Hungry Elephants Ravenously Eating Synthetic Yogurts

A long time ago, I heard mention of a distant, mythical evil. It had been mentioned in my history books. Perhaps it was murmured from the pulpit, a whisper alluding to a taboo terror that had LONG since passed from the world of men....

HERESY!

This is a silly description, but it accurately reflects my previous attitude concerning heresy. I regarded it as something of the past, from a less enlightened phase of the church. I read about the Roman Catholic Church before the Reformation and thought, "It's a good thing Martin Luther eradicated false teachings and unbiblical practices from Christianity forever!" Even in more recent years, I have heard heresy discussed and debated, I have read articles... Still, in my mind, I identified heresy as something that existed only in the world of those argumentative self-proclaimed "intellectuals".

How naive I am! In the past few months, God has been showing me the evils that infiltrate so-called "Christianity". I have been exposed to the Arminian gospel that is so widely preached, and is so often accompanied by its man-worshipping counterpart, "seeker-sensitivity". I have heard the horribly ironic teachings of men who claim to submit to no teachings of men, challenging me to embrace NEW doctrines as my sinful nature and fallible reasoning conjure them out of scripture. Not only are such heresies found among the apologists and theologians, but among REAL PEOPLE! There are those among my beloved friends who will abuse any out-of-context passage from scripture in order to justify their sins to themselves. I have found myself in a few situations recently where I have challenged a fellow believer on their sin, and what has been the typical response? "Cory, you can't fuss about EVERY little sin. There are much bigger things to worry about. We're not doing anything THAT wrong" or "It really comes down to what YOU BELIEVE is wrong. Your conscience determines your standing before God." or even "Judge not, lest ye be judged! You sin too, Cory!"

It seems to me that most people will embrace any argument without examining it, as long as it allows them to remain comfortable in their sin.

So here are where the questions come in: Where can I find the strength to argue on behalf of the gospel, when so many of my friends are so eager to spout nonsensical fallacious arguments reflecting worldly philosophies? How am I to address people with the authority of scripture, yet with patience and gentleness? What hope is there for God's church if such blatant heresies seem more common than sound teachings?

Praise to our gracious God, whose people have strength by the Holy Spirit, and whose promises declare that the work He has started, He will also finish!