“My advice to you is to buy from me gold refined by fire, so that you may be rich; and white clothing, so that you may be dressed and not have to be ashamed of your nakedness; and eyesalve to rub on your eyes, so that you may see.” (Revelation 3:18)
This scripture in Revelation was given to the church of Laodicea although it is applicable to us today. The “gold refined by fire” is the Word of God. “The way of God is perfect; the word of the Lord is pure; He is a shield to all who seek refuge in Him.” (Psalms 18:31, Tanakh) “The words of the Lord are pure words, silver purged in an earthen crucible, refined sevenfold.” (Psalms 12:7 (6), Tanakh)
God is calling everyone to turn to his Word, which is perfect. Simply believing what is taught in churches or Bible study groups leaves a person at risk for believing falsehoods. The verse in Revelation gives direction in reading the pure Word of God. Eyesalve is the Holy Spirit which gives each individual insight and knowledge about scripture. Congregants now seem to believe that God only speaks to leaders of churches, although this simply is not true. He wants to speak into the lives of each and every individual through his Word.
In the United States there is a strong belief that this nation was founded on Christian values and is therefore a Christian nation. This is not a conclusion that can be formed by an accurate telling of history, and was actually founded on prejudice and hypocrisy. Thomas Jefferson famously wrote, “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
Slaves were not treated equally, and following the Civil War when slaves were freed, the white man set about to criminalize black people because they still wanted workers for their plantations. The thirteenth amendment created a loophole, exploited by white men in power, which allowed the white establishment to subject black people to forced, free labor once they had been arrested for a crime. Guess what! Blacks were arrested for nearly everything.
Thomas Jefferson struggled with the deity of Jesus, and created his own version of the New Testament minus the miracles of Jesus, his resurrection and claim to be the Son of God. He literally clipped out scriptures and pasted them together to create his own Bible, and spoke only of Jesus as a man with high morals, but without the Spirit. This is one of our founding fathers. It would be wise to compare the acts of our founding fathers to scripture. “For the wisdom from above is first of all pure, then peaceable, gentle, kind, and easily entreated (friendly); full of mercy, producing a harvest of good fruit, without prejudice or hypocrisy.” (James 3:17, compilation of various versions)
The apostles struggled with falsehoods creeping in during the first century. Now, some 2,000 years later, there are so many different versions of the Bible and teachings of various religious groups that the true Word of God is barely recognizable. It seems everyone is convinced that their version of Bible teaching is the truth, and everyone else is wrong. I propose that no religion is completely accurate, and Sunday School or Bible studies are just another avenue in which to influence a person about how to think. The parable in Proverbs 7 starts out describing what I believe to be congregants of any religion. “For I was at the window of my house, glancing out through the lattice, when I saw among the young men there, among those who don’t think for themselves, a young fellow devoid of all sense.” (Proverbs 7:6-7)
The Bible is clear about what religious leaders and their followers will look like in the ‘latter days.’ “Moreover, understand this: in the acharit-hayamim [latter days] will come trying times. People will be self-loving, money-loving, proud, arrogant, insulting, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, uncontrolled, brutal, hateful of good, traitorous, headstrong, swollen with conceit, loving pleasure rather than God, as they retain the outer form of religion but deny its power. Stay away from these people!” “For a time is coming when people will not have patience for sound teaching, but will cater to their passions and gather around themselves teachers who say whatever their ears itch to hear.” (II Timothy 3:1-5, 4:3)
Fool’s Gold is another name for Pyrite because this mineral can be mistaken for real gold. As stated in an article by Christian Capehart, “When exposed to humid air, pyrite reacts with oxygen and water to create iron sulfide (the rust), corrosive sulfuric acid and harmful sulfur dioxide gas. This chemical reaction, called pyrite disease, causes specimens to crack and crumble. Left unchecked, pyrite disease eventually destroys a specimen.” (Christian Capehart, “Pyrite Disease: Keeping Fool’s Gold Challenges Museums”, Canadian Museum of Nature Blog, January 9, 2019, canadianmuseumofnature.wordpress.com/2019/01/09/pyrite-disease/)
The reason I took the time to credit this relatively small excerpt is because I believe it is analogous to Christian lives today. Seemingly insignificant differences in biblical teaching create falsehoods that lead away from the truth. As the article states, “Left unchecked, pyrite disease eventually destroys a specimen.” As with Christianity. Continuing to follow the teachings of others rather than seek God on your own will eventually destroy your soul. But don’t take my word for it. Find out for yourself! I cannot lead you to truth any more than a pastor, priest, deacon, elder or bishop.
“Go in through the narrow gate; for the gate that leads to destruction is wide and the road is broad, and many travel it; but it is a narrow gate and a hard road that leads to life, and only a few find it.” (Matthew 7:13-14) God has a remnant, and I believe many are seated in church pews. “It’s the same way in the present age: there is a remnant, chosen by grace.” (Romans 11:5) Now is the time to find truth on your own. The Bible, read with the insight of the Holy Spirit, is the only source that will lead to Truth. Sermons, devotionals, ‘inspiring’ books, new interpretations of current or future events will not do. Seek God. On. Your. Own. He’s waiting. “When you seek me, you will find me, provided you seek for me wholeheartedly; and I will let you find me, says Adonai…” (Jeremiah 29:13-14)
*All scripture is from the Complete Jewish Bible unless noted otherwise