Anyone who knows more than us can be considered a know it all. My old
co-worker Lenny falls right into that category, he was able to find some bit of
information no one else knew about our products, and establish himself as one.
His key was, only talk about the things you know. Now that secret is out. But
since we both sold industrial supplies including chemicals, he enlightened me
one day how all cleaners start the same, then get watered down for each
purpose. Anyone who has mixed his own Simple Green knows the drill, full
strength to degrease, 200-to-1 to make window cleaner, same base product, just
add more water. But that message doesn’t always get through to the end user, as
I found out when walking into a bus account I serviced one day. A competitor
had worn down the buyer, and sold it based on its ability to be cut with water
and still be an effective cleaner, so when the 55 gallon drum arrived, he hung a
sign on it for the night crew, use this to clean the floors, with another saying
see me first. They only saw the use this one, the see me first sign had
disappeared. And following orders, they used the new cleaner, didn’t know it
was concentrated, and used the entire 55 gallons on the floor. When Ii showed
up, they were trying to shovel the muck that was soap off the floor, I some
places it was inches thick, and it had holding power like mud, step in it and it
tried to suck your shoes off. They had done as directed, who knows what they
were thinking, “just following orders,” and Paco, their boss had gained a new
nickname, “El Rey Del Jabon,” or the King of Soap. Which no one ever repeated
in front of him. We never talked floor cleaners again.
Since the dawn of man, people are seeking for righteousness and holiness,
longing to be better than they are, trying to break free from the evil that is
within, and wishing somehow they could get hold of that selfish evil from
within, and not be so self centered, to somehow eliminate their problems and
become a better person. Throughout the Bible people cry out for this
righteousness, with some going as far as to cover their face like Moses did to
hide the fact that the glory of God had faded in him. Some act holy, some live
a legalistic Christian life, and some are just double minded, a much different
person outside of church than in it. We all want to be better, but fail to
realize it takes God and his spirit to do it. Yet we find a movement in the
church today, one based on what is on the external, and is much different than
that which God places on the internal. All men look at the external, only God
sees our heart, the rest of us show a façade. Not to our advantage
either.
The liberal idea that we are all God’s children is wrong as John states.
Some denominations welcome sinners in just to grow the numbers, telling them
their lifestyle is OK, Jesus loves you anyway. Sin is never mentioned, except
by troublemakers, no form of repentance is offered, just play nice and the world
will play nice with you. If you are succeeding in the things of life, you must
be OK with God, if struggling you the are out of favor and need to change your
ways. False teachings like those that permeate Sunday TV and radio promise a
better life, beg for money, seems that is the one common denominator we all
understand, and promise a better day, ending where we all sing Kumbyah. Such
teaching and its belief system are false, and they will go down in flames
literally, denying Jesus as Lord and savior, while they amass riches on earth at
others expense. Never preparing their listeners for the after life we all will
face, denying sin and its cost, and only bringing up Jesus once in a while.
“See, he mentions Jesus,” their comeback when questioned. Living well on the
outside, but rotting and going to hell on the inside. A watered down gospel,
one that is not offensive, that doesn’t make you make a choice, that denies the
truth of Jesus, and leads many to hell. Our churches are filled with this
doctrine, and not one cannot fall prey to it. We all want to get along,
remember Rodney King’s plea after his beating? He just didn’t want
Jesus....
If you think or know that you are part of a watered down gospel, turn to
Jesus,and ask him. Don’t trust your leaders, or even my writings, ask God
directly. Listen to his still small voice, then have him show it to you in the
word. Just because you may sound like a great teacher, and have a large
following doesn’t mean you are telling the truth. We are all looking for that
better way and Jesus is it. And when we as Christians, who make up the church
fail, those searching go elsewhere and become an easy target. Seems the Joel
Osteen’s of the world can find the weak ones, and lead them astray. We each
need to ask “where is Jesus in this? Do the teachings match up with what the
Bible says, not just choosing a verse to satisfy our sin.” Lately I have been
getting blank stares from many older Christians who only study the word, really
only following a teacher and his teachings, and missing out on the full message
of Jesus Christ. They tell me they are studying to find themselves approved,
really they are studying to find themselves excused. When Jesus is reduced to a
good feeling, they fail to note that the heart can be deceptive, and they are
above deception. Sounds cultic doesn’t it?
The record of scripture is it takes God to change us, and that it is the
holy spirit that does the good work. John baptized the outer man, Jesus the
entire man. And then the dove appeared, the symbol of the holy spirit, making
us as free as a dove in Christ. If your whole Christian experience is church
and their ways, you need Jesus. And note, you have to be a Christian to get the
holy spirit, it is a gift from him, and only for true believers. You choose the
gospel you want to believe, and if you fail to read the instructions left by
Jesus, you end up with too much soap on your floor, when it could be clean and
shiny. Jesus is the only way to remove the dirt of sin from your life. In the
right proportions he will show in your life, watered down may keep your outside
clean, but as any mechanic knows, it is what is on the inside the engine that
counts. It is the built up sludge that finally will clog it up, it may run for
years, but not as designed. Ask yourself, are you running as God planned? Do
you feel good after church, or challenged by God to grow in him?
I once worked in a shop where after any service, they washed the
windshield. If it looked clean, the car must be clean too. Just one talk with
the King of Soap will tell you different, and maybe all you need to know about
following instructions. The night crew did as they were told, never questioning
the results. It is time we need to, is our inside as clean as the outside we
portray? Only Jesus can cleanse you from sin, for he truly is the King of
Clean, El Rey del Jabon. In any language, Jesus saves. Just add water, his
spirit and see. Jesus is the baptizer of the holy spirit. Lenny sounded good,
now you know the truth.
love with compassion,
Mike
matthew25biker.blogspot.com