Separation, Isolation, and Infiltration
Once again, I woke up with the sunrise. To be honest, the sunrise beat me by several minutes. However, I’m going to win this early morning race someday. When I saw the first light through my eyelids, I turned to look at my digital alarm clock. It was 5:46, I began to war with myself as my body was ready to roll, and my mind was telling me that I couldn’t possibly be so awake this early. After all, I didn’t get to bed till after twelve thirty earlier this morning.
Before going to bed, I had to finish setting up my free copy of Esword (that’s E Sword), my computer Bible. I have a copy of this great program for my lap top, Deb’s computer, the computer in my office at church, and on my new sizzling fast soon to be CAD computer, built for me by Tommy C., one of the nicest guys you’ll ever meet in this world. The reason that task took me past the midnight hour was because Deb and I got back home at about 10:30 last night after an evening at the Cobscook Community Learning Center.
Every other Monday night at about 6:30, people from Lubec, Trescott, Whiting, Dennysville, Pembroke, and other surrounding towns get together for an evening of music. The musicians sit around in a circle. and everyone else sits at tables, or stands along the wall to listen to the area’s finest, and some up and coming musicians. Deb and I were invited to this by a long time friend, Jerry, who is one of the musicians. He played the only electrified instrument, but was able to dial in a mellow acoustic sound from his very nice electric bass guitar and amp. The other instruments included guitars, a fiddle, a couple of banjos, a dulcimer, and a concertina. This was no rock band, and was as down home as it comes. This is typical musicianship in Downeast Maine. With that said, you’re probably wondering what I’m getting at, and how I’m going to turn this into a Bible lesson. Put your seat belt on.
I am a separatist. Second Corinthians chapter six verse seventeen is a marching order for every Christian. But what does this mean? What is it to “be ye separate”? We know that Paul cannot be speaking of marriage in this passage. I do believe that if a Christian man is looking for a wife, that he ought to look for a Christian wife. However, if a man and woman are already married and one of them becomes a Christian, Paul does not advocate to “come out from among them” and “touch not the unclean thing.” Paul taught the Corinthians the opposite. (I Corinthians 7:12).
Second Corinthians chapter six cannot be referring to a Christian’s interactions with others on a social basis. We Christians live in a world where we are highly outnumbered. We encounter many non-believers every day. Consider your boss. Whether you face this fact, or not, you are yoked up with him/her, and you better be because we are to give our best for the company we work for. Is your boss a Christian? If not, should you “come out from among them”? The answer is, no.
As a separatist, I will separate from those who are involved in wrongdoing who also call themselves Christians. Now hear this, as a Christian I DO NOT SEPARATE FROM NON-CHRISTIANS. You might be of the persuasion that all non-believers are sinful. If so, you do not go far enough. All of humanity is sinful. “There is none righteous” (including you) “no not one” (including me). The only difference between you the believer, and the non-believer is the GRACE OF GOD!!! If we were to separate from all non-believers, God may as well take us home (I Corinthians 5:10).
I am a separatist. According to the same verses stated above, that means, I do not join hands in worship with organizations and churches that do not believe and practice what is clearly taught in Scripture. I do not agree with Catholic doctrine that claims a purgatory, or says it’s important to pray to Mary. As far as the Catholic church is concerned, I don’t agree with it so I don’t participate with it. I don’t agree with Universalism that teaches that God is love, and will let everyone into heaven. I do believe that God is love, but I also believe that God is Holy, and He will not allow anyone into heaven that has not trusted in the atoning death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. I do not agree with Seventh Day Adventists who believe one must keep the Sabbath in order to be saved. I don’t agree with Mormons who believe in extra-revelation, or the Jehovah’s Witnesses who deny the fundamental doctrines of Scripture. I believe II Corinthians chapter 6 verses 14-16 clearly teach that Christians are not to join in the worship of anything other than that which is Biblical.
Would the real Separatists please stand up? An incorrect view of Separatism has led to “Isolationism”. Those who call themselves Separatists, and do not draw the line of Biblical separation where the Bible draws the line, are not real separatists, they are Isolationists. An Isolationist separates beyond that which the Bible teaches, ether because he/she believes this is what Scripture states, and/or to keep from being contaminated by those that he avoids.
Because Isolationists have no Biblical basis for unduly separating, they must devise one. Therefore, it is not difficult to understand why many Isolationists live on a diet of “do’s and don’ts”. For instance, I remember a time when beards were considered “worldly.” Facial hair was a Christian taboo. Years ago I left a church because of a dull razor. I had just joined it a year before. I wanted to serve, but patiently waited on the Lord for a teaching opportunity. I finally got a chance to fill in one Sunday for one of the adult Sunday school classes. I entered class that morning with about two days worth of growth due to not having a sharp razor blade. After class the pastor pulled me aside and asked if I was growing a beard. I laughed and answered, no, and explained my predicament. He said to me, “That’s good, because we don’t allow people to serve here who have facial hair.” That really bothered me the next day, so I made an appointment to see the pastor. I asked him what his Biblical basis was for this idea. When all was said and done, he said this, “Well Tom, remember when we were young and would watch those old westerns?” I responded, “Yes!” He continued, “Well, the good guys were always clean cut, and the bad guys always had facial hair, remember that?“
Are Christian pastors losing their ability to "reason" from the Scriptures? Today, beards are pretty much a non issue. By the way, I went to one of my books, “The History of Baptists”. There were many pictures of Baptist preachers in it and I can tell you that eight out of ten sported beards. Many were quite flamboyant. Now, I’m all for being different then the world. The Bible tells us that we need to be a peculiar people. I’m all for this. Unfortunately, all too many Christians are the wrong kind of peculiar. Instead of being peculiar in Godliness and good works; peculiar in hope, as we look for the coming of the Lord Jesus; we’re peculiar in stupid stuff. We’re known as the folk that think we’re better than everybody else, and that we don’t want anything to do with them. What a poor epitaph for the church in America. No wonder Christian kids often go a different path then how they were raised as soon as they’re out of the home. Our kids are finding out that isolationism doesn’t work, and one of three things takes place.
One, they become worldly, and like Solomon, enjoy everything that they were told was wrong.
“And whatsoever mine eyes desired I kept not from them, I withheld not my heart from any joy;”
Ecclesiastes 2:10a
Two, they move to the religious left. New sects begin this way. We can blame modern day fundamentalism, to some degree, for the “Emerging Church” movement.
Lastly, our children become better thinkers then their fathers, and find the correct Biblical balance.
Last night, I decided to “Infiltrate”. I know we blame the “Neo’s” for doing this, but I do believe that Infiltration is Biblical. You can not pierce the darkness if your light is hid under a bushel. When Jesus said, “Go ye”, He wasn’t telling His disciples to hide somewhere where it was safe. He commanded us to go through a dark, evil, and unrighteous world to shine the light of God’s grace toward them. Many Bible-believing churches in America today are anemic. Anemic mainly because too many preachers like Jonah would rather run the other way than enter a culture that is reproachful to them. I blame preachers because we should know better. We are the “angels” to the churches, and like the angels to the seven churches in Revelation two and three, God will hold us responsible.
I think I’ll pen a new term. INFILTRATIONISM. I am an Infiltrationist. What is an Infiltrationist, you ask? An Infiltrationist is one who believes that you can mount an attack against the gates of hell, and those gates will not be able to withstand it. I may end up being famous for this one.
Seriously, I love music, so last night was a relatively easy cultural setting to pierce. Deb and I met a lot of very nice people. We did not hide who we were. Some people already knew who we were. We showed ourselves friendly, and why not, we want to love people like Jesus loved them. Our friendliness and love toward them paid off. A few of them even hugged us when we left, and said they would come to church. What more can you ask for? We did what we believed God would have us to do, and God blessed it. I want God’s people here in Lubec and everywhere to infiltrate, to come out of the box, or from underneath the bushel they're hiding under, and let their light so shine before men.
