The Rise of the Machines

October 6, 2019

by Dan Li

“O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you? This only would I learn of you, Did ye receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?” Galatians 3:1-3

 

Having begun in faith, are we now perfected by the flesh? Doesn’t the Spirit do things by the working of faith? (Gal 3). Is the Spirit now working by the flesh now instead of through it (“I will pour My Spirit out on all flesh”, Acts 2:17, Joel 2:28-29)?- NO. Aren’t flesh methods and approaches, not only not faith, but also antithetical to faith, contrary to faith. When we part from the faith approach to ANYTHING, we have parted from Christ in that area, and if not corrected, it will begin to affect faith towards God in other areas, because 1)unbelief is a sin, and sin spreads, and 2) faith is a walk that must be continued in, and when we begin to walk in unbelief, we are walking away from faith in God.

 

God would not use a work of the flesh in the life of Abraham (Ishmael)- those things of the flesh had to be abandoned, because God will not share His glory with another, especially outside of Him and His ways. When we confuse the walk of faith with a man’s system, we have left faith and are now doing a work of the flesh. May God’s will and God’s glory be our highest aim. Faith is always a forward walk, never backward, ever. Jesus asked Peter, when pulling him up from the sea, “…Why did you doubt?” (Matt 14:31). When we don’t trust God but instead trust in a system, aren’t we walking in doubt? Money is used by all of us, all the time, but yet, if we begin to trust in it as opposed to God, haven’t we made that money an idol? And haven’t we, in the area of finances, now begun to walk in unbelief towards God by trusting in the money? Isn’t a man system the same thing? If we begin to trust in our system, or denomination, in opposition to trusting God, haven’t we turned that thing into an idol, a work of the flesh?

 

Now, God did/does use denominations so long as that denomination isn’t the focus, isn’t an idol, isn’t taking glory from God, isn’t becoming an instrument of trust instead of God, so long as that denomination runs along with God and doesn’t begin to oppose Him using fleshly ways and methods. When does a denomination/system become that way?- but when it becomes the focus, when it no longer listens to God because it has methods in place, when it begins to be the fleshly system that opposes the one by promise, the actual body of Christ which is by the Spirit, and not a system of man.

 

When denominations leave being a fellowship of like believing people who walk by faith (because they are the actual body of Christ), and instead turn into a machine, a man’s system, a flesh-machine that takes the place of the leading of God, as a replacement to walking by faith in certain areas of life, it begins its transformation into a man’s system instead of a fellowship of believers. It turns into a battle between man’s philosophies vs. faith in God. It begins to preach man’s traditions/ways/methods/systems as if doctrine from God (Matt 15:8-9). The system of man is a flesh one, and not spiritual, not by its very existence but rather when it attempts to have life outside of a walk of faith in God, when it isn’t a structure whereby we fellowship, but rather an instrument of unbelief in God. When this happens, it is a work of the flesh, by men, and no longer a working by the Holy Spirit.

 

When systems replace the direction and leading of the Holy Spirit, they become flesh systems and begin to oppose the genuine work of the Spirit by default, not by intention, but as a matter of course. Then as these systems continue, as a fleshly work of man that no longer walks by the leading of the Holy Spirit, but rather of its own direction, policies, and methods, it is no longer usable by God, begins to actually oppose God and those who walk by promise, that is, those who walk by faith, and unintentionally becomes an instrument of the Devil that opposes the Holy Spirit. Doesn’t the Scriptures teach that “what isn’t of faith is of sin”? (Rom 14:23), and “those who are in the flesh cannot please God”?(Rom 8:7-8), and “the flesh is contrary to the Spirit”? (Gal 5:17). And yet now, when we teach that if a Christian, who is part of the actual genuine body of Christ (not just a system), fails to be part of the ‘system’ by following the leading of the Holy Spirit, do we then say “they have gone off on their own”, or “God has a special blessing on those who walk with the ‘system’ instead of walking on their own”, as if the system is the actual body of Christ, when it isn’t- it’s just a work of man now because it won’t submit to the direction and leading of the Holy Spirit? Haven’t we become rather Catholic (not the universal Church, but the counterfeit man’s version from Rome) in our thinking? Aren’t we placing a system between God and His disciples? Are we calling our system “delegated authority”? Isn’t that very Catholic, in that it makes the spiritual institution of the body of Christ, as if it must operate within a man’s system? Yes, and I would say it is quickly becoming anti-Christ, in that it opposes the genuine work of the Holy Spirit in believer’s lives, attempting to turn God into a denomination, instead of a fellowship of like-believing believers?

 

As this system walks further from God, and becomes a work of the flesh/man, it is naturally becoming an instrument of persecution to the promise- those who walk by faith in God.

 

Ishmael vs. Issac:

The work of the flesh begins to mock the work of God done by faith in God. Flesh mocks and opposes the Spirit. “The mistake mocks the promise”, Ishmael (representing a work of the flesh) mocked Issac (who represents one received by faith, by promise). (Gal 4:21-26, Gen 21:8-12)

 

Confusing the vessel of clay with its much more valuable content (2 Cor 4:7):

Confusing “church” with “the Church” is a huge mistake! The power was not in Moses’ rod but in God. The power was not in Moses either, but in God. When Moses was opposed and those who did so, did so to their own peril, it was not simply because they opposed Moses, but they were opposing God. Confusing the man with God is easy, but dangerous. Paul said “follow me as I follow Christ” (1 Cor 1:12-13;11:1). We are all supposed to be following Christ, but if the leaders or the denomination quit following Christ, should the other Christians follow suit?- Certainly not. We are not the church of Paul, Peter, nor Apollos, we are the Church of Jesus Christ (1 Cor 1:12-13). When Moses did not follow God and did not hold Him in honor among the people, God removed him from office, and replaced him with Joshua, because the nation of Israel was God’s chosen people. A denomination is not God’s chosen people, the Christians within it are. Denominations have come and gone, but those who obey God endure forever- they are kept by the power of God. Scriptures teach that “the gates of Hell shall not prevail” against the Church (Matt 16:18-19). Confusing the Church with a denomination is a huge mistake.

 

Consider the dead denominations of today, such as the Methodists. Is God still among the homosexual-affirming Methodists of today?- NO, they left God and God left them. There are many such denominations today- these are not the Church! The Church is the body of Christ, not a denominational system, and not a man-made building. The Church is a spiritual institution, a new creation of the Holy Spirit, and God does not dwell in temples made with human hands.

 

In every place we don’t walk by faith (upon Jesus)- walking by the Spirit- whether individually or as a denominational group, we are walking by the flesh, by the leading of man, by man’s logic and man’s wisdom, not by faith in God and in His operation, but by a system devised that can be looked to for direction (1 Cor 2:4-7). And instead of being a fellowship of believers who walk by faith, it becomes a dead institution and never really was the Church, since genuine believers are actually the Church. Not holding to the Head, which is Christ, these groups begin to rely on methods instead of God, systems instead of faith, flesh as opposed to Spirit, becoming dead machines without the presence and leading of God. These dead machines take the focus instead of God. Those who trust in idols are like them, dead, without the presence and working of the Holy Spirit in their midst. (Ps 115:3-9)

 

Those who walk by the direction of the Holy Spirit, separate and apart from man’s ways and direction, also walk opposed to man’s ways. Tell me, which thing did God instruct Abraham to do that was logical, or in a way that we would say today is correct? How about leaving his homeland and going to a place that he knew not of (not knowing whither)? Or, not allowing his son Issac to return to where Abraham had left as home (the Chaldeans)? Sending a servant to find a wife for his son? Not taking anything from the wealthy king of Sodom? Attempting to sacrifice (kill and burn) his only son Issac to God, reckoning God could raise him (Issac) from the dead? What would we call Abraham today based upon our man’s logic? Nuts? Insane? Attempted murderer? We would, of course, have to remove Issac from Abraham’s home, for the safety of Issac the child. Perhaps Abraham should have used one of the systems of the Chaldeans for serving God instead of striking out “on his own” (which was really by God’s Word/command, and with God and not on his own) from home and family. Perhaps Abraham should have built himself a mansion instead of living in a tent. Maybe if Abraham had stayed at home in Chaldea, he wouldn’t have faced the famine in Canaan that forced Abraham to have to go down to Egypt, where Abraham faced the concern of being killed and his wife taken from him! Man’s ways are not God’s ways, and God’s ways are past finding out (Isa 55:8-9;Rom 11:33). What is highly esteemed of man, is an abomination to God (Luke 16:15). The carnal mind is enmity against God and leads to death. But to be spiritually minded is to put on the mind of Christ and follow the leading of the Holy Spirit, and leads to life and peace. We are children of promise, if we have faith in God like Abraham (Rom 4:16-17). Did Abraham begin by faith and end his life, being perfected, by his fleshly ways, or did Abraham believe God, and it was accounted to him as righteousness? (Rom 4:1-3) Did Abraham only believe in God for salvation, or for everything? After Abraham tried to sacrifice Issac, by God’s direction, God stopped him and then God said, “now I know that you will not hold anything from Me”. Did we start our walk of faith by believing God but now have come to rely on systems, denominations, machines? Do we now mock those who have trusted God instead?

 

 

Scripture References:

 

Gal 3:1-3 “O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you, that ye should not obey the truth, before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you? This only would I learn of you, Did ye receive the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith? Are ye so foolish? having begun in the Spirit, are ye now made perfect by the flesh?”

 

Acts 2:17-18 “And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of My Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: 18 And on My servants and on My handmaidens I will pour out in those days of My Spirit; and they shall prophesy”

 

Joel 2:28-29 “And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out My Spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions: 29 And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out My Spirit.”

 

Matt 15:8-9 “This people draws nigh unto Me with their mouth, and honor Me with their lips; but their heart is far from Me. 9 But in vain they do worship Me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.“

 

Rom 14:22-23 “Hast thou faith? have it to thyself before God. Happy is he that condemns not himself in that thing which he allows. 23 And he that doubt is damned if he eat, because he eateth not of faith: for whatsoever is not of faith is sin.”

 

Rom 8:6-8 “For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. 7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be. 8 So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.”

 

Gal 5:17 “For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would.”

 

Gal 4:21-26 “Tell me, ye that desire to be under the law, do ye not hear the law? 22 For it is written, that Abraham had two sons, the one by a bondmaid, the other by a freewoman. 23 But he who was of the bondwoman was born after the flesh; but he of the freewoman was by promise. 24 Which things are an allegory: for these are the two covenants; the one from the mount Sinai, which gendereth to bondage, which is Hagar. 25 For this Agar is mount Sinai in Arabia, and answers to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children. 26 But Jerusalem which is above is free, which is the mother of us all.”

 

Gen 21:8-12 “And the child grew, and was weaned: and Abraham made a great feast the same day that Isaac was weaned. 9 And Sarah saw the son of Hagar the Egyptian, which she had born unto Abraham, mocking. 10 Wherefore she said unto Abraham, Cast out this bondwoman and her son: for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, even with Isaac. 11 And the thing was very grievous in Abraham’s sight because of his son. 12 And God said unto Abraham, Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman; in all that Sarah hath said unto thee, hearken unto her voice; for in Isaac shall thy seed be called.”

 

1 Cor 1:12-13 “Now this I say, that every one of you saith, I am of Paul; and I of Apollos; and I of Cephas; and I of Christ. 13 Is Christ divided? was Paul crucified for you? or were ye baptized in the name of Paul?”

 

Matt 16:18-19 “And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” 19 “And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.“

 

1 Cor 11:1 “Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.”

 

1Cor 2:4-7 “And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power: 5 That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God. 6 Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought: 7 But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory”

 

Psalms 115:3-9 “But our God is in the heavens: He has done whatsoever He hath pleased. 4 Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands. 5 They have mouths, but they speak not: eyes have they, but they see not: 6 They have ears, but they hear not: noses have they, but they smell not: 7 They have hands, but they handle not: feet have they, but they walk not: neither speak they through their throat. 8 They that make them are like unto them; so is every one that trusteth in them. 9 O Israel, trust thou in the Lord: he is their help and their shield.

 

Rom 11:33-34 “O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are His judgments, and His ways past finding out! 34 For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been His counsellor?”

 

Isaiah 55:8-9 ESV “For My thoughts are not your thoughts, Nor are your ways My ways,” declares the Lord. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, So are My ways higher than your ways, And My thoughts than your thoughts.”

 

Luke 16:13-16 “No servant can serve two masters: for either he will hate the one, and love the other; or else he will hold to the one, and despise the other. Ye cannot serve God and mammon.” 14 And the Pharisees also, who were covetous, heard all these things: and they derided him. 15 And He said unto them, “Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knows your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.“

 

Matt 14:31NASB “Immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and took hold of him, and said to him, “You of little faith, why did you doubt?””

 

Rom 4:16 “Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all, 17 (As it is written, I have made thee a father of many nations,) before him whom he believed, even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were.”

 

Rom 4:1-3 “What shall we say then that Abraham our father, as pertaining to the flesh, hath found? 2 For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath whereof to glory; but not before God. 3 For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness.”