Posted on 09/14/2001 12:37:08 AM PDT by farmer18th
I consider myself a born again believer in the Lord Jesus Christ, but for the last six years my family and I have not attended regular worship of any sort in any church. Tonight I was reminded why.
We live in a fairly conservative small town with quite a few churches of every conceivable stripe--Catholic, Episcopalean, Methodist, Presbyterean, Reformed, Evangelical Free, Lutheran, and a whole slew of Baptists. I shouldn't forget the Pentacostals and the Calvary Chapel folks either, along with the Four Square group and the Community Churches.
You want churches. We got them.
Tonight the largest churches responded to the request for prayer by inviting us all to one sanctuary. When I walked in the chapel, a large screen reflected a picture of the American flag with a superimposed image of multi-racial hands held up in prayer. We all started by singing the familiar lines, "long may our land be bright, with freedom's holy light." There were at least 900 people in the room, and the sound of all those voices got me a littly misty. I thought there might be something to this.
But then the pastors trotted up to the pulpit one by one. The first was a Baptist of some sort, and perhaps a former police officer. He asked us to pray for all those who were risking their lives to save the wounded this week. Of course that's a worthy request, and we all prayed in unison and then in small groups. I happen to believe that all of the victims of this week's tragedy are worthy of our prayers, not just those who serve in uniform, but extending the pastor the benefit of the doubt and assuming he would agree, I added my "amen" to his prayer.
Then Catholic Priest #1 came up to the pulpit. What he uttered was so unoffensive, so chalky, so completely bald and benign and utterly OBVIOUS, that I have no honest recollection of what he said at all. His prayer was for the return of safety.
Catholic Priest #2 was an entirely different matter. He took his boney, sickly frame up to the pulpit along with two teenage violinists from his parish. (Is it just me or wouldn’t it be nice to see a Spencer Tracy style Catholic priest on occasion? A priest who could throw a punch if he wanted to?) Catholic Priest #2 started talking about the sin of anger, and how we all need to look inside ourselves and root out our own ill-will. The teenage violinists started in on cue as we were asked to cure ourselves of our hatred trough prayer. Psalm 139:23-24 was invoked:
Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts:
And see if [there be any] wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
But, curiously, no mention is made of the two preceeding verses:
Do not I hate them, O LORD, that hate thee? and am not I grieved with those that rise up against thee?I hate them with perfect hatred: I count them mine enemies.
By this time, I was audibly responding in the negative, albeit in a polite whisper, to these “men of the cloth.” My wife was getting nervous when the Methodist got up to the pulpit and tried to crack a joke about worship styles. During a week when thousands of Americans have lost their lives to foreign zealots, it seemed peculiarly inappropriate, and he seemed to recognize his mistake. He got back to his topic of affirming our utter dependance upon God. Is it just me or is that such an obvious truth that a reasonable person might ask, “what of it? What are we supposed to do? What does He want us to do? Do you have any idea or do you just like wearing that priestly costume?”
Another Baptist got up to the pulpit, and while I was hoping for some ray of light from the torch-bearers of the reformation, what I got was this: “Nothing is so like humans as the desire for revenge and nothing is so little like God.”
“Good grief,” I said, making a few people turn around. “They have turned the Lord of Hosts into Barney the Dinosaur.”
The Baptist went on to remind us: “love our enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” While these are indeed the words of Jesus, why are the rest of His words so inappropriate? Why aren’t we told about the braiding of the whip? (John 2:15) Why aren’t we told about the Christ who comes not to bring “peace but a sword?” (Mathew 10:34) Why aren’t we told about the “wrath of the Almighty God?” (Revelations 19:15). Why aren’t we told about the Jesus who calls a snake a snake. (Mathew 12). Why aren’t we told of the Paul who blinds the sorcerer? (Acts 13) Why aren’t we told of the Christ who tells us to sell our garment and buy a sword? (Luke 22:36).
Why? Because the virtues of courage and righteous indignation are out of vogue.
Next came the Nazarine. He seemed burdened by something. He insisted that the events of this week DEMANDED A RESPONSE. The congregation seemed to lunge forward in anticipation. Finally, someone was about to say something. He actually began to talk about sin. He talked about fathers taking responsibility in their homes. He talked about a good Christian having a ripple effect on his family, than his church, then his community, then his nation. He seemed to be aching to tell us about the great sins of our age, but he stopped short. He couldn’t seem to bring himself to mention abortion, divorce, homosexuality, adultery. He seemed to be hoping that we would get his drift. I felt a little sorry for him; at least he tried.
My cell phone rang. I left the sanctuary, calmed myself, then went back in, hoping for an audience with the Baptist pastor.
“I just used the words of Jesus,” he said, when I asked him why he didn't balance his message a bit more.
“Some of His words, “ I said. “You don’t have a right to give only half the record here. You don’t have the right to imply that Jesus wouldn’t approve of righteous anger.”
“You have to be careful with anger,” the pastor said. “You’ve got to make sure it’s from the Lord.”
“Pastor,” I said, looking him in the eye. “Take a precinct list sometime. Try calling some of these people on the phone. Try getting them out to a City Council meeting. Their problem isn’t anger. Their problem is apathy. To put it spiritual terms, their problem is sloth. There have been too many sermons on mercy. We’ve ‘mercied’ ourselves right into a culture full of divorce, drug use, and abortion.”
“Good point,” he said. “I’ll pray about it.”
Here’s to praying he does.
Farmer, you've got me beat but not by much. It's been five yrs for me. Mainly because most churches today seem to be more about money than trying to help lost souls and the community.
There are churches here in town that, absent a golf course, rival or exceed the finest country clubs. They've got gyms, saunas, running tracks, meeting rooms, restaurants (yes!), pre-school, K-12 school, etc. Money, money, money. The pastors are not pastors, they are CEO's of multi-milion dollar corporations. And of course they're on TV every Sun morning, talking up what a great church they have.
What a shame. I don't think Jesus would be proud.
Query: did they pass the hat at the service you attended?
Hang in there buddy.
Just pray, and God will show you where he wants you to go to church. If you'll be obedient and go to church where God tells you, you will be amazed.
But as for not helping, I beg your pardon!! My church has already held a 2-hour prayer meeting (Tuesday), and we have another one scheduled for Friday. Believe me, we know how to pray and when we pray, things happen in our city (San Diego) or wherever we send our prayers.
God’s Hand of Protection Over America Has Possibly Been Lifted.
Given the reality of yesterday’s events, there is a very good possibility that God Himself has lifted His hand of protection from America and judged us for our sins. He may have given us over to our own devices. We have sown the wind for years and have now reaped the whirlwind.
How Ironic, earlier today I saw Daschel, Dodd and other leaders commiserating in Washington and in the midst of this tragedy people in government, ... the very people who have been opposed to the Lord Jesus Christ, prayer in school or within the halls of government. People who support and promote sexual immorality, sodomy and the wholesale genocide of the unborn stood together, sang "God Bless America" and ARE CALLING FOR PRAYER TO GOD! But what does God have to say about all of this:
24 “Because I called and you refused, I stretched out my hand and no one paid attention;
25 And you neglected all my counsel And did not want my reproof;
26 I will also laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your dread comes,
27 When your dread comes like a storm And your calamity comes like a whirlwind, When distress and anguish come upon you.
28 “Then they will call on me, but I will not answer; They will seek me diligently but they will not find me,
29 Because they hated knowledge And did not choose the fear of the LORD.
30 “They would not accept my counsel, They spurned all my reproof.
31 “So they shall eat of the fruit of their own way And be satiated with their own devices.
32 “For the waywardness of the naive will kill them, And the complacency of fools will destroy them.
33 “But he who listens to me shall live securely And will be at ease from the dread of evil.”
This said, I will be praying for President Bush and those in leadership because it is my duty. But God's word is clear: we reap what we sow. America has supported Mr. Clinton, Mr. Condit et. al, because they are reflective of what many Americans themselves believe and how many of us live and act. Many Americans have been willing to overlook their conduct and ungodly policies because "character does not matter, it is the economy stupid."
Well, God will not be mocked, but He does hold out this promise:
13 “If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people,
14 and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land. (2 Chronicles 7:13 - 14)
Guys, I love America and my prayers have gone out and will continue to go out to the thousands upon thousands of families who have lost their loved ones.
I have had the opportunity to live and work in Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, the Philippines, Moscow, Kiev, Odessa, and other cities. There is not another place on the face of the planet that has been as blessed by God as much as we have. People may not want to admit it but we were founded as a nation upon faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, the Word of God and Christian principles. It is not my intention to offend anyone, but we as a nation can not use God. Nor can we call upon Him to protect and defend us when it is convenient or politically expedient and spurn Him and His Word, the rest of the time and then expect Him to be at our beck and call.
There is a simple yet profound principle in His Word and it is this: You reap what you sow and what you reap is multiplied. That is true for individuals, it is also true for nations.
We as a nation, founded upon faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and biblical principles have made a concerted effort to reject Him and tear God out of the very fabric of our lives and society. We can not treat the Lord Jesus like a "dixie cup" which we can use and throw away and then expect God not to judge us but to come to our rescue and protect us from our enemies.
I have an honest question that I would ask everyone who reads this, whether you agree with me or my perspective or not to answer. Have we as individuals and as a nation been living righteous and godly lives. Lives that are pleasing to God who is Holy, absolutely righteous and totally just? Or have we chosen to forget Him, spurn His Word and do whatever is right in our own eyes? If the answer is the latter, then no matter how painful it is, the truth is this: We are being judged as a people for our sin.
Another question arises and it boils down to this:
How could God use a nation or individuals even more evil to judge another nation less evil than itself?
He did it numerous times in the Old Testament. Israel (the Northern kingdom) had turned away from following the Lord and He allowed the Assyrians to overcome and conquer them. The Assyrians were brutal beyond comprehension. They ripped open pregnant women and dashed their babies against walls and pavement, they impaled their living victims, skinned them alive and crushed them under huge threshing sledges. This is just a small sample of what they did to Israel. The Southern kingdom of Judah was later conquered by the Babylonians. A wicked nation, totally given over to idols and immorality. Why did God allow this? because His people had persisted in wickedness and in rejecting Him. god is gracious and long suffering, but there does come a time when His patience is at an end. He is not only a God of love, He is also holy and must judge sin.
No nation can spurn God, reject His Word and law and get away with it. Not Babylon, Persia, Greece, Rome, Israel, the United States or ANY nation on the face of the planet.
Fortunatly, as I mentioned above, it is NOT TOO LATE. God is giveng us a window of opportunity to repent. He holds out this promise to us as individuals and as a nation:
13 “If I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or if I command the locust to devour the land, or if I send pestilence among My people,
14 and My people who are called by My name humble themselves and pray and seek My face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, will forgive their sin and will heal their land. (2 Chronicles 7:13 - 14)
What has happened is a tragedy. We are a nation at war and those who are responsible must be held accountable and punished. But I believe that God can use these events to produce spiritual revival throughout this land IF WE RESPOND AND REPENT. The choice is ours.
Humbly yours,
Dr. S
These men of the cloth are way way out of the loop. They are very divorced from the real world. Have carved out comfortable niches where they have been dwelling in for far too long
Mercy is great but must be balanced by a sense of justice ...a thirst for justice
Can't people go any place today without their damn cell phones turned on to interrupt the thoughts and conversations of innocent bystanders who are constantly barraged with the ring, ring, ring and yak, yak, yak of those who are too self centered to know when to turn it off and shut up. Trains, planes, restaurants, pubs, city side walks, ball games, and most recently, the person next to me on the treadmill at the gym. Although cell phones have their place, learn to show a little respect for others, particularly in church.
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