Fighting the Four Evils

Many in the modern Church in the west are smug behind their wealth. That includes not just those with large houses,  high levels of disposable income, and high-paying jobs. No, includes the many who do not consider themselves rich, but have a house to live in with electricity with a job, or who receive government assistance for the basic needs. Many of such people are just as proud in their hearts as those with large houses, much disposable income and high-paying jobs. Such people often do not realise that they are trusting in mammon, as opposed to God. A person trusts one or the other (Matthew 6:24).  They focus on long-term financial planning to ensuring that they and their families needs will be met, instead of simply trusting in God. They look forward to simply enjoying their "retirement", as opposed to working to advance in the Kingdom of God and do good works. They simply want to enjoy spending their life savings in old age, instead of giving their extra money or we...

This is an excellent summary of Church history in the reformation era by Ted Shoebat . The death of Christendom was capitalised upon by profit-orientated merchants to bring in a mammonised financial system, all under the guise of 'industry': With the decline of Christendom came the rise of industrialism. Profit was put on a pedestal at the expense of virtuous valor. Hence, in the 16th century, with the rise of protestantism, the gradual cultivation of nationalism, and the indifferentism of much of the Catholic States, we find France, Naples, Venice and Genoa, making alliances with the Ottomans for commerce; we find Calvinist Hungarians fighting Catholics under Ottoman favor; we find the Calvinist Dutch attacking Catholics in Tunisia; we find the French making military incursions in alliance with the Ottomans against Catholic Christendom; we find Dutch pirates capturing Christians for sex trafficking (selling both women and young boys) under both the Dutch flag and ...

Wilt thou set thine eyes upon that which is not? for riches certainly make themselves wings; they fly away as an eagle toward heaven (Proverbs 23:5). If there is one thing that everyone is concerned about, it is financial security. Not a fulfilling career, luxury cars, houses, relationships, or leisure, but financial security. It is simply so natural to the flesh to be concerned about earthly financial security, and set one's mind on such. Christian commentator Ted Shoebat of shoebat.com wrote on his facebook page: The conventional perception on wealth is an illusion. Just because you have a lot does not make you wealthy. True wealth is a life without debt, a simple life, and a life living within one's means. Indeed, Mr Shoebat is correct. The conventional perception of wealth is that of possession and money amassed to some 'sufficient level', such that one can be financially 'secure'. Well my friends, let me tell you this: there is nothing secure ...

Australia currently has the highest level of personal debt in the world. A survey by Barna, a research organisation "focused on the intersection of faith and culture" reported in 2015 that the debt levels of Christians in America are about the same as that of their secular counterparts .  It seems like there is really no difference between the Church and the world in the west, on the issue of debt. Debt is a trap. The Bible contains many warnings to not be a guarantor for another. Proverbs, the book of wisdom gives many such warnings: My son, if you become surety for your friend, If you have shaken hands in pledge for a stranger, 2  You are snared by the words of your mouth; You are taken by the words of your mouth. 3  So do this, my son, and deliver yourself; For you have come into the hand of your friend: Go and humble yourself; Plead with your friend. 4  Give no sleep to your eyes, Nor slumber to your eyelids. 5  Deliver yourself like a gazelle from the h...

Many Christians think that usury is justifiable in commerce, but not among brothers and sisters in Christ. This is a double standard that is so prevalent in the modern western Church in relation to usury. It is respect for persons as Romans 2:11 and Acts 10:34 refers to, in selecting what part of God's Commandment one wants to obey, and what part one does not want to obey. Ezekiel 18:13 says: Hath given forth upon usury, and hath taken increase: shall he then live? he shall not live: he hath done all these abominations; he shall surely die; his blood shall be upon him. Jesus Himself also said:  And if ye lend to them of whom ye hope to receive, what thank have ye? for sinners also lend to sinners, to receive as much again (Luke 6:34). Is that not enough for you to be convinced that usury per se is a sin? Even sinners, the world expects to receive back what one lends. It is not that not charging usury makes one righteous. It is only the basic given that one should not ch...

Australians just love their 'super'. They look forward to their years in 'retirement' where they can just "enjoy life". This includes many Australian Christians, orthodox, evangelical and conservative Christians, who have no idea just what spirit they are under. They also think that there is nothing wrong with super. However, this just testifies to how under the spirit of mammon they are, and how enslaves they are to him. There is even a company called Christian Super . They say on their website: Do you care how your hard-earned super is being invested? Would you like to receive social and environmental returns, along with financial returns? Like sending students to university, investing in hospitals, producing clean water, creating affordable housing, developing green energy… all while avoiding things that harm people and our planet. Christian Super are ethical investing experts. 100% of our investments are ethically screened based on values we fi...

Usury is ubiquitous in the modern world. The whole global financial system is trapped in a spider web of usury. No wonder it has been called "The Web of Debt", which is of course the title of author and lawyer Ellen Brown's book.  Usury does not only affect the person who is actually charging usury on loans in the modern world. It affects people on a mass scale. It also affects not only borrowers and lenders who are actively borrowing and lending. It affects also what can be called 'passive lenders'.  Passive lenders are those who are not actively charging interest or usury on loans, but benefit from usury as a result of receiving a gain on investments or bank deposits. They have a bank account, which accumulates usury on it. Since almost everyone in the west invariably has a bank account, including people borrowing money to buy a house, almost everyone is a usurer, not by choice, but as a result of the actions of others.  That precisely is the situation in ...

The modern Church in Australia has at least as many problems as the modern Church in America as Pastor Paul Washer refers to in this classical sermon called Ten Indictments Against the Modern Church in America : It is full of the fear of man and the love of mammon, all without realising it. It is trying to serve not only God and mammon, but also God and man. This manifests in all kinds of ways, in that irritating, man-fearing, man-pleasing way in which it evagelises to the lost. To make things worse, it is so keen to impose its man-fearing and man-pleasing methods of evangelism on those who are truly seeking to reach the lost, causing them to fall.  It also is so influenced by the world's ways of handing finances. There is even a 'christian' company called 'Christian Super'. Really? You've got to be kidding. But, no it is true. Instead of obeying Jesus when he said: 19  Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, a...

Usury is interest on a loan, a charge made for lending. The Bible calls it an abomination (Ezekiel 18:13). Even secular atheistic people have condemned usury for being exploitative and evil. The ancient world, as wicked as it was, condemned usury, in the true sense of the term, that is, all interest on a loan. It was not only seen as unacceptable, but treated as an evil means of oppression and the height of all avarice. Usurers in the ancient world were satirised, mocked and ridiculed through literature.  To borrow and not repay is wicked in itself (Psalm 37:21). So, people who borrow money from a bank or another financial institution act and do not repay act wickedly. They are obliged to repay all their debts to the lender and will give an account to God for not doing so on the Day of Judgment. This is because borrowing and not repaying is  a sin. However, on the other hand, there are savers who receive 'returns' on their deposits, properly called usury, who in receiving su...

From whence come wars and fightings among you? come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members? Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not (James 4:1-2). We live in a world full of conflicts, wars, tension and fighting. The world asks, how to solve all these conflicts, all while accommodating for the self-interest of all parties, by preaching that people should simply negotiate. Negotiation as practiced by the world is full of immoral, unethical deals, where people and nations are willing to not kill a person they already hate, which is already murder in the heart (1 John 3:15) , just because of money. However, the spiritually mature follower of Christ knows that none of these conflicts can be solved in any way, nor that it is even about 'solving' conflicts. Rather, he asks, what is in the heart of a man that causes him to fight. James 4:1-2 poses and answers this question: ...

Many in the modern western Church think that finance and the Bible is separate. They think that finance is secular and the Bible is sacred, drawing the secular versus sacred divide between them.  The division between sacred and secular is a false one, based on false doctrine that the Christian must compartmentalise his life. The classic, not certainly not the sole example of this thinking is that one worships God at church, a sacred place on Sunday, and then does earthly things for the rest of his week which has nothing to do with worshiping God. Such is the false doctrine of compartmentalisation.  For here is what Scriptures says: Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but even their mind and conscience is defiled (Titus 1:15). To the true follower of Christ, all things are pure, that is all things are sacred. For all things which one does to live for the glory of God are pure, for one lives to seek God and His rig...

Many in the modern western Church do not really understand what it means to to be under the spirit of mammon, both intellectually in their minds, and spiritually in their hearts. They do not even understand the doctrine of the spirit of mammon. This is the most shocking of all, because the Church is supposed to understand what mammon is, but of course, the modern Church does not. The unsaved have a better, albeit thoroughly flawed and corrupt understanding of what mammon is. This itself is an indictment of the modern Church in the west.  Indeed, this is disturbing that the Church does not even have knowledge which it should have. Hosea 4:6 says: "My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children." To be under the spirit of mammon does not necessarily mean that one has a demon physically living ins...