Christians Living in a Post-Christian Culture
Who Is God in Your Life?
Either God is the Creator of the whole man, the whole universe, and all of reality and existence, or he is the Creator of none of it.
If God is only the Creator of some divided platonic existence which leads to a tension between the body and the soul, the real world and the spiritual world, if God is only the Creator of some spiritual little experiential "praise the Lord" reality, then he is not much of a God. Indeed, he is not I AM at all.
If our Christian lives are allowed to become something spiritual and religious as opposed to something real, daily applicable, understandable, beautiful, verifiable, balanced, sensible, and above all united, whole, if indeed our Christianity is allowed to become this waffling spiritual goo that nineteenth-century platonic Christianity became, then Christianity as truth disappears and instead we only have a system of vague experiential religious platitudes in its place.
(Franky Schaeffer V, Addicted to Mediocrity (Westchester, IL: Crossway Books, 1981), pp. 27-28.)
Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter. [Isaiah 5:20]
We need to be aware of what's happening!
Throughout church history, there have been those who have (to use Dwight L. Moody's words) become "so heavenly minded that they were no earthly good." They quit their jobs, sold their property, and sat and waited for Jesus to return. All of them have been embarrassed, of course, because it is unbiblical to set dates for His coming. It is also unbiblical to become careless and lazy just because we believe Jesus is coming soon.
Just as tragic are those self-proclaimed Christians who sit passively on the sidelines as Satan spreads his evil throughout society. They believe there is nothing they can do and instead are satisfied to wait on the Lord to judge the evil. However, the day will come they too will be judged guilty of the crimes they allowed to flourish (See Psalm 50:18).
When you saw a thief, then you consented with him, and have been partaker with adulterers. [Ps. 50:18 AKJV]
"When thou sawest a thief, instead of reproving him and witnessing against him, as those should do that declare God's statutes, thou consentedst with him, didst approve of his practices, and desire to be a partner with him and to share in the profits of his cursed trade; and thou hast been partaker with adulterers, hast done as they did, and encouraged them to go on in their wicked courses, hast done these things and hast had pleasure in those that do them." [Matthew Henry's Whole Bible Commentary]
Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them. [Romans 1:32]
A Lesson From Jeremiah's Generation by Chuck Baldwin
When it comes to voting for and supporting candidates who have proven themselves to be unfaithful to the fundamental principles of liberty and good government, however, these same Christians suddenly become enamored with "the lesser of two evils," and pragmatism.
We need to be alert to the possibility of the consummation of events at any time. That means we are aware of the events unfolding in the world that shape our destiny.
Implied in our alertness, is also readiness. We need to be preparing ourselves for Christ's return which could happen at any moment. As we see the time of His return edging closer, we should intensify our efforts of fulfilling our calling of preaching the gospel so that others might too be saved.
Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked.
A man reaps what he sows. [Galatians 6:7]
Enemies of Revival
Apathy, complacency, ignorance, fear, compromise, carnality, and spiritual self-satisfaction are the main enemies of revival. Many churches seem to want the congregation to leave God at church while they live the remaining six days of the week in a hypocritical spiritual vacuum just like every one of their heathen hell-bound neighbors.
•Apathy is a state of indifference, or the lack of emotions such as concern, excitement, motivation and passion. Far too many Christians have fallen victim to this enemy. To put it simply; it is the mindset of I don't care! Apathetic Christians don't believe they have any power to change the status quo, so they just go along with the flow and do nothing at all to change their surroundings. They don't participate in regular Bible studies or small groups, they do not have mentors or people in their lives to encourage them, and fewer and fewer are giving or serving with their time, talents, or treasures. These apathetic Christians usually are neither involved in the life of their church nor interested in connecting deeper with others around them. In fact, many are not even effectively involved in their own families. Nor are they involved much in the local government; they don’t even get out and vote in national elections.
Apathy and indifference are the direct opposites of God’s call for us. The vine becomes withered and there is no desire to impact one’s self with Christ. When there is no effort to impact others, the church will stagnate and eventually die. Our families will become dysfunctional, and our governments will decay to liberalism and discord.
To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. [Revelation 3:14-16]
•Complacency sets in when you are comfortable in your life. Perhaps you have reached a point where things seem to be going along well, where you think you've done enough and can afford to slack off a little.
•Compromise with the world causes us to loose our focus on what is truly important. It's rare today to find churches that preach God's Law and Word to Christians in a biblically sound way that allows them to practically integrate their faith into their families and the secular aspects of their daily life. When we become like those people and situations which cause disunity, we add to the problem rather than help.
In their greed and insecurity and idolatry towards government, churches that have taken advantage of the 501(c )(3) tax exempt status have basically substituted the headship of Christ over their church for the headship of government. Many of these pastors teach their flocks the lie that "government is good", when in fact, our political history proves the opposite. The Bible, on the other hand, refers to government as "the Beast" in Rev. 19:19.
"Historically, religion always represented a threat to government because it competes for the loyalties of the people. In modern America, however, most religious institutions abandoned their independence long ago, and now serve as cheerleaders for state policies like social services, faith-based welfare, and military aggression in the name of democracy. Few American churches challenge state actions at all, provided their tax-exempt status is maintained. This is why Washington politicians ostensibly celebrate religion-- it no longer threatens their supremacy. Government has co-opted religion and family as the primary organizing principle of our society. The federal government is boss, and everybody knows it." - Dr. Ron Paul
As a result, most churches don't dare preach doctrine relating to personal sovereignty and Christian liberty, separation of church and state, Christian citizenship, ministry in areas other than salvation such as teaching the church congregation how to apply God's laws to secular and political affairs, morality within government, or the biblical role of government in society for fear of being confrontational or political. Apparently, many pastors are more concerned about scaring the sheep away or lowering tithes than they are with truth, justice, or social responsibility.
In today's society, a fad that's in the church as much as it is in the world is to not take the marriage covenant as seriously as we once did. It is hard to imagine that anyone in this country has not been touched by divorce in one way or another. Marriage is a covenant. Not only a covenant between the man and woman but a covenant with God.
Compromise will not work in religion. We cannot put aside the truth of Jesus just because it offends Muslims, atheists or homosexuals. We cannot agree to worship their gods in the spirit of multiculturalism. Nor can we stand idly by while our children are taught that New Age mysticism or TV paganism is to be embraced if they are to be "citizens of the global village." Sorry, we are to be strangers and aliens of such a place.
•Spiritual self-satisfaction is the condition where you may think you are rich and don’t need anything. To the self satisfied you may think you can get along fine without a close walk with God. You have a good salary, investments are strong and a secure retirement is on the horizon. But if you are spiritually lukewarm your condition is wretched, pitiful, blind, naked and poor.
You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see. [Revelation 3:17-18]
Overcoming Life's Obstacles
The Apostle, Paul, identified for us where the battleground takes place. It takes place in our thought process. And, it is that thought process which the devil uses to fill our minds with false ideas and visions of defeat. Paul says to think on the more positive things:
"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me - put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you." [Phil. 4:8-9]
These are the things we need to focus our minds on.
We need both a dynamic concept of mission and also a dynamic concept of life in the power of the Holy Spirit in order to move effectively in God's will. More and more power is ours as we seek Him at greater and greater depths, increasingly submitting to His promptings, and courageously launching out in obedience to His commands. Our resolution should be (in Hudson Taylor's words) to "Expect great things from God and attempt great things for God."
The Message
The message that is needed is one of conviction of sin and the fear of God. Until men and women realize that they have violated God's laws and that this world is ripening to reap His wrath, they will not see their need for the forgiveness which Christ bought with His blood. That message will be increasingly difficult to deliver in the days ahead, but it is the only one that will prevent "converts" from coming to Christ for the wrong reasons and thereby being set up to follow the Antichrist when he appears.
When all is said and done, and your life has come to a close, where will you spend the rest of your eternity?
Wake Up!
We need to continually grow in our faith! We need to spend more time in the Word, in prayer, and focusing on Christ. Many of the signs around us are designed to wake us from our slumber. God does not pour out His wrath without first warning us.
The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. [2Peter 3:9]
God wants us to know He will return. God's seeming delay in bringing about the consummation of all things is a result not of indifference but of patience in waiting for all who will come to repentance. God is giving us every chance to repent of our sin and return to Him. He is being patient with us because He wants everyone to come to repentance. Either we turn back to God or we will suffer His just punishment.
The delay of Christ's return is related to the preaching of the gospel of the kingdom to the whole world. God wants everyone to hear the gospel and does not desire anyone to perish eternally (1Tim. 2:4). This does not mean that all will be saved, for if a person rejects God's grace and salvation, then he or she remains lost.
Either God is the Creator of the whole man, the whole universe, and all of reality and existence, or he is the Creator of none of it.
If God is only the Creator of some divided platonic existence which leads to a tension between the body and the soul, the real world and the spiritual world, if God is only the Creator of some spiritual little experiential "praise the Lord" reality, then he is not much of a God. Indeed, he is not I AM at all.
If our Christian lives are allowed to become something spiritual and religious as opposed to something real, daily applicable, understandable, beautiful, verifiable, balanced, sensible, and above all united, whole, if indeed our Christianity is allowed to become this waffling spiritual goo that nineteenth-century platonic Christianity became, then Christianity as truth disappears and instead we only have a system of vague experiential religious platitudes in its place.
(Franky Schaeffer V, Addicted to Mediocrity (Westchester, IL: Crossway Books, 1981), pp. 27-28.)
Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter. [Isaiah 5:20]
We need to be aware of what's happening!
Throughout church history, there have been those who have (to use Dwight L. Moody's words) become "so heavenly minded that they were no earthly good." They quit their jobs, sold their property, and sat and waited for Jesus to return. All of them have been embarrassed, of course, because it is unbiblical to set dates for His coming. It is also unbiblical to become careless and lazy just because we believe Jesus is coming soon.
Just as tragic are those self-proclaimed Christians who sit passively on the sidelines as Satan spreads his evil throughout society. They believe there is nothing they can do and instead are satisfied to wait on the Lord to judge the evil. However, the day will come they too will be judged guilty of the crimes they allowed to flourish (See Psalm 50:18).
When you saw a thief, then you consented with him, and have been partaker with adulterers. [Ps. 50:18 AKJV]
"When thou sawest a thief, instead of reproving him and witnessing against him, as those should do that declare God's statutes, thou consentedst with him, didst approve of his practices, and desire to be a partner with him and to share in the profits of his cursed trade; and thou hast been partaker with adulterers, hast done as they did, and encouraged them to go on in their wicked courses, hast done these things and hast had pleasure in those that do them." [Matthew Henry's Whole Bible Commentary]
Although they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them. [Romans 1:32]
A Lesson From Jeremiah's Generation by Chuck Baldwin
When it comes to voting for and supporting candidates who have proven themselves to be unfaithful to the fundamental principles of liberty and good government, however, these same Christians suddenly become enamored with "the lesser of two evils," and pragmatism.
We need to be alert to the possibility of the consummation of events at any time. That means we are aware of the events unfolding in the world that shape our destiny.
Implied in our alertness, is also readiness. We need to be preparing ourselves for Christ's return which could happen at any moment. As we see the time of His return edging closer, we should intensify our efforts of fulfilling our calling of preaching the gospel so that others might too be saved.
Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked.
A man reaps what he sows. [Galatians 6:7]
Enemies of Revival
Apathy, complacency, ignorance, fear, compromise, carnality, and spiritual self-satisfaction are the main enemies of revival. Many churches seem to want the congregation to leave God at church while they live the remaining six days of the week in a hypocritical spiritual vacuum just like every one of their heathen hell-bound neighbors.
•Apathy is a state of indifference, or the lack of emotions such as concern, excitement, motivation and passion. Far too many Christians have fallen victim to this enemy. To put it simply; it is the mindset of I don't care! Apathetic Christians don't believe they have any power to change the status quo, so they just go along with the flow and do nothing at all to change their surroundings. They don't participate in regular Bible studies or small groups, they do not have mentors or people in their lives to encourage them, and fewer and fewer are giving or serving with their time, talents, or treasures. These apathetic Christians usually are neither involved in the life of their church nor interested in connecting deeper with others around them. In fact, many are not even effectively involved in their own families. Nor are they involved much in the local government; they don’t even get out and vote in national elections.
Apathy and indifference are the direct opposites of God’s call for us. The vine becomes withered and there is no desire to impact one’s self with Christ. When there is no effort to impact others, the church will stagnate and eventually die. Our families will become dysfunctional, and our governments will decay to liberalism and discord.
To the angel of the church in Laodicea write: These are the words of the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the ruler of God’s creation. I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish you were either one or the other! So, because you are lukewarm—neither hot nor cold—I am about to spit you out of my mouth. [Revelation 3:14-16]
•Complacency sets in when you are comfortable in your life. Perhaps you have reached a point where things seem to be going along well, where you think you've done enough and can afford to slack off a little.
•Compromise with the world causes us to loose our focus on what is truly important. It's rare today to find churches that preach God's Law and Word to Christians in a biblically sound way that allows them to practically integrate their faith into their families and the secular aspects of their daily life. When we become like those people and situations which cause disunity, we add to the problem rather than help.
In their greed and insecurity and idolatry towards government, churches that have taken advantage of the 501(c )(3) tax exempt status have basically substituted the headship of Christ over their church for the headship of government. Many of these pastors teach their flocks the lie that "government is good", when in fact, our political history proves the opposite. The Bible, on the other hand, refers to government as "the Beast" in Rev. 19:19.
"Historically, religion always represented a threat to government because it competes for the loyalties of the people. In modern America, however, most religious institutions abandoned their independence long ago, and now serve as cheerleaders for state policies like social services, faith-based welfare, and military aggression in the name of democracy. Few American churches challenge state actions at all, provided their tax-exempt status is maintained. This is why Washington politicians ostensibly celebrate religion-- it no longer threatens their supremacy. Government has co-opted religion and family as the primary organizing principle of our society. The federal government is boss, and everybody knows it." - Dr. Ron Paul
As a result, most churches don't dare preach doctrine relating to personal sovereignty and Christian liberty, separation of church and state, Christian citizenship, ministry in areas other than salvation such as teaching the church congregation how to apply God's laws to secular and political affairs, morality within government, or the biblical role of government in society for fear of being confrontational or political. Apparently, many pastors are more concerned about scaring the sheep away or lowering tithes than they are with truth, justice, or social responsibility.
In today's society, a fad that's in the church as much as it is in the world is to not take the marriage covenant as seriously as we once did. It is hard to imagine that anyone in this country has not been touched by divorce in one way or another. Marriage is a covenant. Not only a covenant between the man and woman but a covenant with God.
Compromise will not work in religion. We cannot put aside the truth of Jesus just because it offends Muslims, atheists or homosexuals. We cannot agree to worship their gods in the spirit of multiculturalism. Nor can we stand idly by while our children are taught that New Age mysticism or TV paganism is to be embraced if they are to be "citizens of the global village." Sorry, we are to be strangers and aliens of such a place.
•Spiritual self-satisfaction is the condition where you may think you are rich and don’t need anything. To the self satisfied you may think you can get along fine without a close walk with God. You have a good salary, investments are strong and a secure retirement is on the horizon. But if you are spiritually lukewarm your condition is wretched, pitiful, blind, naked and poor.
You say, ‘I am rich; I have acquired wealth and do not need a thing.’ But you do not realize that you are wretched, pitiful, poor, blind and naked. I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, so you can become rich; and white clothes to wear, so you can cover your shameful nakedness; and salve to put on your eyes, so you can see. [Revelation 3:17-18]
Overcoming Life's Obstacles
The Apostle, Paul, identified for us where the battleground takes place. It takes place in our thought process. And, it is that thought process which the devil uses to fill our minds with false ideas and visions of defeat. Paul says to think on the more positive things:
"Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me - put it into practice. And the God of peace will be with you." [Phil. 4:8-9]
These are the things we need to focus our minds on.
We need both a dynamic concept of mission and also a dynamic concept of life in the power of the Holy Spirit in order to move effectively in God's will. More and more power is ours as we seek Him at greater and greater depths, increasingly submitting to His promptings, and courageously launching out in obedience to His commands. Our resolution should be (in Hudson Taylor's words) to "Expect great things from God and attempt great things for God."
The Message
The message that is needed is one of conviction of sin and the fear of God. Until men and women realize that they have violated God's laws and that this world is ripening to reap His wrath, they will not see their need for the forgiveness which Christ bought with His blood. That message will be increasingly difficult to deliver in the days ahead, but it is the only one that will prevent "converts" from coming to Christ for the wrong reasons and thereby being set up to follow the Antichrist when he appears.
When all is said and done, and your life has come to a close, where will you spend the rest of your eternity?
Wake Up!
We need to continually grow in our faith! We need to spend more time in the Word, in prayer, and focusing on Christ. Many of the signs around us are designed to wake us from our slumber. God does not pour out His wrath without first warning us.
The Lord is not slow in keeping his promise, as some understand slowness. He is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance. [2Peter 3:9]
God wants us to know He will return. God's seeming delay in bringing about the consummation of all things is a result not of indifference but of patience in waiting for all who will come to repentance. God is giving us every chance to repent of our sin and return to Him. He is being patient with us because He wants everyone to come to repentance. Either we turn back to God or we will suffer His just punishment.
The delay of Christ's return is related to the preaching of the gospel of the kingdom to the whole world. God wants everyone to hear the gospel and does not desire anyone to perish eternally (1Tim. 2:4). This does not mean that all will be saved, for if a person rejects God's grace and salvation, then he or she remains lost.
Comment
© 2024 Created by Raliegh Jones Jr..
Powered by
You need to be a member of Black Preaching Network to add comments!
Join Black Preaching Network