Category Archives: Church Today

Atonement, Blood, Church Today, Faith, Repentance, Spiritual Warfare, Worship

Sing with Me..

Posted by admin on September 7, 2010 at 10:03 pm.

Say to God, “How awesome are your deeds! So great is your power that your enemies cringe before you (Ps 66:3).

 

For many years the Church has sung of God’s greatness, but in recent years it seems that there has been an explosion of songs that extol this virtue. While we used to sing only “How Great Thou Art” and “I Sing the Mighty Power of God,” we now regularly hear “How Great is Our God,” “Our God is an Awesome God” and “Great and Mighty Is the Lord Our God.” (Those who are more conversant with contemporary Christian music will realize quickly that I am not because there are likely many newer songs even than these!)

 

There is nothing wrong or theologically false about these songs, and I don’t want to suggest that there is, but let us not be duped into believing that everyone who sings them is a believer in Jesus. The text that I quoted above makes it clear that just to see the awesome power of God does not always elicit a response of true worship and repentance. In fact, one English translation (NASB) says that, upon seeing His power, God’s enemies will give “feigned obedience” to Him.

 

When I read that phrase recently, my thoughts carried me to those many times when at a public funeral the audience would sing “Amazing Grace,” even though clearly there were plenty that did not believe in that grace or that they needed it themselves. Yet these people will be shown singing His praise fervently, as if to suggest that they really did believe it. I think that’s what the Psalmist meant by “feigned obedience.”

 

It is interesting that most of these songs that extol the greatness of the Creator fail to mention the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. Perhaps it is difficult to weave the two themes together. Often when we praise His greatness it is because we are awestruck by some aspect of His creation while the theme of redemption necessarily must bring out our sinfulness and the cross as the answer. Both, though true, are tough to combine.

 

But this gives the pseudo-Christians an opportunity to offer their praise at a distance, without becoming uncomfortable by the mention of the cross and their sin. Perhaps these were in our Lord’s mind when He told the crowd, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven” (Matt 7:21).

Church Today, Eastern thought, Idolatry, Isaiah 66:1-2, Repentance, Scripture, Sovereignty, Truth, judgment, warnings

Unwise Men From the East

Posted by admin on August 28, 2010 at 10:27 pm.

You have abandoned your people, the house of Jacob. They are full of superstitions from the East; they practice divination like the Philistines and clasp hands with pagans (Is. 2:6).

 

                As if God needed anything else to bring judgment, Isaiah identifies Eastern mysticism as one of the reasons for it. Since the 1960s America also has been filled with the influences of Eastern religions, some of which have come through the use of illegal drugs.  The series of movies known as “Star Wars” have introduced us here in the West to the Eastern idea that there are two equal “forces” at work in this world – one for good and one for evil. Yoga has become so common an exercise that many churches today sponsor classes, not to mention the Young Men’s CHRISTIAN Association (YMCA). This, despite the fact that it originated from and is an integral part of Hinduism. Some view the martial arts as merely a form of exercise, but it is clear that many others see a relationship between them and Eastern thought.

 

                But these ideas stand opposed to the worship of the Triune God. People who practice the various Eastern religions in most cases set up shrines in their homes with gods of wood and stone, directly violating the commands to make no graven image and to have no other god but the Lord. The forces of good and evil are not equal in Christian thought – the Triune God is supreme and sovereign while the devil must seek His permission to afflict us (see Job 1:6). In addition, it is clear that the “Force” of Star Wars is just something to be used or manipulated while Christians are called to serve their God, not manipulate Him for their own ends.

 

                Just as Eastern superstitions contributed to the judgment that God brought upon His people in ancient times, so it will contribute to judgment in our day as well. We in the West have drifted from the worship of the Triune God as revealed in our Scriptures and have set every other religious system on an equal footing. It is no wonder that the Lord who declared, “I am, and there is no other” (Is. 45:5) would be offended that we have entertained, and even set as equal, what is beneath Him. Truly we are worshiping “the creature rather than the Creator” (Rom. 1:25).

 

                The call that Isaiah issued is the same for us – repentance. Nothing else will save us. The one He esteems is the one who is “humble, contrite and trembles at His Word” (66:2).

Children, Church Today, Fatherless, God's care, God's people, Orphans, Scripture

Look After the Orphans

Posted by admin on July 22, 2010 at 3:23 pm.

Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world (James 1:27).

                The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language defines an “orphan” as “a child whose parents are dead.” This is an accurate definition in the minds of most people in America today. But the Bible expands that definition to include all who are “fatherless,” whether or not Mom is still living. A cursory survey of the word “fatherless” in a Bible concordance shows that most of the references lump these people together with others who are considered by the given society to be severely disadvantaged. And one of the cardinal social principles established by the Mosaic Law was to show compassion for the less fortunate. (Consider Jesus’ classic Parable of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10:30ff.)

                In our Western society it is easy to overlook the orphans because a child that tragically loses his parents is usually taken in by the extended family or placed by the government in foster care. As such, the Church as a whole has lost the sense of urgency that James’ letter commands us to have for orphans. But there are plenty of orphans in non-Western countries around the world that the Church can and should be caring for. Evangelical organizations like Compassion International have as their mission to aid children, particularly orphans. In addition, local churches can contact their favorite missionary sending organization to find a place to minister to otherwise helpless children.

                But to understand the idea of “orphan” as a child that is “fatherless” is to greatly expand the scope of our Biblical responsibility. Many children today need the care of a loving male role model because their parents are divorced. In some cases the father is in prison or has just abandoned the family. The sad statistic is that the vast majority of people in our American prisons had no male role model growing up. The Church can, and should, be making a difference in this area. And some are, with after-school programs and other “mentoring” programs.

                The social concern that James advocates in this verse does not constitute the essence of what it means to be a Christian, but it must not be forgotten either. Sadly, many in the Church in America today have forgotten it. To my shame, I admit that I have failed. But I have been changing my perspective as our local church has become involved with an orphanage in Thailand. It’s small, just like we are, but we have resources that they can use and that we need to give. The result is that God is pleased, and I want His pleasure to increase.

Church Today, God's people, Scripture, angels, warnings

Heed the Warnings!

Posted by admin on July 17, 2010 at 6:22 pm.

For if the message spoken by angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment, how shall we escape if we ignore such a great salvation? (Heb 2:1-3).

For the past decade or more, my wife has had a problem with her gall bladder. There is a sense in which she has not ignored it because she would feel it when she ate too many fatty foods. But her desire was to ignore it as long as possible. This week it became impossible to ignore it any longer. I learned long ago that I cannot ignore bills and financial details. Those things always force themselves upon us. And I have learned by experience not to ignore the warnings that my car gives me.

The writer to the Hebrews makes the same argument about salvation. The Jewish tradition was that God delivered the Scripture by the agency of angels. In chapter 1 of Hebrews, Jesus is shown to be greater than the angels. So, if the Truth delivered by the angels was absolutely binding, how much greater is the salvation provided by the Son of God Himself! The sacred writer is right.

Yet we live in a world that chooses to pursue its own desires while it ignores the Truth of the Scripture. The enemy of our souls has very successfully filled our lives with so much “fluff” that really won’t matter in eternity that we have forgotten to take time to consider Him and His Truth. The technology that fills most of our lives is wonderful and makes our lives so convenient. Some of it even helps us to study Scripture more efficiently or reminds us to keep our thoughts centered upon Him, but this generation of Americans has reduced their Christianity to sound bites instead of real meditation. Despite our time-saving devices, we spend less time in meditating on the Word than any previous generation.

The answer is not more technology; it is to take seriously the warning of the writer to the Hebrews: don’t ignore the message of God through Jesus and the Scripture. It’s a warning each of us individually must heed!

Church, Church Today, God's people, Jesus' Teachings, Scripture, Truth

Pillar of Truth

Posted by admin on July 8, 2010 at 12:43 pm.

If I am delayed, you will know how people ought to conduct themselves in God’s household, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the truth (1 Tim 3:15-16).

                I still recall the pictures in my 6th grade Social Studies book of the ruins of ancient Greece and Rome. They are among only a very few places in the world where pillars are left standing, even when the building they were supporting was destroyed, although the same might be said in our day of the Church!

                Paul describes the Church in this passage as “the pillar and foundation of the truth.” Its purpose is to be the place where the Truth is sought and found. Sadly, though, the Western Church is more concerned with impressive “pillars” than it is with the promotion of the Truth. It’s no wonder that we are making no difference in the world at large – we’re concerned about the wrong things! The pillars at the Parthenon in ancient Greece are impressive, but they don’t support a building! They are a relic of a bygone era, and many in our world think of the Church in the same way.

                But it is not the pillar that will set people free. Jesus told us that it was the Truth (John 8:32). The Church’s job is to proclaim the Truth, to stand for the Truth in a world that has chosen to believe a lie. The freedom that Christ wants to provide for us is not a magical thing, as if simply by attending a Church we could be freed. Freedom is an internal thing that comes as we read, listen and apply the Truth to our hearts. The Church is that assemblage of believers that are also committed to the Truth. Their love and support of one another is what will attract the world to the Truth – not the fancy programs that make the pillars shiny and beautiful (John 13:35).

                The Western Church needs to return to the Truth. It is the Truth that attracts many to Christ in places where there is severe persecution – not the programs or the impressive edifice. But here in the West, the more we try to preserve the “pillar” the more the “building” will crumble around us. Pretty soon, just like in ancient Greece and Rome, all that will be left will be some beautiful pillars.

Church Today, Eternal Life, God's Standard, God's people, Restoration, Righteousness, Sin

In the Church but not of the Church

Posted by admin on June 30, 2010 at 12:07 pm.

For, as I have often told you before and now say again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. 19 Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is on earthly things (Phil 3:18-19).

                Every time I read these verses from Paul’s letter to the Philippians, I wonder if the people he describes are among the body of the local church or if they are outside it. Having been in ministry for almost 3 decades, I lean toward them being in the church. Of course, they could be in either place, but he is writing this portion with tears, suggesting that there is a nearer and dearer relationship with these people than would develop with unbelieving people. While I am sure that Paul consciously developed relationships outside the local body, the deeper relationships would grow within it, among people that he was discipling and teaching. These, I would expect, would create more emotion in him if he needed to characterize their lives in this way.

                It’s not much different today. There are people in the church that are Christ’s enemies. Oh, they give lipservice to His Truth, but their lives are so lukewarm that the people of this world cannot see any significant difference in them from themselves. These “Christians” are the ones that are uncomfortable when conversations at work turn to spiritual things. They feel guilty when a friend or co-worker boldly proclaims what these “Christians” say they believe. Sometimes in private, they will try to minimize the things that their bold friend had proclaimed.

                These are the people that Jesus referred to when He said, “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.” (Matt 7:21). As Paul says it, “Their end is destruction.”

                Often the people Paul describes here will try to compartmentalize their lives – Sunday is for God and the other six days are for the things I want to do. They are reluctant to see their decisions to spend money or to indulge in their favorite pastime or dessert as spiritual decisions, and certainly not sin. After all, they can “worship” God just as easily on the golf course or fishing lake as they can in a church building! Their “appetite” may mean food, literally, or it may mean their favorite indulgence.

                When Jesus wrote to the Church in Laodicea in Rev. 3, He observed that the lukewarm people in that church saw themselves as rich and not in need when they were really poor and blind and naked. They gloried in what really was to their shame. So it is among so-called Christians today who assume the prosperity of their lives must imply God’s favor with them. There is often a smug sense of self-righteousness, a “righteousness” that God tells us is like the rags stained with a woman’s menstrual impurity (Is 64:6), as far as He is concerned.

            How do we respond to such people in the Church? First, make certain that we are not among them! Be sure that sin is confessed and the core truths of the faith are true at the deepest level in our hearts. In addition, we should pray and weep – as Paul did – for these who are our friends whose faith is so shallow and whose hearts are so deceived.

Christ's afflictions, Church Today, Humiliation, Humility, Isaiah 66:1-2, Repentance, Restoration, Scripture, Sin, Solemn Assembly

Solemn Assembly

Posted by admin on June 15, 2010 at 4:54 pm.

Blow the trumpet in Zion, declare a holy fast, call a sacred assembly (Joel 2:15).

                Economic disaster was imminent when Joel prophesied to the nation of Judah. Locusts had come through and had wiped out the crops. Unlike our day where we have grain stored away for years and we even bid on the FUTURE price of those commodities, when their crops were destroyed they didn’t eat till the next year (at least not that food).

                Richard Owen Roberts, a student of revivals throughout history and an author on the subject, identifies the “solemn (or sacred) assembly” as the answer prescribed by God for any kind of imminent appeal to avoid disaster. When the “Ark of the Covenant” was captured by the Philistines, Samuel proclaimed a fast and called the people together to repent before God (I Sam 7). When kings Asa and Jehoshaphat were threatened by nations mightier than they were, they each called upon the people to fast and repent at a solemn assembly (2 Chron 14, 20). When God declared judgment for the sins of his grandfather, Manasseh, King Josiah was moved to repentance himself and called the people to the same in 2 Chron 34:29.

                Usually the solemn assembly was accompanied by fasting because throughout the Old Testament, fasting was a sign of self-humiliation, mourning and repentance. It is significant that historically the singular sign of a repentant spirit was the willingness to mourn through fasting. That’s why the annual Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur) has historically been known as “the Fast” (see Acts 27:9).

                God responds to the Solemn Assembly – not because there is anything magical about an assembly – but because He responds to brokenness and contrition. When Christians mourn and confess and repent of their sin He takes notice because He sees that we understand the seriousness of sin. When Isaiah wrote that Jesus was “crushed” for our iniquities in Isaiah 53:5, that word is the same Hebrew word that is translated “contrite” in Psalm 51:17 – “a broken and contrite heart, O God, You will not despise.” The power of a single Christian’s repentance is significant, but when a group of Christians – as in a local church – gather to genuinely mourn their sin, His heart is moved to action on their behalf.

                In our day the Church has decided that His blessing must rest upon the mega-church because everyone strives for “bigness.” Pastors flock to the seminars or books of the most recent “success” story to learn their “secret,” which they are glad to share – for a price. (I even have a book in my library on how to use fasting to grow your church – apparently the author sees fasting as one of the tools in a pastor’s ecclesiastical toolbox!) But Isaiah tells us that if God wanted to build a BIG ministry, He wouldn’t need us. What He is looking for are those who are “humble…contrite…and who tremble at His Word” (Is. 66:2).

Church Today, End Times, Eternal Life, Evangelism, Iran, Israel, Missions, Scripture, nations

Signs of the Times

Posted by admin on June 15, 2010 at 4:52 pm.

Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains.

                “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come (Matt 24:4-14).

                We Christians recognize that God can turn bad news into good news whenever He chooses. That was my friend’s meaning when he sent me an email with a caption: “Maybe there is an escape route to bypass the old folks home or the cancer ward…The pieces are in place.” What followed was an article explaining that the shortest path from Israel to Iran is over Saudi air space and the Saudis will “look the other way” if Israel should use it to take out Iran’s nuclear weapon program.

                We live in perilous times. The Bible is clear that in the end the earth will burn and “the elements will melt in the heat”(2 Pet 3:12). Global warming is probably not in view here, but a nuclear holocaust may be. So Peter tells us to live holy lives and hasten the coming of the Lord (also v.12).

                When Jesus spoke the words quoted in the text above, He was not being an alarmist. He was simply being factual. But He too explained how we should be responding to the signs of the times: we are to take the Gospel to the ends of the earth. When the last person has heard, the end will come (Matt 24:14). Actually, this is HOW we “hasten the coming of the Lord.”

                Obedient Christians recognize that the deteriorating conditions of our world create for us the motivation to do evangelism both here and abroad. While some people think that “compassion” simply means helping the poor and marginalized receive subsistence for living and justice in this world, real Christian love will be concerned with what will happen to the human soul when this world ends. Sometimes to get past people’s prejudices about the Christian Gospel, we need to provide basic temporal needs, but it must never stop there. Until they have had an opportunity to hear and respond to the claims of Christ, our job is not done and the relief we provide is inadequate.

Church Today, Scripture, Worship

A Lasting Work

Posted by admin on May 16, 2010 at 7:06 pm.

If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, his work will be shown for what it is, because the Day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man’s work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward (1 Cor 3:12-14).

                Many people apply this passage of Scripture to individuals who receive Christ, but demonstrate little or no legitimate change in their lives. These “carnal” Christians – if indeed, they are Christians at all – are building their lives on things that will get burned up at the Judgment.

                I suppose that this is an appropriate application, but is doesn’t quite fit the context of I Corinthians 3. Paul seems to be talking to Christian leaders, perhaps pastors, about what they are trying to build their ministry upon. Paul, the Apostle, laid the foundation in Christ, and other men are coming behind him with their particular gifts to build upon that foundation. They can build their ministries upon the quicksand of human personality and enjoy a happy following for a short time, but it won’t last. Men will applaud them for a while as good leaders, and they might enjoy a good salary for that time, but they will have to look into the face of Jesus in the end.

                I’m referring here to what one cartoonist has described as “The Light Church” – everything you’ve always wanted in the Church and LESS. It’s the Church with the 7.5% tithe (if even that much!), the sermon that never makes you feel uncomfortable, and entertains you and your kids with lots of fluff.

                A while back I attended this church in one of its many locations around our country when I was traveling. The music was contemporary, but hardly mentioned Jesus; only a handful of the congregation was singing, but that was OK because the instruments were so loud, they couldn’t be heard anyway. I think I was wearing the only tie in the room. They took a “break” midway in the service for doughnuts and coffee, and when we returned we heard a sermon based upon an old John Wayne movie. We even got to view a 10-15 minute clip of the movie! At the end of about 20 minutes, the elder who was speaking – the pastor was on vacation – finally referred to a passage of Scripture that was inserted to make us feel good and spiritual. Before we left, we were encouraged to plan to join the congregation for pizza the following Sunday so that some remodeling could be done to their building that afternoon. When we left, we wondered why we had spent the time there.

                Isaiah told us that God’s Word never returns empty (55:11); Jesus said that God’s Word will last even when the rest of this world passes away (Matt. 5:18); and Paul charged Timothy in the strongest words possible to preach the Word (II Tim 4:2). It seems clear what is “gold, silver, costly stones” and what is “wood, hay or straw.”

Church Today, Heaven, Repentance, Scripture, Sin, Worship

Sinful Sin

Posted by admin on May 4, 2010 at 4:43 pm.

Did that which is good, then, become death to me? By no means! But in order that sin might be recognized as sin, it [the Law] produced death in me through what was good, so that through the commandment sin might become utterly sinful (Rom 7:13).

                When I get to heaven, I intend to look up my dear friend Willie. When I was in my 20’s Willie was in his 80’s, and has since met Jesus face to face. Willie used to pray that God would make “sin exceedingly sinful.” I confess that I really didn’t understand what he meant at the time; I thought this phrase was just a quaint phrase that he had heard way back when from some preacher. I was right, but the preacher was the Apostle Paul!

                I think I understand a bit more about Willie’s prayer today. I have observed that sin isn’t particularly sinful to most of the American Church. We harbor sensuous, lascivious thoughts, but don’t consider them sin because we don’t act on them. We ignore the promptings of the Holy Spirit to meet with Him in prayer and study, but feel no guilt. We spend all that God has entrusted to us (and often more!) on ourselves, so that we have nothing to give, and then we work overtime to pay for our indulgence and use our “fatigue” to justify our failure to spend time with Him.

                One of the evidences of this pervasive attitude in the American Church is that there is a disconnect in the minds of many attendees between their willingness to lift their hands to worship Him, but their unwillingness to rid their lives of known sin. How people can sing of God’s holiness while defiling their marriage bed is beyond me. How they can sing of His grace to them while they let lost friends and family die and go to hell doesn’t make sense except that sin isn’t particularly sinful to them.

                And it isn’t just the attendees…Hotel chains that service business meetings and conferences have observed that the number of pay-per-view movies usually RISES if the meeting is connected to a church! I hope that this is not true when my denomination comes to town, but I am afraid to ask. Sin is not particularly sinful, even to church leaders.

                I wish that I could say that sin is utterly sinful to me. It’s not the case yet, but it’s my prayer for myself. Willie used to say that he wanted to be so holy in this life that when he got to heaven the shock wouldn’t be too great. I hope that our tribe will increase.