WHAT IS IT GOING TO TAKE FOR THE CHURCH TO WAKE UP??

We may very well be witnessing the fall of the United States of America.

As an aside the tennis French Open is happening this week.

Imagine if you will, that it is the final match and it has come down to the #1 player and an unranked. If all goes as expected, the 'dark horse' will lose in straight sets in about 90 minutes. When the match is ready to start, to everyone's surprise the top player doesn't show up. After enough time has passed, the umpire finally calls the tournament for the underdog. He has won by forfeit.

This is exactly what is happening in our country today. We are in a spiritual battle between the forces of good and the forces of evil. If the battle went the way it should, the forces for good would overwhelmingly prevail.

The enemy is winning the culture war by forfeit.
The church which bears the name of Jesus Christ is a no-show.

In Matthew 5: 13-16 Jesus said,

“You are the salt of the earth. But if the salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It is no longer good for anything, except to be thrown out and trampled underfoot. “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven."

Recently we witnessed one of the most egregious bastardizations of our judicial system this country has ever seen. I don't have time to go into the specifics because there were so many things that happened that shouldn't have that it would take several articles to cover even a small percentage of them. Calling this a kangaroo court is insulting to kangaroos.

This didn't just happen overnight.

The enemy has been working on this for a very long time. President Trump was convicted of 'trumped' up charges in a sham trial presided over by an immigrant judge whose father was an officer in the Colombian army before he emigrated.

Where has the church been?

Absent.

I remember years ago hearing a prominent speaker say that if everyone who calls themselves a Christian would simply vote according to biblical values it would only be a few election cycles and abortion would be illegal. And if those same people would refuse to see movies that dishonored Jesus Christ, Hollywood would have to completely change their agenda and Robert De Niro would be unemployed instead of radically desparaging the legitimate president and speaking in favor of a bastardized judicial system.

So why is abortion still legal and why does Robert De Niro still have a platform?

The church is a no-show.

We are called to be salt and light!
If light is kept under a basket it doesn't do any good.
If salt stays in the shaker it doesn't do any good.

We are supposed to be making an impact. And that includes at the ballot box and the political arena.

It is not enough that we are simply involved. It is crucial that we are informed when we go to the ballot box. Years ago on the local Christian radio station the host was interviewing a popular recording artist. The conversation went to politics and the upcoming elections. The artist admitted that they really weren't familiar with the issues. The host said, "If you don't understand the issues, Please, don't vote!" A Christian not being familiar with the issues is frankly... embarrassing!

Hosea 4:6a 

"My people are destroyed from lack of knowledge...."

Voting ignorantly is worse than not voting at all.

Recently a professing Christian, a supposed ambassador for Truth, said they had voted for a third party candidate because they were 'voting their conscience.'

Jeremiah 17:9 says: 

"The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?"

We are in a spiritual battle and we cannot simply be relying on our consciences. The conscience will deceive you.

Proverbs 14:12 

"There is a way that appears to be right,

but in the end it leads to death."

YOU MUST BE INFORMED!!

Matthew 10:16

"I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves."

Often professing Christians get it exactly backwards. We do a lot of harm and we are really foolish. We are in a spiritual battle. It is time the church starts to act like it!

Quite frankly the liberal/democrat platform is so corrupt that I have to question whether a professing Christian who votes democrat is actually saved or not.

Perhaps they need to do as it says in 2 Corinthians 13:5;

"Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?"

If I just offended someone I do not apologize.


Some practical information:

Voting for a third party presidential candidate is a vote for the opposition. There is absolutely NO WAY a third party candidate can win the presidency because there are no third party electors. It is either Democrat or Republican. If it feels like you are voting for the 'lesser of 2 evils', then vote for the lesser of 2 evils. If you throw your vote away on a third party you just voted for the worst candidate. But if we vote for the lesser of 2 evils, we might be able to turn this thing around, but it may take a few election cycles.

This is also why primaries are so important.

"But I have to vote my conscience," you may say.
That is naive. It is not just naive, it is also a passive/aggressive way to justify unwillingness to take a stand.

Turn the TV off. As someone I used to know would say, "I don't listen to the campaign ads. I look up their voting record."

BE INFORMED!!!!

Usually voter guides are available where candidates are asked questions about their stand on pressing issues. Locally, there are forums where candidates are able to be asked about issues.

LOCAL POLITICS IS IMPORTANT!!

Attend meetings if possible. If you can't, go to the host's website to find the minutes and get the information that way.

Support good candidates.

Finally, I end with a quote from Charles Finney who made this statement 2 years before he died:

"If there is a decay of conscience, the pulpit is responsible for it. If the public press lacks moral discernment, the pulpit is responsible for it. If the church is degenerate and worldly, the pulpit is responsible for it. If the world loses its interest in Christianity, the pulpit is responsible for it. If Satan rules in our halls of legislation, the pulpit is responsible for it. If our politics become so corrupt that the very foundations of our government are ready to fall away, the pulpit is responsible for it."

~ Rev. Charles Finney

Should Christians Pray for God To Destroy The Wicked?

A question was brought up recently that in the Psalms, David prayed for God to destroy his enemies. But Jesus taught that his followers should love their enemies and pray for them. Some have suggested that the difference was that David was an Old Testament saint but we are New Testament saints. 

But is that true? 

David was called a man after God's own heart. He is also listed in the 'Hall of Faith' in Hebrews 11 where it says of them, "They were living by faith when they died...." Clearly they were spirit filled saints. In Psalm 51, David pleads with God not to take his Holy Spirit from him clearly indicating that he was regenerated.

So why did David ask God to destroy his enemies and the wicked, but Jesus said to 'turn the other cheek' and love our enemies? 

Is the Bible contradicting itself?

Is this a difference between Old Testament and New Testament?

Whenever we see a difficult passage of scripture it is important to read the passage in its entire context. You may have heard the expression:

"A text without a context is a pretext."

So the first thing we need to do is look at the entire context in which Jesus was speaking.

What Was Jesus Actually Saying?

Jesus's words about turning the other cheek and loving our enemies come from what has been called the 'Sermon on the Mount.' Previous to this Jesus has been explaining that while the law is good and perfect, it cannot save us because it cannot fix the sin problem. The problem was not the law. The problem was, and is, our sinful nature. We are not capable of obeying the law. Jesus illustrated this in the laws against adultery and murder. While the law may keep us from actually committing the acts because of fear of the penalty, it cannot remove the lust and unrighteous anger within our sinful nature. We have to understand that the Old Covenant law was essentially the constitution for the nation of Israel. It was made for a people who in general were not given the Holy Spirit. Therefore all the law could do was restrain human nature. You might think of it as putting a lion in a cage to keep it from killing sheep. it doesn't change the nature of the lion, it only restrains it.

So when we come down to Matthew 5:38, we see another restraint placed on our carnal nature:

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth.’ But I tell you, do not resist an evil person. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, turn to them the other cheek also. And if anyone wants to sue you and take your shirt, hand over your coat as well. If anyone forces you to go one mile, go with them two miles. Give to the one who asks you, and do not turn away from the one who wants to borrow from you. 

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect."

The first thing to notice is that Jesus refers to the Old Covenant principle of 'eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.' That comes from Leviticus 24:17-22:

“ ‘Anyone who takes the life of a human being is to be put to death. Anyone who takes the life of someone’s animal must make restitution—life for life. Anyone who injures their neighbor is to be injured in the same manner: fracture for fracture, eye for eye, tooth for tooth. The one who has inflicted the injury must suffer the same injury. Whoever kills an animal must make restitution, but whoever kills a human being is to be put to death. You are to have the same law for the foreigner and the native-born. I am the Lord your God.’ ”

'Eye for an eye' means that the punishment was to fit the crime. If this was not in the law people would be indiscriminatly taking revenge and possibly killing each other because of wrongs committed. 

Years ago I saw the movie End of the Spear. The Auca Indians were a fierce group that lived in the jungles of Ecuador. One thing I remember is that, after the gospel made its impact, a phenomenon appeared that had been almost absent before; there were grandfathers in the village. Before that, most men didn't live long enough to become grandfathers because they killed each other off. They had been a lawless people and when one got offended by another, they simply killed the offender. This is what human nature does when it is not held in check by law. The passage in Leviticus dictates how justice is to be administered fairly and equitably. This was to prevent vigilante justice.

The expression, 'love your neighbor and hate your enemy' is not actually contained in the law. But the law actually says in Leviticus 19:18:

“Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against anyone among your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the Lord."

We don't actually know where the saying originated, but because Jesus said in both cases, "You have heard it said,..." he may have been refering to a saying that was common at the time.

The concept expressed in Leviticus 19:18,  is repeated in Deuteronomy 32: 35, and in Romans 12:19

"Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God’s wrath, for it is written: “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” says the Lord."

The bottom line is that as followers of Jesus Christ, we are not to be all about demanding justice for ourselves. Paul deals with that in 1 Corinthians 6 concerning the believers were suing each other. He even says in verse 7:

"...Why not rather be wronged? Why not rather be cheated?"

Nobody has ever been dealt with more unfairly than Jesus Christ himself. He told us that if the world hated him they would hate us. He also said we would be blessed if we endure persecution for his sake. Demanding justice for ourselves is not to be the hallmark of a Christian.

David's Call for God to Destroy the Wicked.

Many times throughout the Psalms, David cries out to God to avenge him or to destroy the wicked. David is not talking about taking matters into his own hands. Even when David had a chance to kill King Saul he would not raise his hand against the Lord's anointed. He waited for God to deal with Saul in His own good time. In Revelation 6:9-11, we see the same thing:

"When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained. They called out in a loud voice, “How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?” Then each of them was given a white robe, and they were told to wait a little longer, until the full number of their fellow servants, their brothers and sisters, were killed just as they had been."

The saints that had been slain were asking for vengeance, but they were waiting for God to do it in His time. God fully intends to do away with the wicked. He will either do it by converting the wicked into his followers to where they are no longer wicked, or He will cast them into hell. But make no mistake, He will do away with the wicked.

The answer is yes, it is perfectly in line with both Old and New Testament teaching to pray for God to destroy the wicked and foil their plans. The issue in the New Testament is that our primary goal should not be demanding justice for ourselves and seeking revenge. 

The most loving prayer we can pray for our enemies is that they would repent. Because if they repent they will no longer be wicked and they will be saved. However, if they will not repent then praying for God to thwart the schemes of the evil doers and ultimately do away with them is appropriate. 

Jesus Was Preparing His Followers for Persecution.

Matthew 5:10-12:

"Blessed are those who are persecuted because of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 

Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you."

The way of the Christ follower is the way of the cross. We are going to be persecuted. As followers of Christ we may as well get used to the idea that we are going to be treated unjustly. We aren't fit for the job if we are going to demand justice every time we are wronged. 

That doesn't mean we are to be passive doormats. 

The prophets were persecuted because they boldly and powerfully called the people out on their sin. Stephen was killed because he called the Jewish leaders out on their hypocrisy.

Passive people don't get persecuted. 

Christians are persecuted because they call the world out and convict them of their sin.

We are going to be persecuted. Jesus was telling us not to demand justice or seek revenge but to trust Him and keep proclaiming his word boldly.

We will be blessed.