Scripture
Jeroboam then made two gold statues of calves. He showed them to the people and said, “Listen everyone! You won’t have to go to Jerusalem to worship anymore.”
~I Kings 12:28, CEV
Quote
All religions have a humanistic base whereas Christianity had a divine origin.
~Ya’akov
All religions have one thing in common: they were founded by man and they have a humanistic approach. Religions have man earning God’s favor but in Christianity, God’s favor is granted unconditionally by grace through the person and work of Christ who was God in the flesh. Christianity has a Savior whereas religions have founders. Who can start a new religion? I think the correct answer is anyone. Cain is the father of humanism and it is most certainly a religion; one that places man’s will above God’s. Jeroboam started his own religion. You talk about foolishness and poor judgment: Jeroboam must have been a dipstick. What he did was horrible and all to sooth his his feeble insecurity. Study his logic…“Everyone in Israel still goes to the temple in Jerusalem to offer sacrifices to the Lord. What if they become loyal to David’s family again? They will kill me and accept Rehoboam as their king.” Was this crazy or what: the Israelite’s were firm in their rebellion, they resented being ruled by the house of Judah in the first place. They had suffered twenty years of oppression under Solomon and they were resolute in their decision. There is no way they are going to go back to Rehoboam. Jeroboam simply let his insecurities get the best of him.
So, how do you form a new religion? First you give the people what they want. Israel was prone to worship idols so Jeroboam gave them two idols, the infamous golden calves like the one they made in the wilderness. Second, you make it convenient: no travel, no sacrifice–something quick and easy. Third: you must organize your religion by appointing leaders. Jeroboam ignored the Levites and appointed his own priest. Then you make it resemble the real thing: you don’t want folks accusing you of having a cult. Jeroboam set up his own festivals, just like the ones in Jerusalem. These festivals were officiated by the priest just like in Jerusalem. Jerusalem or Zion in many cases is synonymous with Jesus. God was trying to teach these hard headed Israelite’s that there is One acceptable Altar, One means or source of salvation. Most religions and cults have borrowed things from the bible and many of them feature Jesus but not as the ONLY SOURCE OR MEANS OF SALVATION. The Muslims believe in Jesus but only as a prophet and teacher. He is subservient to their created god.
Is there any dangers that a church could get caught up in the Jeroboam movement? Yes, I am afraid there are: in some cases we have fabricated a form of Christianity that doesn’t have a cross: one without suffering and self-denial. Cults are a deviation from true Christianity, a church can become a cult. One of the chief characteristics of a cult is that the human leader gets more praise than Jesus. Do you know of church members who are constantly singing the praises of their pastor but seldom mention Jesus. When the pastor has a greater following than Jesus, you have a cult. I don’t think we have to worry about Danville, I don’t believe it will become a cult any time soon. Preachers could fix this problem but unfortunately, some of them want to be worshiped.
A lot going on in this fallen world. Missouri passed a ban on abortion and of course their demo’s are up in arms. This is what one of the dem-wits said…
Sen. Karla May, who accused her colleagues across the aisle of “hypocrisy” for wanting to “protect the child in the womb” while letting Missourians struggle with inadequate healthcare and an unlivable wage. Wow! How do you compare killing a baby with low wages. Unbelievable!
I couldn’t get the video to upload but there is a bill in Congress to make it hard for us to refuse to help gays or transgenders on the use of bathrooms and our church buildings. The dem-wits are for it and they have the majority in the house, plus 8 RINOs.