With the speedy discontinuation of “The Book of Daniel†by the Network television I decided it was not necessary to write an overly long or detailed follow-up to my first post about the show’s first episode. Obviously the people of America did not want to see such dirt on television, except for certain Episcopal pastors in various parts of the country.
Instead I would simply like to point out a small observation. The ultimate goal of bringing shows onto the TV screen that eventually get cancelled is the progressive desensitization of the people who regularly watch the television.
It was shows like “Ellen” that first introduced homosexuality into the mainstream TV sitcoms and now sitcoms are filled with one or more regular homosexual characters and it is no longer an oddity, but normality. But what am I saying that you don’t already know from your own experience?
I suspect I am saying nothing new, but I would offer some ‘prophetic’ options nevertheless… With the Church (in America) in its current state and the eventual and inevitable offspring of the Daniel-type show, I would venture to guess that apostate Christianity is going to experience one of three things:
1) The Church will be washed once again and reformation will take place and a very visible winnowing-like-effect will take place with the corrupt members of the Church.
2) The Church will experience a great departure from within, in which the majority will depart by actually renouncing the name of Christ.
3) Or the government will become so corrupt over the next 50 years that Christianity will be cleansed by persecution and only the faithful will preserver even unto death.
Now, in all these options I want to make one thing clear. The visible Church will never die and the Kingdom of Christ that is manifested in the visible Church will continue to grow and grow until it has filled the earth. The Church will go through many hard times and many false teachers will arise. But on thing will never change – Christ will always be the head of the Church and the Church will always be His Body and His Bride.
Christ has given us (His Bride) all things and all things will one day be given to us as an inheritance and we who are saved will live forever enjoying all the glory that God has promised us in Christ. “The gates of Hell will not prevail†is the Bible’s way of saying that the Church is offense in its very nature and not merely defensive. When Christ ascended to Heaven to sit on His thrown at the right hand of God it was then that the Kingdom of God was given over to the saints. And ever since that day the heavenly Kingdom of God has been growing and the New Humanity, the Church, is always growing up into maturity and will never be destroyed. For every kingdom that seeks to destroy the Church, that evil kingdom will be cast down and shattered into a million pieces never to rise again.
It is my hope that you will see the Church in all its glory and that you will know that God in Christ has and is reconciling the World to Himself. Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, but for those who are false and for those who do not obey Jesus – their end will be the weeping and gnashing of teeth and a fire that will never be quenched.
In Christ and In Defense of the Faith,