April 2, 2013
Acts 2:42-47 says, "They devoted themselves
to the apostle's teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of
bread, and to prayer. 43) Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders
and miraculous signs were done by the apostles. 44) All the believers
were together and had everything in common. 45) Selling their
possessions and goods, they gave to anyone as he had need. 46) Every
day they continued to meet together in the temple courts. They broke
bread in their homes and ate together with glad and sincere hearts,
47) praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. And
the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved."
Wow!! How we should all long for such
a Church!! ..... but today, there is a famine in our land ...
Over the past 12+ years, my journey has taken me
to many different Church settings, and believe me when I say, I've experienced
this famine 'up close & personal.' ... In most all instances, the
focus was, and is, upon all the stuff .... big lavish buildings with
all the trappings .... vast acres of paved parking ... foyers full of
stores selling books, CD's, and anything else that will realize a profit
... coffee shops with lattes and pastry
..... music teams disguised as 'worship leaders'
with all the staged moves and expensive equipment .... programs for
every possible lifestyle out there (I once saw a 15 page program guide
that finally mentioned Jesus on page 7) ... and on & on! ............
It was absolutely amazing to see so much of the world in the Church
and so many of the Churches in the world ... sadly, one could not tell
the difference between the two ....
Sam Pascoe had it right when he said this .... "Christianity
began in Palestine as a fellowship, and then moved to Greece and became
a philosophy ..... Afterward, it moved on to Rome and became an institution
and then moved to Europe where it became a culture .... Finally, it
settled in America where it has become an enterprise."
And the teaching?! .... Let me demonstrate it very
clearly by referring to Scripture ...
2 Timothy 4:3-4 says this .... "For a time
will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead,
to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number
of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear. 4) They
will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths."
Think this is happening? ... You bet it is! ....
We are now told from the majority of pulpits to accept any and all lifestyles
.... there is NOT a hint of consequential teaching concerning a sinful
lifestyle .... earthly wealth is the way to go .... and on & on
..... and the results of this type of Church 'leadership' has
taken its toll. ... Scriptural knowledge of most of those claiming to
be Christians is at an all-time low! .... Tie this tragedy in with all
the false teachings, and its not hard to understand why so many are
following the ways of satanic teachings ....
There was a certain minister that decided to preach
on the frustrations of his work .. so one Sunday morning, he told his
congregation that he believed his church was dead.
... Now you can imagine the murmurings from the
pews when he said, "Come back tonight, I'm going to preach the
funeral service of the church." ... The members were shocked;
the attendance for the evening service was larger that it had been in
years.
In front of the pews was a casket and as the people
sat in stunned silence, the pastor delivered the message. After
the last "amen," the pastor said, "Some of you
may not agree with me that this church is dead. So that you may
be convinced, I am going to ask you to view the remains. I want
you to file by the casket, one by one, and see who is dead."
In preparation for this unorthodox presentation,
the minister had placed a mirror in the bottom of the casket.
It is obvious who everyone saw when he or she came to view the deceased.
.......
The bottom line? ... In order for today's churches
to grow, the leaders feel it important to be 'relevant' to today's society.
... and there is absolutely nothing wrong with that thinking! ... We
need & must be 'relevant to today's world in order to reach a young
generation we are so in danger of losing ... but to 'sell out' the Gospel
to do it? ... I think not! ... But sadly, that is what is happening
all over this once great land ... and the condition of our society shows
that is hasn't ... and NEVER WILL work.
Simply, we all want to be popular ... to be well-liked
... to be accepted by our fellow brothers & sisters .... but we
were never supposed to compromise the Word of God to achieve this!
So what must you do about this to ensure your own
salvation? ... Believe it or not, there is a 'remnant' that is alive
& well out there! ... No, we may not be the most popular in today's
ever-increasing liberal society, but Jesus told us Himself to expect
this ... John 15:18-19 says, "If the world hates you, keep
in mind that it hated me first. 19) 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." ..... So if you are really popular and living
in the ways of the world, you may be in serious trouble on Judgement
Day.
So, when trying to find a fellowship of believers
to be with, look for one that 'sticks' to the Word of God in ALL instances.
.... Simply, compromising the Word of God can lead to eternal
damnation. ........
Let me close with a bit of 'modern' humor ... Please
bear with me ....
We have all learned to live in this fast-paced world
.... and voice mail is one of the necessary parts of modern life. ...
I wonder what would happen if God decided to install voice mail? .............
Imagine praying and hearing this ......
Thank you for calling MY Father's house
...
Please select one of the following
options:
Press 1 for Requests
Press 2 for Thanksgiving
Press 3 for Complaints
Press 4 for All Other Inquiries
What if God used a familiar excuse ... "I'm
sorry, all of our angels are busy helping other sinners right now.
However, your prayer is important to us and will be answered in the
order it was received, so please stay on he line.
Can you imagine getting these responses as you call
God in Prayer?
If you would like to speak to:
Gabriel, press 1
Michael, press 2
For a directory of other angels, press
3
If you'd like to hear King David sing a psalm while
you are holding, please press 4
To find out if a loved one has been assigned to
Heaven, press 5, enter his or her social security #, then press the
pound key (If you get a negative response, try area code 666).
For reservations at "My Father's House"
please enter J-O-H-N, followed by 3-1-6
What if you heard, 'our computers show that you
have already prayed once today. Please hang up and try again tomorrow.
(or)
This office is closed for the weekend to observe
a religious holiday. Please pray again Monday after 9:30AM.
If you need emergency assistance when this office is closed, contact
your local Pastor. ...........................
Enough! ... Let's thank God that He doesn't have
voice-mail ... and He NEVER will! ... and be sure to know that He ALWAYS
listens when we pray!!!
I know this was probably a poor attempt at humor,
but in this dark world, we all need a bit of laughter ... and I believe
with all my heart that God does have a great sense of humor. .... We
are taught to be joyous, and aren't we supposed to try and be like Him?
Keep the faith, my friends .... I'll be back at
you in a few days ....Lord willing ...
Until next time,
Red