Today, nothing sets off most people more than someone claiming that there is absolute truth. Christians often bear the brunt of that resentment. Just claiming Christianity is enough to make you an enemy of the world. Jesus told us that would happen in John 15:20 “Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted Me, they will also persecute you.”
But the reality is if God absolutely exists, then there must be absolute truth. Jesus said in John 4:24 that “God is Spirit, and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth. Worshipping a god of our own creation just isn’t going to cut it.
So where do we find this absolute truth from God? Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth and the life, no man comes to the Father except by Me.” And then in John 6:63 "It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing; the words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.” So then, the Word is the truth. Absolute truth. The absolute breath of God. The same breath that God breathed into Adam and man became a living soul, was breathed into the writers of Scripture as they penned the words of God, and it is the same breath that the Holy Spirit breathes into us that we might be born again.
But the Bible says that man has exchanged the truth of God for a lie and worships the creation rather than the Creator. They have rejected the truth of God’s word and now believe in something of their own creation. We need to tell them the truth, for that is the only way to salvation. As ambassadors of the Kingdom, it is our responsibility to proclaim it to everyone. 2 Timothy 2 says, "In meekness instructing those that oppose, if God perhaps will give them repentance to the acknowledging of the truth that they may recover themselves out of the snare of the devil." Recognizing that they are trapped, ensnared and enslaved by Satan to do his will, we should show compassion towards the world. Only God can change hearts, but we are commanded to proclaim the Word to all the world, praying that God will grant them repentance, that they may acknowledge the truth.
If I believe in absolute truth, and an absolute God, then I must be absolutely obedient to Him and His truth. I can’t pick and chose what or when to obey. I bow my will to His will and lay down my life to serve Him. Fully, absolutely. You’re either serving God or Satan. You can’t serve two masters. If Christians absolutely served God with all their hearts, minds and souls, in accordance with the truth of God’s word, then all the world would come to know the truth, and the truth would set them free.
Friday, July 30, 2010
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
good soldiers
2 Timothy 2:3,4 Suffer hardship with me, as a good soldier of Christ Jesus. No soldier in active service entangles himself in the affairs of everyday life, so that he may please the one who enlisted him as a soldier.
At the onset of the Civil War, one of the greatest frustrations of President Abraham Lincoln was the unwillingness of his generals to engage the enemy. Repeatedly, Lincoln sent dispatches to General McClellan, the chief of staff of the Union Army, to attack the Confederates. But McClellan didn’t really have a plan and seemingly no intention of actually fighting. He continually built up his army and his arsenal into far superior numbers than the Confederates, but never engaged the enemy, prompting Lincoln to remark that “if he isn’t going to use his army, perhaps he won’t mind if we borrow it a while.”
Today, one of the greatest temptations facing the church is to never really go into battle. We never preach against sin, and rarely even identify sin. We never preach separation from the enemy’s camp. Our strategy seems to be to win over the world by making them feel comfortable and not offending them. Unfortunately, not only does the world end up missing the point of salvation, but our own fellow citizens of the Kingdom become complacent as well and squander the blood that was shed at so dear a cost for the sake of our freedom.
There is a war going on out there and we have been saved and called to be soldiers in the service of the King. Our struggle is “not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” It says in James that “whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.” We haven’t been called to be spectators to the battle or friends of the world. Like the Apostle Paul said, let it be said of us that we fought the good fight, and defended the faith.
At the onset of the Civil War, one of the greatest frustrations of President Abraham Lincoln was the unwillingness of his generals to engage the enemy. Repeatedly, Lincoln sent dispatches to General McClellan, the chief of staff of the Union Army, to attack the Confederates. But McClellan didn’t really have a plan and seemingly no intention of actually fighting. He continually built up his army and his arsenal into far superior numbers than the Confederates, but never engaged the enemy, prompting Lincoln to remark that “if he isn’t going to use his army, perhaps he won’t mind if we borrow it a while.”
Today, one of the greatest temptations facing the church is to never really go into battle. We never preach against sin, and rarely even identify sin. We never preach separation from the enemy’s camp. Our strategy seems to be to win over the world by making them feel comfortable and not offending them. Unfortunately, not only does the world end up missing the point of salvation, but our own fellow citizens of the Kingdom become complacent as well and squander the blood that was shed at so dear a cost for the sake of our freedom.
There is a war going on out there and we have been saved and called to be soldiers in the service of the King. Our struggle is “not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” It says in James that “whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy of God.” We haven’t been called to be spectators to the battle or friends of the world. Like the Apostle Paul said, let it be said of us that we fought the good fight, and defended the faith.
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
marriage
One of the greatest battles that Satan is waging today is agains the family. And the sacred bond of the family is marriage. In Ephesians chapter 5 we see that human marriage is the spiritual picture of Christ's relationship to the church. So obviously, God has a high regard for marriage. Furthermore, in Malichi 2 God says that He hates divorce. Yet the divorce rate is rampant in our country and is not limited to the unsaved. Sadly, statistics show that it is just as high in the church. Those of you that follow the news know that marriage is being attacked in the courtroom as well, as the traditional marriage between a man and a woman is being expanded to cover homosexual marriage alsol. In our Wednesday evening study this week we will be looking at marriage and what God has to say about it. 2000 years ago the church at Corinth had the same problems, and the Holy Spirit has some important things to show us as we look at 1 Corinthians 7 in this mid week study. Hope you will join us at 6pm.
Over the last couple of weeks we've really seen a great outpouring of God's blessing at our Sunday morning services. Now that we are in our fourth year at the beach we are happy to see so many old friends come back year after year, and all the new people God is sending our way as well. As I've said repeatedly at this service lately, God has set us as a spectacle to the world, and a testimony that the town of Bethany cannot ignore. It is awesome to see what God is doing here as we simply focus on the study of His word, without fanfare. Hope to see you there this Sunday at 8am.
And for you women, it's that time of year again. The women of Surfers Fellowship are planning their retreat on August 2, at 6pm. It will be held at Jere Stephano's house again. There will be dinner, Bible study and a sunset kayak trip. If you want to bring some food or have a kayak to share please contact Susie Harrell at the number below. Call or email for directions if you weren't there last year.
Over the last couple of weeks we've really seen a great outpouring of God's blessing at our Sunday morning services. Now that we are in our fourth year at the beach we are happy to see so many old friends come back year after year, and all the new people God is sending our way as well. As I've said repeatedly at this service lately, God has set us as a spectacle to the world, and a testimony that the town of Bethany cannot ignore. It is awesome to see what God is doing here as we simply focus on the study of His word, without fanfare. Hope to see you there this Sunday at 8am.
And for you women, it's that time of year again. The women of Surfers Fellowship are planning their retreat on August 2, at 6pm. It will be held at Jere Stephano's house again. There will be dinner, Bible study and a sunset kayak trip. If you want to bring some food or have a kayak to share please contact Susie Harrell at the number below. Call or email for directions if you weren't there last year.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
