What Should We Talk About Today?
By Liaf
Besides being busy with the routine things in life, I sometimes find it difficult to come up with a message due to a cyclical lack of inspiration. Certain goals have been made, things have been said and done, yet where do we go from here? Maybe God does not need to convey anything today from me to you. But I can level with everybody on human terms--- this is me speaking today.
I believe there is enough on our home page for anybody who visits the first time to know where we are coming from --- and soon I may need to add bells and whistles to keep from losing the regulars as well as keeping them entertained. Should I do this? I want to use this opportunity to catch ourselves (and others who preach the gospel) from falling into this trap. There is always something new to learn but I often wonder if that is what we really want to do. We’d rather go around happy and "loving the Lord" and who cares what everything is about? These folks rather have bells and whistles. Did you ever hear somebody say after a powerful sermon, "Boy, there was powerful anointing in that preaching--- the Lord was really here today"? I’m tempted to ask, "What did you learn? What did the Lord say to all of you?" "I don’t know, but I was really moved!" would be a likely reply. You see, "inspiration" and "emotion" without reason and understanding is like a ship without a rudder. You are going, but you don’t know where. You can find several ministries where people are doing crazy things and falling (literally) for what an emotionally charged preacher may say. Why should we suppose that Solomon wrote most of the book of Proverbs? Does this book sound like mainline evangelistic preaching that says to "accept things with your heart and not your head"? The truth is, there is one’s intellect, one’s emotions, and one’s will. When the will is undecided, all too often people go the "way of their heart" which wins out over reason. The Bible says, The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it? I am aware that the Hebrew for "heart" involves the will, emotions and even intellect, although the word can and does apply to one’s feelings. However, I believe this passage in Jeremiah can be used for one’s tendency to approach things emotionally. After all, emotion is centered in a pleasure principal as stated in Hebrews, to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season. Jesus said of these folks in Luke 8:14 (parable of the sower), And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and pleasures of this life, and bring no fruit to perfection. I like the Greek word for "pleasures" here. The word comes from "hedone" and connotes sensual delight or desire. One does not have to go far to see that this Greek word is where we get our word "hedonistic". I’d like to paraphrase Jesus here if I may. May I, Lord? A lightening bolt came by and indicated I could do so. And that which fell among thorns are they, which, when they have heard, go forth, and are choked with cares and riches and a hedonistic lifestyle, and bring no fruit to perfection. I must say one thing, nobody can say this kind of life isn’t fun. Unfortunately, much of emotionally charges services are the same thing. Ever been to Niagara Falls? One can find lots of wax museums and side shows. There’s lots of sensationalism--- one can find a figure of a man with two faces (actually I run into lots of those folks). I remember a horror museum with weapons thrust through victims. Whatever one wants to see, it’s there. Much of Christianity became that way. We find "Ripley’s Believe it or not" museum on one side of the street, and a sensational evangelistic service on the other. Both cater to pleasures, albeit different subject matters, that is all.
I saw an article in today’s newspaper to the effect that people want applicable sermons. You know what I mean --- love your neighbor and various "do-goodism" sermons. One fellow was tired of hearing twenty messages about Abraham (or whatever the number was). Nobody wants the history or to think things out. They want to feel good. They want a religion "here and now" in a vacuum. Let me say something here in his defense. The way most preach about Abraham and water down the great promises of God to Abraham, I can’t say I much blame him. However, this fellow needs to understand that one cannot have any spirituality without a realistic and historical foundation. As Paul said, Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. (1Corinthians 10:11) The context of this passage is about the Israelites journeying to the Promised Land. God really ‘gave it’ to those Israelites on a number of occasions and ultimately they did not enter into the land (the next generation entered). What can be more applicable than this? Real historical events occurred here that according to Paul was written as examples or "types" to follow. For example, the events taught the need for faith and obedience. God will not dicker around with anybody on other terms, least of all their own! These historical "types" and "shadows" not only portrayed the God’s principles, but were prophetic of the coming Kingdom. As I have said in my other messages, the whole meaning of existence is centered whether we choose God’s ways and Kingdom or our ways that place us in association with Satan and his kingdom. Therefore, we must understand that if we are centering on ourselves, and asking what God’s word means to us, we are putting the caboose in front of the engine and trying to pull the train with it. When we look at the BIG picture, the history, and the prophecy, we will see where we fit in. The application principle will naturally follow. Otherwise, application without the foundation is nothing more than religion in a vacuum.