YOU and GOD

Most conservative, Bible-believing churches induct new members into their fellowship by asking them to agree with a Church Covenant that binds the member to an agreement “to abstain from the sale and use of intoxicating drinks as a beverage, and to be zealous in our efforts to advance the kingdom of our Savior.” Sunday School teachers, deacons, and other leaders are asked to “abstain from alcohol, tobacco and other illicit drugs.”

America has one of the lowest rates of alcohol use among “first-world” countries—but one of the highest rates of alcohol abuse. About 15 million Americans currently struggle with that addiction. Consuming wine, beer, and other alcoholic drinks has become common to our culture. This has bled into our church communities, so that what would have been pretty much unthinkable in the 1950s—respected church members drinking at least occasionally, or socially as it is called—is not uncommon.

The Bible does contain formidable warnings and admonitions about and against drinking alcoholic beverages. Proverbs 20:1 warns of being mocked and deceived by strong drink. Proverbs 23:29-32 instructs that it will bite like a serpent and sting like an adder. Proverbs 31:4, 5 says that liquor is not for kings nor princes because it will make them forget the law and pervert their judgment. Isaiah 5:11-14 pronounces a woe on those who are drunkards. The writer suggests that drinking alcohol was the reason for the captivity of God’s people, and paints alcoholism as a curse and a blight. So, why would any believer, desiring to have a clear testimony as faithful to God’s Word and will, even contemplate the possibility of taking up drinking in any fashion—moderately or otherwise?

There are, of course, a very few passages that those who advocate a Biblical grounds for social drinking point to: Paul’s instruction to Timothy to “Drink no longer water, but use a little wine for thy stomach’s sake and thine infirmities.” ( I Tim.5:23). Also, the turning of water into wine by Jesus at the wedding feast in Cana of Galilee, His first public miracle, recorded in John 2; and the occasion of the “cup” at the Last Supper, supposed to be the common cup of wine. Here are some points to consider:

• Some words in scripture are used in a generic sense, such as “meat,” which in Gen. 1:29 refers to herbs and trees. Or, the word corn often occurs in scripture in reference to that which is “threshed,” or wheat. “Except a corn of wheat fall into the ground and die,” for example. (John 12:24). Wine is one such word. It can mean simply “fruit of the vine,” or juice, and not necessarily that which is alcoholic.
• Alcoholic wine is made by combining the right mixture of sugar, water, and temperature. It is not the product of a natural process.
• It is not thinkable that Jesus, at the wedding feast in Cana, would have made alcoholic wine to serve guests of whom it was said, “men have well drunk.” The men at the feast had drunk so much that the host had run out; for Jesus to have made more, much more, alcohol for them to drink would have without question resulted in drunkenness. And we know that He would never contradict his own Word in doing such.
• For Jesus, our High Priest, to have served alcoholic wine at the last Supper would have violated the Law that forbade high priests to drink when officiating before the Lord. (Heb. 4:14-16; 5:1-10; Lev. 10:8-10)
• A believer who drinks, even socially, is at risk of causing other brethren to stumble: “It is good neither to eat flesh, nor to drink wine, nor anything whereby thy brother stumbleth, or is offended, or is made weak.” (Romans 14:21)

A friend of mine, Earl Stutsman, an adult Sunday School teacher in a Bible-believing church for many years, did a series of lessons on the subject of alcohol entitled “What the Bible Teaches about Drinking Wine.” I do not know if this series of lessons, which dates back to 1998, is available, but I saved a copy, knowing that Earl was a careful student of God’s Word and a skillful teacher of it. Much of what I have written in this post comes from the material my friend shared.  I think Earl’s conclusion, following his research on the subject, says it all:

“The vineyard was prominent in Israel’s culture, a gift from God, to provide a delicious, heathful, natural drink, to be enjoyed by the nation as an example of His goodness to them. Nowhere in Scripture did I find that all God intended was for man to take one five-ounce portion, else he would become intoxicated. The problem of intoxication came when man perverted the gift of God. It is now clear to me that there were two kinds of grape juice in ancient use. One was sweet, pleasant, refreshing, unfermented, the gift of God; the other was intoxicating, for which the Bible has no good word.”

“Wine is a mocker; strong drink is raging: and whosoever is deceived thereby is not wise.” (Provs.20:1)

Health Update:  Many of you know that a little more than a year ago, I was diagnosed with Multiple Myeloma, a cancer of the blood cells that attacks the bones. I have been on a treatment plan for a year, consisting of chemotherapy in pill form that I take at home.  Regular doctor check-ups each month have charted good progress.  There is no known cure, but MM does often go into remission. I am not yet, according to my primary doctor, in full remission, but maybe in partial remission. I know many of you are praying for Ellen and myself through this trial. I have been healthy all of my life and was on no medications until this occurred, so it has totally changed our world.  I am still preaching (assisting an elderly pastor friend of mine) a couple of times a month and serving in my local church when possible, as well as writing my “You and God” bi-weekly blog (almost three years now, with about 300 installments). Thanks for praying!  Ellen is a great care-giver, and I know she covets your prayers, too. Caring can be very demanding, as some of you well know. “My times are in Thy hand….” (Ps. 31:15)

In the previous “For Preachers Only” post (1/25/23), I shared some wisdom that the late Pastor Bob Kelley set forth in an article entitled “The Greatest Lessons I Have Learned as a Preacher of the Gospel.” (Sword of the Lord, 2/9/07) I would like to share the rest of his lessons in this second installment:

(8) God called us to build people, not ministries or buildings;

(9) Make good friends;

(10) Have fun!  Stay excited!  Laugh!  People ought to want your job!

(11) Die to self, and don’t be all day in doing it!  Rise early and get going!

(12) The best protection against falling into sin is to practice hating it;

(13) Count your blessings—then record them. Don’t rely on your memory to recall all God’s goodness to you;

(14) Say “Thank You” every time and every way you can.  A thankful attitude covers a multitude of sins;

(15) Exercise your faith. A faith that cannot be tested is a faith that cannot be trusted;

(16) Keep your shoes shined; stay neat—first impressions matter;

(17) Never forget the judgment seat of Christ;

(18) Always remember—God can get along just fine without you.

Another word of wisdom to preachers:  A sermon must always be preached with passion. Of John the Baptist it was said, “He was a burning and shining light.” A preacher once asked a famous English actor, “What is the reason for the difference between you and me? You are appearing before crowds night after night with fiction, and the crowds come wherever you go. I am preaching the essential and unchangeable truth, and I am not getting any crowd at all.”  The actor said, “The answer is simple. I can tell you the difference between us. I present fiction as though it were fact; you present fact as though it were fiction.” May we never, as preachers, lose our passion for truth and for the presentation of truth as though it were a life and death matter.

Dr. Monroe Parker shared a story out of his experiences as a preacher of truth when he told of a time that he was preaching in a campaign in Zanesville, Ohio. In his words: “I had planned to preach one night a very profound sermon on ‘The Eschatological Implications of the Theophanies in the Pentateuch.’ The choir sang that old song, Christ Receiveth Sinful Men. The chorus says, ‘Make the message clear and plain.’ When they sang the second stanza and the chorus, ‘Make the message clear and plain,’ I thought, If I do, I’ll have to change my subject. After they had sung the third stanza, I said, Alright, Lord, I shall make it clear and plain. I changed my subject and preached from John 3:16. The Spirit of God moved on the hearts of the people. When I gave the invitation, down the aisle came a large number to accept Christ.”

Finally, I want to share with you what Dr. Bob Jones, Sr., said about preaching with courage, as quoted in Fellowship News (3/17/62):   

“America needs about six months of old-time Hell-fire and damnation preaching: but the trouble is that we do not have rugged preachers to do that kind of preaching. There are very few prophetic voices in the pulpits of America. Preachers have become pretty good executives, and they know how to oil the machinery of their churches; but they have lost the old, rugged, prophetic, knockdown and drag-out preaching that this nation had in its country districts, when the writer was a little boy. The writer does not know in this nation today any preacher who can preach as the old country preachers used to preach when he was a boy. Some of the old country preachers said ‘I seen,’ instead of ‘I have seen,’ or ‘I have saw’ instead of ‘I saw,’ but they had seen, and they meant what they said. They had a vision. They had courage.”

Maybe that Billy Sunday-style, “knockdown and drag-out” preaching would not go over well today in most Bible-loving churches, but at least it would be well if, whenever a preacher stepped into the pulpit to deliver God’s messages, he would have asked God to give to him the courage needed to preach “the whole counsel of God,” without fear and without favor.

The voices that I have quoted in these two posts on preaching are from the past. I know that many preachers receive these “You and God” posts, so if there are some “contemporaries” out there with sound advice you’d care to pass along to your fellow preachers, please feel free to share your thoughts. If I get enough of them, I will do a third post for preachers.  I am sure most of you who labor in the Word from week to week have learned by experience, and from good counsel that older men have shared with you—gems that have given you treasured guidance in your pulpit ministry.

So, while I wait to hear from you, here is a word that I think would be helpful to any preacher today: be sensitive to giving your 21^st-century audience too much in one sitting. Dr. Bob Jones, Jr., told me years ago that a preacher should be able to develop his thesis and get the message across in 35 minutes.  Recently, my wife surprised me by pulling up on YouTube a message that I had preached not long ago. My first impulse was to ask her to “change the channel.” Probably, like you, I never have enjoyed listening to or looking at myself speak (preach). But I resisted the impulse and listened and looked.  Listened to my speech patterns, diction, enunciation, gestures, and the whole 10 yards.  It was not pleasant, but it was probably helpful, so I would recommend it to you, preacher friend. Somewhere, about two-thirds through the sermon, I thought to myself, “This must have been a 45-minute ordeal. I surely gave them the whole load that Sunday.”  Well, since you can check a video’s length, down to the second, at the bottom of the screen, I asked Ellen, when the message had concluded, how long I had preached. I was relieved to learn it was a little over 37 minutes!  Sometimes, a message requires a bit more time to deliver; and some older preachers are of the caliber that you wish they’d just preach longer. But those are the exceptions. My advice? K.I.S.S. need not stand for “Keep it Simple Stupid.”  Maybe it should be: “Keep it Shorter, Sir!”

“These things speak, and exhort, and rebuke with all authority. Let no man despise thy youth.” (Titus 2:15)

By the time this reaches your inbox, you will likely have heard of a movement that many are calling “revival.” I am not sure where it started or even if it is really “revival,” but I first heard about it last week when there had been a seven- or eight-day prayer meeting, apparently spontaneous, on the campus of Asbury University/Seminary in Wilmore, Kentucky, a small town near Lexington. Interestingly, a revival occurred on that campus in 1970. The internet had not yet been invented, so word of it was not as quickly and widely published while it was occurring, but historians have noted it and other movements that have been, in the estimation of observers, revivals. Another example is the “Brownsville Revival,” which started in about 1995 in Pensacola, Florida, and apparently continued to some degree until 2000. About 200,000 decisions for Christ were recorded during that protracted spiritual movement, which some claim is the most significant local-church revival in American history. More than 100 missionaries were sent out from the church that spawned and “housed” it.

Any pastor worth his salt, and most every believer, has prayed that God would send America another “Great Awakening,” or revival. My sermon text at Thompson Road Baptist Church on Sunday, November 14, 2018, was Psalm 138:7: “Though I walk in the midst of trouble, thou wilt revive me: thou shalt stretch forth thine hand against the wrath of mine enemies, and thy right hand shall save me.” The title of the message was “Revival? Yes!” And the simple outline was (1) Revival, the Need, Ubiquitous; (2) Revival, the Solution, Universal; (3) Revival, the Deliverance, Unconditional. The Need: “There is trouble on every hand (personal, pervasive, pressing); The Deliverance: “Thy right hand shall save me (powerful, personal, perfect); The Solution (personal repentance, spiritual renewal). It was and is a message that says God can, does, and will revive His people at His will, in His time, at His place, through His people who are praying.

The late Curtis Hutson—pastor, editor of the Sword of the Lord, and evangelist—said, “The church does not need new members as much as it needs members made new.” Vance Havner weighed in with this wisdom: “We hear much about revival these days, but the heart of revival is the Lordship of Christ. A mere emotional upheaval, a spurt of religious excitement, is not revival. When Christians become convicted of rebellion against the rule of Christ in their lives, confess their sins, renounce self, take the cross and let Jesus have the first and last word in everything, that is revival by whatever name you call it.”

The need is ubiquitous, and the solution is universal in time and truth. Jonathan Edwards, a pastor and preacher in America’s colonial era, listed some distinguishing evidences of a genuine work of the Spirit of God: (1) Christ is exalted as the Son of God and Savior of men; (2) the kingdom of Satan, which encourages sin and worldly lusts, is opposed; (3) there is a greater regard for the Holy Scriptures; (4) there is an emphasis upon the spirit of truth as opposed to error; and (5) a new love for God and man is manifested. The key to authentic revival, Edwards admonished, was the fruit that it produced; and in a concluding section, Edwards warned his readers not to sin against the Holy Ghost by rejecting that which is the Spirit of God. (copied)

In the fall of 2004, a survey by Barna Group found that half the U.S. population acknowledged there were things that needed to be corrected in their lives. Topping the list was the desire to be more involved in church life. Then, second, the need to be more devoted to spiritual things. Surveying American life almost 20 years later, it seems that these acknowledgements did not significantly change Americans’ behavior, spiritually. Christians have not impacted our cities, neighborhoods, and churches in a way that there are, today, more vibrant Christians and more revived churches.

We need revival. And revival, through personal repentance and spiritual renewal, is still possible through the sovereign grace and Holy Spirit guidance of God—at any time, in any place, and to any people He so chooses. I had the privilege of pastoring three local, New Testament churches for a total about 50 years. It has also been a pleasure and unspeakable source of spiritual fulfillment to have been involved in, and with, pastors’ fellowships, mission endeavors, and Christian educational movements throughout these years of ministry God has given to me.  With that backdrop, here is how I see our greatest need for another great awakening or revival, whether city-wide, local-church, or national—whichever God our Lord would graciously choose:

•  A deep sense of awareness of God’s person and presence; the Lordship of His Son and magnification of His name above all, and our total dependence upon the sovereign working of His Holy Spirit as the only person with power to give fresh winds of His moving in our midst;
• Confession of sin, personal and professional. Pastors and leaders have too often allowed themselves to harbor sin that they, in their preaching, exhort their hearers to abandon. Honesty and humility are desperately needed, beginning in pulpits with preachers;
• A rethinking of success in ministry and of what pleases God most. For too long, we have judged success by material and physical rather than spiritual measurements.
• We need to ask God to give us His Spirit in evaluating men, missions, ministries;
• We need to repent of our ongoing and embarrassing love affair with the world;
• It should grieve us that we have allowed ourselves to become so spiritually full of pride that we would, if we could, call down fire from heaven on another sincerely, godly man or ministry that does not cross the “t’s” or dot the “i’s” just like we do.

I could add more but, for space, I am going to wrap this up, believing and hoping that I have given every reader enough to “chew on” spiritually. What about the Asbury prayer meeting?  I do so hope, trust, and pray it is of God and that it will spread across America. Revival? Yes!

“O Lord, revive Thy work in the midst of the years….” (Habakkuk 3:2)

Though the term “backsliding” is an Old Testament concept—the word never occurs in the New Testament—it connotes something that believers in this age can fall prey to.

There are many ways that a Christian can backslide today. First, you can lose your first love: “Nevertheless, I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.” (Rev.2:4). When that naïve, unabashed, and unashamed enthusiasm you had for Christ and His work just after you got saved diminishes because of the fear of man or the love of the world—that is what is spoken of here.

Second, you can backslide by falling into the belief that once you are saved you must keep your salvation by works. Paul wrote to backslidden saints trying to do just this when he said: “O foolish Galatians, who hath bewitched you that ye should not obey the truth before whose eyes Jesus Christ hath been evidently set forth, crucified among you? This only would I learn of you: received ye the Spirit by the works of the law or by the hearing of faith? Are ye so foolish? Having begun in the Spirit are ye now made perfect by the flesh?” (Gal.3:1-3)

Third, we can backslide by being removed from the simplicity of the Gospel of Christ. Again, Paul said in 2 Cor. 11:3 to a backslidden church: “But I fear lest by any means as the serpent beguiled Eve through his subtility, so your minds should be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ.”

Fourth, we can backslide by simply failing to move forward for our Savior.  Gal.5:7 says, “Ye did run well: who did hinder you that ye should not obey the truth.” We can never stand still as soldiers of the cross. If we are not progressing, we are regressing.

How do you know you are backslidden? Here are some symptoms:

1. You have a light view toward sin; what you once hated, you now tolerate. What you once tolerated, you now enjoy.
2. You have become accustomed to a “comfortable Christianity”—a Christianity that does not cost too much and that does not make extraordinary demands.
3. You are more taken up with the personalities of men that with the power of God. What men have written about the Bible consumes more of your interest than what God has written in the Bible.
4. You regard with too much concern the eyes of men and with too little concern the eye of God.
5. You develop a harshness and bitterness toward those who differ with you, and you lose your tenderness of spirit. The attractions of this world and its gold, glitter, and glamor have a greater appeal to you than does the hope of heaven.

So, in case you are contemplating setting out to backslide, I will give you a few hints on how to succeed. Hopefully you will rather want to avoid this sin, so I will also give some advice on how NOT to backslide.

First, how to (but NOT recommended!): (1) Give up the practice of prayer. Do it gradually so as not to shock your conscience. (2) Quit reading the Bible; at first substitute other Christian literature; (3) Misuse opportunities of Christian fellowship (don’t break off all contact with other Christians immediately as it may prick your conscience); (4) Get as much spirit of the world into you as is possible. (5) As soon as is possible, resolve that you will one day change your ways—to fail to do this may result in an uneasy conscience; (6) Try to put out of your mind the idea that what you are doing grieves God greatly—say, “I’m only hurting myself and no one else.”

Now, some actions that guarantee you will NOT SUCCEED at being a backslider: (1) Keep short accounts with God, confess your sins, and forsake them (I John 1:9; Provs. 28:13); (2) Keep a right view concerning the world (I John 2:15-17); (3) Die daily to self (Luke 9:23); (4) Do not harbor a root of bitterness, (Hebs. 12:23); Make restitution when possible; (5) Guard your mouth against evil speaking (James 4:11); (6) Be constant in prayer and Bible reading (Josh. 1:8; Ps. 119:9-11); Beware of unbelief (Hebs. 3:12).

The English evangelist J.C. Ryle said, “It is a miserable thing to be a backslider. Of all the unhappy things that can befall a man, I suppose this is the worst.”  Worse than a stranded ship, an eagle with a broken wing, a garden covered with weeds, or a harp without strings.

There is hope, however, for the backslider: “I will heal their backsliding, I will love them freely.” (Hosea 14:4)

Have you ever heard the Rattlesnake Parable?  It goes like this: “Once upon a time there was a family of wayward church members who had been active at church but had long since lost all interest and had fallen away. The family included the father and three sons, Jim, John, and Sam.

The deacons of the church had talked to them about their backslidden condition; the pastor had visited them as well as many other church members, but all to no avail.

One day when the boys were out in the pasture, a big rattlesnake bit John, and he became deathly ill. The family took him to a physician who examined John and found his condition to be critical. When he had done all he could do, the doctor said, ‘I am sorry; all you can do now is pray.’

So the father called the preacher and told him of John’s condition and asked the pastor to pray for John’s recovery. Here is how the preacher purportedly prayed, ‘O wise and righteous Father, we thank Thee, for Thou hast in Thy wisdom, sent this rattlesnake to bite John, in order to bring him to his senses. He has not been inside the church for years, and it is doubtful that he has in all that time felt the need for prayer. Now we trust that this will prove a valuable lesson to him and that it will lead to genuine repentance. And now, O Father, wilt Thou send another snake to bite Sam, and another to bite Jim, and a real big one, Father, to bite the old man. We have been doing everything we knew to do for years to restore them, but to no avail. We thus conclude that the only thing left that will do this family any good is rattlesnakes; so, Lord, send us bigger and better rattlesnakes. Amen.”

The storyteller concluded: “I have never known of any preachers to pray for the Lord to send rattlesnakes to bite backslidden members. But I have known a number of them to run this story in their weekly church bulletins.” (Copied, The Harbinger)

“The Lord thy God in the midst of thee is mighty; He will save, He will rejoice over thee with joy; He will rest in His love, He will joy over thee with singing.” (Zeph. 3:17)

Today is Valentine’s Day, a day when lovers young and old mark in some special way the breadth, length, depth, and height of their love one for another.

Actually, all that we know about genuine love comes from God, for “God is love,” and His love has been “shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.” (Romans 5:5).

In the Greek New Testament world, a writer or speaker could employ three words when discussing or writing about love. First, the word eros, from which we get the English word erotic, referring mainly to physical, sexual attraction. It does not appear in the New Testament.

Second, the word phileo, which refers to a friendship kind of love. It is common for someone today to say “I love you” without implying a romantic or physical attraction to the person spoken to—but merely, “I value our friendship deeply,” or something to that effect. The English word Philadelphia comes from the Greek word phileo, and of course the word Philadelphia means “city of brotherly love.”

Third, the New Testament word agapao means genuine, selfless, sacrificial, pure love that can only originate in the heart of God. “God so loved (agapao) the world that He gave His only begotten Son.” (John 3:16) This is the love of which Paul wrote when he said that “Now abideth faith, hope and charity (love)…but the greatest of these is charity (love).” (I Cor. 13:13)

The nuances of the latter two words comes subtly into play in the post-resurrection discourse between Jesus and Peter on the seashore following an early morning breakfast between Him and some of the disciples. (John 21) Three times, Jesus asked of Peter, “Do you love (agapao) Me?” Three times, Peter answered “I love (phileo) Thee.” It was not that Peter did not understand the difference between what Jesus was asking and what Peter was offering up as an answer. He knew well that he was affirming a deep affection for the Lord Jesus, a “best friend” kind of relationship. But, fresh from the early morning scene at the Judgment Hall of Pilate when Peter denied vehemently that he even knew who Jesus was, Peter was not going to allow himself to say, “Yes, Lord, I love you with a genuine, God-like love.”  Not then at least, maybe later on. 

So, having said that, how do you love your beloved? I mean, the cherished person whom you pledged your heart’s affection to at an altar some time ago when the two of you exchanged holy vows and promised before God and witnesses that your bond of love in marriage would be severed only by death.

Jesus wrote a once-model church, the church at Ephesus, as recorded in Revelation 2, that they had left their first love! In less than a generation, this privileged church—which had been the recipient of one of the loftiest and loveliest New Testament epistles—had lost their affection for, and admiration of, the Lord Jesus. They had drifted from ardent devotion to indifference.

If that can happen to a church that was at one time “red hot” in their love of Jesus and His Word, it can happen to “lovers” in a marriage relationship. The drift is gradual and, at first, almost imperceptible. But with month added onto months, years onto years, the cares of life and the burdens of living can take their toll on the once-sweet and deeply committed twosome.

Do you remember your “first love?” The spasm that swept across your soul or soul and body when you “by chance” crossed paths with him/her as you walked across campus? The speed with which two hours “flew by” when you were in each other’s presence, exchanging dreams one with the other about what your futures together might hold?  The day or night that you stood facing each other, hands clasped together in the other’s, before an assembled crowd of witnesses, each affirming “I do” to the pastor’s “in sickness and in health, for richer, for poorer, for better, for worse, until death doth you part?” Ah, first love. There is nothing to be compared except the soul-thrilling rapture that touched every fiber of your being the moment you bowed your heart before your God and Savior, trusting Him as Lord and instantaneously experiencing the new birth; transformed from death to life, and translated at that moment from the kingdom of darkness and death to the kingdom of light and life!

But, back to Valentine’s Day. For any who may read this who are still waiting for that “first love” in romance to come into your life, I want to share with you what our friend, the late Dr. Monroe Parker, shared with us once when he was visiting. Someone asked him what should be the criteria for looking for a life’s partner.  He wrote the answer on a 4×6 card and handed it to my wife, Ellen.  For anyone interested, here is what he wrote:

“(1) Born again; (2) has same philosophy of life as I do; (3) has same ideals and goals; (4) has affinity or that mystique which is sometimes mistaken for love; (5) Must have a good sense of humor; (6) Must have loyalty; (7) Must have common sense; (8) Must be committed to Christ and (9) Must be committed to me.”

Dr. Parker, when mentioning these nine “musts” in a message, once said of Mrs. Ruby Parker that “on a scale of 1-9 she rated about 27!” I hope, if you are still waiting and wondering how God will meet your need for a helpmeet, that you will be prayerfully patient, trusting that “He shall direct your path.” (Prov. 3:5, 6) It’s worth the wait! 

And, above all, I pray that you and your church will never be such that the letter Jesus gave John to deliver to the church at Ephesus concerning their relationship with Him will apply to you. Let us guard zealously our love for Him so that it may never be said of any: “You have left your first love.” (Rev. 2:4)

“And now abideth faith, hope, charity, these three; but the greatest of these is charity.” (I Cor. 13:13)

We have a huge problem with crime in our city, Indianapolis. Just this past weekend—the first weekend of February 2023—three homicides were reported in our metropolitan area. Sadly, the out-of-control crime wave is not plaguing our city alone, as most major cities across America report the same problem.

It’s not for lack of money, nor for lack of concern. City leaders are exhausting storehouses of ideas and programs and grants from the Federal government in hopes of finding the secret of checkmating crime locally, statewide, and nationally.  The more money, marches, and marathons focused on curbing crime, the less crime seems to abate. What is the answer?

In a word, the answer is wisdom. And the wisdom which is from above, God’s wisdom, is found in the Bible. (James 3:17,18) I know that sounds very simplistic, but has anything else worked?

A Harvard doctor, some years ago, said what now sounds like a prophecy come true: “For several years now, social scientists have warned us the family is disintegrating and will not survive this (20^th) century. Is there danger that the American family will cease to exist? I do not think so. We do, however, have serious cause of concern—not that the family will disappear, but that certain trends prevalent today will incapacitate the family, and cause its members to suffer such crippling emotional conflicts that they will become an intolerable burden to society.” (Quoted in Our Dance Has Turned to Death by Carl W. Wilson)

Is the family disintegrating? A recent Census Bureau report showed that one American youngster in four lives with just one parent. More than 40 percent of children are born out of wedlock. Sixty percent of today’s children will spend at least some time in a one-parent household. It is not difficult to understand, then, that with these trends only ticking upwards, it is becoming increasingly difficult for children to grow up in today’s world properly adjusted socially, emotionally and spiritually.

Patrick Fagan of the Heritage Foundation delivered a speech at the Center for Constructive Alternatives in which he said, “None of this is to say that fighting crime or rebuilding stable families and communities will be easy. But what is easy is deciding what we must do at the outset. We begin by affirming four simple principles: First, marriage is vital. Second, parents must love and nurture their children in spiritual as well as physical ways. Third, children must be taught to relate and empathize with others. And, finally, the backbone of strong neighborhoods and communities is friendship and cooperation among families. These principles constitute the real root solution to the real root problem of violent crime.” (Quoted in IMPRIMIS, Oct. 1995)

Before the turn of the century, evangelist and counselor Sammy Tippit wrote of the dilemma that faced America when he spoke of the “Culture Killers of the Family.” He listed the following: (1) Institutionalization of Selfishness—Boomers spoiled by unparalleled prosperity; marriage severely damaged, with children suffering from the effects; (2) Success syndrome—less time for family; (3) “Everyone’s doing it”—divorce can’t be that bad; living together is OK, as is gambling; (4) Psychological and emotional baggage—sexual impurities; (5) Pornography; (6) American mobility and (7) Television. Today Tippit would probably list Tik Tok and other social-media platforms along with television.

When I was a young seminary student back in the early 70’s, one of my professors said to a room full of future pastors, missionaries, and Christian workers: “Your home is not apart from your ministry, it is part of your ministry.” (Howard Hendricks)

My wonderful wife and I have been married now going on 58 years. On or about my 29^th anniversary of marriage, I penned the following notes under the heading of, “If I were starting my marriage over:” 1. I would love my wife more; 2. I would develop feelings of belonging. 3. I would laugh more with my children. 4. I would be a better listener, and 5. I would do more encouraging. I cannot tell you now what went into the thinking process for each of those points as I was preparing the message in January, 1994, but I am sure that they are still pertinent for a solid marriage.

I began this post by speaking about crime, and it looks as though I am going to finish it by speaking about marriage and the home.  There is, unquestionably, a direct correlation between the disintegration of the home and the unprecedented rise of crime in America. I said earlier that God’s wisdom, as revealed in His Word, is the key to curbing crime. Listen to what God says: “Hear, O Israel. The Lord our God is one Lord. And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart. And, thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.” (Deut.6:4-7)

Again, hear what God says about instructing our children: “For He established a testimony in Jacob; and appointed a law in Israel, which He commanded our fathers, that they should make them known to their children: that the generation to come might know them, even the children which should be born; who should arise and declare them to their children: that they might set their hope in God, and not forget the works of God, but keep His commandments.” (Ps. 78:5-8)

Crime problem solved! But we need families. Two-parent families with a father active in the process of rearing children, teaching them God’s laws (right from wrong), all the while supported by a loving wife and mother.

“To our forefathers our faith was an experience; to our fathers our faith was an inheritance; to us our faith was a convenience; to our children our faith is a nuisance.” Selah.

“And ye, fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.” (Eph.6:4)

We are delivered from sin’s penalty through justification and from its power through sanctification. This side of glory, though, we never will be rid of sin’s presence. Any believer who thinks otherwise is doomed to frustration and failure in the Christian life.

In a message from I John 1:8, the late Bible teacher Lehman Strauss told a story  of a man who, at the close of a service, met Dr. Strauss at his car and announced, “I’ve heard you for the last time.” “Why?” the Bible teacher asked. “Because you preached that the sin nature cannot be eradicated, and I’ve not sinned in word, thought, or deed for seven years.” Dr. Strauss said: “If I get down on my hands and knees and beg you to come one more time, and bring your wife with you, will you?” “Why?” asked the man. “Because,” said the preacher, “I want you to tell me in the presence of your wife you have not sinned.” The man stormed off and committed his first sin in seven years.

Even those who preach sinless perfection, or the eradication of the sin nature in this life, know they aren’t practicing what they preach. H.C. Morrison, a Methodist evangelist and former President of Asbury College, believed somewhat in sinless perfection. But when someone asked him, “Dr. Morrison, have you gotten to where you can’t sin?” his reply was: “No, I haven’t gotten to where I can’t sin, but I’ve gotten to where I can’t enjoy it!”

There are some common misconceptions when considering the subject of sin’s presence in the life of the believer: (1) Our old nature, at the time of conversion, got a complete makeover. Wrong. God gave us a new nature at the moment of our new birth. He did not take the old nature away, nor did He rework it. We have a new nature, and we are “new creatures, in Christ Jesus.” (2 Cor. 5:17) Salvation is not rehabilitation; it is transformation. (2) Ultimate sanctification in this life is possible. Wrong again. We have been sanctified positionally; we are being sanctified practically; and we will be sanctified perfectly. It is a process that begins at the time we are saved; it will be finished at the time we behold Him and shall be like Him. (I John 3:2)

Paul deals with the dilemma of indwelling sin in Romans 7:7-25.  The theologian, church-planting missionary, and apostle confessed that there was an ongoing spiritual battle within him every day: “For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that I do not; but what I would not, that I do.” Every honest follower of Christ will affirm that this is his/her daily battle. Paul attributes this conflict to the fact that “it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me.” (Rom. 7:17,20) He confessed, too, that in his “flesh dwelleth no good thing” (7:18) and affirmed that he delighted in the law of God after the inward man. (7:22) This war within was the daily dilemma: “But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.” (7:23) In total frustration, Paul exclaimed: “O wretched man that I am! Who shall deliver me from the body of this death?” (7:24) And the apostle answered his own question with the only correct solution to the ongoing struggle of every believer: “I thank God through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (7:25) There is victory!  The indwelling sin will never be eradicated, this side of heaven. But Jesus Christ, who is also indwelling each believer, can and will give victory! This is the only path to victory over the battle between the indwelling new man and the ever-present, also indwelling, old nature.

I know sincere believers have many questions about sin and their struggle with it:

• Does God forgive me if I commit the same old sin over and over? Is it not hypocritical to ask His forgiveness, knowing that I most likely will do the same thing again?  Answer:  God sees your heart and knows whether you are sincere and truly repentant.  He does not keep a score card; He does not mark our iniquities against us.  (Ps. 130:3, 4) He told Peter to forgive 70 times 7. Does that sound like a God who has put a limit on the number of times you can sincerely attempt to achieve victory? “As far as the east is from the west, so far hath He removed our transgressions from us. Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear Him. For He knoweth our frame; He remembereth that we are dust.” (Ps. 103:12-14)

• Can I commit the “unpardonable sin”?  Answer: No believer can commit an unpardonable sin. Believers are “accepted in the beloved.” (Eph. 1:6) We have been born again and adopted into the family of God.  Nowhere in scripture are believers ever warned that their salvation can be forfeited by any sin.  Loss of rewards at the Judgement Seat of Christ (I Cor. 3) is their plight, not loss of salvation!

• Can I ever achieve victory over my besetting sin?  Must I live with it forever?  Answer: Yes, you can and must achieve victory over your besetting sin. God has made a way for you to do so: “Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith.” (Hebs. 12:1, 2). There it is: Look to Jesus. The believer’s first responder can give you the emergency help that will sustain your life.  Look to Him, and “lay aside every weight.” The burden is on you to initiate the call for life-support. You must realize that you cannot win the battle over sin alone, any more than the apostle could. But Jesus can win it for you—and through you—if you are willing to “lay aside” and “look.”  You can do that!

“If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (I John 1:8, 9)

(Note: For victory over struggles with sin, addictions, and besetting sins, I highly recommend John Elmore’s book Freedom Starts Today, published by Baker Books.)

Historian Cassius Dio told a story about Hadrian, a Roman Emperor (117-128 AD), and a woman who made a request of him as he passed by her way on a journey. Hadrian curtly replied, “I haven’t time”—to which the petitioner responded, “Then quit being emperor!” Upon hearing that rebuke, the emperor turned and granted the woman a hearing. 

Our God never ceases being alert to the cries of His children who are in intercessory prayer: “There is an eye that never sleeps, beneath the wing of night; there is an ear that never shuts, when sinks the beams of light.” We are thankful, therefore, that today—and every first Thursday of February—a National Prayer Breakfast is held at the United States Capitol. Initiated in 1953, when Dwight Eisenhower was president, this annual event has had as many as 3,500 in attendance. This year, between 200 and 300 were expected due to a major scaling back of invitations.

But we are thankful for any movement of men and women in Congress, along with the members of the Executive Branch, to call upon the Sovereign God of the universe for His grace and guidance. May it not be said of our America that “the Lord saw…and wondered that there was no intercessor.” (Isa.59:16)

Leonard Ravenhill once lamented of the church that there were many organizers, but few agonizers; many who pay, but few who pray; many resters, but few wrestlers; many who were enterprising, but few who were interceding; many who were not praying, but playing.” Paul, the Apostle, wrote to the first century church at Ephesus, “whereof I also…cease not to give thanks for you making mention of you in my prayers.” (Eph.1:16) To the saints at Philippi he wrote: “I thank my God upon every remembrance of you always in every prayer of mine for you all making request with joy.” (Phil.1:3) And to Timothy, in 2 Tim.1:3, he reminded his young protégé, “without ceasing I have remembrance of thee in my prayers night and day.”

I have been humbled on several occasions by some friend, either one who is close by or one who is separated by many miles, that he (or she) prays every day for my wife and myself.  Many shut-in saints have encouraged us with that assurance, but sometimes those words come from a person that we would not have guessed would have been daily interceding before God’s throne of grace and mercy for us.  It is, to be sure, a humbling experience to know that; and it is, without doubt, why we have been able to continue for decades in the spiritual warfare of ministry without having been wiped out by the darts of the Wicked One. 

The early-church leader John Chrysostom is credited with saying: “A monarch vested in gorgeous habiliments is far less illustrious than a kneeling supplicant ennobled and adorned by communion with his God. Consider how august a privilege it is when angels are present, and archangels throng around, where cherubim and seraphim encircle with their blaze, the throne of God, that a mortal may approach with unrestrained confidence and converse with heaven’s dread sovereign. O what honor was ever conferred like that?”

About this privilege of prayer, we must remember to ask, seek, and knock. (Matt.7:7, 8)

We must have a clean heart (Ps. 66:18); we must petition in Jesus’ name (John 14:13-15) and be guided in our asking and seeking by His Word. (John 15:7) It is imperative, too, that we ask according to His will, not ours (I John 5:14); and there must be no unforgiving spirit harbored in our heart. (Mark 11:25, 26) Finally, we must be unselfish (James 4:3) and pray believing. (Mark 9:23, 24; 11:22-24)

History records an incredible prayer meeting that purportedly lasted 100 years, as related by Leonard Ravenhill in his book Revival Praying. He says that Count Zinzendorf, 18^th century founder of the Moravian church, and a small group of believers were assembled in intercessory prayer when, “at precisely eleven o’clock in the morning on Wednesday the thirteenth of August, 1727, the Holy Ghost descended.” One bishop wrote of this, “When the Spirit came, was there ever in the whole of church history such an astonishing prayer meeting as which began in 1727? It went on one hundred years and was something absolutely unique! It was known as the ‘Hourly Intercession,’ which meant that by relays brethren and sisters made prayer to God without ceasing for all the work and wants of His church. Out of that small community, more than one hundred missionaries went from them in twenty-five years.”

F.B. Meyer, when once crossing the Atlantic by ship, was asked to address the passengers. At the Captain’s request, the pastor spoke on the subject of prayer. An agnostic who was present at the service was asked what he thought of Dr. Meyer’s sermon, to which he replied: “I didn’t believe a word of it.” That afternoon, on his way to a service, the agnostic passed an elderly woman sitting in a deck chair with both of her hands open and extended while she was apparently sound asleep. The agnostic, having some good-natured fun, pulled two oranges out of his pocket and put one orange into each of the woman’s hands. Later, passing back by where the woman had been sleeping, the agnostic found the woman happily munching on one of the oranges. He said to the woman, “You seem to be enjoying that orange,” to which she replied, “Yes, sir, my Father is very good to me.” “Your father! Surely your father cannot be alive still,” the agnostic replied. “Praise God!” she said, “He is very much alive!” “What do you mean?” queried the agnostic. She went on to explain, “I’ll tell you, sir. I have been seasick for days. I was asking God that He might somehow send me an orange. I suppose I fell asleep while I was praying. When I awoke, I found He had not only sent me an orange, but just like my Father, He sent me two oranges!” The astonished unbeliever came under conviction and was later led to Christ!

Never underestimate the power of prayer, or the possibility of any prayer being answered by our God. He hears your petitions millions of years before you mouth the words, as with Him there is no time but only infinity!

So, we applaud the National Prayer Breakfast today. You may be able to tune in via YouTube, CBN News, or C-Span.

“I exhort therefore, that, first of all, supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks, be made for all men; for kings, and for all that are in authority; that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and honestly. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior.” (I Tim. 2:1-3)