Just Like in the Days of Noah

Remember, too, that many, many people in the waters below the ark were relatives of Noah. I find it interesting that God did not tell Noah to close the door of the ark; God closed it. I have to believe it was because God did not want Noah to go the rest of his life feeling he was the one who would not let them in to save them. He trusted in God and God did it.

 
Most of our relatives will reject Christ. Some will claim they have Him but do not obey Him. 

Matthew 7:21-23 "21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ 23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’

 
Matthew 7:13-15 "13 Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. 14 But small is the gate and narrow the way that leads to life, and only a few find it. 15 Beware of false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves."

The Lazy Cleaning Lady is Easier to Spot than the Phony Christian

I knew a woman who hired cleaning ladies, and each time the job was finished, she was pleased. The cleaners were pleasant, did a good job (or so she thought), and worked quickly (Maybe too quickly.

Then one day the woman's husband dropped some water on the kitchen floor; he bent down to wipe it up with a paper towel, and on the towel was a lot of dirt. The cleaners had been there just two days earlier.

The cleaning ladies had neglected to clean the floors well because they didn't look dirty. It was the kind of flooring that hid the dirt. There were other things she noticed, tables that were undusted and other things, but she passed them off as small matters.

This reminded me of the Christian life. Some people act pious and full of pride about how good they think they are while displaying false humility to others around them.

These people look clean on the outside, but on the inside they are basically lazy and counterfeit, pretending on the outside while full of anger and disrespect on the inside.

Notice that the floor didn't LOOK as dirty as it was in the case of the false cleaning ladies. The woman who hired the cleaners thought the floors had been mopped. When she discovered just the opposite was true, the floors had not been mopped; they had been spritzed a little to make it look like they had been cleaned.

Many false Christians have learned how to appear righteous; they don't do the big bad things people can point to, but they use covert and subtle tactics to harm others. One of those tactics is deliberate misinterpretation of things they observe about others.

These covert, mean-spirited, and disrespectful people would look wonderful to those who had not been the target of their covert operations.

The world is full of these types of people who play a long game of religiosity, special and pious in front of those they wish to impress while harming those they do not respect in private.

Their respect is not based on character; it is based on personal worldly accomplishments everyone can see. Those of character are despised by the covert actors; they hate the honesty and integrity of those who refuse to be manipulated into reactions that do not please God.

God spoke of these types of people in His Word, and sadly those who were the worst of all were the religious leaders of that day. We have these kinds of people in our day too, religious to the core with all their rules and man-made standards that God never commanded while acting superior to those they think are beneath them.

Matthew 23:1-28 "1 Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples,
2 “The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses' seat, 3 so do and observe whatever they tell you, but not the works they do. For they preach, but do not practice.
4 They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on people's shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to move them with their finger.
5 They do all their deeds to be seen by others. For they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long,
6 and they love the place of honor at feasts and the best seats in the synagogues
7 and greetings in the marketplaces and being called rabbi by others.
8 But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brothers.
9 And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven.
10 Neither be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Christ.
11 The greatest among you shall be your servant.
12 Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted."

13 “But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you shut the kingdom of heaven in people's faces. For you neither enter yourselves nor allow those who would enter to go in.
15 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you travel across sea and land to make a single proselyte, and when he becomes a proselyte, you make him twice as much a child of hell as yourselves."

16 “Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘If anyone swears by the temple, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.’
17 You blind fools! For which is greater, the gold or the temple that has made the gold sacred?
18 And you say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar, it is nothing, but if anyone swears by the gift that is on the altar, he is bound by his oath.’
19 You blind men! For which is greater, the gift or the altar that makes the gift sacred?
20 So whoever swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it.
21 And whoever swears by the temple swears by it and by him who dwells in it.
22 And whoever swears by heaven swears by the throne of God and by him who sits upon it."

23 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier matters of the law: justice and mercy and faithfulness. These you ought to have done, without neglecting the others.
24 You blind guides, straining out a gnat and swallowing a camel!"

25 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and the plate, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence.
26 You blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and the plate, that the outside also may be clean."

27 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs, which outwardly appear beautiful, but within are full of dead people's bones and all uncleanness.
28 So you also outwardly appear righteous to others, but within you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness."

We have modern-day Pharisees in our time, many seminary graduates who take positions in the churches demanding allegiance to them while perverting the Scriptures for their own gain. The love and admiration of the people they lead is of greater importance to them than pleasing God through obedience to Him.
These people follow the culture, not Christ.

It is vitally important that we trust Christ, not men. When we trust Christ, we will feel compelled to correct those who think they are superior to God through their negating of the Scriptures to further their own agenda.

Mark 7:13
"13 thus making void the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And many such things you do.”

This is the end times world we are living in; sadly, it is so familiar to us that we overlook what should be corrected. It seems as though correction is needed so constantly that we give up, realizing very few will listen. This is when we trust in the Holy Spirit on when to speak, when to remain silent, and when to just walk away so that we obey God in not throwing our pearls before swine.

We don't remain silent because we are cowardly; we do so because we know the one who defies Christ will deliberately cause a fight to be able to lie against us. We must not fight with those who want us to fight.

1 Corinthians 5:11 "But now I am writing to you not to associate with anyone who bears the name of brother if he is guilty of sexual immorality or greed, or is an idolater, reviler, drunkard, or swindler—not even to eat with such a one."

I think it is wise to also stay away from Christians who support those who claim to be Christian but violate more of God's Word than they obey. Those who support the violators are the same as those who disobey God. They are one in the spirit of rebellion.

Praise God, the time is short, and soon God will come and make things right.