introduced at the
Technologies Trade Show
for MMA and Karate Style Sports
This is amazing and really crazy to conceive! Recently I went to a weekend event to hear that “virtual mats” were the best thing to use in order to learn, train, excel, and most of all prevent hurtful wounds in these disciplines. I am still shocked each time I hear these superior leaders say we have got to bring more people into the sports by offering more of a non-combatant atmosphere; and with “virtual mats” they could do it. I frankly do not like getting my nose broken. I do not like even running on a treadmill because you start and stop at the same place. But to think I could learn patience, timing, defense, offense, and gain knowledge without a real challenger just does not make sense.
Technology seems to always win because after all those guys are the brain gurus of moving society forward in any sector of life? Can you imagine showing up to your Karate class and a “virtual mat” (which is actually a TV, speakers and a hologram) becomes your teaching tool to master your discipline?
There are basically 10 levels in Karate. A beginner enters the discipline as a white belt. When in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s the color graduated from white to black. Have you ever thought of why? First it was was then progressed to yellow, gold, orange, green, blue, purple, red, and finally black. Most people have no idea why many established things are the way they are. They usually think it is just a tradition. However, people who experienced hard financial times made things simplified and prioritized eating over owning 10 belts which they could not wear at the same time or eat. What white belt would work so hard to gain the recognition of becoming a yellow belt and feel the need to display and keep his inferior white belt anyway? Each time a person excels from white toward black they only need the one to represent the current and past! When a person reaches black, would you think that master of his discipline should ever feel just as proud to wear a “color of his past” literally? Many might say that that guy’s (or lady’s) attitude could be considered prideful. But, reality and common sense actually says it would be more ignorant and nuts to wear a lower level color. Pride should have developed along the way with a mindset that understands how hard it was to get there; and he was in fact a beginner himself with now more of a “good prideful” mindset (for example calling someone prideful because he graduated high school, or prideful because he graduated with honors, etc.). Many people take the word “pride” and turn it into something negative without recognizing the same word does have a good meaning also. God says to be humble. Yes, but getting your butt kicked to become a black belt took humility from the very begining! These sports teach a person humility along with working hard, dedication, knowledge, brains over brawn, trusting trained instincts, and composure over anger or rage will serve you well. However, it seems everyday many people try to invent how to get out of work, how to avoid sweating, how to avoid tough situations because the practices are tough and combatant, and highly frowned upon. It is estimated that there are as many as 50 to 100 million active Karate practitioners! There are thousands more in MMA, boxing, and many other related sports that get “into the ring” or “on the mat” in order to become a beginner or a master of any one of them.
Can you imagine Goliath in the bible going to a Karate class? No. The Japanese are small people in stature compared to Goliath. But, the art of self defense teaches self control, brains over brawn, and using your adversary’s weakness to your advantage! But, nobody learns this without real training with real people. I think virtual mats will fail. What about you?
Why do we go to church with the same mindset then? We get told that the “virtual mat” at church is best. Scripture completely says otherwise! All over this planet I see “masters” wanting to grow their facilities so more and more “white belts” can engage. With whom? More white belts? Some of the folks come for free day care and do not even except the teaching. So you could say hundreds maybe come and wear “no belt” at all. When I was growing up you would get in trouble for not wearing a belt; and kids now think wearing one around your knees is acceptable. Then they see the church leaders allowing the “visitors” to do so. Young members are told to be accepting “because they think they will eventually get on board”. All the while the peer pressure is tearing at the beginner (and even higher level Christians) to be accepting or “tolerant”. The next thing that happens the young member starts not wearing one either! Gideon gathered 32,000 “white belted” soldiers but God said he only wanted 300 “black belts”! Scripture teaches us that church is for warrior training. A person lives his entire life with the sanctification process. It is like the 10 stages of becoming a disciplined black belt warriors.
So many preachers think white belts and lost visitors are the same when they are NOT! Ephesians 4: 11&12: “And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ.” The scripture CLEARLY SAYS, “PERFECTING OF THE SAINTS” (that is the same as committed white belts looking to become black belts). The average full time Karate student becomes a black belt in 5 years!
I know people that have been to church for 30 years and still are “maybe” white belts! Who goes to school 12 years only to finish the first grade? It seems it is because we are gathered to grow the first grade class until we need more rooms and more first grade teachers! The largest Karate school graduated 10,000 white belts? Wow! You would be foolish not to think of them as successful; because they sold the most uniforms!
Read Ephesians 4:13: “Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ.” Does this chapter, much less this verse encourage the church to go out and gather “white belts”?
It is the JOB OF THE PEOPLE in the church to persuade the “no belts” to come to church and become knowledgeable Christians as they are learning also WHILE GETTING THEIR FLESH IN TUNE AND DISCIPLINED! The world is getting taken over by 5th degree black belts OF THE WORLD because most churches are almost hell bent on inviting and then producing 30 year veteran white belts! It is like somewhere in scripture they read it is God’s will that every person who gets saved should enter the kingdom of heaven broke like the thief on the cross. There must not have been anyone who “invited the thief to church” because Jesus gave him the truth it sounded like for the first time in his life. Why do so many Christians and preachers think the thief who died a “white belt” will get to heaven and BECOME A “BLACK BELT”? The Lord teaches us through scripture the thief was a very rare situation. Why do Christians get judged on their works alone? Christians are not judged at the “Great White Throne of Judgement”. The goats and sheep have already been seperated. Our entire life is suppose to be LIGHT SHINNING INTO THE DARKNESS. The world is dark and strong! John 3:16 is placed proudly around everyone who comes in the door whether they accept it or not. But, John 6:66 says, “From that time many of his disciples went back, and walked no more with him.” Wow! Were those guys yellow belts, or orange? Without treading into another deep lesson, scripture definitely does not advocate they lost salvation, or had salvation. What is does say is that they traveled with the master of masters and choose to leave church! How can a “white belt” be strong enough to encourage, train and mentor a young person to become a warrior if Jesus lost that battle? Jesus gives everybody a choice! He makes nobody serve a god they wish not to serve. So, why did they walk away? The same reason anyone does? They choose to accept a lie instead of the truth. You can be assured as much as 32,000 minus the 300 were similar in strength of resisting and overcoming the battle of this world! Then the most important point is that none of them were capable of shinning anymore light when they left the light giver! Can you reflect your image in a mirror if you walk away? You can no more reflect the spirit of God if you walk away from him. God prunes those branches so other limbs can grow and fill that void with fruit producing ones.
Zechariah 10:5 “And they shall be as mighty men, which tread down their enemies in the mire of the streets in the battle: and they shall fight, because the Lord is with them, and the riders on horses shall be confounded.”
Do the “masters” want to teach what the end of our training is suppose to be while we are living, or give that job to God?
Can you honestly go to church and ignore that learning DOES MEAN LEARNING COMBATANT DISCIPLINES against Satan (according to God)? If you want to love somebody like your neighbor why are you not are you not attempting TO PERSUADE them to come to church and take the peace, safety, and rest Jesus gives you?
Why in the heck do church members think they can live in a non-combatant place when all of scripture says this world is cursed with Satan as lord of it it! Jesus says they will HATE you. He does not tell us to hate them back.
People the war is people against demonic angels!
But, even in the church preachers are not getting that across! Christians are human while their enemy are SUPPOSE TO BE ANGELS (but again everybody confuses that word to mean “good” instantly). Satan recruits humans not more angels; and trains all of his to become 5th degree “black belts”. The church had better start training, or it will be more than 32,000 that walk away next time . They will become THE VICTIMS OF VIRTUAL MATS instituted by the church!
Ephesians 6:10-20
