I said, "Where YOU come from", not "where IT comes from."
Yes, I answered your question. You prefaced your rhetoric by stating that the institutions
you know are under the leadership of the Word of God. I stated that
It doesn't come From anywhere - mine is the Word of God Himself.
And, you left off a large part of the context:
You don't need "leadership," as it were, if you have a Living King.
I meant exactly what I said. There is no need for an
institution because everyone who believes is part of the living Church. The Word of God made this clear several times; the ministry of the firstfruits of the Church (body) were preaching
everywhere. The moved and lived similarly to the Word of God - constantly visiting and depending on the strangers they encounter spreading the Word of God Himself to others. (Where two or more are gathered in His name, He is in the midst of them). It was real
mission work, it was not
ecumenical, or
institutional - a couple of things the Word of God preached against with the temple culture. And the Body of the Church is
mission work. You don't have to travel overseas to do mission work.
If you know for a fact that a church is under the spell of, and practises, witchcraft, it is not wrong to say so. That is not judging, that is telling it as it is and telling the truth in love.
Right, but I am also
judging them. I said that several times. It is not wrong to judge a situation that deserves judgment. The "Church" needs to stop preaching this, because it prevents the people from rightfully judging what is in front of their eyes.
Has not Moses given you the law? Yet none of you keeps the law. Why do you seek to kill me? The crowd answered, You have a demon! Who is seeking to kill you? Jesus answered them, I did one work, and you all marvel at it. Moses gave you circumcision (not that it is from Moses, but from the fathers), and you circumcise a man on the Sabbath. If on the Sabbath a man receives circumcision, so that the law of Moses may not be broken, are you angry with me because on the Sabbath I made a man's whole body well? Do not judge by appearances, but judge with right judgment.. John 7:19-24
That was the Word of God Himself that said the above. Most people use this section as a justification for non-judgement:
Therefore you have no excuse, O man, every one of you who judges. For in passing judgment on another you condemn yourself, because you, the judge, practice the very same things. We know that the judgment of God rightly falls on those who practice such things. Do you suppose, O man—you who judge those who practice such things and yet do them yourself—that you will escape the judgment of God? Or do you presume on the riches of his kindness and forbearance and patience, not knowing that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance? But because of your hard and impenitent heart you are storing up wrath for yourself on the day of wrath when God's righteous judgment will be revealed. ... Romans 2:1-16
Romans 2 is about
hypocrites that judge wrongly - especially when they do the same things they are judging others for. A minister that is judging/condemning homosexuals but practices him/herself is a hypocrite. A minister that judges the kid that spews racism when he himself is a clansman is a hypocrite. These things, and others, happen in the church institution. And, it is the power afforded to men - given freely by the clergy (as it were). Elders should be recognized because of their fruits - not because of their academic profile in theology. You cannot teach someone how to love and trust God through institution - just like a marriage cannot be taught through institution.
If you make a sweeping statement that MOST churches are under the spell of witchcraft, when you don't know them, haven't visited them, and are just going by what you perceive, by public opinion or by 2nd hand information - you ARE judging.
I told you I was judging, but perception is a matter of subjectivity - just like the perception that leads you to believe my statement may be sweeping, especially in spite of the evidence coming forward, and what the Word of God says. For example, if we are in the end times, then the Churches are going to get worse, not better. It shouldn't take decades of people screaming institutional abuse, an eventual centennial recognition of those victims, as well as a scapegoat offered up to ameliorate the people to get us to see what is going on. It shouldn't take stories and stories of people being swindled out of their rent, or turned away because of their sin when they seek help for us to get it.
It should also be well within appropriate literary analysis to recognize that I
cannot be talking about all churches. Even the Word of God Himself recognized
Philadelphia - but He was literally recognizing
brotherly love. At least 1/7 of the churches are actual good churches. But, ironically, an edifice does not qualify or determine their
meeting and fellowship. In other words, there is no
institution.
Ephesus: Overseer, center of worship for
Artemis
Smyrna: An Amazonian
Pergamum: The throne of (a) satan
Thyatria: "White Castle" (wealth and opulence)
Sardis: Capital (luxury)
Laodicea: Lukewarm
There was already witchcraft in the churches at that time. He told John (and us) a model for the way the world is, and will be. Assuming equal parts, only 1/7 of the churches will actually get it right. Church is not about hierarchy, that is a distraction.
You need to figure this out first before you guess.
Casting spells? Offering pagan sacrifices on the altar? Chanting mythical/new age spells instead of reading, preaching and learning the word of God?
The Most High God through the Word of God has already told us what witchcraft is. Me repeating it won't make a difference under these circumstances. Figure out what witchcraft is, and then we can talk.
How many churches do that - where's your evidence?
The Word of God is the first evidence (His actual guide on what to look out for).
What institutions do is the evidence. How many churches? That is an asinine question that would create a strawman. I gave you a representative guess above.
Because Jesus told us not to judge, maybe? Just an idea.
The Word of God told us not to judge as hypocrites. He didn't tell us we couldn't judge righteously.
You have not proved that it IS the truth.
You can read what the Truth, Himself, actually says several times about churches then, and what to look out for now. There is nothing new under the sun.
You have not demonstrated that most of the churches even in your town and country, never mind the whole world, are under the spell of witchcraft - mine isn't.
You don't even know what witchcraft is; how can you know if your church institution practices witchcraft? How would
recognize it without believing it is a possibility in the first place?
If you know any that are - visit them and go ahead and judge them.
Why would I visit them (again)? As far as judgment, I have already judged the behavior and structure. The Most High God will judge their destination after this life; that isn't my place. Two different judgments.
Jesus is alive and alive within some of the churches you are writing off as occultic.
The Word of God is alive
period. He doesn't need any institution to justify or substantiate His Life. He is glorified when two or more are gathered in His name.
How can the Word of God be alive in an institution practicing witchcraft? "Occultic" is a bogeyman term (secrecy may have function, for example).
No, no edifice NEEDED - but that is very far from saying that any such edifice is therefore of the occult and under the curse of witchcraft.
God has blessed, worked through and brought revival in many a service held in a church building.
I never said "any such edifice is therefore occultic under the curse of witchcraft," I specifically said that the
institution of the church is under a spell of witchcraft. But, you have to know what you are looking for (i.e. what witchcraft it - even, you have to believe it exists).