Chariots Of Fire
Written by Elinor Montgomery – emontgomery@cogeco.ca
January 11, 2001
It was in the year 1981 that I was sitting in a movie theatre watching the academy award movie called Chariots of Fire. It was an enormously moving story about an Olympic runner and missionary from Scotland named Eric Liddell, a young man of uncompromising Christian moral principles. He lost his opportunity to run in the 100-meter race for which he had trained daily, because he took a stand for honoring God’s Sabbath, and would not run on that day which had been chosen for the trials. Consequently, he was required to withdraw from the race, but went on later to win the 400-meter race, for which he had not trained, and was ill prepared. I witnessed something in that movie theatre that I have never witnessed before or since. The audience stood as one body when the movie was finished, and they clapped and cheered for a man of uncompromising Christian principles.
In a very short period of just 20 years time, we as a people and nation have gone from cheering a Christian hero for his stand, to mocking and ridiculing another Christian hero and political leader for taking the same stand. The attitude of a nation has moved that quickly from her Christian position and heritage in God to a new age Gnosticism rooted in religion. This is comprised of a multitude of ‘isms’, atheism, secular humanism, existentialism, Freudianism, evolutionism, Marxism, multiculturalism, feminism, spiritualism, paganism, Eastern mysticism, as on and on it goes with a tolerance for all the religions of the world except Christianity, for which there has been an ever increasing intolerance. Just before Jesus’ birth, there was a joining of the mysticism of the ancient eastern religions along with the rational western Greek culture transforming Hellenism into a religious oriental culture. The same metamorphosis of the Christian American culture is taking place in the western world today, as a revival of ancient Gnosticism, in a slightly new form is once more raising its ugly head. In Canada it is epitomized in our national institution of the Mounted Police, as the religious symbol of the turban makes its appearance among the ranks, without even a ripple from the institutional Christian church. The most important change of all is its appearance in the very center of the institutional church itself, especially the traditional church that has slowly walked away from the teaching of the Word and straight into the teaching of secular humanism. It has become the perfect breeding ground for religious practices, as opposed to Christian faith and obedience to God’s laws. Liberalism is at the heart of it and is in direct conflict with the concept of sin and salvation through the saving blood of Jesus.
The narrow way is the opposite of the broad way, and few are going to enter through the narrow gate, but many are going to enter the wide gate that leads to destruction. To the surprise of many the institutional church, endorsing more religion all the time, is going to go the route that is broad and inclusive, all in the name of Jesus. This is Satan’s plan to delude and deceive her, as he offers the apple, ever so rosy and red and absolutely oozing with the love and goodness of God, all of which will be nothing more than a lie. As she moves away from the Word, she will become open to the deception of the lie and will become ensnared in its web. It was with the twisted and isolated Word of God that Satan tempted Jesus. He even quoted verbatim the Bible, but for one purpose only, which was to draw Jesus away from God’s plan for salvation, and to take down the whole human race with Him. But Jesus was God himself and He could not be bought. You and I today, are going to be faced with the same challenge. Were it not for the Holy Spirit that has been sent to us, we would not be able to battle the demons attacking each and every one according to his or her own personal idols.
The Lord gave me a vision of the church, full of people sitting in their pews. In front of each one sat an idol of various sorts, each different from the next, serving as access points for Satan to enter their lives and then through them enter into the church. The most ugly Satanic spirit of all at the moment, and perhaps the most subtly powerful one, is the controlling spirit of Jezebel. She marks her target well, while abuse, materialism, and newly acquired freedoms coming from the so-called equal rights laws, aid her in entering through the access points of the idols. Of course, family breakdown really gives Satan a field day, as he uses adultery, the sexual perversion of homosexuality, abortion, and the fool’s gold of Egypt to lure his victims away from the ‘narrowness’ of Christianity, to move them into the ‘broadness’ of religion. After all, religion allows us to say, “Do you see, I am really not such a bad fellow? Look at my good works and forget about my sin.” It even tells us that our minds are open, and we are tolerant and loving, while at the same time it spreads the lie of satanic spirits that this new liberalism began with Jesus who walked among sinners preaching about love and feeding the poor. But the twist of the lie has been made, and Jesus becomes tolerant of the sin along with the sinner, and busy feeding the financially poor instead of the spiritually poor, while His love for God and neighbour is translated to become the love of an abomination.
Wake up Church! Ancient Gnosticism is alive and well in the new age movement now targeting the institutions and our children. Its agendas are broad and powerful, for it has no walls and no divisions. False religions join in unity as all are tolerated and evil is endorsed. But the truth of Christianity is found to be intolerable by these same new age followers. Ask God to reveal to you what your idols are. Then cast them out and destroy them, as did Moses with the golden calf, when he ground it to a powder. Come away from the gold of Egypt and break the bonds of sexual lust, drugs and alcohol abuse, even social and family ties, if they are causing you to stumble. Let it all go, for this is the time for the bride, the over-comer, a time when none shall withstand the battle ahead without the Spirit’s guidance and without Jesus leading. This is a time of decision, for the winds of change are coming, winds in which all the forces of Satan shall be unleashed. Be ready for the sound of the voice and the call of the Spirit, for your redemption draws near.