Is todays Church engaging in Folly?

Psalm 85

“Lord, you were favorable to your land; you restored the fortunes of Jacob.  You forgave the iniquity of your people; you covered all their sin. (Selah)
You withdrew all your wrath; you turned from your hot anger.  Restore us again, O God of our salvation, and put away your indignation toward us!  Will you be angry with us forever?  Will you prolong your anger to all generations?   Will you not revive us again, that your people may rejoice in you?  Show us your steadfast love, O Lord, and grant us your salvation.  Let me hear what God the Lord will speak, for he will speak peace to his people, to his saints; but let them not turn back to folly.  Surely his salvation is near to those who fear him, that glory may dwell in our land.  Steadfast love and faithfulness meet; righteousness and peace kiss each other.  Faithfulness springs up from the ground, and righteousness looks down from the sky.  Yes, the Lord will give what is good, and our land will yield its increase.  Righteousness will go before him and make his footsteps away.”

We the Church need to acknowledge and confess that like Israel, God has shown favor to us as a nation and as a people.  We that put our hope in Christ are forgiven of our iniquity, and the blood of Jesus Christ has covered our sins.  The Church is grafted into a good vine, we are the source of the plant, and the lower part of the rootstock is God.  We were of wild stock, our vine had no value to anyone, we could not produce good fruit, and that’s how we became a member of the family of God.

We, like Israel, can break fellowship with the Father by sinning and not being willing to confess and agree with the Lord that we have sinned.  God’s anger is against sin, all sin was taken out on Jesus as He hung on a cross and paid the full penalty for our sins.  Sin does cause the loss of fellowship, but never our relationship, just as it did with Israel, but they will always be the Chosen People of God.

A warning is needed: If you can sin, that is living life under your desires, with no regard for worship or the things of God.  You need to examine yourself to see if you're in the faith, it's my understanding from Scripture, that you are not.  Do you see the hand of God in your daily life?  That’s what Israel desired, but they were not willing to submit to God’s authority, and often the Church has that same issue. 

Romans 13:11, “Besides this you know the time, that the hour has come for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed.”  The insight from my Study Bible; “The old age is passing, and the new is dawning.  We long for the new age to fully come, and we recognize that our Salvation will soon be completed.”

We the Church may find the answer hidden in verse 8, ^“Let me hear what God the Lord will speak, for he will speak peace to his people, to his saints; but let them not turn back to folly.”  Turn off the noise, be still and listen, for He is speaking to His people.  We the Church must turn back from our folly, but maybe that is not a word we understand.  Defining the word folly: “lack of good sense; foolishness: an act of sheer folly. • a foolish act, idea, or practice: the follies of youth.”  I’ve often been guilty of folly, and as a member of the body, I’m sure I’m not alone!

From the Back Porch,

Bob Rice