All throughout Israel’s history, God sent prophets to warn the nation. Sometimes the words of the prophets were heeded. (2 Chronicles 12:5-8)
But most of the time they were misunderstood and hated by the people (Amos 2:12)
Jesus warned that his followers who tried to expose hypocrisy, point out the truth, advocate freedom of conscience, speech and loyalty to Christ alone as leader, turn people to the Bible and Christ, rather than false Christs (Greek for anointed ones) and expose scriptural error would be judicially disciplined, counseled not to speak, thrown out of the synagogue and experience all of the trouble that has come upon those in the past who spoke in the name of Jehovah. (Matt. 10:16-28; 23:29-39; 24:9; Luke 21:12-19)
Those desirous of becoming his disciples were made to realize that the course they chose would not be an easy one. (Matt. 16:24) This is because Satan, the father of the lie and resister of truth is the ruler of the world. (John 8:44; 14:30; 2 Cor. 4:4; 1 John 5:19)
I am telling you this to keep you from being afraid. You will be chased out of the Jewish meeting places. And the time will come when people will kill you and think they are doing God a favor. They will do these things because they don’t know either the Father or me. I am saying this to you now, so that when the time comes, you will remember what I have said. I was with you at the first, and so I didn’t tell you these things.
(Joh 16:1-4 CEV)
God will bless you when people insult you, mistreat you, and tell all kinds of evil lies about you because of me.
(Mat 5:11 CEV)
You Pharisees and teachers are nothing but show-offs, and you’re in for trouble! You build monuments for the prophets and decorate the tombs of good people. And you claim that you would not have taken part with your ancestors in killing the prophets. But you prove that you really are the relatives of the ones who killed the prophets. So keep on doing everything they did. You are nothing but snakes and the children of snakes! How can you escape going to hell? I will send prophets and wise people and experts in the Law of Moses to you. But you will kill them or nail them to a cross or beat them in your meeting places or chase them from town to town. That’s why you will be held guilty for the murder of every good person, beginning with the good man Abel. This also includes Barachiah’s son Zechariah, the man you murdered between the temple and the altar. I can promise that you people living today will be punished for all these things! Jerusalem, Jerusalem! Your people have killed the prophets and have stoned the messengers who were sent to you. I have often wanted to gather your people, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings. But you wouldn’t let me. And now your temple will be deserted.
(Mat 23:29-38 CEV)
Yet he sent them out with the responsibility to speak the truth:
“Look! I am sending you out as sheep among wolves; so prove yourselves cautious as serpents and yet innocent as doves. 17 Be on your guard against men, for they will hand you over to local courts and they will scourge you in their synagogues. 18 And you will be brought before governors and kings for my sake, for a witness to them and the nations. 19 However, when they hand you over, do not become anxious about how or what you are to speak, for what you are to speak will be given you in that hour; 20 for the ones speaking are not just you, but it is the spirit of your Father that speaks by you. 21 Further, brother will hand brother over to death, and a father his child, and children will rise up against parents and will have them put to death. 22 And you will be hated by all people on account of my name, but the one who has endured to the end will be saved. 23 When they persecute you in one city, flee to another; for truly I say to you, you will by no means complete the circuit of the cities of Israel until the Son of man arrives. 24 “A student is not above his teacher, nor a slave above his master. 25 It is enough for the student to become as his teacher, and the slave as his master. If people have called the master of the house Be·elʹze·bub, how much more those of his household? 26 So do not fear them, for there is nothing covered over that will not become uncovered, and nothing secret that will not become known. 27 What I tell you in the darkness, say in the light, and what you hear whispered, preach from the housetops. (Matthew 10:16-27)
The historical record shows that they did so courageously:
“But in reply Peter and John said to them: “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, judge for yourselves. 20 But as for us, we cannot stop speaking about the things we have seen and heard.” (Acts 4:19, 20)
“In answer Peter and the other apostles said: “We must obey God as ruler rather than men. 30 The God of our forefathers raised up Jesus, whom you killed, hanging him on a stake. 31 God exalted this one as Chief Agent and Savior to his right hand, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. 32 And we are witnesses of these matters, and so is the holy spirit, which God has given to those obeying him as ruler.” (Acts 5:29-32)
“You stubborn people with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are always opposing the Holy Spirit, just as your ancestors used to do. Which of the prophets did your ancestors fail to persecute? They killed those who predicted the coming of the Righteous One, and now you have become his betrayers and murderers. You received the Law as ordained by angels, and yet you haven’t obeyed it!” While they were listening to these things, they became more and more furious and began to grind their teeth at him. But Stephen, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight into heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God. He said, “Look! I see the heavens opened and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!” But they shouted out loud, stopped listening, and together they all rushed at him, ran him outside of the city, and began to stone him to death. Meanwhile, the witnesses laid their coats at the feet of a young man named Saul. As they continued to stone Stephen, he kept praying, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!” Then he knelt down and cried out with a loud voice, “Lord, don’t hold this sin against them!” After he had said this, he died.
(Act 7:51-60 ISV)
“For we [those that considered themselves God’s organization] have found this man [Paul] to be a pest, stirring up seditions among all the Jews throughout the inhabited earth, and he is a spearhead of the sect of the Naz·a·renesʹ.” (Acts 24:5)
“But I do admit this to you, that according to the way that they [those that considered themselves God’s organization] call a sect, in this manner I am rendering sacred service to the God of my forefathers, as I believe all the things set forth in the Law and written in the Prophets.” (Acts 24:14)
“But they [Jewish Christians loyal to those that considered themselves God’s organization] have heard it rumored about you that you have been teaching all the Jews among the nations an apostasy from Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children or to follow the customary practices.” (Acts 21:21)
They did not at first go to some distant land to preach to the gentiles. Utilizing the keys of the kingdom during the period of special favor from God, they confined their ministry to those that considered themselves members of God’s organization.
“I will give you the keys of the Kingdom of the heavens, and whatever you may bind on earth will already be bound in the heavens, and whatever you may loosen on earth will already be loosened in the heavens.” (Matthew 16:19)
“But you will receive power when the holy spirit comes upon you, and you will be witnesses of me in Jerusalem, in all Ju·deʹa and Sa·marʹi·a, and to the most distant part of the earth.” (Acts 1:8)
“Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus the Naz·a·reneʹ was a man publicly shown to you by God through powerful works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, just as you yourselves know. (Acts 2:22)
“When Peter saw this, he said to the people: “Men of Israel, why are you so amazed at this, and why are you staring at us as though by personal power or godly devotion we have made him walk? The God of Abraham and of Isaac and of Jacob, the God of our forefathers, has glorified his Servant, Jesus, whom you handed over and disowned before Pilate, even though he had decided to release him. Yes, you disowned that holy and righteous one, and you asked for a man who was a murderer to be given to you, whereas you killed the Chief Agent of life. But God raised him up from the dead, of which fact we are witnesses.” (Acts 3:12-15)
It would appear that from the time the apostasy began to appear, after the death of the apostles, through the time of the protestant reformers down to this day, it has been the responsibility of true Christians as wheat among weeds, to keep awake and alert to deviations from scripture and to speak out in behalf of truth, knowing full well that this could result in persecution coming their way. (Acts 20:29,30; Matt. 13:24-30,36-42)
But Jesus said he would be with them:
“Go, therefore, and make disciples of people of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the holy spirit, teaching them to observe all the things I have commanded you. And look! I am with you all the days until the conclusion of the system of things.” (Matthew 28:19, 20)
The purpose of this site is to encourage those that desire to follow that path. They recognize the danger, the difficulty is real. It is not that they intend to make martyrs of themselves. Jesus said that his followers must be cautious as serpents. They recognize the excelling value of having a personal relationship with God and to serve him in spirit and truth and see that they have a responsibility to help any and all they can to find and maintain such a relationship free from religious dogmatism and traditions of men. (John 4:24; 8:32)
But an often repeated pattern can be seen throughout history of individuals that speak out about injustices and abuses among the leadership of whatever religious institution they had become associated with. When this perceived threat to unity has been met with punishment by those in authority many have gone on to start a new sect where they can worship God with freedom of conscience. What has happened, however, is that in a relatively short period of time new doctrines are defined, new rules are formulated and punishment must be meted out for those breaking the new rules. The new religion ends up becoming the very thing it attempted to escape from. A new group of reformers rises to speak out against the injustices and the pattern starts all over again.
In order for one to experience true Christian freedom there needs to be a realization that no one Christian denomination has a monopoly on truth. (1 Cor. 13:12) Despite what many Christian sects claim, not one of them can prove that they are exclusively used by God to dispense truth to the rest of the world and that all those outside of that group would experience God’s wrath. The one true religion is Christianity which was founded by Jesus, the way and the truth and the life. (John 14:6) His followers were known as Christians. (Acts 11:26) He said they would be identified, not by correctness of doctrine nor by a distinctive name but by love, not just for one another but for all, the disadvantaged and even for their enemies. (John 13:35; Jas. 1:27; Matt. 5:43-48)
Not primarily by preaching but by living would they serve as a light of the world. (Matt 5:14-16)
It is not my aim, nor the aim of the contributors to this site to draw away disciples after ourselves. (Acts 20:29,30) But through us, by exploring the scriptures with a determination to not go beyond the things that are written to let the light of Christ’s teachings shine upon as many as we can reach and free each one to experience a relationship with God by means of him.
“For we are preaching, not about ourselves, but about Jesus Christ as Lord and ourselves as your slaves for Jesus’ sake. For God is the one who said: “Let the light shine out of darkness,” and he has shone on our hearts to illuminate them with the glorious knowledge of God by the face of Christ.” (2 Corinthians 4:5, 6)
It is our sincere desire that by means of this site we can dispel the shroud of mystery and confusion that surrounds us and others like us that have been forced to cease association with friends and family members in a religious organization out of a desire to obey God as ruler rather than men. (Acts 5:29) We welcome all respectful comments and questions. We sincerely hope that through this avenue all of us can follow Jesus example more closely and can aid each other to conquer fear and preach from the housetops. (Matt 10:27)
If you’re interested in reading my personal experience click here.