Brandee LB
"So you spend 11 years in a church building, rarely in the word, trusting all you're being taught and questioning nothing.
You go with the flow, keep the ( fake) peace, never have a hard thing to say about anything or anyone. One day the Lord opens your eyes to the great deception you are in and tells you to read the word to know who He is. So you begin a 6-year journey with the Lord to pretty much put down all books except for the Word and really get to know Him.
The scales are removed as you see how very much of what you were taught and believed is not in His book. He begins to show you warnings( when before you had only feasted on the blessings and promises once a week if that), and He shows you things like sound doctrine( mentioned over 20x in the NT).\
Things like don't be sound asleep by the hollow philosophies of the world, and not to get into the traditions of man but to hold fast the faith delivered by the apostles. He shows you that His true shepherds are to protect from the wolves, not endorse them.
You see the instruction to imitate Paul as he imitates Christ...you see Christ and Paul warning and rebuking false teachings constantly.
You see a warning that says when we don't love the truth, GOD will turn us over to the delusion to believe the lie. You see that it's the false teachers that bring in the divisions ( not the people who defend the truth of the word).
You see how the term ekklesia means His called-out ones. You see the commands to come out, be separate, touch not the unclean thing, and He will receive you.
You see the command to test and prove all things and hold fast to that which is good. You see that it says Satan transforms himself into an angel of LIGHT and his ministers are ministers of RIGHTEOUSNESS(those in the church), you see that the Antichrist will come with all LYING signs and wonders in accordance with lawlessness.
You see that Jezebel spoken of in revelation is actually false doctrine. You see God expects you to fight to overcome sin and the flesh. You see that you are not a child of God if you love the world or things of the world.
You see Paul calls people names for their falseness and lies. You see that it says if you make a habit of practicing sin, you are of your father the devil. You see that without holiness, no one will see the Lord.
You see that you have to die to yourself and live for Christ. You see that you must worship in Spirit and Truth. You see you will be hated by all for His name's sake. You see God does not tolerate a mixture of any kind with idolatry or false gods.
You see that Paul told believers to watch out for a fake gospel and a fake Jesus and that we can receive a different spirit. ( This one will cost you salvation as a false gospel doesn't save)
All of a sudden, you realize you weren't following the Jesus of the scriptures and the rainbows and butterflies really were not part of this journey after all.
You realize you only knew one side of Him and you're unprepared. You had no fear of God, no reverence or respect and you almost died in your sinful state. The veil is removed, you suit up in full armor after realizing that your Jesus, THE Jesus has called you into the battlefield for Him.
You realize the sword of the spirit is the word of God...it's your weapon and it's going to cut and divide. You begin to learn to stand, deflecting the darts of Satan with your shield of faith, girding up your loins with the belt of truth. People fall all around you. They hate you. They don't know what you are doing because the other Jesus just says love and believe.
He says don't say anything harsh, don't stand against anything. He says compromise truth for the sake of (false) peace. He says if someone is falling off a cliff, let them fall( in love of course). He says ( taking scripture out of context as usual " God hates division" and keeps you bound and imprisoned to lies and unified in deception.
So the worn soldier who once had nothing to say because that's what they were told, rises up in holy boldness and learns the cost of this journey.
Now labeled as divisive and having a critical spirit because they learned they only had half of the truth for all those years in the beginning, now they test and prove all things as they are commanded in the word. They have learned caution and guarding their heart. They have learned to try to rescue loved ones they see being burned by the flames. They don't want anyone to endure what they did in great deception.
They know the stats are that 90% of our youth are walking away by age 20 and they want to bring change and a return to biblical Christianity. They lay down all approval of man and begin to live for an audience of One, knowing to whom they will answer when all is said and done and simply want to hear " well done my good and faithful servant. You guarded My Word, you were diligent in sowing all of My truths, you did not cower in fear and always chose to obey Me and not man, well done and welcome home!"
What a journey this can be when we are really put to the test. Will we stand by Him or by man? Will we risk it all? What is left to lose? Have we been hated for His name?
Lord, strengthen us with might, by Your Spirit in our inner man. Permeate us with truth and remove all compromise. May we know you according to your word and not our vain imaginations. Forgive us father, for we know not what we do.
