Will You?

Richard Wurmbrand, who suffered for the faith in Romania during the last half of the 20th century, describes his farewell to children in the church before he left his troubled homeland:

I remember my last Sunday School class before I left Romania. I took a group of ten to fifteen boys and girls on a Sunday morning, not to a church, but to the zoo. Before the cage of lions I told them, "Your forefathers in faith were thrown before such wild beasts for their faith. Know that you also will have to suffer. You will not be thrown before lions, but you will have to suffer at the hands of men who would be much worse than lions. Decide here and now if you wish to pledge allegiance to Christ." They had tears in their eyes when they said, "Yes."

Hungry

In this hour of all-but-universal darkness one cheering gleam appears: within the fold of conservative Christianity there are to be found increasing numbers of persons whose religious lives are marked by a growing hunger after God Himself. They are eager for spiritual realities and will not be put off with words, nor will they be content with correct “interpretations” of truth.

They are athirstfor God, and they will not be satisfied till they have drunk deep at the Fountain of Living Water. This is the only real harbinger of revival which I have been able to detect anywhere on the religious horizon. It may be the cloud the size of a man’s hand for which a few saints here and there have been looking. It can result in a resurrection of life for many souls and a recapture of that radiant wonder which should accompany faith in Christ, that wonder which has all but fled the Church of God in our day.


But this hunger must be recognized by our religious leaders. Current evangelicalism has (to change the figure) laid the altar and divided the sacrifice into parts, but now seems satisfied to count the stones and rearrange the pieces with never a care that there is not a sign of fire upon the top of lofty Carmel. But God be thanked that there are a few who care. They are those who, while they love the altar and delight in the sacrifice, are yet unable to reconcile themselves to the continued absence of fire. They desire God above all. They are athirst to taste for themselves the “piercing sweetness” of the love of Christ about Whom all the holy prophets did write and the psalmists did sing.

There is today no lack of Bible teachers to set forth correctly the principles of the doctrines of Christ, but too many of these seem satisfied to teach the fundamentals of the faith year after year, strangely unaware that there is in their ministry no manifest Presence, nor anything unusual in their personal lives. They minister constantly to believers who feel within their breasts a longing which their teaching simply does not satisfy.

I trust I speak in charity, but the lack in our pulpits is real. Milton’s terrible sentence applies to our day as accurately as it did to his: “The hungry sheep look up, and are not fed.” It is a solemn thing, and no small scandal in the Kingdom, to see God’s children starving while actually seated at the Father’s table. The truth of Wesley’s words is established before our eyes: “Orthodoxy, or right opinion, is, at best, a very slender part of religion. Though right tempers cannot subsist without right opinions, yet right opinions may subsist without right tempers. There may be a right opinion of God without either love or one right temper toward Him. Satan is proof of this."

From The Pursuit of God by A.W. Tozer

The quoted is from the preface, imagine how good the book is, you need to read it.

You can download it for free.

You want justice

Deep down, well maybe not even that deep, we all want justice for those responsible for the Boston bombings.  Some might call it revenge, but nobody wants to see the guilty party go free. We are mad, sad, angry and violated.  

I want you to stop for a moment and think about your transgression of God's law, and then tell me if you think He wants justice.  Well does He?  Does He demand justice for your lies, your stealing, your blasphemy, your idolatry? 

If you say "no" He does not want justice then what kind of God is He?  That He would give a law and allow you to break it with no penalty?  What kind of God is that, who demands obedience to His law, but doesn't care enough to punish the law breakers?  that would be an unjust God, so ignore him

If you say "yes", then how can you satisfy His righteous demand for justice?  He is not easily placated, His wrath is not finite.  So then, if His wrath towards transgressors is infinite, then how can we, finite creatures satisfy that wrath?

We can't, so then how can we stand before Him?  

Who gets justice?

Who gets non-justice?

Right Wingers Did It

Before any concrete evidence is in the public has been stroked to believe the horrible bombings in Boston was right wingers:  see the headline: Expert blames right-wing terrorists

What if the headline read: Experts blame Muslim Extremists OH MY what a stir that would cause . .  imagine what would be said about making judgments without the facts, the charges of racism, bigotry, intolerance and so on, would be in every major paper.   

Double standard? You decide

it's a choice we all face

God made all things and is worthy of praise and worship; He has the rightful rule over His creation. He is the king but man rebelled against Him and followed his own desires.  God does not tolerate this rebellion and consequently upon death the rebels are rightly judged for their rebellion in conscious torment forever without end.  Not a fire that annihilates, but an emotional, physical and spiritual torment that can never be softened, shortened or stopped.  But God, because of His love, sent His Son into the world: the man Jesus Christ. Jesus always lived under God’s rule. Yet by dying in our place He took our punishment and brought forgiveness to all who would repent and believe. Then God raised Jesus to life again as the ruler of the world. Jesus has conquered death, now gives new life and will return to judge. Where does all this leave you?  It leaves you with a choice of only two ways to live, your way or God’s way; it’s a choice we all face. 

hey Google, death has been defeated

Dear Google, I see that on the day that Christians celebrate the fact that Christ rose from the dead, you celebrate the birthday of Cesar Chavez.  You don't have any cool "google graphic" where the "o" could be an empty tomb, on no, but hey some dead guy turned 86 today! 

Loss

I feel a sense of loss because so many "Christians" miss so much of God because they live a defeated life, hanging their head low and asking “where are you God?” When all the while God is saying . . . “right there in that Bible”

NAMB

I was talking to friend who is in the process of applying to the North American Mission Board (NAMB) and he informed me that one of the requirements was to be alcohol free; no beer, no wine as long as he was employed by NAMB.  I asked him if that meant even in private, at home while having dinner, he said yes.  

Of course he asked them why they had the policy and they said that drinking alcohol "diminishes his witness". I can understand NAMB asking someone to not drink alcohol in public, for it could be a stumbling block to other believer's, and I assume they don't see abstinence as a salvation requirement, but to restrict the consumption of a glass of wine or beer in your own home is problematic.

Of course we as Christians are free to enjoy the good gifts God has given us and in moderation, sex is good but too much is bad, chocolate is good but too much is bad, steak is good but too much is bad and so on.  

If NAMB says drinking alcohol diminishes your witness do they let overweight people serve?  What can be be more visible than an overweight Christian?  At the the heart of being overweight, for most people that do not have a goofy thyroid or other medical issue, is a lack of control.  I am not suggesting that all Christians should be within a certain BMI at all times. Self control is not only limited to food and gluttony is a matter of the heart not the waste line!

But when you assert that drinking alcohol diminishes your witness, then doesn't overeating do the same?  Whatever you do, do not drink any alcohol, not even in your own home, but somehow overeating doesn't diminish your witness?  When you point to my beer and ask "what are you doing with that?" can I point to your belly and ask the same thing?

I wonder if NAMB allows their missionaries to teach about Christ turning water in to wine?  Would NAMB allow me to drink the wine that Jesus made?  Oh, I know, that wine was weak so it is not the same right?

Not all overweight Christians are in sin, but many are and the worst part is they don't care.  I have heard believer's say, "hey I like food and yes I am fat, I admit it", well what about the believer who says "hey I like sex and yes I'm fornicating, I admit it." Why do we press the fornicator to stop and repent, but not the overweight person who is that way because of their gluttony?  I know the answer, but is self control a fruit of the spirit and evidence of His indwelling?

I realize that food and weight are sometimes the most difficult struggles we have, I know how hard it is to stop eating that awesome food.  I am very sympathetic to people who struggle to not eat too much, It is HARD and I pray they would have success.  

I am simply trying to make a point, which is: when you are more conservative than Jesus you have a problem.