A Heavy Monday

Woke up this morning really thinking about the mission of the church and where it is.  It just seems we have such a long way to go to recapture and reclaim the Gospel message.  All around us, even in church circles, there seems to be an unwillingness to declare the whole counsel of God....

• Repentance?  Nope...not really needed.  Just check a block.
• Fear of God?  Nope...He doesn't want us to fear Him.  (Note: not what our Lord taught...Luke 12:5!)
• Biblical ethics?  Nope...just do what feels right.
• Holiness?  Not needed.
• My life this, my purpose that?  Now that's what I'm talking about!
• The Biblical, one husband one wife family?  C'mon now...don't judge.
• Church services designed for worship and instructing the saints?   LOLOL.

Underneath all this compromise are the masses of the spiritually dead and dying.  Why can't we see that the current path of softening or eliminating parts of God's character and message isn't working?  We've lost the culture!  We've lost most of our children!

The road back is hard but simple: The Scriptures.  All of them.  Every jot and tittle interpreted through the Christ of Scripture and His work. 

• Who is He?  The Son of God and God the Son.
• Why did He come?  Because of sin, defined biblically as "transgression of the law."
• Why did He suffer and die?  To satisfy the wrath of the Father because of His hatred of sin.
• Is this why the Old Testament is such a bloody mosaic with rule after rule? Yes...all designed to point to Christ.
• What is Jesus' message?  Repent and Believe the Gospel.
• What does He promise?  Eternal Life to those who believe.
• Is He the only way to heaven?  Yes.
• What happens to those who don't believe?  Condemnation; an eternal, conscious punishment called Hell.
• Why?  Because God is just.  He must judge and punish unrighteousness.
• What is the over-arching theme that undergirds all the above?  The love of God in Christ Jesus.

We aren't doing anyone any favors by side-stepping the hard truths of Scripture.

Revelation 1

Revelation 1:1-20 ESV

The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, (2) who bore witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw. (3) Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it, for the time is near.

(4) John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, (5) and from Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth. To him who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood (6) and made us a kingdom, priests to his God and Father, to him be glory and dominion forever and ever. Amen. (7) Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of him. Even so. Amen.

(8) "I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, "who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty."

(9) I, John, your brother and partner in the tribulation and the kingdom and the patient endurance that are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos on account of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. (10) I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet (11) saying, "Write what you see in a book and send it to the seven churches, to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamum and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea."

(12) Then I turned to see the voice that was speaking to me, and on turning I saw seven golden lampstands, (13) and in the midst of the lampstands one like a son of man, clothed with a long robe and with a golden sash around his chest. (14) The hairs of his head were white, like white wool, like snow. His eyes were like a flame of fire, (15) his feet were like burnished bronze, refined in a furnace, and his voice was like the roar of many waters. (16) In his right hand he held seven stars, from his mouth came a sharp two-edged sword, and his face was like the sun shining in full strength.

(17) When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead. But he laid his right hand on me, saying, "Fear not, I am the first and the last, (18) and the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades. (19) Write therefore the things that you have seen, those that are and those that are to take place after this. (20) As for the mystery of the seven stars that you saw in my right hand, and the seven golden lampstands, the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.
 

What Does the Fourth Commandment Forbid?

Below is an excerpt from Starr Meade's wonderful book, Training Hearts, Teaching Minds.  This is the beginning catechism book we recommend to CRCC families for their family worship.  This particular excerpt really ministered to my family this week:

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Question 61.  What does the Fourth Commandment forbid?

Answer: The fourth commandment forbids failing to do or carelessly doing what we are supposed to do.  It also forbids treating the day as unholy by loafing, by doing anything in itself sinful, or by unnecessary thinking, talking about, or working on our worldly affairs or recreations.

Tuesday's Devotional:

We fail to rightly honor God on the Lord's Day when we are careless about our worship.  We can be careless about our worship in several ways.  Often, people come into the worship service late.  Imagine receiving an invitation to a meeting with someone important and showing up late!  Coming to worship God is at least as important as meeting with an important human being.  Yet Christians seem to feel quite free to walk in to church late.

Imagine being in a meeting with someone important-the president of the United States, for instance-and not paying attention to what he said.  People often fail to pay attention in a worship service.  When people sit in church, letting their minds wander during the sermon or when they sing the words of hymns without paying attention to them, they are being careless about honoring God.

The prophet Malachi wrote down God's message to His people.  He complained about their carelessness in worshiping Him.  In the case of the Israelites, they brought sick or damaged animals for offerings to God.  God was offended because they should have brought Him their best.  "Would you give a damaged gift to your governor?" he asked them.  If such a gift would insult a human leader, would it not dishonor God?  We no longer bring animal sacrifices as a part of our worship, but the principle is still true.  God's people should bring their best to God-their best worship, their best attention.  We should be careful, not careless, as we come to worship our great God.

Mal 1:6-8 ESV "A son honors his father, and a servant his master. If then I am a father, where is my honor? And if I am a master, where is my fear? says the LORD of hosts to you, O priests, who despise my name. But you say, 'How have we despised your name?' (7) By offering polluted food upon my altar. But you say, 'How have we polluted you?' By saying that the LORD's table may be despised. (8) When you offer blind animals in sacrifice, is that not evil? And when you offer those that are lame or sick, is that not evil? Present that to your governor; will he accept you or show you favor? says the LORD of hosts.

(Note: we believe the principle of giving God "one day in seven" for His worship is a moral one, not a legal one.  Christians are free to do this whenever they like.  The spirit here is not judgment...Col 2:16...but one of diligent and intentional worship for a God who is WORTHY!)

That Love thing Again...Sorry

I've done lots of blogging and tweeting about "the love issue" lately.  As I opened up my browser this morning and the Yahoo news page loaded, I saw the below image.  Kinda a "picture is worth a 1000 words" moment....

See!?!  A loving couple!  Happy people in the background!  Discrimination finally ended!  The President onboard!  Key republicans onboard!  Several states and many if not most of the nation trending to be onboard!  Many "Christian" denominations have finally ended the hate and bigotry and repented!  Most of Hollywood and many influential in the music industry are onboard.  Main culture-driving areas are in favor (New York, Maryland, DC, etc)!  Utopia is upon us!!!

Oh but wait...there are still a few hateful, spiteful, ugly, mean-spirited people around.  Guess who they are?

The Christians.  The Bible-believing Christians to be more precise.  They need to learn to love like Jesus did.  If they understood true love, there wouldn't be so much hate.

And the "bible-believing" response (at least among the more popular pastors)?: "Yep...you are right.  More love. Love wins!"

Nevermind that untethered from the Laws of God love loses all meaning (Jn 14:15; Rom 13:8-10).  Nevermind that Scripture declares that homosexuals (if they do not repent) will not inherit the Kindom of God....

1Co 6:9-10 ESV Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, (10) nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God.

1Ti 1:9-11 ESV understanding this, that the law is not laid down for the just but for the lawless and disobedient, for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for those who strike their fathers and mothers, for murderers, (10) the sexually immoral, men who practice homosexuality, enslavers, liars, perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound doctrine, (11) in accordance with the gospel of the glory of the blessed God with which I have been entrusted.

But of course, the above Scriptures are hateful or being misinterprepted or mean something else than what they plainly say.  Maybe that's why, as a matter of strategy, many churches carefully pick "loving" Scriptures and refuse to teach the Whole Counsel of God. (Acts 20:27).

There is just one problem.  That ain't love.  God's love will look these two nice ladies in the eye, and with care, tact, respect, brokeness, tears, and a sense of desperate pleading for one who might be dying and going hell, confront their sin with the Law of God in the hope they might repent and receive His grace.  That's love.

Amen.