"Go on speaking and do not be silent, for I am with you,..for I have many people in this city." Acts 18:10
In my red letter edition of the NASB these words are crimson on cream. Roll Tide! Sorry! Couldn't help it. But it's true.
Jesus spoke these words to Paul in the night by a vision. There is not a preacher worth his salt that hasn't needed the reminder, "I am with you!" No matter what time it is, day or night, The Presence of Jesus is promised and delivered by the work and the wonder of The Spirit of Christ. Thank God.
Still, there are times when the eyes of the preacher are clouded by the intimidation of the immediate. There is always the relentless stress of discerning the difference between the urgent and the important. There is a huge difference between them. Those that can't tell them apart will be devoured by the urgent, and never accomplish what is important. Praying clears the air. Breathe deep. Choose wisely.
Preaching is a lot like writing poetry while wrestling with alligators. It is hard to do, and under-appreciated. While putting out fires and fighting off the alligator closest to the boat, a preacher can lose sight of his mission in life...people. Paul did. Don't make the same mistake.
When preachers focus on preaching the truth and paying the price, they lose sight of the reward. So did Paul. You will too.
Note to self: Don't make the same mistake.
The call to preach doesn't end with a withdrawal to one's study, or downloading an app on line to access the work of someone who did. Never step into the pulpit to deliver the mail with all of the intimacy and expectancy of a "Current Occupant" mass mail out. High volume and low expectations rarely result in a great harvest.
Jesus came to Paul in a vision and reminded him, "I have many people in this city." (v.10) This is an interesting statement given the fact that Paul had already seen some remarkable results from his preaching in Corinth.
"Many of the Corinthians when they heard were believing and being baptized." v. 8
What kind of results? The city of Corinth was not a melting pot, but a stew pot of the exotic, excessive and the extravagant. This environment was a toxic cocktail of great commerce, and enormous wealth. It was a crossroads where various cultures collided, resulting in moral and political corruption of everything it touched. Anything and everything was available for a price. What couldn't be bought could be rented, and whatever perversion a person had in their heart was available on the open market. This was not Mayberry. It was Vegas on steroids.
In this kind of setting, Paul preached Jesus as Christ, and "many of the Corinthians...were believing and being baptized." They were not transferring their letter of membership from a sister church down the street. They were being transformed. To a discouraged preacher, and disheartened missionary, Jesus came to Paul in a vision and said in essence, "You aint' seen nothing yet."
The Corinthian Church would improve Paul's prayer life. It would always be one of his greatest loves and biggest heartaches. Any pastor who has ever loved the people of his church will know what this feels like. Take a look at the leadership pool of the Corinthian church. Paul would have to write them to recall what they left behind, when they believed in Jesus and were baptized into His church.
" v. 9 Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor effeminate, nor homosexuals, v. 10 nor thieves, nor the covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God. v. 11 Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God." I Corinthians 6: 9-10
Now that is quite a laundry list. Even in the middle of a revival, one could hardly fault Paul for wanting to get out of town, and move on down the road. This place was in need of a cleansing of monumental proportions and Paul was running out of soap. Jesus came to Paul to remind him, keep preaching, and He would do the rest. "I have many people in this city." Jesus still does. Preach Jesus!
Note to self: #2 - Don't try to clean the fish before you catch them. It annoys the fish, and you will never get them in the boat.
"Such were some of you." v. 11
This statement is the antidote to any sanctimonious self-righteousness that tries to infect the church. The local church is the only gathering of people on the face of the earth that requires a person to admit they don't deserve to be a part of it, before they are allowed to join up with it. Get over yourself.
According to the word of God, before someone becomes one of the justified and the sanctified, they must be one of the horrified. Those who see themselves for exactly who they really are in God's eyes, never want to go back to what they once were. Conviction of sin and forgiveness of sin is God's form of shock and awe in the battle against sin. Look in the mirror, and look at the list in 1 Corinthians. When Jesus died on the cross, His blood covered a multitude of sin. Don't dig up what Jesus buried. Leave it. Die to it. Daily.
Praying for the people of a city is the way God turns a preacher into a reacher. Praying preachers become reaching preachers because praying tenderizes the heart of the preacher. Talking about people sharpens a preacher's sarcasm, and cuts people to pieces. Praying for them softens the hearts of those who hear the preacher. Praying transform preaching into reaching by touching the heart of the preacher and speaking to hearts of the people who need to be reached. Turn your preaching into reaching. TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!
The Pressing
"Paul was pressed in the spirit, and testified to the Jews that Jesus was Christ." Acts 18: 5
As Gen. Grant, and The Army of the Potomac closed in on Gen. Lee and the Army of Northern Virgina, he telegraphed President Lincoln. He informed the President that the conflict would end if he kept up the pressure on the Confederate forces. Lincoln's answer was terse and to the point, "Let the thing be pressed." Grant obeyed, and pressed Lee to surrender his forces at Appamattox, Virginia in April 1865.
Pressure is a powerful weapon in the hands of a general seeking to defeat the enemy. The strategy is designed to keep the foe from regrouping, catching their breath, and maintaining resistance. It is also an effective tool in God's hands to bring a preacher to the edge of the cliff, to take a leap of faith, and to leave the results up to God.
Note to self: As a preacher, you don't have to survive, just serve. Make sure you serve God, not yourself. God can raise the dead. You can't. Don't live to survive. Live to serve.
In April 1985, I was at such a point. I was pastor of a church that had devoured 16 pastors in 24 years. One of these shepherds had lasted 2 weeks. The same tag-team Deacon Board that ran the church was in the process of doing the same thing to me. I found myself in the middle of a crisis brought about by their strategy. It was a well-oiled machine of secret post office boxes, anonymous letters, with-holding of finances, the manipulation of the committee system, and the high-jacking of the business meeting process. All the while, the public statements of support to my face and the congregation were supportive, but behind the scenes, the back-stabbing was effective. They were deceptive, destructive, and were very good at this. Can I get a witness?
As the crisis mounted, staff salaries would be reduced, program's cut, and hand-wringing induced to bring about a loss of confidence, and the eventual departure of the pastor. That would be me. Don't get me wrong. It wasn't personal. It never is. It simply doesn't matter whose name gets erased, as long as control remains in the hands of the few, the entitled, and the determined. Just because a church is death-defying doesn't mean it is life-giving. Check the graveyard. It is usually filled with former pastors.
One day, while I was alone in prayer and the reading of Scripture, I came across this passage. In a moment, the angst, anger and anxiety disappeared. The pressing down on my soul was released, and a huge burden was lifted. I heard from God. There was a new sense of freedom and expectancy. Come what may, I was not alone, nor was I a punching bag. I only had two cheek, not four. I had turned both. It was time to stand up, not to take a kick in the pants.
"Then spake the Lord to Paul in the night by a vision, 'Be not afraid, but speak, and hold not thy peace: For I am with thee, and no man shall set on thee to hurt thee: for I have much people in this city.' And he continued there a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them." Acts 18:9-11 KJV
The pressing of Paul's soul, and the words of the Lord spoken to him, reveal much about the man. He was at times hesitant to speak his full mind, and fearful of the beating he would take if he did. Paul was not a robot on remote control, but a living, breathing human being who hurt when hit, and at times felt the sting of loneliness like anyone else. God pressed his soul, with a reminder of His Spirit's Presence, and with His touch, Paul found a new freedom to preach Jesus. This only happens...EVERY TIME.
For my part, when I read this, God led me to go without a salary for a year. It didn't seem possible, or plausible, but when I shared this sense of direction with Dana, she had heard the same thing. Sunday I told the congregation that I had a special announcement to make at the close of the service.
I could tell by the looks on the faces of the ringleaders, they were expecting me to quit. This was not their first rodeo. When I rose to close the service, I thanked the church for their patience with the process, and shared with them how God had lifted the crisis. I was able to say with confidence, there was no longer any financial need to reduce staff salaries, because I would serve the church without compensation for the next year. The standing ovation was deafening. The shocked looks on the faces of those seated told me all I need to know. They hadn't counted on God showing up at the beat down. Back stabbers always bring a knife to a gunfight, and God always outguns the opposition.
The pressing down on my spirit had been enormous, but I was more than overwhelmed by the sense of freedom that it forced to the surface. The power grip of the few had been broken. They were exposed for the frauds they were. Over the next two and a half years, I discovered what preaching with freedom was all about. "Let the thing be pressed." Indeed.
The Pressing of a preacher's spirit is often the way God prepares His preachers to lead His people into a fresh out-pouring of His Spirit. Comfortable preachers and complacent people lead to compromising churches that are conformed to the culture, but will never see it changed with the message of Jesus as Christ.
Stop looking for a massage from the culture. Deliver the message of Jesus to it. Preach Jesus, not just God Bless America. Jesus is not a Democrat or a Republican. He is not even an American. The ash heap of history is filled with nations, and empires who pressed their values on others, but in the process lost the virtue only Jesus Christ can place in a culture, one life at a time. Preach Jesus.
This Thanksgiving, thank God for the message of Jesus Christ, and prepare to share Jesus with someone this Christmas. Faith Hill sings a beautiful song that says it all, "A Baby Changes Everything." From the cradle to the cross, from the womb to the tomb, from Heaven to your heart, Jesus changes everything, one life at a time. He longs to say the same words to you, He spoke to Paul, "...I am with Thee." Listen. He is praying for you by name. TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!
HAPPY THANKSGIVING AND MERRY CHRISTMAS!
The Declaration
"God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent, because He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed...some began to sneer, but others said, 'We shall hear you again...But some men joined him and believed..." Acts 17: 31-34
Preaching calls for a response to be made to The Declaration of God. Preaching that does not call for a response, has confused communication with declaration. Preaching is not the mere dispensation of information. Preaching is the incarnation of the declaration of God, by a faithful messenger. Regardless of the choices people may make, preaching calls for a choice to be made. Paul did not get all the fish in the boat, but his preaching drew the net. Biblical preachers still follow his lead.
Blood bought, God called preachers should never dilute preaching into nothing but the delivering of information. Preachers are not postal workers delivering mail, or UPS employees, driving around town, ringing doorbells, dropping off packages, and then driving home with sense of accomplishment.
UPS drivers don't stick around to see the receiver's response to what has been delivered. They drop the package, ring the door bell, and drive off. Preacher's do more than that. They look into the faces of people, and ask, "What do you intend to do about what God just told you to do?" To do less than call for a response is to fail to deliver The Declaration.
Preaching doesn't just deliver the message to a listener's doorstep. It drives it home to the person's heart. Before The Declaration of God arrives to the listener's ears, it must pass through the preacher's soul. This is rarely painless.
Incarnational preaching is not merely informational. It is transformational. If preaching doesn't change the life of the preacher in the pulpit, it will have little impact or influence on the people in the pews.
Without the blood transfusion of The Spirit of God, there is no incarnation of the message in the life preacher. Great preaching is not marked by a cute illustration, or a profound quotation. Perspiration, elocution, and education are poor substitutes for incarnation. The message must reveal a change in the messenger. If the message is missed in the heart of the preacher, it will not hit the mark in the heart of the listener.
Paul preached for a response. Biblical preaching calls for a decision to be made. It is about life-change and right choices, not preachers parsing phrases, or listeners taking sermon notes. People filling in the blanks in a sermon outline have not had an encounter with the word of God, until The Declaration has made a transformation in them.
Note to self: When you preach, declare the full counsel of God, and call for a response, NOW, not later.
So much preaching today is void of theology, but high on technology. There is no fear of God. Paul's message reminded people that the God of creation was making a declaration to them that called for them to REPENT.
The Declaration of God's love for His children is made with an exclamation point in the form of The Cross of His Son, Jesus Christ. The Cross declared God's love. Jesus was, is, and always will be the incarnation of God's love. Knowing about the cross and being transformed by the crucified Christ are two different things. Those who preach Jesus must reveal the change Jesus has made in their lives, before their preaching will lead people in the pews to a life-changing encounter with Him.
God is not nostalgic about the loss of His Son, in the past tense. The Declaration of His love is always in the present tense. Remembering the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus, in the past must lead to repenting, in the present. HIS story is not just focused on what God has done in the past, but what He is doing right NOW in the lives of those who respond to The Declaration.
"God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent." v. 30b
Without repentance there is no remembrance. Biblical preaching calls for both, and is not embarrassed by either. To repent refers to a change of heart, and a change of mind, that leads to a change of direction. This turn around takes place in the present tense, not in the past or the future, but right NOW. As Henry Blackaby has often been quoted as saying, "Delayed obedience is still disobedience."
Hearing from God without obeying God is neither remembrance or repentance. It is rebellion. Preaching calls for a response to The Declaration of God in the form of obedience and allegiance.
Preachers would do well to remember that most of the people who show up to hear them preach live under a flag of rebellion. Secession resists repentance to the will of God. Intercession seeks the will of God. The Spirit of Intercession urges people to lower their flag, and end their rebellion.
Preaching calls for the lowering of the flag of rebellion, and the bending of the rebel's knee to the will of God. Rather than a Declaration of Independence, the citizen of The Kingdom of God calls out to God in prayer with a Declaration of Dependence.
Prayer prepares the heart of the rebel to respond in repentance. Praying prepares the preacher to call for repentance with a broken heart. Both are essential. Pray for preachers. They need it and you need the practice. Hearing from God is always improved by praying for your preacher. Praying improves the listener's hearing and the preacher's preaching. The next Great Awakening hangs in the balance. TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!
The Proclamation
"This I proclaim to you. The God who made the world and all things in it, since He is Lord of Heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands; nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things; and He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation, that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far off from each of us, for in Him, we live and move and exist...'For we also are His children.'" The Apostle Paul - v. 23b-28 NASB
Preachers are called to proclaim The Way, The Truth, and The Life. In other words, the story of redemption is the message and the mission of Jesus. It is HIS-story, not my story.
Note to self: Your story of salvation is written in the blood of Jesus, priceless to God, and precious to you, but it is not about your love for God. The life-changing power comes from HIS love for you. BIG DIFFERENCE.
One of the oldest preacher jokes introduced to preacher-boys is a question designed to help them break the ice with a cold crowd. Here it is. "How many of you brought your HIM-BOOK? Hold it up." When people dutifully pull out from the pew rack, and hold up their song book, the young preacher is supposed to hold up his Bible and say, "No that is a song book. This is your HIM BOOK. It is all about HIM!" This kind of preaching always generates mild annoyance and nervous laughter. Stop it.
Still, the story Paul told to the arrogant, and astute Athenians was not his story, but HIS story. A friend of mine suggested that Paul got caught up in the moment, and instead of giving his personal testimony, he tried to engage the culture. I doubt that, given the Holy Spirit's capacity to fill Paul with what God intended for people to hear. These five and half verses of Scripture are some of the most profound words ever produced in any human language. But I digress.
I haven't been to Athens since 1972, but I can still recall the impressive and imposing ancient remains of the city square, when I stood where Paul once took his stand to make The Proclamation..."He is not far off from each of us, for in Him, we live and move and exist." NASB
When The Pilgrims landed in what is now Cape Cod, Massachusetts they brought with them The Geneva Bible. Their boundaries had been moved from the Old World to the New World, but they brought the Old and the New Testament with them. Their version of the Bible preceded the King James Version, by several years, and contained The Proclamation...
"For in him we live, and move, and have our being, as also certain of your own Poets have said: For we are also his generation." v. 28 - Geneva Bible 1599
This new generation of Christian believers, blown off course from their destination in Virginia, were planted by the hand of God in New England. They birthed The Mayflower Compact and the form of government that breathed life into a new nation. They did not establish the United States of America, but they produced the idea of America.
The secularists have sought to demonize The Pilgrims as Eco- terrorists who ravaged the pristine landscape, and rabid racists who massacred the indigenous people. Well-meaning, but nostalgic conservatives have eulogized The Pilgrims until they have become almost mythological paragons of virtue. Both extremes do them a dis-service and cloud HIS story.
God always hits HIS straightest licks with crooked sticks. The Pilgrims were not perfect people. They were directed people. People who seek God's direction, protection and correction will never search for Him in vain. The Truth is...
" He is not far off from each of us." Thank God!
The people God uses are not perfect, just forgiven. The Pilgrims were flawed people who sought God, and as result saw themselves as instruments, in the hands of God. The result? They birthed a new generation that was the genesis of a new nation that has made a difference in this world.
The Pilgrims carried in their hearts and minds a vision of a "City on a Hill." They poured their life blood and buried their children into the sands of Cape Cod, and with every sacrifice, they established the foundation of a new nation. Never forget it. Don't sit down in the face of any attempt to deny their monumental sacrifice. STAND UP!
"Having undertaken, for the Glory of God, and advancements of the Christian faith and honor of our King and Country, a voyage to plant the first colony in the Northern parts of Virginia, do by these presents, solemnly and mutually, in the presence of God, and one another, covenant and combine ourselves together into a civil body politic; for our better ordering, and preservation and furtherance of the ends aforesaid; and by virtue hereof to enact, constitute, and frame, such just and equal laws, ordinances, acts, constitutions, and offices, from time to time, as shall be thought most meet and convenient for the general good of the colony; unto which we promise all due submission and obedience." The Mayflower Compact - 1620
In 1630, just ten years after these words penned by William Bradford, and the original Pilgrims, John Winthrop saw a vision. In his eyes obedience to God was the source for all the direction, protection and correction his generation and subsequent generations would need, in the new land.
"...for wee must Consider that wee shall be as a Citty upon a Hill, the eies of all people are uppon us; soe that if wee shall deale falsely with our god in this worke wee have undertaken and soe cause him to withdrawe his present help from us, wee shall be made a story and a byword through the world, wee shall open the mouthes of enemies to speake evill of the wayes of god and all professours for Gods sake; wee shall shame the faces of many of gods worthy servants, and cause theire prayers to be turned into Cursses upon us till wee be consumed out of the good land." John Winthrop - 1630
Winthrop's words, even without the benefit of Spell Check, frame the debate. There is no impact on history, without HIS story making an impact in the lives of HIS children, one life at a time.
"For in Him, we live and move and have our being." Indeed.
"The Message" offers this contemporary observation on the all-consuming relationship God has with His children.
"He doesn’t play hide-and-seek with us. He’s not remote; he’s near. We live and move in him, can’t get away from him!" v. 28 The MESSAGE
As Thanksgiving Day approaches, and The Pilgrims are parodied on TV commercials or replaced altogether by
Happy Turkey Day", STAND UP! Remember they were children of faith. Their faith led them to leave their homes, climb onto the deck of leaky boat, fight for their lives through powerful storms, that landed them on the wrong shore. They chose to stay and eke out a meager survival, and pass on a legacy of faith to those who followed in their footsteps.
The Pilgrim's faith led them to establish a compact that embraced their trust in God to guide them in the decisions they would make while they remained on earth. One of their first decisions had to do with the establishment of a form of self-government. Dare I say it. They got involved in politics.
Don't get me wrong. They were not on a cruise. They were on the run. The Puritans in England had lost control of the political process. The Royalists were exacting revenge. Their search for freedom of worship was driven by a desire to live, not just to live free. Life trumps liberty, every time.
Freedom to worship is of precious little value to a dead man. The Puritans became The Pilgrims because they sought life, then liberty. Sound familiar? Remember! They had the idea of America in their soul. Though the words were not theirs, the idea of "Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" would be The Pilgrim's legacy to America. More than a place, America will always be an idea, held in the hearts and minds of people seeking freedom.
Pilgrims seeking freedom hit the beaches of America every day, from every nation of the world. Why? America was God's idea, long before it became a good idea. Observation: For American Christians who have not gone out to reach the world, perhaps God is bringing the world to their doorstep.
The signs of the times, in this nation, call for a new generation of Christian citizens who will do no less than The Pilgrims. They must exercise their faith in Heaven, and their due diligence on earth. When Christian citizens all over this nation, humbly pray for God's direction, protection, and correction, then they must STAND UP! Christian citizens must register to vote, and cast their vote with God-given direction.
A Great Awakening begins with the humble prayer of one Christian's confession. But it is more than a Christian withdrawing inside the walls of a church, and lighting a candle in a secret prayer meeting. The next Great Awakening must stir cold embers of sitting Christians into flames of fire. Revived Christian citizens must STAND UP and light up a dark world to illuminate "The City on a Hill."
Prayer strikes the match that lights the night, and enables Christian citizens to see God is closer than they think. He is near. TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!
The Sneer
"Now when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some began to sneer, but others said, 'We shall hear you again concerning this.' " Acts 17:32
The contemporary church seeking a cheer from the culture, while fearing The Sneer of the culture, will always abandon God's cure for the culture, The Resurrected Christ.
"He has fixed a day in which He will judge the world in righteousness through a Man whom He has appointed, having furnished proof to all men by raising him from the dead." v. 31
Christmas and Easter are still two of the highest attendance days of the church. Go figure. One celebrates His birth, the other His death, burial and resurrection. Jesus commanded His disciples to remember the latter, not to celebrate the former. Contemporary culture has it exactly backwards, and for the most part the church has yielded to their sense of direction.
When the church conforms to the pressure of the culture instead of transforming it, it never ends well, for the church or the culture. Every time the church is too embarrassed by their beliefs to actually proclaim them, they keep their structure and lose their substance. Their by-laws, buildings and budgets don't breathe new life into dead men. Only Jesus can do that. After all, He is The Risen Christ. God has no Plan B.
Once belief in Jesus is diluted from holy reverence to quaint remembrance, His birthday may be celebrated, but His resurrection is emasculated. Dead men don't need to be cheered up. They need new life. Only The Risen Christ can provide it.
Note to self: The culture may very well sneer at the very mention of The Risen Christ, but preach Jesus anyway.
Paul was convinced Jesus came to call people everywhere to "REPENT." His church should follow His lead. To do less may avoid The Sneer, but if the church really wants to offer some Christmas cheer, and The Spirit of Christmas, they need to proclaim The Risen Christ.
"God is now declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent." v. 30
Don't get ready to go all Ninja-Angel on contemporary culture. Forgive me! I can't get that scene in the recent TV series on "The Bible" out of my mind. Those Chuck Norris angels escorting Lot and his family out of Sodom, really did a number on the Sodomites, and then God's judgment fell. Now is a great time to remind the church that judgment begins at the house of God. Don't take my word for it.
"For it is time for judgment to begin with the household of God; and if it begins with us first, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey the gospel of God?" I Peter 4:17
Fearing The Sneer leads to the squeezing of the church, into the mold of the culture. Repentance involves an awareness that one is moving in the wrong direction, and an act of the will to turn around and move in the right direction. One without the other is incomplete.
Dietrich Bonhoeffer described the dilemma of people who ran down the aisles of a train that kept taking them in the wrong direction. That is not a picture of repentance.
"“If you board the wrong train, it is no use running along the corridor in the other direction.” ― Dietrich Bonhoeffer.
This may very well describe the condition of the pulpits and the pews of America. Some people are aware of the conditions threatening the church, but are screaming in outrage and frustration, while still heading in the wrong direction. Others are blissfully unaware of any danger, and are either mildly amused or painfully annoyed at the commotion of those who won't sit down and shut up. The opposition is in a position to keep the train moving in the wrong direction, and won't let go of the controls without a fight.
Turning a runaway train around is not an easy task. It requires leaving the comfort of the passenger compartment, taking control of the engine compartment, stopping the train, and moving it in the opposite direction.
Preachers who attempt to move the train in the opposite direction, should expect resistance from the opposition on two fronts. People in the church or in the culture don't like to be told they are wrong. Their will be no dislodging the hands of the opposition from the throttle of the train, without discomforting the pulpits and the pews of America.
Bad news is more like spilled milk than fine wine. It doesn't age well. Delaying the clean up doesn't improve the aroma of the church or the culture. There is only one aisle on a train. CLEAN UP ON AISLE #1! Grab a mop. This is going to take a while.
"Don’t let the world around you squeeze you into its own mould, but let God re-mould your minds from within,.." Romans 12:2 - J.B. Phillips Translation
Preachers in the pulpit and people in the pews have become embarrassed to call both to turn around. In every culture, and at every point in history someone's value system reigns supreme. In a republic, with a representative form of government, Christian citizenship remains the bulwark against tyranny from within and terrorists from without.
God's value system diminishes when preachers meekly raise the question, "Are you sure we are moving in the right direction?" Timidity only invites The Sneer. Rigidity doesn't remove The Sneer, it only intensifies it. Yelling at people who are on a fast train in the wrong direction, rarely influences them to turn it in the right direction. The opposition simply doesn't care how loud preachers scream, as long as their own hands remain on the throttle.
The key to the next Great Awakening is humility, not timidity or rigidity. Praying preachers must lead praying people to develop praying churches. Prayer prepares the way for a turn around, first in the church, and then in the culture. This happens one person at a time, and one prayer at a time. ALL ABOARD!
"If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land." 2 Chronicles 7:14 KJV
This passage of Scripture became the battle cry for the Jesus Revolution of the late Sixties and the early Seventies of the 20th Century. In 1996 I was impacted by a quote that led me to a personal turnaround and has never steered me off track in the last seventeen years.
"It is not enough for the pastor to pray fervently, nor is it sufficient for a leadership team to pray ardently on behalf of the congregation. Until the church owns prayer as a world-class weapon in the battle against evil and cherishes prayer as a means of intimate and constant communication with God, the turn-around efforts of a body are severely limited, if not altogether doomed, to failure."
George Barna - Turn Around Churches
As pastors prepare their people to humble their hearts through prayer, they must give them a winning strategy after they get up off their knees. The clear call for Christians to TAKE A KNEE should be followed by another call to STAND UP! One must precede the other, but does not remove the necessity of the other.
Pastors should lead their people to exercise the rights of dual citizenship. Paul claimed his rights as a Roman citizen. Christian citizens of America should do no less. The Sneer will not be removed from the faces of everyone who refuses to accept The Risen Christ. This should not deter Christians from voting to take the hand of sneering people off of the throttle of a train moving away from Religious Liberty and towards disdain of The Risen Christ.
In a representative democracy, someone's value system is going to win out, at the voting booth. Pastors should challenge the people in their pews to pray for the next Great Awakening, register them to vote, and lead them to vote for those people and policies that will protect Religious Liberty and honor God's values. To do less is running down the aisle of a train that continues to move toward a point of no return. Clean up in Aisle #1! TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!
The Citizen
"They have beaten us in public without trial, men who are Romans and have thrown us into prison; and now they are sending us away secretly? No indeed! But let them come themselves and bring us out." Acts 16:37
Every time someone tries to convince me that being a Christian requires a pastor or a follower of Christ to be a door mat for the forces of secularism, I point them to this passage of Scripture. When Paul opened his heart to the Lordship of Christ, his brains didn't fall out, and his citizenship papers weren't nullified. He stood up.
Note to self: STAND UP!
Paul took his beating, but he wasn't going to be run out of town. He had turned the other cheek, but he wasn't going to let misguided magistrates kick him in the pants. He appealed to The Rights of a Roman citizen. He was a citizen of Rome, by birth. and as such, he was granted certain rights that were protected by law under the authority of The Roman Republic. Good to know. Rights have a way of being swallowed up by the beast of bureaucracy and consumed by ever-expanding government. Rome had both. So do we.
The founders of this nation intended for citizenship to be honored, and granted only to those who could give proof they were willing to make an investment in the nation, not be a drain on it. They had studied their Bibles, the history of Great Empires, the works of philosophy and politics, and determined that the rights of the citizen were supreme over the power of The State. In their new nation, these rights would be protected. That was the only reason for the existence of the government. Anything more was tyranny.
When the Constitution of the United States was framed, and presented to the states for approval, in the eyes of many pastors, it did not offer enough protection for Religious Liberty. Baptist pastors in Virginia, led by John Leland, petitioned James Madison for protections for Religious Liberty. They were not alone. Many feared Religious Liberty was vulnerable to the power of expanded government. They were right. Religious Liberty still is, more than ever.
The result of the skepticism held by those who had witnessed the tyranny of an all-powerful central government was a Bill of Rights. It was offered in the form of essential amendments to the U.S. Constitution. These amendments were offered as protections for their God-given rights as citizens of the new nation.
Take a wild guess at what the FIRST AMENDMENT dealt with in the Bill of Rights. The primary function of this new government would be to protect the right of Religious Liberty.
"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances."
Today, there are those who believe the role of the church is to take a steady, brass knuckled back slap in the arena of politics, entertainment, sports, or anywhere else in the public square. When over-wrought secularists, and their enablers wring their hands in angst or crease their brow with disapproval, the church is supposed to take another step back into the dark recesses of irrelevancy. Not a chance. Not on my watch. STAND UP!
Eric Metaxas, author of a powerful biography on Dietrich Bonhoeffer, has stated, “There is a fundamental misunderstanding of the separation of church and state. The church is to be protected from the state. Not the reverse. People have divorced faith from public life, mostly because of this misunderstanding.”
Metaxas has made this application. “If the church had been the church in Germany, had stood up and spoken loudly, as one, they could have won. But they were timid, just as Christians are timid now on so many issues. The church has to be heroically, courageously vocal. People will suffer because the church has not stepped up and lived out the faith we claim to have.” Thank you Mr. Metaxas.
The reaction of Paul should be examined carefully,and adopted immediately. He was claiming his rights as a citizen of Rome, but did not see any conflict in doing so as a citizen of Heaven. The most pious among us know that this world is not our home. That is true. Our home is in Heaven, but our feet are on earth. "Singing I'll Fly Away" while being smeared with manure can leave a bad taste in your mouth. Stop singing, and start praying. STAND UP!
Until God calls us home, Christian citizenship is not an option, but a calling to bloom where you are planted. Genuine Christianity is not a matter of pretending you love the taste of secularist manure. The Fruit of The Spirit rises above what is piled upon the believer. Genuine fruit doesn't hide under it. One of the nine expressions of The Fruit is "faithfulness." Christian citizens must be found faithful to exercise their rights as stewards of a republic. If they don't those rights will atrophy from disuse or be severed from them by government abuse.
The two essential expressions of Christian citizenship in a republic are (1) Registering to Vote. (2) Getting out to Vote. These are the twin towers under assault from cultural terrorists who intend to bring down the influence of Christian citizens in this nation. Don't let them do it. If you don't register to vote or fail to vote, the terrorists win. Fight back. Praying in your prayer closet is great preparation for entering a voting booth. Do both.
"Prayer is the battle, and it makes no difference where you are. However God may engineer your circumstances, your duty is to pray. Never allow yourself this thought, “I am of no use where I am,” because you certainly cannot be used where you have not yet been placed. Wherever God has placed you and whatever your circumstances, you should pray, continually offering up prayers to Him. And He promises, “Whatever you ask in My name, that I will do . . .” (John 14:13). Yet we refuse to pray unless it thrills or excites us, which is the most intense form of spiritual selfishness. We must learn to work according to God’s direction, and He says to pray. “Pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest” (Matthew 9:38)." Oswald Chambers, "My Utmost for His Highest"
One person is all God needs to start a movement. Paul was one citizen. His hope was not in Rome. His hope was in God. He held dual citizenship in both Kingdoms. While he carried out his mission on earth, he intended to hold the Roman Republic accountable to and responsible for its mission: protect Roman citizen. When his rights were infringed upon, he called for the recognition and reinstatement of them. He did not offer his abdication of them. Thanks Paul.
The Spirit of Christ in Paul gave him the courage to, "STAND UP!" When faced with the easy way out, Paul said, "No indeed!" (v. 37) These two little words should become the battle cry of the Christian citizen's engagement with the culture of rampant secularism. STAND UP!
Even if they are alone in doing so, pastors must voice prayers of intercession for the people in their pews to STAND UP! A new generation of Christian citizens must take on their mantle of responsibility. Pastors must lead their people to understand their privileges, rights and responsibilities as Christiana citizens. This kind of dual citizenship taps the power of Heaven to make a difference on earth. This nation needs a Great Awakening, a revival of virtue, a turn around, a movement of God's Spirit. Prayer prepares the way for it. Anything less is not enough.
The task appears insurmountable, and the aroma of the fear of failure is in the air. Take another whiff. Manure makes great fruit. Rise above it. Talking about what is thrown at you only increases its stench. Praying about it releases the aroma of The Fruit of The Spirit. Bear fruit. When you are tempted to quit, or to quietly take the next beat down, lying down, PRAY! When you pray, kneel and say, "No indeed!" Then...STAND UP!
Prayer is powerful mouthwash. Praying takes the taste of quit and failure right out of your mouth. When you kneel in prayer, The Spirit releases courage in your heart. STAND UP!
The Jailer
"Sirs, what must I do to be saved." Acts 16:30
No matter what the question has been, Jesus has always been The Answer. Prayer rids me of the question marks in my life, and fills me with confidence, in the middle of the darkest night of my soul, in the dullest hour of my day, or in the brightest moment of my life. When I pray, my sight may be impaired by the night, but my hearing improves in the dark. If I listen when I pray, I can hear the voices of three in one. The Heavenly chorus is not the sound of angels, but of The Father, The Son and The Spirit shouting into my heart with authenticity and assurance, "WE ARE ALL HERE!"
TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!
The Annoyance
16 It happened that as we were going to the place of prayer, a slave-girl having a spirit of divination met us, who was bringing her masters much profit by fortune-telling. 17 Following after Paul and us, she kept crying out, saying, “These men are bond-servants of the Most High God, who are proclaiming to you the way of salvation.” 18 She continued doing this for many days. But Paul was greatly annoyed, and turned and said to the spirit, “I command you in the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her!” And it came out at that very moment.
19 But when her masters saw that their hope of profit was gone, they seized Paul and Silas and dragged them into the market place before the authorities, 20 and when they had brought them to the chief magistrates, they said, “These men are throwing our city into confusion, being Jews, 21 and are proclaiming customs which it is not lawful for us to accept or to observe, being Romans.”
Paul met an obstacle and an annoyance, in the form of a little slave girl, while going to the place of prayer. Prayer attracts the eyes of God, and it strikes fear in the heart of Satan. When Satan hears people praying, he fears the attraction of the power of The Spirit. He meets attraction with distraction...EVERY TIME.
Those who believe the place of prayer is a secluded garden, or a devotional exercise for the faint of heart, soon find out it is a battlefield. Prayer warriors! Be prepared. Take a knee. When you assume the position, you will meet the opposition. Fire when ready.
For every true gift of The Spirit, the spirit of evil has a counterfeit. This slave girl had a spirit of divination. She heard voices. She was in touch with an unseen spirit world. She dazzled the locals with her fortune telling, and made her owners a fortune in the process. The people were paying to get in touch with the gods. Paul knew praying was the only way to get in touch with God. It still is.
Not by accident, or coincidence, but by design, The annoyance met Paul at the place of prayer. The slave girl was a hand puppet under the influence of an ancient evil. When she spoke you could barely see Satan's lips move. Those who embrace prayer as the world class weapon in the battle against evil must be able to discern between the real and the counterfeit.
Note to self: There are people who will tell you they pray for you, but will never let you hear them do it. Saying it and praying it are two different things. Be careful.
On the rare occasion I use a large bill of currency to make payment, the cashier will hold it up to the light. There is an awkward pause in the transaction. Cashiers are trained to look for a mark, and if it is not there, then the form of payment will not be accepted.
When someone brings a word they want to speak into you, or say about you, hold it up to the light. Everything that comes out the mouths of well-meaning people is not a word from God. Test it with time, and the Word of God for accuracy. A good word is not always God's word.
The slave girl had some kind of connection with the spirit world, and her owners profited from selling her skill set to the gullible public. When she spoke under the influence of this spirit of divination, she could predict the future, and tell a paying customer's fortune. This con isn't new, and it is still around.
Sometimes the truth can be spoken by a person who is not granted God's access or authenticity, to be identified with the message. They do not have the mark of The Spirit. They may appear to be in line with the truth, but The Truth is not in them.
The enemy isn't opposed to using the truth to distract people from the true messenger. Paul's message was drawing a crowd, and the owners saw a cash cow to be milked. The puppet master placed his distraction right in the middle of an awakening. If Satan can't stop the truth, he is willing to distract people from the true messengers of the truth. He plans to compromise the messenger or massage the message. By using his false messengers to distort, and dilute the truth, he muddies the water, until it isn't fit to drink.
Every Great Awakening has had its detractors and distractions. The Light always attracts bugs. Jesus had Judas. Paul had the slave-girl, and the contemporary church has voices that claim to speak with authority a word for God, while chipping away at the foundation of the Word of God. When someone has a fresh word for you, hold it up to The Light. The Word never lies, and it is new every morning.
"But Paul was greatly annoyed..." v. 18
The Blue Letter Bible gives a translation that describes Paul as greatly "troubled, displeased, offended, pained, worked up." Paul was greatly worked up. He was not lulled into a "can't we all just get along" philosophy. Good to know.
For everyone who supports the self-muzzling, and emasculation of preachers, take note. Paul was not a punching bag, or a soothing voice, when the truth was at stake. He was not just annoyed at the distraction. He was greatly annoyed at the opposition. He didn't require the endorsement of hell to draw a crowd, and he wouldn't share the spotlight with "the spirit of divination."
The ministry of the church is not a vehicle for people or false spirits to test drive. Nor is it a bazaar where they can hawk their wares at Christ's expense. Paul made it very clear to the spirit of divination to get out of the girl. The spirit in her, and the people intent on using her were not going to benefit from their association with the church. They were told to get out of it. Before there is an Awakening the church is going to have to have a backdoor revival. All that glitters isn't gold, and all that Twitters isn't of God.
Paul knew that the girl was not the problem. He knew exactly who to blame. He fixed the blame and fixed the problem, but there were consequences. There always are.
Paul and Silas were dragged into the market place, taken before the authorities, and accused of letting loose a spirit of confusion in the city. They were not rewarded for doing what was right. They were punished for it. The enemy loves to do this. This is the ultimate distraction to messengers of the truth.
I am not a prophet, or the son of a prophet, but it doesn't take much discernment to see what is coming down the road in this nation. Is there anyone left who believes American Christianity is going to be immune from having their faith tested and their preachers arrested, in the very near future? Raise your hands. I didn't think so.
The pressure from inside the church to compromise with the culture, and the pressure from outside the church to conform to it is immense, and it is intensifying every day. If this greatly annoys you, then The Spirit of Christ is alive in you. The Spirit lives to speak the truth, and to glorify Christ.
When there are prevailing winds of opposition, there must be prevailing prayer. This kind of prayer is the climate in which the prayer warrior trains for the conflict with the opposition. Prevailing prayer sails against the wind. The old timers called prevailing prayer, importunity. It describes a sailing ship struggling against the wind and the current to get into their port of call.
God is always calling His people to pray. He is not calling them to the concept of prayer, to read about prayer, to teach about prayer, to study about prayer, or to preach about prayer, but to PRAY. Annoyed yet? Paul met the opposition at the place of prayer. Expect no less. TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!
The Follow-up
"Let us return and visit the brethren in every city in which we proclaimed the word of the Lord, and see how they are...and he was traveling...strengthening the churches." Acts 15:36-41
After almost 40 years of ministry on the mission field and as a pastor in a local church, God commissioned my wife and I to an itinerant ministry. It is one of the most fulfilling experiences of our lives, connecting with "the brethren" and strengthening the churches. It has an ancient heritage, and we are honored to have a small part in carrying it out in a contemporary setting.
Paul's words reveal his passion. He was driven to "see how they are." The nature of his ministry was itinerant, but he left a part of himself in the lives of the brethren in every city where he proclaimed the word of the Lord. Dana and I can relate.
The pastors and people we have met may be in our rear-view mirror, but we always have Georgia on our minds...and Iowa, California, New York, Nevada, Texas, Colorado, Kansas, Nebraska, Ohio, Minnesota, Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee, Florida, New Hampshire, Virginia, Louisiana, Arkansas, Missouri, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Israel. You get the picture.
We have planted a part of ourselves in every state and nation we have visited. Along the way, we have also lost pillows, sunglasses, cell phones, clothing, and luggage. Thanks American. Not bitter. No pressure. But it has been almost 10 months. Any luck yet?
There is one common denominator we have found in every church, and in every city we have visited. The pastors and people of the churches are in need of strength and encouragement. We have spent many long nights, long after the meetings with the churches, listening and comforting pastors and spouses. It was not on our agenda, or in our material, but it was the reason God led us there.
Strengthening and encouraging is close to the heart of God. Those who are called to minister in His name will find great fulfillment in being a pencil in His hand, writing a note of compassion and concern on the broken hearts and weary lives of those in need of both.
I remember hearing a great voice for Southern Baptists preaching a powerful word at one of our conventions. It was shortly before his moral failure became evident to his adoring audience. He made a statement that I have never forgotten. He was quoting a discouraged pastor, I am convinced it was autobiographical, and that it revealed his own broken spirit. He said, "I surrendered for more than this." He was right, but he settled for less. Don't do it.
Satan has a strategy. It is discouragement. Fear not. The Father has one as well. He offers strength from The Son and encouragement from The Spirit. Both are released through prayer.
This same word for strengthen is found in Act 14:22, where Paul was...
"strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to continue in the faith, and saying, 'Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God.' ”
Strengthening people comes from praying for people, not just talking to them, or listening to them. Don't take my word for it. Listen to Jesus. He thought it did.
"But I have prayed for you, that your faith may not fail; and you, when once you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.” Luke 22:32
The Blue Letter Bible defines the word used for strengthening, found in Acts 15:41 as...
to establish besides, strengthen more
to render more firm, confirm
It is rooted in the same word Jesus uses as His focus on praying for Peter in Luke 22:32. We should do no less.
Pray for pastors. They need it, and you need the practice. Talking about them either makes them a target for Satan, or an idol for people. Praying for them strengthens the tie that binds them to the throne of God's grace, and releases the tender mercies of your own heart. Whining about their shortcomings rarely turns Sunday services into joyous homecomings. Carving up roast preacher to your family, week after week, only starves your soul, and won't feed theirs. Stop it.
The fear of failure is never far from the heart of a pastor or preacher. Satan will make sure of that. Remember the words of Jesus to Peter? Failure is often a prelude to victory.
The weekly encore anxiety that haunts a pastor of a local church is relentless. Sermons to prepare, messages to preach, hospitals to visit, funerals to lead, weddings to perform, lost to save, vision to cast, meetings to attend, decisions to make, staff to coach, deadlines to meet, counsel to give, and fights to settle are like relentless waves, hitting the same beach over and over again, week after week. They can take their toll on the strongest of rocks.
Praying for your pastor will strengthen their seawall. Praying strengthens the church to provide shelter from the storm, and avoids turning it into a Pearl Harbor, with nothing but attacking planes and sinking ships. Prayer strengthens pastors and people, equipping them to sail out of the harbor and engage the enemy with a message that transforms the culture, one life at a time.
As Dana and I head out this morning to South Carolina, we are praying for the pastors of that state. We are praying for David and Cindy Lane, and the American Renewal Project team that we will joining there. In a few hours we will be leading 600 pastors to pray, and to stand up for Religious Liberty in this nation. They already have much to do, but so much is at stake. Pray for them to have the courage and the strength to do what is necessary to lead the next Great Awakening. TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!
The Vision
"When he had seen the vision, immediately we sought to go into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel to them...we ran a straight course."
The Vision given to Paul led to a world-changing event, the introduction of the gospel to Europe. From what is now Turkey, Paul headed to northern Greece. Alexander the Great had launched his invasion of the world from Macedonia, and Paul would begin a spiritual conquest from the same location. The world has never been the same.
The Vision is not just a good idea, it is God's idea. Paul had been "forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia." v.6
On another occasion Paul and his team were "trying to go into Bithynia, and the Spirit of Jesus did not permit them...they came down to Troas." v. 7-8
These two encounters with the The Spirit give one pause. Certainly the people of these regions needed to hear the gospel, but in The School of Obedience, an existing need does not constitute a pressing call. Paul desired to go to Asia and into Bithynia, but God's call is not about personal preferences. It is about death to self.
Note to self: Never go anywhere God doesn't send you. Whenever God's Spirit calls, or where ever He leads, don't hesitate. Respond immediately. The answer is always, "Yes, Lord."
"A vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man of Macedonia was standing and appealing to him, saying, 'Come over to Macedonia and help us.' " v. 9
Certainly the people of Asia and Bithynia needed help. It was just not Paul's call to meet their need. It was God's call to make, not his. Paul listened and obeyed.
In this age of church planting, and rising passion to add starting a church to one's pastoral Bucket List, the wise will listen to what The Spirit says, before they put an unreached people group or a metropolitan area on their "To Do List." There is no lonelier feeling in the world than to be in a place God never put you. There is no more fulfilling place to be than where He calls you. Choose wisely.
One of my early missionary heroes was Wimpee Harper, who served in Nigeria, and East Africa. He drowned while swimming with his children in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of Tanzania, near the city of Dar Es Salaam. He is quoted as having said, "No matter where God calls you, the safest place in the world is right in the center of God's will." I stopped by his grave in East Africa in 1974. His death seemed untimely then, and still does today. He went where he was called, and left the results up to God. In God's value system, obedience trumps accomplishment.This only happens...EVERY TIME.
At this juncture, two men joined Paul on his mission, Timothy and Luke. Timothy is introduced by, "And a disciple was there, named Timothy." Luke, the author of Acts, is introduced by, "we." Both become invaluable parts of Paul's team. They shared Paul's vision, and came along side of him to assist him with it.
Vision is insight, and foresight, not hindsight. The naysayers and the second guessers are only gifted with the latter. Vision is birthed in the hearts and minds of people whose voices are familiar in Heaven, and who have become familiar with The Voice of Heaven.
People of vision have learned to discern between a good idea, and God's best. It is not always easy to see what God has in mind, and as any reader of Acts can attest, clear vision is sometimes clarified by walking into a couple of closed doors. The wise person will not kick them in, or blow them open, but turnaround and look for the door God has already opened. Paul did that. We should too.
Satan isn't the enemy of the good, as much as he is the enemy of God's best. If he can get people to settle or be consumed with occupying themselves with the good, and miss God's best, it is a victory for him. The tragedy is not that good was done, but that the best was missed.
“Of all sad words of tongue or pen, the saddest are these, 'It might have been.”
― John Greenleaf Whittier
Some, like Timothy and Luke are called by God to come and help another person see the vision of God fulfilled. This call shouldn't be seen as a slight or an assignment to play second banana. The Vision belongs to God, not to any one man, woman, or denomination.
There are always those who try to hijack The Vision. The closer they get to it, they begin to think it belongs to them. This sometimes happens to the person God first called to hold onto The Vision, but helpers are not immune from turning into hijackers. Those who are holders or helpers should remember one thing, The Vision belongs to God. Don't play with fire. You are going to get burned.
As Dana and I prepare to launch THE RENEWAL: Columbia, SC, we are honored to come alongside of David and Cindy Lane to see what God has in store for the pastors and people of South Carolina. God has given the Lanes a vision to mobilize the pastors of this nation to raise up an army of Christian citizens who will pray for the next Great Awakening and secure Religious Liberty. The by-product of The Vision is a restoration of a our national Judeo-Christian heritage, and a Christian culture in America. This morning, we are praying and trusting God to launch something in Columbia that only He can get credit for, and man cannot explain. Please be praying with us. TALK LESS! PRAY MORE!