Tag Archives: the church in America

Don’t Eat Each Other

Posted on by
Reply

Leaving For Vacation; Next Post February 4th

Not All Cannibals Are Alike

Did you know that not all cannibals are alike? An “exo-cannibal” eats only those outside his immediate social circle (i.e., his “enemies”), while an “endo-cannibal” eats those within his immediate social circle (i.e., his “friends”). But a “pan-cannibal” is indiscriminate and will eat anyone! Bet you didn’t know that! You probably thought that all cannibals were alike! Let me share a true story with you. The world’s most infamous cannibal was the legendary Fijian chieftain, Ratu Udre Udre.

A Guinness World Record

Listen to this—he actually holds the Guinness World Record for eating the most people! I was personally surprised to discover that Guinness actually kept such a record! Ratu Udre Udre ate between 872 and 999 people, according to his son—whom he did not eat! (Guess that made him a “good father.”) Ratu Udre Udre kept a stone for each body he ate. Now, unfortunately, many Christians have more in common with Udre Udre than you might think because many Christians “eat” their own. You might say they’re “church cannibals,” and Paul’s letter to the church of Galatia bears that out. His fifth chapter begins like this: “Christ has liberated us to be free. Stand firm, then, and don’t submit again to a yoke of slavery” (Galatians 5:1). That’s the “good news” of the Gospel! We’re born into this world with a yoke of slavery around our necks, and we can try with all our might to get out from under our sin; but we’re incapable. Jesus liberates us by His atonement for sin on the cross. He liberates us from the penalty and power of sin over our lives.

Don’t Devour One Another

So “stand firm,” Paul says, “don’t submit to that old yoke of slavery again!” Continuing in that context, he speaks to the Gospel’s power to affect our relationships with people. We’re no longer enslaved to the world’s way of “devouring” one another—or hating one another and holding grudges. That’s what Paul says a little later in the same chapter: “For you were called to be free, brothers; only don’t use this freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, but serve one another through love. For the entire law is fulfilled in one statement: Love your neighbor as yourself. But if you bite and devour one another, watch out, or you will be consumed by one another” (Gal. 5:13–15).

Are You Drinking Poison?

Someone has accurately stated that “unforgiveness is the poison you drink, hoping it will kill someone else!” In this Scripture, Paul is reminding this local church that the Gospel sets us free from those kinds of toxic relationships. The Gospel of Christ frees us to be Jesus to everyone we meet! When we truly humble ourselves before God and submit to Him, Jesus moves us—by the power of His Holy Spirit—and radically begins to transform us in every way, including our relationships. When humanity sinned in Adam, it resulted in a complete breakdown of our ability to “image” God, the Father and our Creator. We’re broken! We’re all born into this world with an inability to love like God loves because of our inherited fallen nature. Only a conversion to Christ can change us! We’ll pick it up there at our next post!
 

An Epidemic Of Biblical Illiteracy!

Posted on by
Reply

-Only 19% Read Their Bible!

A recent survey, of churchgoers, revealed that only 19% read their Bible every day! The writer of Psalm 119 uses 176 verses to describe the Word of God. He uses 8 different words throughout! He calls Scripture:  God’s PRECEPT, God’s STATUTE, His COMMAND, His JUDGMENT, His PROMISE & God’s WORD! So, when he finishes the Psalm with the words, “I wander like a lost sheep; seek Your servant, for I do not forget Your commands” (v.176), he intends for us to understand that his “wandering”, like a lost sheep, is from Scripture! That’s the context! We, here in the west, resemble that remark!

-Ignoring The Compass Of God’s Word!

The American church has wandered away from God, like a lost sheep, because we’ve ignored the “compass” God has given us in His Word! God’s Word is the only GPS that will help us navigate this lost world & keep us on course following Jesus! But, many of us have ignored it! We sing the song, “Come Thou Fount, Come Thou King” from time to time in our church worship service. And, there’s that familiar verse that goes like this:  “O to grace how great a debtor; daily I’m constrained to be! Let Thy goodness, like a fetter, bind my wandering heart to Thee. Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it, prone to leave the God I love; Here’s my heart, Lord take & seal it, seal it for Thy courts above.” We can identify with that verse, can’t we?

-Wandering Away From God!

By the way, this is not the first time that the writer of this Psalm has talked about wandering away from God. Look at these very familiar verses:  “How can a young man keep his way pure? By keeping Your word. I have sought You with all my heart; don’t let me wander from Your commands. I have treasured Your word in my heart so that I may not sin against You” (vs. 9-11). Notice how sexual purity is attached to God’s word! It’s no wonder that even professing believers are caught up in sexual sin if 81% of churchgoers fail to read the Bible every day! And, what is the writer’s hope & prayer? “…(God) don’t let me WANDER from your commands…” is preceded by a seeking after God with all his heart! We can’t be nonchalant or cavalier in our attitude toward God; or, we’ll wander away from Him! I have to search for Him with all my heart! He has to be the only One or thing that I pursue with all my heart! Let’s be clear here—the Psalmist is not making a promise that if you read your Bible every day that you’ll never wander away from God! What he’s confessing is that he’s prone to wander! He’s prone to cave into his flesh! He’s broken by his sin!

-Our Heart Can Deceive Us!

The writer is saying that our failure to read God’s word regularly is evidence that we’re in danger of wandering away from God! Look back at that last verse, verse 176, of Psalm 119. Notice the middle phrase— “…seek Your servant…” We live in a church culture that constantly focuses on US seeking after God! And, clearly, Scripture does say: “You will seek Me and find Me when you search for Me with all your heart” Jeremiah 29:13. But, Scripture also says that “The heart is more deceitful than anything else, and incurable—who can understand it?” Jeremiah17:9. There is tension there! Our heart can deceive us, God says! We can think that we’re doing OK spiritually; but, we can be deceived! We tend to think, “Oh, I hope so-and-so is listening to this message”; when, God has intended it for you! But, you’re missing it because your heart has deceived you! So, ask God to SEEK you & to reveal to you your spiritual condition!