Philippians 1:28-30
If Christians only believed the Scriptures, our actions
would be different. In the book of
Romans 8:37-39, “No, in all these things we are
more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, not angels nor
rulers, not things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor
depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us for the
love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” It is a big “if” because Christians have been taken captive
by the world system. We do not
stand firm in one spirit, with one mind striving side-by-side for the faith of
the gospel, and not frightened in anything by our opponents. The Christian church needs to be a
light to a dark world.
The American church has no understanding of suffering, and
when the apostle Paul tells us it has been granted to us not only to believe in
him but also to suffer for his sake, we do neither very well. Moses gave us the example to follow, it
is recorded in Hebrews 11:24-26, he chose to be mistreated with the people of
God, rather than enjoying the fleeting pleasures of sin.
There are seven things that are keeping the American Church
captive: 1) Persecution, we want no part of being uncomfortable, we do not even
want to be inconvenienced, but Jesus said, when you are persecuted because of
Him, comes blessing in Matthew 5:11.
2) Hatred, no one desires to be hated, but Jesus said that, “all men will hate you because of me.” (Matthew 10:22) 3) Loss of Life, no one in their right
mind wants to lose their life, but Jesus said; “Whoever
finds his life will lose it, and whoever loses his life for my sake will find
it.” (Matthew 10:39) If
we only understood the exchanged life, that when we ask Christ into our hearts,
we changed places with the Lord and He now lives in our body, it is His
temple. If we abide in Him, we
will bear much fruit. 4) Renunciation of Worldly Treasures, Jesus said, “And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters
or father or mother or children or lands, for my name’s sake, will receive a
hundredfold and will inherit eternal life.” (Matthew 19:29) 5) Suffering, we know so little about
this subject, but as stated above, it is not the most popular of the Bible
studies at the local church. But
it may be of value to read what a man who knew suffering for the name of Christ
has to say in 1 Peter 3:13-17. 6)
Loss of Reputation, once more not something the average Christian sets out to
do, not even if they understand what the apostle Paul is saying in 1
Corinthians 4:10, “We are fools for Christ, but you
are so wise in Christ! We are
weak, but you are strong! You are
honored, we are dishonored!” 7)
Death, if you look at the average Church in America, we spend more time praying
for someone who claims the name of Christ to not go home to be with Jesus than
we pray for our family, friends and neighbors who are without Christ and will
spend eternity in a place only designed for the devil and his angels. Once more the apostle Paul states, “For we who are alive are always being given over to
death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may be revealed in our mortal body. (2
Corinthians 4:11)
The average American Church has no authority, it’s full of
people who say one thing but so many never act out their faith, and it seems
clear to me that we just do not believe the Scriptures. We do not live, “as if Jesus tells the
truth.”
From the Back Porch,
Bob Rice
Life without God
is like an unsharpened pencil...it has no point.
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