I've been thinking of the following two verses:
Such persuasion does not come from the One who calls you. A little yeast leavens the whole batch of dough. -- Galatians 5:8,9
And he cautioned them, saying, “Watch out; beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod. Mark 8:15
We Christians have to be careful of what and who we allow to speak into our lives. Whether those speakers are pastors, televangelists, prophets (Pharisees) or worldly media or politics (Herod)
A small example. Christians in the USA began to use the media to preach religion. This became the Christian media. Then they began using the Christian media to preach politics. At the same time, the conservative secular media (political, social, and racial issues) saw how good it would be to have Conservative Christians on their side so they took on some of the messages of the Christian media. A strange merging began.
This is where the idea of a little yeast affects the whole lump.
Sometimes I find myself listening to a radio station and I really can't figure out whether it's a Christian station or not. The DJs talk about politics and racial issues and who should be ruling the government so much that it feels as if the Christian radio has lost its TRUE MESSAGE. I understand businesses have to make money, and listeners like listening to people talk. But the dough of conservative Christianity has been taken over by the yeast of Herod. The gospel of the kingdom has given way to the human desire to have an earthly paradise.
The yeast of the Pharisees has already infiltrated Christianity these past 2000 years. Legalism has surpassed Grace in many respect. People preach the tree of the knowledge of good and evil more than they preach the tree of life. The pure simple gospel is very rarely preached without folks adding cultural accretions.
Although Christian Bible-believing progressives don't really have a radio station -- that I'm aware of-- we should also be careful of the yeast of Herod. We also should be careful of how we preach the gospel and what yeast we put into it.
Such persuasion does not come from the One who calls you. A little yeast leavens the whole batch of dough. -- Galatians 5:8,9
And he cautioned them, saying, “Watch out; beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod. Mark 8:15
We Christians have to be careful of what and who we allow to speak into our lives. Whether those speakers are pastors, televangelists, prophets (Pharisees) or worldly media or politics (Herod)
A small example. Christians in the USA began to use the media to preach religion. This became the Christian media. Then they began using the Christian media to preach politics. At the same time, the conservative secular media (political, social, and racial issues) saw how good it would be to have Conservative Christians on their side so they took on some of the messages of the Christian media. A strange merging began.
This is where the idea of a little yeast affects the whole lump.
Sometimes I find myself listening to a radio station and I really can't figure out whether it's a Christian station or not. The DJs talk about politics and racial issues and who should be ruling the government so much that it feels as if the Christian radio has lost its TRUE MESSAGE. I understand businesses have to make money, and listeners like listening to people talk. But the dough of conservative Christianity has been taken over by the yeast of Herod. The gospel of the kingdom has given way to the human desire to have an earthly paradise.
The yeast of the Pharisees has already infiltrated Christianity these past 2000 years. Legalism has surpassed Grace in many respect. People preach the tree of the knowledge of good and evil more than they preach the tree of life. The pure simple gospel is very rarely preached without folks adding cultural accretions.
Although Christian Bible-believing progressives don't really have a radio station -- that I'm aware of-- we should also be careful of the yeast of Herod. We also should be careful of how we preach the gospel and what yeast we put into it.
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