I have lived a long time. Over half of those years, I spent serving in some form of leadership within the Church. I have never seen the depth of division I now see among people of faith. This division is not over eternal issues like the divinity of Jesus Christ or Him as the only way of salvation. It is not over the creeds of the Church. It is whether someone’s face should be covered or not or whether one should take an injection or not. It seems we are poised to create new denominations over these lesser issues.
These widening camps of division are becoming a new theological statement in the Western church. To those in the suffering and persecuted Church we seem like a people who have lost our way, and in some cases, our minds.
All of this division has an ultimate goal, a mission. It is an assault on our free will. Those trapped in the delusion of a one-size-fits-all choice on either side of these issues will raise objections to those with a differing perspective labeling them as unloving, uncaring, and uninformed. This saw of clarity cuts both ways for each position held on the significant issues we face. No one and no single position is immune from this attempt to restrict an expression of the human will.
The free will of an individual is a sacred gift. It is in the exercise of our free will where we choose to receive the offer of salvation from the Lord, or not. In a marriage, two people commit themselves to their spouse to a life-long partnership within the covenant of marriage. The freedom to choose is a critical element of life.
Satan is attempting to create a setting where a dark outcome can take place. He is trying to first control the free will of individuals and as a result of that individual control, entire cultures. This battle remains unseen by a majority of the Church, or if seen dismissed out of hand without a discerning inquiry. This is where the majority of spiritual warfare is taking place at this moment in history. Compliance vs. Non-compliance or Agreement vs. Non-Agreement is not the issue. If we ever arrive at a place where our will is forced to conform to a single mindset, we will have arrived at a place where any evil is possible.
Help us, Lord.
This is an updated edition of a post originally published on Garris Elkins
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