Matthew 28:16-20
We have experienced all types of invasions, such as the electronic devices in our homes. I have been fighting a bad infestation of the wisteria vine at the edge of my yard. This vine invades in a hurry.
On June 6, 1944 Operation Overlord, also known as D Day, marked the start of the Battle of Normandy. The battle lasted from June of 1944 to August, 1944. It resulted in the Allied liberation of Western Europe from Nazi Germany’s control. On D Day, 156,000 American, British, and Canadian forces landed on five beaches along a 50 mile stretch of heavily fortified coast of France. The attack began at 6:30 am.
The British and Canadians overcame light opposition to capture beaches code-named Gold, Juno, and Sword as the Americans did at Utah beach. The American forces faced heavy resistance at Omaha Beach where there were over 2,000 American casualties. By days’ end, 156,000 allied troops stormed the Normandy Beaches.
According to some estimates, more than 4,000 Allied troops lost their lives in the D Day invasion with thousands more wounded or missing. Less than a week later, June 11, the beaches were fully secured. Over 326,000 troops, more than 50,000 vehicles, and some 100,000 tons of equipment had landed in Normandy.
One thing that helped the invasion to be successful was that the Allied forces carried out a massive deception campaign in advance of D Day. This invasion was about the liberation of the people in Europe from Hitler’s Nazi socialism. People have very short memories and now the evil of socialism is alive and well even in America.
We look at the history of Israel and we see the invasion that took place in the religious life of a nation. God called Moses to bring Israel out of slavery to the Promised Land. When Moses died, Joshua would lead Israel into the Promised Land. Then Joshua warned the people, “you are not able to serve the Lord. He is a holy and jealous God. He will not forgive your rebellion and your sins. If you abandon the Lord and serve other gods, he will turn against you and destroy you, even though he has been so good to you.”
“But the people answered Joshua, ‘no, we will serve the Lord’.” Joshua 24:21. The truth is people have very short memories. The people would forget the laws God gave to them to live by. They would follow pagan gods. They believed and followed phony Baal prophets and allowed wicked people to be their kings and rulers. “Kings like Ahab and his wife Jezebel. Ahaziah son of Ahab ruled over Israel in the seventieth year of King Jehosophat’s reign in Judah. He reigned in Samaria two years. But he did what was evil in the Lord’s sight, following the example of his father and mother and the example of Jeroboam, son of Nebat, who had led Israel to sin. He served Baal and worshipped him, provoking the anger of the Lord, the God of Israel, just as his father had done.” I Kings 22:51-53.
Israel rejected God’s Book of the Law and they no longer celebrated Passover, for the people had very short memories of what God did to free them from the bondage of slavery. In fact they rejected God’s prophets for they did not listen and they killed many of the prophets God sent to them.
God came in human form in Jesus Christ but he was rejected, put to death on the cross, but God’s plan in the Resurrection was to overcome sin and death for his people and form a new Israel. It would be the Church. He gave to us, the church, the Great Commission. “Jesus came and told his disciples ‘I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20
But we have people with short memories. We have forgotten what God did for us on his cross and in his resurrection. In faith in the living Christ we have new life for we are born of God’s Holy Spirit. He restored us to be his children that we might live with him in eternal fellowship. But today, the church has been invaded by Baal prophets that rejected the scriptures that tell us of God’s love and God’s judgment. They tell us we don’t need repentance for we all are going to heaven no matter how we live or what we do. That is the concept of universalism. These Baal prophets are the phony preachers; the weak and wicked professors that are teaching these ministers the concepts of universalism. Bishops are called to be the spiritual leaders but most of them are weak wicked leaders that foster humanism – and that is you can believe in just some god! You just need to believe. But what you believe must be shaped by socialism and politically-correct ideas.
Many of the so-called leaders in today’s church have rejected the Holy Word and the living word that formed and shaped the true church. Sin is still real and evil is alive but many of our leaders don’t call sin, sin and evil – evil. Jesus gave his life so his church could call people to repentance. When we experience the grace of Christ we go out and make disciples in the name of Jesus. The invasion of the church by phony Baal ministers, professors, and bishops has caused the broken and angry people in our time. Can this be changed? Yes, if we repent and accept God’s Great Commission that comes from His Cross and His resurrection. Now go and make disciples in all the world and teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you.
The scriptures are what formed the church. It is these scriptures that contain the words and power through grace to restore us as God’s children. In grace and love we can live in and with God’s family. Will we stop the invasion of evil into the church or will our short memories bring us to death and a living hell? “Yes, Jesus said, by faith in me I will build my church and all the power of hell will not conquer it.” I believe in the Word and God’s plan for us to be restored from sin and death to life.
