“And they went into Capernaum; and straightway on the sabbath day he entered into the synagogue and taught . . . And there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit; saying, Let us alone” (Mark 1: 21-24 KJV).
Inside this synagogue in which Jesus taught was a demon-possessed man. There is nothing written in scripture that shows he was not a regular attendee of the synagogue. He was probably faithful to go every Sabbath and participate in the service.
But nothing done in the synagogue made this demon-possessed man feel uncomfortable. The praying, singing, teaching, nor preaching bothered him enough to say “Let me alone.” He was very comfortable and felt that he fit in well. He may have been on some board or committee. He may have held an office or title and carried out some important function(s) for the synagogue. But nothing was ever said or done that made him feel convicted about his sinful state until Jesus entered the synagogue, causing him to say, “Let us alone.”
The church, in order to attract the lost, dropped her biblical standards and decided to become “sinner friendly.” There are plenty of lost people that now attend church regularly and have their name on the roll. Some have important positions in the church. But because the church has a policy to not offend anyone, none of these lost people feel uncomfortable about their sinful state and never repent and receive salvation. The praying, singing, teaching, nor preaching offends them and causes them to speak up and say “Let me alone.” God’s people do not have enough of the Holy Spirit evident through their presence to make the sinner feel guilty about their sin. The lost join these churches, attend faithfully all their life, and still die without knowing Jesus as their Savior and are eternally tormented.
But if Jesus should ever actually get into one of these churches and into its praying, singing, teaching, and preaching the sinner would either say, “Let me alone” and leave or they would get right with God. When Jesus is around and involved in His church through its Spirit-filled members, the sinner will not be at ease in such a gathering. But he will know he has met Jesus and will immediately recognize his sinfulness and either run away or repent and get saved.
We need churches in which we are conscious of God’s presence again. We need revival!
