Why I Don't Believe Popularity with the World Means One is Right With God

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I remembered how I had a rather intense argument with some self-proclaimed Roman Catholic apologists. They said that born again Christians are jealous of the Pope's popularity that everyone bows down to him while they say no born again Christian pastor is suffering for Christ's sake. It's pretty much a bad case of double standard. So is their basis for right and wrong based on popularity? Let's check what the Bible says and I seek to refute them with the Bible they so misquote for their own convenience.

The Bible has a very different warning. Here's what the Bible says about being loved by the world:
Matthew 7;13-14 
Enter ye in at the strait gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it.
Luke 6:26  
Woe unto you, when all men shall speak well of you! for so did their fathers to the false prophets.
John 15:19 
If ye were of the world, the world would love his own: but because ye are not of the world, but I have chosen you out of the world, therefore the world hateth you.
James 4:4  
Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.

People can say that they are right because they're plenty or that if you don't join the majority then you're wrong. But truth needs to be told that no matter how few people believe the truth it will never change. No matter how many people believe a lie it will never be true. I don't care if there are over five billion Roman Catholics or if a cult is increasing in numbers. An increase in numbers doesn't necessarily make a wrong right. By their logic if there are over five billion drug addicts and only a few people who reject drugs then being a drug addict should be accepted as socially correct.  

Jesus already warned only a few will ever make it. The reason is most people don't want to be left out in this passing world. They think that they should be popular with the world and if they're not then they must be wrong. There's one reality we must accept namely popularity is fickle. The same crowd that welcomed Jesus on Palm Sunday wanted Him dead on Good Friday. Popularity with the world is something that you can't trust because the world changes its tide too often. If worldly people can lose their popularity to the world then don't expect Christians not to lose it either. 

There's one painful truth that we must accept. It has never been easy to become a Christian or to be a Christian. It isn't easy to accept that salvation can't be earned or maintained by works because of pride. It's never easy to comprehend that God would give His only begotten Son to die for sins because man is not basically good. These facts are really hard to believe. The Christian life hasn't been meant to be easy either. To be a Christian means to suffer much tribulation.
Acts 14:22
Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God.

Did you read that or did you just miss it? The Christian life is through much tribulation and not through much popularity. There's no real Christianity without tribulation and testing. You can't have the real Jesus and Madison Avenue at the same time.  You can't be faithful to God and be popular with the world. You can only take one pick because they're complete opposites. You must choose between good and evil. You can't have both. It's because good and evil are non-complementary opposites like Heaven and Hell. 

The Pope's popularity with the world is no surprise. Prosperity preachers and entertainment driven churches have more attendants than God-fearing churches. It's so rare people ever want a God-fearing assembly. That's exactly the problem today. Only a few will ever make it to the Kingdom of God and many enter into the broad gate of destruction. Are you just too concerned about popularity over holiness are you to concerned about holiness over popularity?


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