On the night of July 18, 64 AD a fire started in the great city of Rome and burned for seven nights. The crowded conditions and the primitive fire-fighting capabilities coupled together to make it a staggering disaster. The vast majority of the city was destroyed, and countless lives were lost.
One of the great stories [myths?] that arose from this catastrophic event was that the Emperor, Nero, literally “fiddled while Rome burnt.” While this has been debunked by factual accounts, the underlying truth it conveyed remains. Nero really did not care all that much about the city, or even the Empire. Nero cared about Nero. He was glad for the chance to rebuild the city in his own image as it were.
Depending upon whose timeline one uses, the final fall of the Roman Empire is dated somewhere around three hundred and fifty to four hundred years later. If we take the higher figure, then the Empire lasted nearly twice as long after Nero’s day than the amount of time America has been a fully independent nation.
The Roman Empire was not burned to the ground. It was destroyed from the inside, through pride, greed, political ambition, and fiscal irresponsibility.
Today, almost exactly 1,960 years after the fire, a similar disaster is taking place right before our eyes. But, since it is not an open conflagration, it goes almost unnoticed. If it were a great fire, everyone would see it happening. But because it is a gradual destruction from the inside, very few are even conscious of it. Sadly, although the fall of Rome has left us with many historical lessons we may or may not learn, the destruction I am speaking of is coming too soon for any lessons to be gleaned from it. And, it is coming as the result of nearly identical factors: pride, greed, political ambition [the lust for power], and fiscal irresponsibility.
I am speaking of the decline of the churches, and more specifically, the corruption and destruction of the whole concept of what really is a church in America. While it is gradual, as we shall see, there is a sense in which it is a great conflagration as well. I am reminded of the vivid scene in 2 Kings 6, where “the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha.” These fiery entities were there, but the servant of the prophet did not have eyes to see them. Similarly, though there is a great fire burning destructively within the churches, few really see it.
Much is made of various outside factors that could destroy the churches, and must be kept out. Depending upon which end of the spectrum[1] characterizes any specific assembly, the “dangerous outside factors” may be exact opposites, as we shall see. Meanwhile, the fire within burns with greater and greater ferocity, but is blissfully ignored. The servant’s eyes were opened when the prophet prayed that the Lord would open them. Any who do see the fire burning within must pray for the Lord to open more eyes.
The great fire in Rome during Nero’s day did not destroy the Empire, although it garnered enormous attention. But, the far greater fire was already at work within, gutting the Empire of its foundations. Similarly, today, while plenty of attention is paid to outside dangers that could destroy the churches if not guarded against rigidly, the fire burning in the church’s innards is already gutting it.
I hold no illusions that simply because I write a book like this there will be some great awakening to the decline of the churches from within. Few folks read my writings, and few in the churches being gutted from within will awaken even when the glaring realities are laid before them. That day in Samaria, when the fiery chariots were there, almost no one saw them.
Just because few have any interest in seeing things as they actually are does not mean that God is enamored of sticking His head into the sand as well. I have been more and more struck with the knowledge that the only thing that matters is seeing things as God sees them. And, of course, many who will not acknowledge the deterioration of the churches from within lay claim to being the only ones who do see what God sees. After all, they were placed in their assembly by God to be His mouthpiece,[2] therefore they must see what He sees. But in the days of His Incarnation on this earth the Lord was accosted by religious leaders claiming the very same thing. Consider John 9:
39 And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.
40 And some of the Pharisees which were with him heard these words, and said unto him, Are we blind also?
41 Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.
Since these religious leaders were unwilling to confess their terrible spiritual blindness, the Lord was forced to tell them of the judgment coming upon their terrible sin. Just because a religious leader claims to see what the Lord sees does not make it so. No such claim, based upon the ridiculous notion that such a blind leader surely knows the mind of God simply because he is a leader, holds any credibility before God Who sees all things.
This really lies at the heart of all that we will be talking about. Since it is the acknowledged leaders who determine how the people think, if the leaders get offended by the implication that they deliberately turn a blind eye to the fire burning within, so do the people. Thus, few will listen. Nevertheless, this must not silence the voices that God wants to raise up, even as He did centuries ago. Consider His words to Ezekiel: [3:4-11]
4 And he said unto me, Son of man, go, get thee unto the house of Israel, and speak with my words unto them.
5 For thou art not sent to a people of a strange speech and of an hard language, but to the house of Israel;
6 Not to many people of a strange speech and of an hard language, whose words thou canst not understand. Surely, had I sent thee to them, they would have hearkened unto thee.
7 But the house of Israel will not hearken unto thee; for they will not hearken unto me: for all the house of Israel are impudent and hardhearted.
8 Behold, I have made thy face strong against their faces, and thy forehead strong against their foreheads.
9 As an adamant harder than flint have I made thy forehead: fear them not, neither be dismayed at their looks, though they be a rebellious house.
10 Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, all my words that I shall speak unto thee receive in thine heart, and hear with thine ears.
11 And go, get thee to them of the captivity, unto the children of thy people, and speak unto them, and tell them, Thus saith the Lord God; whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear.
Ezekiel had no illusions about the “success” of his ministry. He was plainly told by the Lord Himself that they would not listen. So then, why even bother going and speaking? In the previous chapter the Lord had already plainly told Ezekiel why: [2:5]
5 And they, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear, (for they are a rebellious house,) yet shall know that there hath been a prophet among them.
It really didn’t matter that they were not going to listen. What mattered was that God will have sent them the Truth, and they could never deny having heard it. So it is today. Genuine messengers of God have no concern with “results.” Our calling is to speak all the words of God, regardless of the “results.” We are to hold no fantasies of “success” or “failure” as determined by the very men who deny any form of deliberate blindness on their part. Jesus told them the truth about themselves, whether they liked it or not. It got Him killed. Why should we expect anything different? Entrenched religiousness is the deadliest factor destroying the churches. Men will literally do anything to guard their fortified religious fiefdoms.
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