Quick Explaination for the meaning of “Issue of Prominence”

When you drag the mouse over the link that says “the issue of prominence”, a description comes up that says something to the effect of “things in the bible vs. the glory of God”. I have been thinking that this needs some clarity.

So often in our evangelical/emerging/charismatic/’fill in the rest here’ generation, we do biblical things, yet they are out of place and usually not called for by the Spirit. Lots of programs and “outreach”, christian coffee shops, bumper stickers, you name it, have a well meaning intention and are not unbiblical, per se, yet they are easily manufactured and carried out in our flesh, that is, our normal everyday physical ability, unaided by nor inspired of God. There are even churches all over America, especially here in the south, that preach “truth”, yet by the time you’re five minutes into a sermon, you feel sick and almost dead inside. At least I do. Why? How is it that what was living and thriving while being written and lived out in the bible can be so dead and worthless even in exegetical exactitude and homiletical perfection? I have more questions than answers these days…I have a lot of questions that I can’t even answer…

So as I see it, we “do” biblical things till we’re blue in the face, yet America is still fast sinking into hell and rapidly approaching God’s wrath poured out upon us. How is that possible in a country that boasts statistics that claim 80% of Americans are “christian” and that some 90% believe they are going to heaven when they die? How can we be in the mess we are in while in a country that has radio preachers on all day and night long, has churches on every cotton picking block in every one of the 30,000 denominations and has as many christian T shirts and bumper stickers as we have rats in a New York sewer? Surely the many “preachers of truth” on the radio should have accomplished something by now.

Is it possible to do things that are “biblical” and yet totally miss God and His glory? This is what is meant by the description of this thread. I want us to weigh “things in the bible” and things occuring in churches against wether or not the outworking of those things is actually bringing God glory. Is it possible to do 10 good, biblical things and be in sin because we’ve not sought the heart of God for the one thing He would have us do that might require something of our flesh? It’s easier to find biblical things to do and jump to them than it is to hear the voice of God and do what He asks. We’re clever. We’re technological geniuses. In fact, we can even improve on many of the things the apostles and prophets did with just a touch of relevance and cool, flashy cliches…that mean absolutely nothing!!!

Anyway, I need to go to bed…
…but I just wanted to clear that up.
mark jr.