When I warned about a new law in California that will force preachers to agree with the LGBTQ agenda, one lady commented, “The Church is awake and powerful in California.” A brother responded, “Then why is California going to hell in a hand-basket?” Ouch.
What I am about to say is a cry, a loving cry to the spiritual leaders of California: Wake up! Please consider what I am about to say, no matter how painful the facts may be. I am speaking out of a deep love for California. I feel a heavy burden for my home State.
I survey the moral devastation, but then I hear someone boast that the gates of hell will not prevail against the church in California. I have to ask, “If the gates of hell have not prevailed, then what on earth is going on? If this isn’t prevailing, I’d hate to see what is!” The answer, as is so often the case, is to read that verse again:
Matthew 16:18 “And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it. 19 And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.”
I am pleading with God for this message to get through to my fellow leaders. The first clue to what God wants, lies in the phrase, “I will build MY church.” The problem is that there are two construction projects going on simultaneously in the church: Men are in charge of one, and Christ is in charge of the other.
That these two branches coexist in the Body of Christ is clear in Jesus’ own words: John 15:5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing. 6 If anyone does not abide in Me, he is cast out as a branch and is withered; and they gather them and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.”
Both branches are connected to Him, but only one abides in Him. Both will grow side by side until the appointed time. It is easy to tell the difference: The churches that men are building don’t stand a chance against Satan, and Satan doesn’t stand a chance against the Church Christ is building.
Man-made churches avoid the front line, while the one true Church that Jesus is building draws its life from engaging and defeating the powers of darkness.
The church man builds refuses to offend. The Church that Christ is building refuses to be ashamed.
It totally breaks my heart to say this, but, California is littered with Christian projects that were built by man, and for man. This explains how immorality has spread like a cancer, even as churches got bigger. It explains why the government in California is working so hard to ban Christianity.
It makes me weep to have to say this, but I must. Paul leveled a stern warning to all who build “for God,” but do so by their own design. 1 Corinthians 3:10 “According to the grace of God which was given to me, as a wise master builder, I have laid the foundation and another builds on it. But let each one take heed how he builds on it. 11 For no other foundation can anyone lay than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.”
Beloved, there is a terrifying outcome for those who have built mega-churches that God had no part in establishing. They will all stand before God and be judged for their works. 1 Corinthians 3:12 “Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, 13 each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is. 14 If anyone’s work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. 15 If anyone’s work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire.”
Beloved, the autopsy on California leaves no room for another verdict!
Let everyone who reads this heed the warning! There are disastrous things about building Christian projects by human power that aren’t readily apparent.
For starters, these man-made churches persecute the true Church in a way that is worse than the world does. How? By you as the pastor of a church built on a foundation of wood, hay, and straw making Bible preaching offensive. By you who have given believers an appetite for fast food. By discouraging true pastors who feel foolish for holding fast to their convictions. You have left them feeling betrayed when you steal their people, and herd them into a faceless mega-crowd, where they no longer have any accountability.
I am praying right now that my cry will be understood by leaders. I am travailing for leaders to wake up while there is still time.
But, there is an even more hideous fact you need to face: Satan may actually be helping you build your artificial church! He may even supply the money to build it. A hundred million dollars is chump change to the enemy of God, if it gets him the prize he seeks: building a powerless center, where thousands can be disarmed and neutralized.
My precious brothers and sisters let me ask you: What could be a better trophy for hell than producing an artificial church? It has all the right features, but no power. It is the perfect distraction. The devil can freely defile a culture in plain view of the church and she will be too powerless, self-satisfied, and oblivious to stop it.
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ: If this describes your church, get out! If you are the pastor of such a church, get back to preaching the pure word of God and making true disciples, before it is too late. Get right with God, and begin to turn California back from the abyss!
big amen brother; a cheap imitation may look good, but it’s not worth anything for the Kingdom of God, and it’s sure not threat to the enemy, it’s like drug’s it give’s you a false hope, makes you think everything is ok, while you slide right into hell, people think satan won’t build a church and allow Gods name on it, it’s all ready alive and going strong, the gate’s of hail will not prevail, upon that church founded upon the solid rock foundation, of Jesus Christ, and built upon the disciples teaching, What did Peter say thou art the Christ the son of the Living God, and Jesus said upon that rock, that he is the son of the living God is the foundation, the church build’s upon, and the disciple’s tell us how to build the rest of the house, and the gate’s of hell will not prevail against that one, for it know’s how to pray, how worship, and how to do spiritual warfare, for it will not neglect the truth of the word but long for it, for it know’s it is in need of Gods correction from time to time, and it corrects the wrong, instead of making up a way to get around it the wrong or ignoring it, Gods not looking for numbers, he is looking for a people who love and obey him, and will go through the fire for him. Be Blessed
So much evil has been successfully been implemented in our society because the church has not done her job. We NEED our leaders to get themselves right in their own relationship with God, and then teach their congregations how to do the same. We have been absolutely Starving for true leadership in the church as a whole for decades.
So many have become no different than the world. Still others have become more akin to a circus, or Vegas type show.
The time has come, the time is now to clean ourselves up, and get serious with our relationship with The Lord, as individuals, and as the church.
The enemy has taken an awful lot of ground in our society, on every level.
Below is just a couple of examples that has made me extremely saddened, and has made me get involved in any way that I can to fight it, and protect our children.
There is an ever growing list of things that NEED God’s action via each and every one of us.
Thank you so very much for standing, and continuing to stand for what’s right, and your encouragement. God bless you, and yours greatly Pastor Mario.
Most people don’t know that this has been happening in our schools, and has only gotten much worse.
This past school year has been as bad and worse than what is talked about in this video.
The War on Children: The Comprehensive Sexuality Education Agenda – 11 mins
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=6yTvdCHgEHQ
This video contains a little bit of language, and a whole lot of passion about what is being done to the children, so please forgive the language, and pray for her. The information is extremely important.
Hey, Antifa, Dox Me B/C I Stand W/ The Women You Call ‘Christian Bigots’
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=3fcxJDje3lE
There are similarities within the new cultural problem that I see as comparisons to what is known as “The Left and Right Hemispheres” of the human brain.
Under the ‘Values Systems’ section of the hemispheric brain study, it is said…”that the two hemispheres having different value systems, where the left hemisphere tends to reduce complex matters such as ethics to rules and measures, where the right hemisphere is disposed to the holistic and metaphorical.”
So the Left brain hemisphere and the Right brain hemisphere are at odds with each other, and this is exactly similar by comparison to the at odds predicament we are watching today.
Two different Value systems at odds with each other. The Left hemisphere of societal thinking is dominated by trying to make rules (one size fits all) for everybody else, measured by their ‘idea’ of what is morally important. While the Right Hemisphere of societal thinking is desiring a whole comprehensive package that defines Christian American values in a Spiritual context.
Since Mario so correctly defined the problem within the church culture leadership writing…”there are two construction projects going on simultaneously in the church: Men are in charge of one, and Christ is in charge of the other…”
It seems the question is, how can leadership in that two-tone church culture come back from also having been seduced into The Left Hemisphere sociteal thinking and doing problem❓
As one who has preached in many different churches, I have said it on this blog before, and I will repeat it today. Demons roost in the rafters of some churches today and they, not Jesus are in charge of what goes on below. The people are compromised, the pastors are compromised, and they might as well hang a sign out front saying “Do Not Disturb.” I am sincere in what I am saying, that I have been in church atmospheres where I could sense the voice of demons saying, “You are not welcome here, you should not be here!” God, please pour out the Holy Ghost on America again, in Jesus name! My heart breaks!
big amen brother.
Mario, you are the only voice I can find that makes any sense.
Last night I was praying that the city gates in Sacramento would be uprooted and turned over. As much as I loved Ronald Reagan he destroyed California when he fell into the liberal trap giving amnesty to illegal immigrants. That started California in the liberal direction. Nothing is impossible to turn around. I am adding my prayers to the many others.
I really appreciate your heart cry here. I’m going to go out on a limb here and recommend a book that I believe you’ll love and will dovetail this cry, not repeat it, but truly add to its depths. It’s a risk, because I know I have a blog as well and when someone I don’t know from Adam makes a recommendation online, I tend to ignore it. But here goes…. The name of it is “Ekklesia Rising” by Dean Briggs.
Be blessed.
Thank you, Mario. CA is also my home state, and at a historic church in the San Fernando Valley, I was introduced to Jesus in Sunday School in the late 60’s. I adjure the pastors, churches and other congregations in CA to heed this warning and let the Holy Spirit of Truth be their guide and preach Jesus and Him crucified on a cross for all of humanity, took the keys of death from Satan and lives to bless His bride and expand His Kingdom in CA and in all the earth until He returns.
The load of debauchery into which California is quickly sliding is becoming so overwhelming that sometimes I have to stop and remember to hand it back to Jesus. We can’t carry this load ourselves. The battle is His. We have to remember that, that everything we do to fight this evil is Him doing it through us, I just read an email from SaveCalifornia.org that listed several “republican” names that are working along with the democrats in California to pass the abomination of sexual curriculum that is being forced on our children and grandchildren in school. Don’t kid yourself. They are republican in name only. Please look it up and read it and remember those names at election time. No wonder we are losing the state and cannot seem to get sane legislation passed any more. They are double-wicked. We know liberals will do wickedly, but to vote in republicans to have them turn on us, is traitorous.
Not only has a counterfeit church been built, but to me the most outrageous thing is that the Name of our God and the cause of His Annointed One has been profaned! This post reminds me of the LORD’S rebuke of the Priests and the whole Levitical system in the book of Malachi.
“for I am a great King,” says the LORD of Hosts, “and My name is feared among the nations.” -Malachi 1:14b
NASB
THANK YOU Mario for speaking the truth in love. I am so grateful to receive your emails. I am from New Zealand and have a son married to an American, they live in La Jolla. I visit them and I PRAY for them, California and the USA.
These earthquakes are a warning. The unprecedented rain and the blooming in the desert is encouraging to me. And the clouds of butterflies too. God is wanting to do something great in California, USA. Be encouraged and keep up the good work.
Jos Bassett-Smith
Wanaka
New Zealand
Sent from Samsung tablet
amen
GOD bless you Brother Mario, for TRUTH is sorely needed in this hour. May GOD honor the cry HE has placed in your heart to grant Repentance from dead works and to return from the ways of the world to HIS TRUTH, HIS WAYS, HIS LIFE unto those who call themselves by HIS Name. Thank you for representing JESUS truthfully.
Father GOD grant unto America YOUR Divine SPIRIT of Repentance, opened eyes and hearts that we might fully see the weight of our sin and return to thee in JESUS name. Amen.
God Bless you Mario I pray as this is read deception is broken from hearts and minds and that we will be awakened to the heart beat of God. I live in Ridgecrest CA
where the earthquake hit and not only did the earth shake.but a spirit of fear was unleashed. We need a true move of God and from this tragedy We are praying for an Awakening. We love you and your wife brother Mario we continue to stand in pray for you as well as with you.
Brother Mario- what you are decrying as the condition of much of the western Laodicean ‘church’ is also what the German Messianic Jew Wolfgang Simson has detailed in his outstanding book ‘The Starfish Manifesto’. My short book review does little justice to his dissertation that is compelling. Prayerfully consider: https://zionsgate.wordpress.com/2013/03/01/starfish-vision-part-i/
Kingdom Blessings, from His Throne to your home… in HIM, ~Santos