Second greatest power?

  
    You want to know what the second greatest power on earth is?  This power is so great it can overcome the power of the Word of God.  That is powerful!   Strangely, this power is so great, yet it comes at us so smoothly, so slyly, that we don't even see it coming.  Rather than resist, man often just embraces and gives it aid in its mission.  What is this power, you ask?  I am glad you asked!  Religion traditions! Religion which gives traditions more importance than the commands of God and ever manages to even turn the Word of God into a mere tradition.   Here is what Jesus said to the Pharisees:  He said they were  "Making the word of God of none effect through your tradition, which ye have delivered: and many such like things do ye.", Mark 7:13. Even though they knew truth and had the promises, they had turned everything to tradition and ritual. It is almost unimaginable that something could be more powerful than the word of God, by which the world was created, but there you have it.  Traditions and things like traditions. 

     This powerful tool of religion, which captures millions and holds them in weakened conditions, works by ignoring the present reality, present manifestation of God and cling to the historical manifestations and symbols of God. Religion always speaks of God  in some other tense than present.  God as He was or God as He will be, but never as He is, the Holy Ghost among us.  This works to keep the Spirit from giving life to the letter of the Word.  This turns relationship with God, meant to be a vibrant, experiential, real relationship, into tradition.  This same thing was what had become wrong with the Pharisees.  When Jesus, the Living Word of God came, they rejected Him, preferring their traditions and traditional concepts of God over God Himself.  When Jesus spoke of the "thief" that would come to kill, steal and destroy the abundant life He offers, He was referring to religion, not the devil as is so often assumed. How do they do their work?  Just make the Word of God of   "none effect".  Today, this same spirit is doing the same thing to God's people.  It turns the Word to mere tradition, it speaks of God but rejects the present manifestation of God, the Holy Ghost.

    Lest you think I am just harping on some of the older more traditional denominations, think again.  The way of man is to turn everything to tradition as quickly as possible.  Once, during the plague of snakes, God told Moses to put a brazen serpent on a pole and all who looked on it,  would be healed.  Nine hundred years later they were still worshipping that snake. What started as a word from God, became a deadly tradition.  Traditions easily become a substitute for the voice and presence of God. Many of the traditions we see across the whole spectrum of the church, started with God but now men use them to avoid God.  God can't do anything new because we our traditions won't allow it.  We are in bondage to our traditions. And, we present day faith-charismatic type folks are just as guilty of all this as anyone else.  We so easily turn a word from God in a ten-step formula and the next thing you know, that formula is what we lean on, even judge others by.

   Quickly, when faced with this argument, voices will arise to defend the tradition, pointing out scriptural accuracy.  However, they must understand that a Bible verse is no substitute for a walking, talking relationship with the Spirit of God.  Yes, the formula is correct but the voice of the Living God is something you cannot dismiss or do without.  Sound doctrine is a valuable thing, but sound doctrine must never become dogma and it won't if we continue to walk in the Spirit.  Sound doctrine does not dismiss the voice of the Spirit.  What a lot of folks think is doctrine is not much more than a box we have built that has become our prison. What is the answer?  How do we defend against this power?   Be ever being filled and stimulated with the Holy Ghost!  His presence gives life to the Word.  His presence gives power to our spirit.  His presence makes Jesus Lord indeed, Lord experientially.  Being filled with the Spirit keeps us wise concerning the will, the heart wish of God (Eph. 5:14-20).