Christian people want to see the churches growing. We want to see people coming to Christ, to have them listen, to confess sins, and surrender to the authority of Jesus Christ.
The modern church continues to try new ways to reach people. We have become seeker sensitive entertainment centers, instead of being the church. Instead of producing disciples and servants we are producing people who want to be Christians without commitment or responsibilities.
We, in the church, are great for ignoring history and always believing something new is best. We know that without God’s authority the church is powerless and unproductive.
Take the case of Asa's reform in the old testament. Listen to these words from II Chron. 15:3,4. “For a long time Israel was without the true God, without a priest to teach and without the law. But in their distress they turned to the Lord, the God of Israel, and sought Him, and He was found by him.”
Now when Asa was told this was the spiritual problem for Israel, then he acted quickly and effectively. He did this through very important things that changed the people and bought them back to God. They had revival. First, “he took courage” and removed the detestable idols from the whole land. Second, he repaired the altar of the Lord that was in front of the Lord’s temple. Third, he assembled all the people and had them enter into a covenant with the Lord. The covenant was to seek the Lord with all their heart and soul.
All Judah rejoiced about the oath because they had sworn it wholeheartedly. They sought God eagerly, and He was found by them. So the Lord gave them rest on every side.
If God is our problem in America, then only God is our solution. America could be on the verge of a third great awakening. But, it will not come as long as people are more concerned about the economy than salvation and obedience to God. Remember, God will not be mocked or ignored. The scriptures teach: “The Lord is with you when you are with Him. If you seek Him, He will be found by you, but if you forsake Him, He will forsake you.” II Chron. 15:2.
Worship is about who God is not who we are. This country is starving to death for the lack of the Word of God. People learn the Word because we teach. People learn the Word because they hunger and thirst for it. People learn the Word because they understand the value and purpose for their lives.
I am not against reading and studying books men write, but not in place of reading and teaching the Bible. We know that when people get away from God’s Word they soon get away from God.
It’s not how many people come to church, it’s how many people leave church to serve God.
The purpose of this article is to encourage you and everyone else to get in God’s Word and have a good daily diet of His Word. If we are people of the Bible, then we must know and understand what God’s Word says.
See ya in church,
Bud
When the Lord calls a person to come to Him. He wants us to come and die. Die to self and the world, and come alive in Jesus Christ. It’s a new life with a new purpose when God calls and we come to Him.
God’s call is to come out of darkness and come out of the world. We must live in the world but we are not a part of it. Our call is to become a part of God’s Kingdom here on earth, to serve and worship, and to glorify our Lord.
God calls us through His Word. This is why preaching of His Word is so important. God called Moses through a burning bush but he calls us through the Gospel. God called Gideon when he was hiding, through an angel, but God calls us by His Word. God called Paul on the Damascus road by the light, which was Jesus, but He calls us by His Word, to come confess, to be repentant, and be baptized for the remission of our sins, and to live for Him.
The power of the Word brings conviction. A person can be convicted but never converted. But if you are truly converted you were first convicted. The preaching of the word produces conviction and conviction produces conversion. Many people believe there is a God, but don’t believe God’s message so they are never convicted or converted.
The world of darkness is hungry for the truth. The world is empty and unfulfilled and their real need is for Jesus Christ. The world with its power, greed, and selfishness cannot take the place of a relationship with God. Man needs God more than God needs man. But, because God first loved us, we need to love Him in return.
If the world is hungry, why does it refuse God’s love? There are as many excuses as there are people. People are too busy, or they are too independent, or churches just want your money, or there are too many hypocrites in the church, and on and on it goes. But, the real reason is that people do not want to be under God’s rule and authority. People have a rebellious spirit that is driven by greed and selfishness. This can work for them until they face the fact that they are going to die. Then there is no hope in the things they lived for all their lives.
The call of God is one of hope and assurance. We can have peace and joy because we prepare for eternity with God not in punishment. Just because people say, “I don’t believe there is a heaven or hell does not change the truth.” To ignore God and His teachings is to commit spiritual suicide. God will not inflict His will on man while we live on this earth. Man has the opportunity to accept or reject Him. But when we die, God does control where we will spend eternity. Put your life under His authority here on earth and spend eternity in paradise. Or live without God here on earth and you’ll live without God in eternity, but be in eternal punishment.
God is calling daily for sinners to come home. To repent and turn to Him. Give up your idols and pride. Surrender your life and live. There is no reason for anyone to perish. That is not God’s plan. But, we have a choice. Life on this earth is short and eternity is forever.
Think on these things. If you are saved, praise the Lord! Share your faith with someone else. If you are not saved, take the step today to obey God’s call.
See ya in church,
Bud
What a great country is America! Our modern society has and continues to lead the world in prosperity, education, science, and development. We have the best roads in the world, our people have larger homes, we have greater air travel, we have it all. Not just a TV in every home but several TV’s, not just a car for every family but cars, and our luxuries are too numerous to count.
Yet, in all of this splendor and success, America has also become something else. We have become a “Pagan Paradise.” Sexual lust is toasted, wined, and dined. Those who reject God and His teaching are pagans according to God’s Word. Because of our free speech and free press, we have become a paradise for pagans. A nation driven by lust for power and selfish ambition.
“15Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. 16 For everything in the world– the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does,- come not from the Father but from the world. 17 The world and its desires pass away, but the man who does the will of God, lives forever.” 1 John 2:15-17
Entertainment and politics set the moral standards for our country, not the churches. The future is predictable for America. The beginning of the end started when God was put out of the court houses and school houses. That happened so the pagans could control our courts and the minds of our children.
We are a country in decline and no one wants to admit it or address it.
But, this is not something new. Every great nation when they rejected God and pagan worship was practiced, eventually was destroyed. Godless, rebellious people eventually destroy themselves. And unless revival comes to America, we are doomed also. Success and prosperity has blinded our eyes and stopped up our ears so that we do not hear from God.
“Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows. The one who sows to please his sinful nature will reap destruction; the one who sows to please the Spirit will reap eternal life.” Gal 6:7-8
So, what should we do? Just give up? No! We who are Christians must continue to worship, pray, and rescue people from darkness. We must disciple and teach wherever and whenever we can. True repentance is a sinner renouncing their rebellion and deciding to submit to God’s Will.
The tendency now as a church in this “Pagan Paradise” is to become liberals and lower the Biblical standards God sets down for His church. For a Christian to survive in this pagan driven society it will take more than believing in God. It’s going to take dedication, determination, and 100% commitment to Jesus Christ and His authority. The half-hearted, lukewarm, almost committed will not make it. Sin begets sin, pagans beget pagans, liberals beget liberals, etc.
Now is the hour for Christians to stand up and be counted.
See ya in church
Bud