When I am out preaching on the street and handing out leaflets to strangers, the most common verbal reactions from people I encounter are “I’m not interested” and “Religion is the cause of wars and all problems in the world”. I still get the odd “You don’t believe in that rubbish do you?”, and am quite often totally ignored when I politely offer a bible scripture and the leaflets. On my most recent outing, a woman took a leaflet and tore it in half right in front of me, and threw it on the ground, she walked away without saying a word. I sacrifice my time and money to do the preaching work, but do I get offended by any of this? No, I expect far worse to be honest. The majority of people are not interested in the Bible, from what I have experienced on the streets it seems that many people are wrapped up in this world, distracted by Satan. Other preachers I know say the same about the lack of interest in the Bible these days.
Why are so many people angered by religion, and why do they show no interested in believing that we all have accountability to a creator who gave us everything? Well, for a start you only have to look at the world to see why so many problems are making people wonder if there is a God, all the distress seen on the news is making them question why any loving creator would allow the continuation of all the terrible things we see and sometimes experience (see the article on this website: Is God responsible for all suffering). If he loves everyone so much where is he? I can understand why a person may feel bitterness towards a god that allows suffering (even though God is not responsible for our problems); it’s all down to Satan.
The other reason many people want nothing to do with God is down to there being so many religions, and the problems they cause. It is absolutely true, an undeniable fact, that religion has indeed caused so much of the problems we have seen and experienced throughout history. Christians fighting Christians, Muslims fighting Muslims (Shia and Sunni), other religious groups controlling and manipulating followers (cults), the Troubles in Northern Ireland that created a massive divide between Catholics and Protestants (political differences between the two), and many other false gods who are believed to be real, worshipped by millions of people. Then there are the mega-rich TV evangelists who take money from poor and vulnerable ones, telling them that God will give them a job promotion, cure their cancer, help them win millions on the lottery, and perform other life-changing ‘miracles’ if they donate money to the church. These clowns exist purely to rip people off, not only financially, but spiritually too. The whole world of false religion is one big circus, it fools people into a sense of false security, bribes and controls them, and in many cases morally bankrupts them. It also keeps many people away from investigating the truth about the Bible, which when uncovered is the best thing for anyone.
People are sick and tired of being judged too. Whenever I see a preacher standing in the street screaming to passers by that they are sinners and going to burn in hell I cringe. This is another way people are put off by the idea of God. Who wants some self-righteous judgemental person putting you down when out and about minding your own business. They don’t know you, or what’s going on in your life, so they don’t have the right to accuse passers by of things they may not be doing. I often approach those ones and tell them they are not helping the cause, instead they are pushing people away from Christianity. I often try and tell them that it comes across as hypocritical: Matthew 7:5 You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.
Then we have all the false doctrines, crazy ideas that are just wild theories about what happens when we die, even though the Bible says the dead know nothing: Ecclesiastes 9:5 For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten. If we know nothing after we die then why do so many religions promote ideas about what happens to us after death? They don’t really know, and the recent trend of videos online with people saying they died and saw Jesus or Satan and came back to tell the story are to me either experiencing dreams or illusions when they awaken from some deep trauma. It’s a medical fact that when a person is considered clinically dead, they are not actually dead at all. A person is only pronounced officially dead, expired, when brain death occurs. When that happens there is no coming back, it’s not possible for any doctor to perform any procedure to bring a person back from brain death, only from clinical death (the brain still functions, and likely is how these ones get their ‘visions’). So when these ones appear online telling you about their experiences in hell or talking to God after dying and being brought back to life by a doctor, simply put it down to them not having being dead at all. It’s stories like this, along with other reasons listed above, that push many away from the idea of God.
When out preaching I had a chat on the street to a couple over the weekend. A man and woman stopped and took a leaflet, and when they realised it was about the Bible they said religion is toxic. I agreed, and they both looked surprised. They could see me holding a Bible in the street and handing out leaflets, talking about God, and yet I agree that religion is toxic. I explained that religion is toxic because of various reasons and had a good chat about scriptures proving this; they kept the leaflet and listened to some Bible principles, I hope they start a Bible study soon. Before they walked away I told them that the Bible is not just for massive church leaders and religious figures (who seem to have come away from basic Godly principles in recent times), it is for everyone, unlettered and ordinary people: Acts 4:13 When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus. The Bible is not written for someone who feels it’s right while wearing fancy outfits or suits, telling others what THEY think is right. Many religions are promoted by a single person, or group. These will often claim exclusivity to God, and push the idea that through them alone is the only way you can gain salvation. This is nonsense. Anyone telling you that without them you are doomed, are not to be trusted at all.
Here’s another reason religion is hated by so many people. Just one word answers why this is the case; Satan. Imagine you have not once committed a crime, and yet you are due to appear in a high court for trial. You are innocent but your enemy has amassed a huge mountain of falsified evidence to support his accusations, stating that that you are a murderer, and are the single reason why so many people have suffered and died. Not only has your enemy accused you of causing so much injustice and suffering, he has managed, for thousands of years, to convince millions of people that he is right. He has blinded those who don’t believe in you and is likened to a god: 2nd Corinthians 4:4 The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. People have been taught to hate you because of your name, what you represent, and blame everything on you for all that is wrong. There are some on your side, but they too are persecuted for supporting you, ridiculed for believing in you. All of your wisdom and love is portrayed as wicked and evil, and your enemy has turned all the good you gave into badness, health into sickness, normal into perverseness, and made them hate the book of evidence that you wrote; making it look ridiculous. Your enemy has also twisted the truth from your book, hijacked the information and handed it over to false teachers who have exploited the powerful words and principles contained in your written words. From this, many other groups have completely changed the meanings and principles, making completely new belief systems that commands worship to gods that are not real. The enemy has even managed to create a lie that says you didn’t create a thing, it all came about by chance; it evolved.
Does this all sound familiar? This is exactly what Satan has done to God, his enemy. He has twisted everything to make him look bad, with his words having little to no meaning in the modern world. For centuries he has been actively doing all he can to keep people away from knowing the truth (it terrifies Satan to know he is the loser in the end), the evidence that the court hasn’t yet seen. His lies and deceit are causing even those who profess to believe in the true God to behave as if they are against him. Many churches now promote same sex marriages, get involved in wars, are greedy of financial gain, are heavily involved in politics and government affairs, some even going as far to okay abortion, the murder of an unborn child. These ones teach false doctrines that are not scriptural, and many of the ideas are insane. No wonder people have had enough of religion; most not realising it’s backed by Satan.
The hypothetical court case in the previous paragraph would be devastating to any honest person who’d been accused of such wrongdoing. But how good would it feel if after all of the nasty accusations, your name was cleared, and the enemy was found to be the guilty one and locked in a prison with no means of escape? God is about to do just that. He will expose all the false evidence that the enemy has submitted as the biggest lie in history. He is about to have his turn to say what has really happened, and expose the truth. When He does this it will be without any reasonable doubt that He is telling the truth and His accuser is lying, and it is him who is responsible for all the problems humans and other living creatures have experiences for almost 6000 years, all down to sin that was introduced through Satan, the father of the lie: John 8:44 You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
God asks us in prayer to let his name be sanctified and vindicated: Ezekiel 36:23 I will show the holiness of my great name, which has been profaned among the nations, the name you have profaned among them. Then the nations will know that I am the LORD, declares the Sovereign LORD, when I am proved holy through you before their eyes. God wants you to draw close to him but Satan is doing all he can to prevent this. Scripture says that if you repent and flee from the devil, he will flee from you: James 4:7 Submit yourselves, then, to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. You won’t be able to do this if you are caught up in false worship, or avoiding finding the truth about the Bible due to Satan and his false accusations against God. Study the Bible alone, do the scientific research (the Bible confirms many sciences well before they were discovered), and the historical evidence, the principles too. It’s true that if everyone suddenly believed the Bible and immediately followed the principles all wars would end today, there would not be another shot fired. There would be no more crimes, no rape or murder, no more adultery, unwanted pregnancies, no sexually transmitted diseases, no more false and highly toxic religion, and no matter what colour your skin, cultural differences, every single person on earth would be united. This is what God promises. He will soon establish His kingdom on earth, and along with positives listed above, he will restore the planet to its former glory, making everything perfect, with no more death and everlasting life. When you look around you today and see the horrors that seem to be increasing by the hour, it must surely encourage you to seek the truth from the Bible, and when you discover its secrets you will have a life-changing experience. Who wouldn’t want a world that no longer has wars, disease, misery, and death? False religion and evolution won’t give you this hope, only the true God promises good things: Revelation 21:4 He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.
If you enjoy the articles on this website and would like to know more about the Bible, feel welcome to get in touch.
mark@truthministry.co.uk