November 2: LESSONS NOT LEARNED!
And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which can neither can see, nor hear, nor walk: Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts. Revelation 9:20-21 KJV
The allowance by Almighty God of tribulations into the lives of His wayward people prompts the true believer to turn toward Him and ask, “Lord, what do You desire for me to learn from this?” Christians should know from the life of Jesus of His plan to lovingly restore all things (Acts 3:21) before His return. Faithful ones who never “bought in” to the pompous pagan rituals that made their way into the church found themselves retreating to the wilderness (Revelation 12:6,14) to worship the God who is love – whom they loved more than their own lives (v.11).
The leadership within the fallen church, in compromising with paganism, superimposed man’s ideas over the Word. This was Satan’s way of obscuring many truths about God and the way of salvation. The doctrines put forth by popes and priests misled men regarding God’s character, making Him out to be harsh and tyrannical. “The Savior was represented as so far devoid of sympathy with man in his fallen state that the mediation of priests and saints must be involved. Those whose minds had been enlightened by the word of God longed to point these souls to Jesus as their compassionate, loving Savior, standing with outstretched arms, inviting all to come to Him with their burden of sin, their cares and weariness. They longed to clear away the obstructions which Satan had piled up that men might not see the promises, and come directly to God, confessing their sins and obtaining pardon and peace.” The Great Controversy by E.G. White
The fallen church still elevates man’s ideas and superstitions above the plain teachings of the Word. The works of their hands include much more than just images and statues. The false teaching of inherent immortality leads to the worship of dead saints (the church decides who is or is not a saint) – an extension of pagan ancestor worship; relics are displayed for the people to adore, incorporating occultism into church practices. Blood samples of the two most recently dead popes have been preserved for people to kneel before, next to the old collections of bones and other relics displayed. Pilgrims the world over are directed to pay homage. Of course, they must pay money to pay homage; an endless source of revenue. Those who see the “saints” they pray to are actually worship[ing] demons. Along with bowing down to visible idols, the dead saints they venerate cannot see, nor hear, nor walk (Ecclesiastes 9:5). The number of the deceived who were killed during the second woe pales in comparison to the faithful Christ followers who were hunted down and murdered by the church. Spiritual fornication is intercourse with Satan, the instigator who seeks to intercept worship for himself; Sorceries involve mind-altering substances, and thefts are about stealing the Word away from the hearts of people (Matthew 13:4), replacing truth with error. O corrupt church! Every commandment of God is broken with these practices. Jesus is calling out for repentance – oh, how He longs to gather up His people!
From that time Jesus began to preach and to say, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Matthew 4:17