As we have seen, the present evil age that Paul speaks of in Galatians 1:4 refers to Judaism. John the Baptist was born not only into Judaism but even into the priesthood of that religion (Luke 1:5, 13). However, he did not live like a priest. He ministered in the wilderness, eating locusts and wild honey and wearing a garment of camel’s hair, the camel being considered unclean according to the Levitical regulations (Matt. 3:1-4; Lev. 11:4). Nevertheless, he was the forerunner of Christ, testifying of Christ and recommending Christ to the people. Because he did not eat and drink in the expected way, people said that he had a demon (Matt. 11:18). The religious people spoke in this way because John’s way was different from their religion. The Lord Jesus also did not come in a legal way. Although He was recommended by John the Baptist, He did not follow John in His way of living. John came neither eating nor drinking, but the Lord Jesus both ate and drank. Because of this, the religious people said, “Behold, a gluttonous man and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners” (v. 19).
When the Lord Jesus cast a demon out of a blind and dumb man, the Pharisees, the highest ranking persons in that evil religion, said, “This man does not cast out the demons except by Beelzebul, ruler of the demons” (12:24; John 8:48). The name Beelzebul was a most evil and ugly name. Beelzebub, meaning “the lord of flies,” was changed by the Jews to Beelzebul, meaning “the lord of the dunghill,” and was used for the ruler of the demons. The real intention of the Pharisees’ word was to say that the Lord Jesus was one with the ruler of the demons and the lord of the flies of the dung hill. Jesus was God manifested in the flesh (John 1:14; 1 Tim. 3:16). To say that a person is possessed by a demon is a small thing, but to say that God manifested in the flesh has a demon, even the ruler of the demons, was a very serious matter. Although the genuine, typical religion of that day taught people to worship God, serve Him, seek His interests, and hold to His holy Word, it defamed the Lord Jesus to such a great extent. By this we can see how evil religion is.
When the Lord Jesus sent out His disciples, He told them, “It is sufficient for the disciple that he become like his teacher, and the slave like his master. If they have called the Master of the house Beelzebul, how much more those of His household!” (Matt. 10:25). The Lord said that the religious people would not only reject the ones sent by Him, but they would also say that they were demon possessed. This is because no prejudice is as serious as religious prejudice. The religious Jews said such a thing to the disciples because the ones sent by the Lord Jesus behaved, acted, and worked in a way that was not according to the Jews’ religion, tradition, superstition, and falsehood. Rather, it was according to the truth with which the Lord Jesus had commissioned them.
Today we also have been defamed very much. Some have called us a cult, and they compare our calling on the name of the Lord Jesus to chanting to a Hindu deity. They particularly oppose the scriptural teaching that God is mingled with man to be expressed corporately in the church, calling this a kind of idolatry. Those who oppose us in this way suppose that they are contending for the truth. However, this is to act in the same principle as the Pharisees, who with the rest of the Sanhedrin sentenced the Lord Jesus to death, thinking that this was according to the Scriptures. We do believe that the genuine, proper church has the divine life and partakes of the divine nature, making it the expression of Christ (John 3:15-16, 36; 2 Pet. 1:4; Eph. 3:10, 21), but to interpret our writings as claiming that the church is a part of the Godhead is shortsighted and even blind. Such opposers are short of knowledge, which is a dangerous thing. We are in a battle today, just as the Lord Jesus was at His time.
The Lord Jesus said, “Blessed are you when they reproach and persecute you, and while speaking lies, say every evil thing against you because of Me” (Matt. 5:11). Because Jesus predicted that the religious people would speak against the disciples in this way, to be fully welcomed by today’s Christianity may prove that we are wrong. If we are right with the Lord, we must be prepared to be spoken of in an evil way and be given a bad name. Paul says that he ministered through “evil report and good report” (2 Cor. 6:8). The evil reports concerning the apostle Paul came not mainly from the Gentiles but from the Jews, from the source of religion. This is why Paul called that religion the “present evil age.” In Acts 24 the leading person of that religion, the high priest, came with the elders and an orator to accuse Paul before the governor. The orator said, “We have found this man a pest” (vv. 1-6). Religion considered Paul to be “pestilent,” and they tried to kill his “germs” of Christ.
Recently, while we were at a sacred site in Rome, one brother among us began to call on the Lord. An attendant stopped him, saying that he was desecrating that holy place. This illustrates that there is no compromise between the Lord’s recovery and today’s evil religion. We cannot go along with religion. Some who hear this may be stirred up to go purposely to religious places and interfere with what people are doing there. I would urge you not to do this, because it is neither legal nor proper. We are outside of religion, but we are not wild.
We must not expect that religion will improve. When I was young, I was very bothered, and I asked the Lord why He tolerated evil things and how long He would continue to tolerate them. At that time I did not know the Word very well. Gradually, though, I came to learn that according to the prophecy of the Bible, the Lord in His wisdom will allow religion to continue. As we have seen, fifty years ago the situation of the world and religion was not like it is today. Today the nation of Israel has been re-formed, and Jerusalem has been returned to the Jews. This is a great matter. As we have pointed out, many Jews have now become more zealous and pious. The Catholic Church also has assimilated certain spiritual things. In addition, there are also many in Protestant Christianity who are seeking spiritual things. Some even utilize Brother Nee’s writings related to the matter of life but not those related to the matter of the church. Others, especially in the United States, have used Brother Nee’s books and mine, claiming to practice the local church life as we do but not fellowshipping with the other churches. This is a mixture with religion.
All kinds of religion will continue to grow, and there is already the tendency for Christians to seek spirituality under the umbrella of various religions. This is absolutely against God’s economy. The Lord said clearly, “Upon this rock I will build My church” (Matt. 16:18). To seek spirituality in the different religions apart from the church is a compromise and a mixture. Mixture, confusion, and division are all in the principle of Babylon. The entire situation of religion today is Babylonian, because it is filled with divisions, confusion, counterfeits, and mixtures. The Lord desires to have a pure church as a chaste bride for Himself (2 Cor. 11:2). We must be clear concerning this and not be deceived. Because we testify concerning the evils of religion, we are defamed. Therefore, we must be prepared to suffer. The whole earth is filled with religion, which tolerates falsehood.
On the other hand, certain Christian organizations in the United States use the spiritual terminology in my books for their own purposes, without citing my writings as the source. Deep in their spirit and even in their minds many seekers are clear about this ministry, yet some still utilize this ministry while opposing us. The ministry in the Lord’s recovery in the United States began in 1962. At that time I told the brothers that after a few years all the terms we use will be used by others who are not among us. In 1962 almost no one in America spoke concerning the human spirit, transformation, or the local church. Today people have adopted all these terms, but they have turned their back on us. This is not being honest or faithful. This demonstrates the evilness, dishonesty, and lack of conscience in religion.