Having said that, I fear – as I often do – that the modern Christian culture is working overtime to blur the lines of clarity. Most particularly us who are ministers; I believe we have not prioritized explaining to people the basics of the Christian faith, for example, I challenge you right now to randomly pick any church member and ask them this question, “What is the Gospel, what must I do to enter heaven?” and you will be surprised to discover that there is no clear answer to this simple question. Even ministers themselves are not clear about this, believe it or not.
It’s the same story when people discuss the issue of false prophets; who are obviously damaging the reputation of God’s Name through bad doctrines, lying prophecies, financial exploitation and sexual abuses. Yet God’s people cannot, I mean they are not able to clearly notice who those deceivers are, and to warn fellow believers about them. Instead, the most famous statement you will hear is, “There are many false prophets around, let’s be careful.” Dear friends, that is the most unhelpful and confusing thing you will ever say to your fellow Christian men because the major question that still remains is, who are they? Get specific and name them so that all of us can be warned about those particular individuals. Read your Bible and you will see Christ’s sheep naming those who were obvious deceivers, so as to help the Church. For example;
2 Timothy 4:15 – Alexander the coppersmith did me great harm; the Lord will repay him according to his deeds. Beware of him yourself, for he strongly opposed our message.
3 John 1:9-10 – I have written something to the church, but Diotrephes, who likes to put himself first, does not acknowledge our authority. So if I come, I will bring up what he is doing, talking wicked nonsense against us. And not content with that, he refuses to welcome the brothers, and also stops those who want to and puts them out of the church.
Mark 8:15 – And he cautioned them, saying, “Watch out; beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the leaven of Herod.”
Yes, name them! God’s people (including your own children) want to know where the danger is, so they can mark and avoid it. That is the purest form of love, in my opinion. Yet, if you say to me that you cannot do that; you just can’t mention people’s names, then you might as well accept the fact that you are failing to follow a clear Biblical pattern, and the reason is that you only care about yourself and what worldly people think about you, not what is helpful to your fellow brethren.
I have the same concern with most of what is called “prophecy” today. I am still in the long wait to hear a prophet who would speak clearly, and specifically about what’s coming in the near future. For example, I was listening to a certain soul who calls himself a “seer.” He went very long describing what he saw; a flying eagle, a huge mountain, a running horse, a fallen tree and a whole lot of confusing riddles and parables that help no one, if not confuse God’s people all the more. In your prophetic utterances, please get more specific and give us names, places, dates, and times; as clear and loud as possible. Otherwise, just hold your peace until you have something that would actually benefit Christ’s sheep (hawu bantu!).
Here is a Biblical example again…
2 Kings 7:1 – But Elisha said, “Hear the word of the LORD: thus says the LORD, Tomorrow about this time a seah of fine flour shall be sold for a shekel, and two seahs of barley for a shekel, at the gate of Samaria.”
Jeremiah 20:5-6 – Moreover, I will give all the wealth of the city, all its gains, all its prized belongings, and all the treasures of the kings of Judah into the hand of their enemies, who shall plunder them and seize them and carry them to Babylon. And you, Pashhur, and all who dwell in your house, shall go into captivity. To Babylon you shall go, and there you shall die, and there you shall be buried, you and all your friends, to whom you have prophesied falsely.”
I hope you can notice through these verses above that God is specific, detailed and very clear when He speaks; nor is He afraid of naming and shaming anyone if need be, because He is not a respecter of persons. Therefore, those who claim to speak on His behalf, and us who represent Him on this earth, don’t you think it is of great benefit if we are known for being clear and straightforward in whatever issues we deal with? More so during this time when the world seems to be confused about simple things like what is the difference between a man and a woman, can you imagine?
Conclusion
The main function of the torch light is to illuminate the way; exposing all the ditches and dangers that lurk in darkness. In the same way, since we are the light of this world, it is our duty to illuminate the path to Biblical truth, and expose all the liars and their friends. All this vague, generalization of the Christian truth causes more harm than good because, in the end, we won’t know who is for us and who is against; who we must listen to and who must be avoided. For the last time I plead, get more specific and tell us their names!
Sinothi Ncube
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