In my end-times class on Tuesday evenings, I've
been teaching on the 7 churches of Revelation, chapters 2 & 3.
We've since moved on to chapter 4 and will eventually go through the
entire book. ... But since completing that segment of study, I just
can't seem to stop thinking of the last church ... Laodicea. ... As
anyone who has studied the book knows, this particular church, from
a dispensational point of view, represents the last church on earth
just prior to Christ's return. ... And what do we find when we
look in detail? .... a church that says, "I am rich; I have
acquired wealth and do not need a thing .... " Jesus
also says in this same passage that His church had become lukewarm,
and therefore said that "I am about to spit you out of my mouth."
(Vs. 16) .... Wow! ... As usual, Jesus doesn't mince words ...He puts
it as plainly as possible ... shape up or lose it!
To quote Billy Graham, "I am afraid that
we in the Church are making a great mistake by trying to make Christianity
popular and pleasant. We have taken away the Cross and substituted
cushions. But Christ said the world hated Him, and He predicted
that it would hate us. He invited us not to a picnic but to a
pilgrimage. He offered us not an excursion but an execution."
Jesus stated in John 15:18-19, "If the
world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged
to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not
belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That
is why the world hates you." (Also see John 17:14-16). ....
Does this seem to be the prevailing attitude of many of today's Church
leaders? ... I think not! ... Popularity seems to rule at all costs,
including the altering or modifying of the Word of God .....
We know that salvation is free, but discipleship
costs everything we have. .... Do we see that in today's "laodicean"
atmosphere? ... Certainly not! ... In John 6, when great multitudes
went after Jesus, He told them three times that unless they were willing
to pay the price, they could NOT be His followers.
Ask yourself, do you bear the marks of Christ?
... Many of us bear the marks of whatever enslaves us ... and the bottom
line is this, we are either branded with the marks of Christ or the
marks of the devil. ...
The Bible says in Galations 5:19-21 That "The
acts of a sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity
and debauchery; idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy,
fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions and envy;
drunkenness and orgies, and the like...." ... Continuing, the Bible
clearly states that those who do such things will NOT inherit the Kingdom
of God.
The Bible goes on to teach that the marks of a Christian
are "love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,
gentleness, self-control" (Galations 5:22-23). ....
Which brand do you have on you today .... the scars of Jesus or the
brands of sin that Satan puts upon you?
Too many Christians in today's world have geared
their programs to win worldly favor. ... We argue that mankind is more
Christian now, and we need not suffer as our forefathers did.
... But I submit to you that the times are not brighter. In fact,
in our society here in America, we who closely follow the Word are becoming
a foreign influence, that we are the 'intolerant ones, that we are bigoted
in our thinking if we oppose certain lifestyles that are, according
to the Bible, sinful. ... If we as a Church are accepting of the
condition of this present age, and are not 'stirring up trouble' or
suffering reproach, then may God have mercy on the Church! ... If we
are at peace with the world, it may be because we have sold out to it.
.........
The Apostle Paul said, "I bear in my
body the marks of the Lord Jesus." (Galations 6:17) ... Going back
to Paul's time, we see very clearly that he was not popular. In
fact, he was little known, intensely disliked and rejected. ... This
certainly doesn't sound like we 'paint' the ministry today ... now it's
mostly viewed as a profession instead of a calling.
Nowhere in the New Testament do I find that Christians
are expected to be popular and successful. Christ was despised and rejected
... can we as His servants be better than our Lord? ....
And what about the first ones who followed Him? ... Every one of the
writers of the New Testament was horribly persecuted: Matthew
was beheaded, Mark was dragged through the streets of Alexandria by
a team of wild horses until he died, Luke was hanged in an olive tree;
John was banished to the remote island of Patmos to spend his old age
in isolation and hardship. When released from Patmos, after writing
the Book of Revelation, he died in Ephesus. Paul was beheaded;
Peter and Jude were crucified; James was battered to death with
a club ...... So we can easily see that in His footsteps followed the
heroes of the faith who were obviously tortured, mocked, imprisoned,
stoned, torn apart by wild animals and slain by the sword (see Hebrews
11:37-38) ........
In many parts of the world today, being a Christian
still means suffering. But here in America, giving your life to
Jesus Christ brings little persecution. ... In fact, it is very difficult
to tell a Christian from a worldling today. .....
Are you a Christian and proud of it? Can you
say with Paul that "I am not ashamed of the Gospel of Christ,
for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes"
(Romans 1:16, NKJV). ... Can we say this with conviction even
though it may isolate us from a rapidly declining society ... that we
are the ones who are more and more isolated because we stand for the
'literal' Word of God? ... Remember this .... you can have the brand
of Jesus Christ on you today. ... By simple commitment and surrender
to Christ as your Lord, your sins (the marks of the devil) can be forgiven!
.... Hallelujah!
John 16:33 says, "In this world you will
have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."
Until next time,
Red