“ ‘The days are coming,’ declares the Sovereign Lord, ‘when I will send a famine through the land – not a famine of food or a thirst for water, but a famine of hearing the word of the Lord. 12) Men will stagger from sea to sea and wander from north to east, searching for the word of the Lord, but they will not find it.’ “ .. Amos 8:11-12 ..
“My people come to you, as they usually do, and sit before you to listen to your words, but they do not put them into practice. With their mouths they express devotion, but their hearts are greedy for unjust gain. 32) Indeed, to them you are nothing more than the one who sings love songs with a beautiful voice and plays an instrument well, for they hear your words but do not put them into practice.” .. Ezekiel 33:31-32 ..
In my personal journey over the past 20 years, I’ve witnessed this ‘spiritual famine’ up close .. During this period, I’ve had to have visited dozens of different churches of most every denomination .. from very conservative to the wild & emotional Pentecostal gatherings .. and the bottom line is this .. most all were & are about buildings & programs, seating & parking, music & offerings, staffs & signs …. Here’s just one example .. I attended a mega-church, population 1500+ that had all of the above, plus .. While there, I picked up one of their lavish brochures, & after looking through it, I finally found Jesus name on page 7! …… Pastor David Jeremiah summed it all up beautifully when he said that Jesus Christ’s return will be a terrible interruption to their pre-determined plans! …… 2 Timothy 4:3-4 says it all .. “For the 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.” .. And one more .. Isaiah 30:10 says, “They say to the seers, ‘See no more visions!’ and to the prophets, ‘Give us no more visions of what is right! Tell us pleasant things, prophesy illusions.’ “ .. In most all cases, these indictments were, & are totally true .. Simply put, the banquet table is full, but it’s all junk food! .. One of the major culprits is that today’s churches are desperately trying to ‘connect’ to today’s culture, & by doing so, we are witnessing a tragic & ultimately fatal spiritual compromise of biblical truth to achieve this!
So what must we do? .. It’s time to put up or shut up .. It’ time to stop checking all the religious boxes of self-satisfaction .. It all starts with ourselves to restore our hearts with the real truth & fuel the fire & renew our complete commitment to the one & only true Kingdom of Jesus Christ! .. It’s time to turn up the light! ..
Finally, we must remember to not stop loving this broken church .. It is Christ’s bride! .. First we must renew ourselves & then take this ‘renewal’ to our brothers & sisters in our respective gatherings .. We must also challenge the leadership in loving & constructive ways to ‘change the diet’ & throw away the junk food! .. And ultimately, we MUST LOVE ONE ANOTHER! .. In Mark 12:30-31, Jesus said this .. “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. 31) The second is this, Love your neighbor as yourself. There is no commandment greater than these.”
And here is the last ‘finally’ .. I’m asking all of you for ‘a call to prayer’ .. Many of you are victims of this famine & are starving for real nourishment, the result being fear, worry & anxiety .. This a scary world right now & I can’t even begin to imagine how it must be without Jesus in it! .. My hope & desire is to bring nourishment in these times .. Each of you must remember that you are NOT alone! .. Jesus has your back! .. All you have to do is ask him .. He already loves you & is just behind the door. .. Just reach out & knock & He will come to you with no strings attached! ..
Let’s all start demonstrating the love spoken of in the scriptures .. There is no time to waste …
Until next time,
Red