When Christian Preachers Promise God’s Blessing to the Reprobate
The blessing of God is the person of Jesus Christ. For those who have been chosen to receive the grace of God unto salvation, they have received the baptism, the indwelling, and regeneration of the Holy Spirit. These are the blessed redeemed of God, who have every spiritual blessing in Christ (Eph 1:3).
The reprobate unbeliever is truly interested in what his flesh tells him are the blessings of God. Invariably, this is more of the world, especially the things of the world (1 Jn 2:15–17).
It is the job of the false preacher to promise his hearers success in the world. After all, this was the original lie of the devil (Gen 3).
As a servant of the devil, enslaved to the sins of lust, greed, and covetousness, the false teacher sees his opportunity to gain the world, by enticing others to follow him (Ezek 34). He poses as an angel of light, a servant of Christ, but the motive of his heart betrays him. He is an expert, a guru with secret knowledge to sell to others for a price.
The root of the problem is bad theology. Men are told that God loves them and wants to bless them with prosperity and success in the world. Of course, this is not scriptural, but neither the false pastor nor his congregation cares about sound doctrine. They are too busy in the quest for worldly success; and the god of this world, the devil, is all too happy to make sure they get what they want.
True Christian pastors are few, and they would never subject the reprobate to such lies and deception. Ironically, it is the reprobate soul who hates the truth, anyway. He rejoices in being lied to by the charlatan pastor, promising success “from God.” This is why the most popular Christian venues have the term “mega” attached to them.
The faithful minister of the Gospel preaches the scandalous message of the cross of Calvary. Christ died for God’s elect people (Eph 5:25), redeeming them from sin and death (1 Cor 1:30; Eph 1:7). Wherever true preaching is heard, it is because the Holy Spirit is filling the man of God, in order to bless true believers with the knowledge of the truth. They are drawn by the same Spirit, to find the local church where they can hear the undiluted Word of God.
The reason the “Christian” preacher deceives the unbelieving reprobate is because the preacher himself is an unbeliever. He does not know the truth, and so he preaches like the Old Testament false prophets. Those men served the devil by preaching a message of peace, when there was no peace from God. From their esteemed positions in the Old Testament church, they promised disobedient Israel a coming prosperity, when judgment from God was actually looming.
The positivistic message, derived from today’s self-help psychology, is one warning sign of a false preacher. The Bible’s message is one of warning and hope. Where there is no warning against the wrath of God to come (Mt 3:7; Lk 3:7), there is a false gospel being proclaimed.
In the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God (Acts 2:23), He has created vessels of wrath, prepared for destruction (Rom 9:22). These reprobates like Esau are hated from the womb by God. God made them this way for His eternal purposes (Mal 1:3; Rom 9:13). One may protest this doctrine, even asking, “Why did you make me this way?” But who are you, friend, to question the Creator of all things? Can God not make that which He intends to destroy? He can. Even as He created the heavens and the earth, with his revealed intention to destroy them, fire and fervent heat are being readied for the last day (2 Pet 3:10–12).
Considering the truth of God’s Word, we can only warn those posing as Christian pastors, who are promising “blessing” to the reprobate. If you are deceived in this matter, then repent. Turn away from the world, its philosophies and psychologies, and turn to the pages of holy Writ.
There is no blessing for the reprobate unbeliever. The only blessing of God is the person of Jesus Christ. Abundant and eternal life are found only in Him (Jn 10:10; 1 Jn 5:11–13). The Bible assures us that this is a life of suffering in this world (Col 1:24; Rom 8:18; 1 Peter). The glories to be sought are not in this world; but they are in the world to come where righteousness dwells (2 Pet 3:13).
David Norczyk
Spokane Valley, Washington
January 20, 2022
