the last days before the second coming of Christ:
“This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, Traitors, heady, high-minded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away”
To answer the question: “What, then, is power-filled religion?” we shall have to go to the Bible. The Bible, nowadays largely regarded by the modern world as outmoded, is explicit in giving answers to the questions troubling the modern (post-modern!) mind, to enable man to live an utterly victorious life in these troubled times.
WEAK AND FOOLISH
1 Corinthians 1:27 simples like a contradiction:
“But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty.”
And to find the answers for oneself is no difficult task. Most of us in any case know what is right and what is wrong. Behaviour and spiritual therapists and scientists have with time developed guidelines with the necessary principles for a decent society. But even in this regard the power or goodwill towards sustainably maintaining the most basic principles is lacking.
ADVICE BUT NO WILLPOWER
Social workers, psychologists and therapists in various other fields dealing with human relationships will confirm that much stress and frustration could be eliminated if their patients would only “follow the instructions” (if all else fails…). Today there’s no lack of good advice, but – there is definitely a lack in the willpower to bring about the solution to its final conclusion. Romans 7: 18 – 21 says
“For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me.”
WE NEED SELF-RESTRAINT
These words uttered by the apostle Paul, describing his own sinful nature, might not sound unfamiliar to each one of us… As for myself – time and again I had decided to give up smoking but lacked the power to carry out the good resolution. Then eventually the Lord freed me from that detestable and unhealthy habit. The same behaviour can be perceived in our marriage relationships. We are well aware of that which will please our partner and will improve and bring new endearment in our relationship, yet we seem not to achieve it. And then, on the other side, what stinging words will flow from our mouths when either, or both, are seemingly offended, with what reproaches following, due to a lack of self-restraint!
EGO REPLACES CHRIST
Looking deeper, we see that this law mentioned by Paul is actually the power of the flesh, that is of the ego and of selfishness. Going even further, we have to confess that it is this EGO that steps to the foreground, preventing us from acting in the manner of the loving Christ.
SATAN’S LIES VERSUS GOD’S LOVE
We know that it is Satan’s most fervent wish to be raised above God. This desire sprouts from his utterly selfish and falsely proud nature. Therefore Satan infects the flesh of mankind with the same desires. This was after all the strategy with which he lured Adam and Eve from God, through their disobedience. Satan claimed that God had withheld a certain wisdom from Adam and Eve, and that he himself would be more beneficial to them. According to him, they only had to eat from the forbidden fruit, to find out what wisdom God was withholding. Thus the Evil One induced into them mistrust of God and of the essence of His nature, namely LOVE.
ACID ON CEMENT
Mistrust is one of the most vicious or venomous weapons in Satan’s arsenal, particularly where it concerns the relation between husband and wife. Distrust of the partner’s love is equal to applying acid to the cement that holds the walls of a building together. Soon the walls of your marriage building will start crumbling, and the structure will collapse. God is love. 1 John 4: 8 – 13 tells us:
“He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love. In this was manifested the love of God toward us because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another. No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us. Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit.”
BUILDING THE WALLS OF MARRIAGE
God proved His love through His immeasurably unselfish act of allowing His Son to suffer on account of our selfishness and sins. The core of all sin is selfishness –the acid that erodes the cement of the marriages. What, then, is that power which we lack, to overcome the force of selfishness? God gave us His Spirit, to help us build constructively the walls of our marriages – not the acid that destroys them!
DR KRIGE AND HOUSE REGENERATION
This adapted content was extracted from Make your Stand, authored by Dr Ado Krige, the Founding Director of House Regeneration, a South African drug rehabilitation centre offering a comprehensive discipleship training program. By applying principles of Biblical Therapy, using the Scriptures to teach, rebuke, correct, and train in righteousness, House Regeneration counsellors show anyone who has suffered from addiction how to fully understand why they do what they do and how to bring their belief systems in line with the Word of God.
