Human Trafficking in the Church — Part 20
Recognizing the Six Characteristics of the Religious Spirit of Babylon
They said, “Come, let us build a city for ourselves, and a tower whose top will reach into the heavens, and let us make a [famous] name for ourselves, so that we will not be scattered [into separate groups] and be dispersed over the surface of the entire earth [as the Lord instructed].”—Genesis 11:4 (AMP)
5. Making a Name for Ourselves
Another characteristic of the workings of the religious spirit that inspired the construction of the tower of Babel is that names, titles, and reputations often become highly valued within the organization.
Jesus’ name may still be valued, but more focused time, effort, and attention may be given to promoting the name and the brand of the organization and its leaders.
In their meetings, they may declare that “The Lord’s name should be praised from where the sun rises to where it sets” (Psalm 113:3 ICB), but in practice, it is the names of the organization and its leaders that are often given the most attention, and are promoted most enthusiastically.
This emphasis on promoting the name of the organization and the names of its leaders can lead to ethical compromises and can lead Christian organizations into error and even heresy. The name of the organization may eventually become “the name above all names” in the minds of those who are intent on promoting it.
As the organization grows, the budget grows. Then protecting and promoting the reputation of the organization becomes even more important to keep the money flowing into the organization.
“For he sees that even wise men die; The fool and the stupid alike perish And leave their wealth to others.
“Their inward thought is that their houses will continue forever, And their dwelling places to all generations; They have named their lands after their own names [ignoring God].
“But man, with all his [self] honor and pomp, will not endure; He is like the beasts that perish.
“This is the fate of those who are foolishly confident, And of those after them who approve [and are influenced by] their words. Selah.”—Psalm 49:10-13 (AMP)
For a short time, I was a volunteer chaplain for a very well-known evangelical ministry organization. In my first deployment with the organization, we went into a disaster area to share the love of Jesus with disaster victims.
We made notes about each personal encounter that we had, and at the end of each day, there was a group meeting of the chaplains to report on the encounters that we’d had with people during that day.
A few days into the deployment, I was approached by the lead Chaplain who told me that my numbers needed to improve. I had not reported a satisfactory number of salvations, and I was not engaging a sufficient number of people in prayer.
As I learned more about the organization, I found out that all of our numbers were reported to the main marketing office of this large ministry. The marketing office was writing articles about the ministry’s disaster deployments and reporting numbers of how many people we prayed with and how many people made decisions of salvation.
I realized that numbers were very important to my supervising chaplain because his reputation depended on the numbers that he reported to his superiors. Low numbers made him look bad.
The numbers were also important to the organization because they were used in fund-raising efforts. Stories of spiritual conversions were chosen for the national magazine based on their dramatic impact and potential to help raise more money for the organization.
So, if I decided to spend an entire day with one family who was in desperate need, that would not in the best interests of the organization because that would cause my numbers to be very low. It was much better for the organization if I had a lot of brief encounters throughout my days that led to quick salvation prayers, but did not go any deeper, so that I could quickly move on to the next person.
Once I realized that the ministry efforts were focused on numbers and not individual needs or following the leading of the Holy Spirit, I could no longer continue with that organization. But I still get fund-raising letters from them every month, along with a pre-paid envelope for my generous donation.
After making a name for themselves, the work of this ministry now seems to be directed and driven by the fund-raising campaigns that keep money flowing into this organization. This ministry may have had its beginnings in a sincere desire to obey God in answering the call to evangelism, but it now seems to be a slave to the marketing campaigns that keep money flowing in to feed this giant organization.
Promotion is from the Lord
In contrast, Jesus often told people not to tell anyone about the miraculous impact of His ministry. (See, for example, Mark 7:36.) When the devils declared aloud that He was the Holy Son of God, Jesus silenced them. (See Mark 1:24-25.) Jesus even commanded His disciples not to tell anyone that He was the Messiah that all of the Jews had been waiting for for centuries. (See Matthew 16:20.)
Jesus seemed to do everything he could to avoid fame, realizing in His wisdom that fame would hinder His ministry, not help it.
When I think about some of the ministers who have had the greatest impact throughout Church history, even in modern times, and those who have made the greatest impact on my life, the names that come to mind are those of ministers who really didn’t seem to care about self-promotion at all and seemed to give no thought to it. Is this true in your life as well?
“I said unto the fools, Deal not foolishly: and to the wicked, Lift not up the horn: Lift not up your horn on high: speak not with a stiff neck. For promotion cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor from the south. But God is the judge: he putteth down one, and setteth up another.”—Psalm 75:4-7 (KJV)
Jesus also didn’t seem to give any thought to fund-raising efforts, even though he had a traveling ministry with several disciples to support. There is no record that He ever took up an offering. Yet He appointed Judas Iscariot to be the ministry treasurer, (See John 12:6 and 13:29) so His ministry obviously was provided with money in some way and needed someone to manage it.
It seems that Jesus took His own advice in the management of His ministry. Jesus seems to have made up His mind that His ministry would not become a slave to fund-raising efforts. He would not become a servant of money.
“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon [money, possessions, fame, status, or whatever is valued more than the Lord].
“Therefore I tell you, stop being worried or anxious (perpetually uneasy, distracted) about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, as to what you will wear. Is life not more than food, and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow [seed] nor reap [the harvest] nor gather [the crops] into barns, and yet your heavenly Father keeps feeding them. Are you not worth much more than they? And who of you by worrying can add one hour to [the length of] his life? And why are you worried about clothes? See how the lilies and wildflowers of the field grow; they do not labor nor do they spin [wool to make clothing], yet I say to you that not even Solomon in all his glory and splendor dressed himself like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive and green today and tomorrow is [cut and] thrown [as fuel] into the furnace, will He not much more clothe you? You of little faith! Therefore do not worry or be anxious (perpetually uneasy, distracted), saying, ‘What are we going to eat?’ or ‘What are we going to drink?’ or ‘What are we going to wear?’ For the [pagan] Gentiles eagerly seek all these things; [but do not worry,] for your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But first and most importantly seek (aim at, strive after) His kingdom and His righteousness [His way of doing and being right—the attitude and character of God], and all these things will be given to you also.
“So do not worry about tomorrow; for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.”—Matthew 6:24-34 (AMP)
“Depend upon it, God’s work done in God’s way will never lack God’s supplies,”—Hudson Taylor, missionary and founder of the China Inland Mission
