The older I get, the more I see the workings and the results of the Religious System, and I say to myself “I am outside of that.” When I first began in ministry 40 years ago, I had no clue that following Christ in this century would make me the reproach of the modern thing that calls itself the church today.
Believe me when I say I love the Church—the real one and the one that has become a religious system. I just love people, all people, all races and all cultures. The Lord has taught me to be inclusive; the more I love Him, the more I love all of His creation. After traveling to over 80 nations of the world I confess there is beauty in diversity.
Nonetheless, Scripture invites us to go “outside of that” to truly walk with Christ in this dark and degenerate world. “Therefore, let us go forth to Him, outside the camp, bearing His reproach”. (reproach here in the Greek means to Defame, Taunt, Reject, Betray, Disrespect). A lot can be said here about life outside the camp, but I can assure you it doesn’t feel good to the flesh. It is only when you realize that it is not your reproach you carry but His that it becomes bearable. In what has become one of my favorite verses Paul says “I now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ, for the sake of His body, which is the church” By His grace I am living out those words since I left the system in 2009.
In the early years of my ministry, I lived for the approval of men. Little did I know that if I truly became a follower of Christ, I would get such backlash from those I so highly respected. Being misquoted and misunderstood today has become my daily bread. Today, those that know me have no doubt that the Lord has me swimming upstream and against the majority.
The people of the WAY have, in many ways, lost their way. My immediate reaction is to disappear and become a monk somewhere till Father chooses to take me home. If it wasn’t for His love for His Church, I would be gone. Reproach in any form is not fun, especially in your later years where peace is everything. What you are about to read is not fuel for debate but more than anything else, a declaration of where I stand.
When I say I am outside of that I mean I am Outside the Religious System, I am outside the modern Church.
- The Religious System of Men- Human-invented traditions built on skewed Bible translations. Fake Church, Fake Body, Fake Christian, Fake Family. Everything that calls itself Church but is sustained by the support and approval of men. Paul said it best “having a form of godliness but denying its power.” Take away the money and watch it all crumble. PSA Its coming!
- Weekly Church Services — 1-2 hours punch the attendance clock, that calls itself a worship service with its liturgy, order of services, programs, dress, ceremonies, one speaker rhetoric & oratory better known as a sermon. I am not at all saying that some good is not being done in the system. I am saying that based on the focus of a few “professional” gifts with the rest as spectators, the actual Roman/Greek layout of the “sanctuary”, and the American take-out time constraint there is little room for edification of the Body and the building up of strong proven relationships needed to walk out New Testament love. The kind of love that will impact this self-centered world.
- Worship of the Bible — Teaching whether expressed or implied leading to an over emphasis on a believers focus on the bible in place of and as a direct replacement of the place belonging to the Lord via the Holy Spirit. The bible is so central to the modern church today that if you ask Chat GPT to create an image of a Christian, it creates them holding or reading a bible. The Bible is not Holy, and it is not the Word of God. We are the only faith who has a Living Resurrected God abiding in us. We think discipling a new believer is getting them a Bible. What makes us any different than a muslim who reads the Koran?
- Going to Church “the building” — The Church is the people not a building, no building is Holy. Even if we add a church spire, put in purple carpet, paint the roof blue, fill it with hand carved “spiritual” figurines, paintings and crosses, and put in special seating in the front it is still no more than the four walls of a building. This is so sad that our missionaries have infected leaders in the developing nations with the idea that they are not legitimate unless they have a building.
- All Professional Clergy (pastor or priest), with their claims of positions, offices, or titles. Eph 4: 30 describes only functions created for the building up of the Body of Christ. No believer can cover another believer, and no believer has any right to be over, demand submission, or has ever been given authority to control another believer. All submission in the Kingdom is always voluntary and its always outside of that!
- The Focus of the Church Is to Save the Lost — No, It Isn’t! That focus entered the Church in the late 18th century. The real focus of the New Testament Church ought to be the 51+ “one-anothers” found in scripture. A Church life grounded in love that edifies and provides for the well-being of the Body, the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ. This is one of the hardest things for me to understand how can we overlook so many references in the New Testament to love? The truth is that the business of the Religious System has never had any problem overriding the mind of Christ in the carnal church. More proof of that is how the Voice and work of the Holy Spirit has been replaced by twisted bible verses.
- Eternal Damnation & Annihilation in the Fires of Hell — for all those who had not passed the test of salvation according to the Religious System. Hell is reserved for Satan and his angels (demons). If our Lord Jesus Christ (perfect Love) teaches that believers are to love their enemies, how can we believe that He is going to fry His? The Lord has said that He died for all men subsequently all men have been reconciled at the cross. How the Lord plans to do this we don’t know. We know that every knee shall bow, and every tongue shall confess that Jesus Christ is Lord so there will be some type of final reconciliation.
The doctrine of eternal torment didn’t really take off till the Middle Ages when the Catholic Church used the intense fear of hell and purgatory as a primary toll for moral discipline and fundraising. Then came the protestant evangelicals in the 18th Century with their over emphasis on salvation to get to Heaven and thus avoid the eternal flames of hell. Not questioning the sincerity of some of those preachers like Jonathan Edwards and Charles Finney. Their teaching on Hell became the tool for what is now the business of Church. More fear creates more numbers, and more numbers create bigger buildings and larger budgets. Sad….
- Doctrinal Uniformity and Conformity Produce Holiness — No, They Produce judgmental legalists, it also stifles community, family and the joy of relationships. It hides behind fear making way for fakes, liars, hypocrites and back-biters. There is no way to subjugate and conform believers who enter the Body at different times and from different walks of life by legislating a group of laws. The unity of the Body was never around doctrine it was always based on love. They were not known for a doctrine they were known for a WAY. Think about that! Unity is the work of the Holy Spirit. Christ is the only one qualified to judge accurately. It is our sole job to love the brethren as Christ loves the Church.
Just in case you are reading something I wrote, and you get the feeling to scream out “that’s not biblical” you are probably right since the final authority for me is not your bible with its many mistranslations and human- interpretations. The final authority is the ONE VOICE of The Holy Spirit (the Lord Jesus Christ) that resides in His Body not just your particular flavor of Christianity.
This present society is done with our religious legalism and division. We are of no effect in the things that matter.
Unless we confront and deal with the comments above we will continue spinning our wheels repeating the mess of the last generation. A time of dismantling and deconstruction must come! This time is coming, and it is very close when our greed and self-centeredness will usher in a Global depression where economic markets will crash and energy and food sources will dwindle. In the midst of this darkness will be one of the greatest opportunities for the real church to shine its loving light into the hearts of the broken and the marginalized. Here is where my hope rests. Permanent, life transforming revival always exists and flourishes amid persecution. We must go outside the Camp! Whatever the cost. Whatever the price. We must go outside the Religious System of Men! We must go outside of that!
I am now at a place in Christ where I am not afraid of being found wrong as I grow in Him. I know the closer I get to the Truth who is the Lord Jesus Christ, the less that will remain of me. I no longer want to live in the false certainty of men who think they can fully understand the enormity of God because they have read the bible. The Spirit is my Guide and a group of loving and forgiving brothers have been my safety net.
Finally, I want to remind His Body that the cornerstone of the Kingdom is Christ. God is love so His love should be the motivation for everything we do in the Kingdom. Anything we do, no matter how well-meaning, if it is not birthed by His Spirit, it is flesh and will ultimately produce nothing.
I posted this quote today on Facebook.
Much love but outside of that!
Jose L. Bosque
www.GodsLeader.com
