YOU and GOD

The late “Sword of the Lord” editor Curtis Hutson once used the following illustration: “A Sunday School teacher was teaching about the Devil. Looking at a small boy who had come to Sunday School on a church bus, he asked, ‘You’re not afraid of the Devil, are you?’ The little fellow paused a moment and answered, ‘Well, I  wouldn’t be afraid of a little devil like me, but I’d be afraid of a big devil like you!’”

The Christian’s final authority on matters of “faith and practice” is the Bible, the Word of God. Without question, the Bible presents the Devil—originally created as an angel of light—as a personal, powerful being that, at present, wears the title “god of this world.” (2 Cor.4:4) So, in other words, there is a real Devil and he is a created being, active in the affairs of this present world. He rules over a kingdom of darkness, and myriad “principalities, powers, rulers of the darkness of this world” answer to his diabolical demands. 

Lewis Sperry Chafer, in his classic volumes on Systematic Theology, enumerated 33 things attributable to the Devil.  I will remind us of a few of those devilish activities—primarily those directed to believers, aka the sons of God or the children of God through faith in His Son, Jesus Christ.

1. Satan is a deceiver, and he has practiced his lies from the time in the Garden when he said to Eve, “Ye shall not surely die.” (Gen.3:7) He has lied to mankind about the way of salvation, about the person and work of Jesus Christ, about what will happen after death, about how man came to be, and about the future rule and reign of Jesus Christ.  He entered into Judas (John 13:27), and Judas left the Upper Room and went out to betray Jesus. He lied to the nation of Israel, to whom Jesus came as Messiah, convincing its leaders that what Jesus did, He did by the power of Beelzebub (Matt.12).  He is “a liar and the father of it,” as Jesus said in John 8:44.
2. He preys upon the weak, filling them with fear. False religions are steeped in rituals and human activities done to appease their (false) gods.  Man will go to any lengths to make peace with a god they have created in their minds or with their hands—even to the extreme of offering up their own flesh and blood, children, to Molech, the Canaanite god of fire.  Paul exhorted all believers that we have not been given the spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind. (2 Tim.1:7)
3. He hurls “fiery darts” at his victims. (Eph.5:16) Those darts are pride, discouragement, hurt, doubts, losses, suffering, opposition, confusion, and any number of other afflictions that rattle the faith of the child of God. When the subject of Satan is brought into focus, such words as lies, kills, blasphemy, buffets, resists, persecutes, sifts, accuses, destroys, steals, beguiles, seduces and tempts come to mind. His arsenal is endless. Paul admonishes us to be equipped with the “shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked (one).” (Eph. 6:16)
4. He solicits believers to practice evil. Via the “lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and the pride of life,” (I John 2:16) the Devil mounts continual attacks upon those who name Christ as their Lord. In I Cor. 7:5, Paul instructed couples in the Corinthian Church who had been “defrauding” one another by abstaining from any physical relationship for a period of time that they should “come together again, that Satan tempt you not for your incontinency.” Satan will attack believers at what he perceives to be their point of greatest vulnerability. He thought he could bring Jesus down, knowing that Jesus had fasted for 40 days and nights in the wilderness. Satan tempted the Son of God through each avenue: the lust of the flesh (turn a stone to bread and eat if you are really the Son of God); the lust of the eyes (look at all those glorious kingdoms of the world…they are mine now but can be yours now if you will but worship me); and the pride of life (jump from this pinnacle and watch your Heavenly Father send angels down to rescue you from hurt if you are really God’s Son). Jesus answered every devilish dart with a biblical citation, the Old Testament Word of God, in answer to these Satanic temptations. And so must we today!
5. Our adversary stalks us!  Peter warns that, “as a roaring lion,” the evil one continually seeks whom he may devour. (I Pet. 5:8) Our defense strategy must be to “be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Whom resist steadfast in the faith.” (I Pet. 5:8,9)
6. He throws up roadblocks in an attempt to discourage, distract or defeat us. Paul, an apostle who was a missionary sent out by his local (Antioch) church to carry the gospel to the world of his day, met continually with Satanic hindrances: “Wherefore, we would have come to you, even I Paul, once and again, but Satan hindered us.” (I Th.2:18) Those who are engaged in taking the gospel to the world today find the same age-old hindrances with which to deal.  Satan has what appears to be unlimited resources, incalculable power, and devoted emissaries through whom he works in his never-ending hindrances to those who are obeying Christ’s last command to His followers: “Go ye, therefore, and teach (disciple) all nations.” (Matt. 28:20)

To the above list of diabolical methods that this real, on the loose, active Devil employs to counter the advances of God’s kingdom today, we could add many more: He exploits our handicaps as he did with Paul, who alluded to “the messenger of Satan to buffet me” (2 Cor.12:7); he sifts believers, as Jesus told Peter in the garden: “Satan hath desired to sift thee “(Luke 22:32); he transforms himself into an “angel of light” (2 Cor.11:14) in his deceptive attempts to negate God’s truth. Many, many avenues of approach are employed by this Devil, all in his attempt to draw people away from Christ. (I Tim.5:15) Believer, beware! And, unbeliever, be warned! The stakes are eternal. As with Jesus, Satan will promise you the world in return for your allegiance. He cannot produce that, but he will still promise it. Billy Sunday, the early20th century American evangelist, sounded this pertinent alarm: “Hell is the highest reward the Devil can offer you for serving him.” Don’t be deceived. Measure every message that purports to be from God by the Word of God.

There is at work in the world today a personal Devil. His sole mission is to take as many souls as possible to an eternal Hell that, according to Jesus, was prepared for this once angel of light who was lifted up in pride and attempted to dethrone God. His coup failed, he was “demoted,” and he has spent the rest of his time deceiving anyone who would believe God and obey His Word. Satan’s eternal abode, the Lake of Fire, originally prepared for Satan and those angels who followed him in his unsuccessful coup against God, will be populated by people who bought into his lie and rejected God and God’s Son, the Savior of the world.

“Then shall He say unto them on the left hand, Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the Devil and his angels.” (Matt.25:41)

Jesus, at the onset of His public ministry, chose twelve men “that they should be with Him.” From Him, they “caught” and were taught lessons on discipleship, future world end-time events, doctrinal matters concerning the Church-age, and the future phases of His kingdom on earth and beyond.  We marvel—as we walk with them from page to page, place to place, through scriptures—at the rare opportunities these chosen disciples experienced up close, first-hand. But then we listen in on that Upper Room discourse of Jesus, when He explained to these men that it was expedient for them that He should soon be departing (i.e., the cross, entombment, resurrection, and ascension back to Heaven) because, after He departed, He would send the Holy Spirit to be “with them and in them.” We read in Acts 2 how that promise was fulfilled and learn through the book of Acts—and then the epistles—that every believer in this age is in dwelt by the Holy Spirit of God.

What an incredible privilege—even greater than the Twelve had known as they followed Jesus during His public ministry on earth! To be ever indwelt by God’s Holy Spirit, the second member of the triune Godhead!  There is never a moment that He is not with you as a Comforter, Teacher, Guide. It is through and by the Holy Spirit that we have access to God the Father and His Son, our Intercessor, Jesus Christ. We can and should, therefore, experience daily fellowship with our Lord and Savior.

Andrew Murray, in “God’s Best Secrets,” wrote: “There is one lesson that all young Christians should learn, namely this—the absolute necessity of fellowship with Jesus each day…Many Christians backslide because this truth is not clearly taught.”

Mary Helen Anderson put it this way: “We mutter and sputter; we fume and we spurt; We mumble and grumble, our feelings get hurt; We can’t understand things, our vision grows dim—when all that we need is a moment with Him!”

Some who read this may remember, from decades ago, the “Haven of Rest” hour that originated from California. Remember First Mate Bob? Well, here is his admonition concerning the believer’s need for fellowship daily with the Lord Jesus: “If we could learn this lesson, that it isn’t what we do, but Jesus longs for fellowship with even me and you. Oh, let us not be turned away, from this communion sweet, and never get too busy just to sit at Jesus’ feet.” Good counsel, First Mate Bob!

Dr. Bob Jones, Sr., once shared this: “I remember one time, when my son was just a little fellow and I had been away from home, Mrs. Jones said to me, ‘I can’t control him. He is just unmanageable. When bedtime comes, you must not kiss him good night.’ ‘All right,’ I said. So, I played with him all I could during the day. That night he put on his nighties and stuck his little cherub face through a crack in the door. He said, ‘Good night, Mother; good night, Daddy.’ We said, ‘Good night.’ Then I heard him crying in there as he said his prayers. I never shall forget it. He said, ‘I’m sorry I was a bad boy, Jesus. I don’t know what makes me bad. I am sorry I didn’t mind Mother.  Daddy is just home, and I was a bad boy the first day he was here. I am sorry!’ I sat there and cried. I couldn’t go to sleep to save my life.

“About two o’clock in the morning I eased out of our room (Mrs. Jones was sound asleep) and eased into his room. His little bed was near the window and the moonlight was shining on his face. I got down by his bed and watched him. Every once in a while he would sob. After a while I reached over and kissed him all I wanted to. As I knelt there that night, I looked through my blinding tears to the sky toward God. I said, ‘God, you are my Father. Does it hurt You like this when I am out of fellowship? Do You feel bad like I do? My son can sleep, but I cannot sleep.’”

David declared, “My voice You shall hear in the morning, O Lord, in the morning I will direct it to You.” (Ps.5:3) That is a holy habit that it would be well to cultivate—if not in the morning, then at some regularly appointed time during the day. In the 19^th century, a young Christian man determined to do just that, writing, “I do promise God that I will rise early every morning to have a few minutes—not less than five—in private prayer. I will endeavor to conduct myself as a humble, meek and zealous follower of Jesus, and by serious witness and warning I will try to lead others to think of the needs of their immortal souls. I hereby vow to read no less than four chapters in God’s Word every day. I will cultivate a spirit of self-denial, and will yield myself a prisoner of love to the Redeemer of the world.” (William Booth, Founder of the Salvation Army)

Mark, in his Gospel, notes that Jesus “ordained twelve, that they should be with Him.” (Mark 3:14) It was as Mark would explain, “that He might send them forth to preach.” He has a job for each of us to do, and, as a member of His Body we are to exercise the spiritual gift that each of us has received from the Holy Spirit. (I Pet.4:10) Also, like the Twelve, we have been commissioned to “Go…teach all nations.” (Matt.28:20) What an assignment!  We can only succeed if we prioritize our daily devotion with our Lord. We must have His guidance, His wisdom, His power (Acts 1:8), His enabling and sustaining grace. We are engaged in spiritual warfare. We are men and women who, though our inner man is “renewed from day to day,” (2 Cor.4:16) are not yet fully conformed to His image, nor will we be until we “shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.” (I John 3:1,2) So, beloved brothers and sisters in Christ, let us retreat daily into His blessed presence, one on One, with Him, being changed as we do “into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.” (2 Cor. 3:18)

“I beseech you, therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world, but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God.” (Romans 12:1,2)

None of us is so smart or seasoned that we do not need to heed wise Biblical counsel: “Every purpose shall be established by counsel; and with good advice make war.” (Provs. 20:18)

On a humorous note, I once read “Reason #4 Why Guys Do Not Write Advice Columns: ‘Dear Abe, the other day I set off for work, leaving my husband in the house watching TV. I hadn’t gone more than a mile when my engine conked out and the car shuddered to a halt. I walked home, only to find my husband making love to our neighbor. He was let go from his job six months ago, and says he has been feeling worthless. I love him very much, but I don’t know if I can trust him anymore.  What shall l do? Sincerely, Frustrated.’ ‘Dear Frustrated: A car stalling can be caused by a variety of faults with the engine. Check that there is no debris in the fuel line. If it’s clear, check the jubilee clips holding the vacuum pipes onto the inlet manifold. Or, it could be that the fuel pump itself is faulty, causing low delivery pressure to the carburetor float chamber. I hope this helps.’”

But, humor aside, there are times when we do need good counsel, because of the complexities of life and the constitution of our frail humanity: “Verily man at his best state is altogether vanity,” as the Psalmist says. (Ps. 39:5) And, “Where no counsel is, the people fall: but in the multitude of counsellors, there is safety.” (Provs. 11:14) And, “Counsel is mine, and sound wisdom: I am understanding; I have strength.” (Provs. 8:14)

Then, too, counsel is advised because of the confusion of sin. So many voices—often contradictory and often claiming authority—can and will at times leave one confused. “Hear counsel, and receive instruction, that thou mayest be wise in thy latter end.” (Provs. 19:20) Educators, philosophers, scientists and politicians will attempt to convince others of their viewpoints—but seeking Biblical counsel enables one to avoid the pitfalls of reason, pop psychology, and other “isms” of our day.

Counsel will guide one, too, away from fatal mistakes due to flawed judgment. Remember how Israel was fooled by the Gibeonites, when the Gibeonites lied to Israel’s leaders about who they were and where they were from? (Josh. 9:24) The deception was costly to Israel for years to come, and it could well have been avoided. But the men of Israel “asked not counsel of the Lord.” It was neither the first time nor the last that Israel suffered catastrophe because the people did not seek advice from God: “For they are a nation void of counsel, neither is there understanding in them.” That indictment by God is devastating—to a nation or an individual. (Deut. 32:28) Solomon instructs that “without counsel purposes are disappointed, but in the multitude of counsel they are established.” (Provs. 15:22)

So, yes, at times every person needs and ought to seek and heed good, Biblical counsel. Take heart, because such help is readily available. “I will bless the Lord who hath given me counsel,” the Psalmist declared. (Ps. 16:7) And, “The counsel of the Lord standeth forever….” (Ps. 33:11) Solomon again noted that “there are many devices in a man’s heart; nevertheless, the counsel of the Lord, that shall stand.” (Provs. 19:21) Wise believers are often a good source of guidance: “We took sweet counsel together and walked unto the house of God in company.” (Ps. 55:14) And, “Thou shewest lovingkindness unto thousands, and recompensest the iniquity of the fathers unto the bosom of their children after them: the Great, the Mighty God, the Lord of hosts, is His name. Great in counsel, and mighty in work.” (Jer. 32:18, 19)

God uses friends, teachers, pastors, parents, and mentors to give advice, which like “ointment and perfume rejoice the heart: so doth the sweetness of a man’s friend by hearty counsel.” (Provs. 27:9) “Counsel in the heart of a man is like deep water, but a man of understanding will draw it out.” (Provs. 2:5).

So, the worth of good guidance from a loving friend, family member, or fellow faith pilgrim cannot be overestimated.  Every word of God is pure (Prov. 30:5) and “The Law of the Lord is perfect, converting soul.” (Ps. 19:7). Seek God’s wisdom through His Word, and walk always in His way. “The counsel of the Lord standeth forever; the thoughts of His heart to all generations.” (Ps. 33:11)

Pray over His wise counsel. Receive it with gladness and with a commitment to follow it. “Because they rebelled against the Words of God and contemned the counsel of the most High God; therefore He brought down their heart with labor; they fell down.” (Ps. 107:11) “Hearken now unto my voice,” Moses’ father-in-law, Jethro, exhorted Moses, “I will give thee counsel and God shall be with thee.” (Ex. 18:19).

But, in a fallen world, we always need to weigh all “counsel” in the light of God’s Word. The first verse of David’s voluminous Book of Psalms starts with: “Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly.” (Ps. 1:1) King Rehoboam, Solomon’s son and successor to his father’s throne, made a critical error when he “forsook the old men’s counsel that they gave him, and spake to them after the counsel of the young men.” (I Kings 12:13,14)

Counsel that cannot be acted upon in good faith; counsel contrary to God’s Word; counsel from any stranger to truth—all of these must by all means be avoided.  Learn from King Saul, who “died for his transgression which he committed against the Lord, even against the Word of God, which he kept not, and also for asking counsel of one that had a familiar spirit to enquire of it.” (I Chr.10:13)

May our testimony now and ever be what David’s was: “Thou shalt guide me with Thy counsel and afterward receive me to glory.” (Ps.73:24)

Lew Wallace, a Union general in the Civil War, happened to be seated near Col. Robert Ingersoll while on a train. In the course of their trip, the conversation turned to the subject of Christ’s divinity.  Ingersoll was an infidel, but Wallace had an open mind regarding the person and divinity of Christ. After the encounter with Ingersoll, he decided to do his own research, examining all sides of the question, and the six-year-long search led General Wallace to write the classic novel Ben-Hur.  Wallace concluded, at the end of his search, that Jesus of Nazareth was not only the Christ—He was his Christ, Redeemer and Savior. (Recounted in The House of Harper, a history of the Harper and Brothers publishers.) That story demonstrates what Paul affirmed in Romans 1:16: The gospel is “the power of God unto salvation, to every one that believeth….”

When Ellen and I visited Japan with veteran missionary Ron White in 2009, we had the privilege of joining in worship with several Japanese churches that Ron and his wife, Odessa, had been instrumental in helping plant during his 40 years of labor in Japan. He and co-workers also founded a Bible Institute for the training of young men and women for ministry.  It was truly an incredible experience to visit these local assemblies with their own national leadership and pastors, thriving churches all. Ron and a team of two or three other young first-term missionaries were able, by the grace of God, to plant four national churches in Japan during their first four-year term there, all the while learning the language and the culture—a daunting task to be sure. 

One of those churches, Japan’s largest Baptist church, is located in Osaka. I had the privilege of speaking to their mid-week prayer meeting assembly.  The pastor had become a believer years earlier, after passing by one of the missionary churches Ron was ministering in. As he walked by, the believers inside were singing “What a wonderful change in my life has been wrought, since Jesus came into my heart.” The words captivated the young businessman, who had initially paused only because of the English language he heard wafting from inside the building. Interested in learning English to enhance his business dealings, he paused and listened. The Holy Spirit did the rest, as in his heart he thought: “There has never been that kind of a change in my life.” He was drawn by God’s Spirit to learn more about this change. Eventually he accepted Christ as Savior, was trained to pastor, and in time became pastor of this great New Testament Baptist Church in Osaka, Japan. Truly a marvelous testimony to the power of the gospel of Jesus Christ, of which Paul the Apostle spoke in Romans 1:16, writing “I am not ashamed of the gospel of Jesus Christ for it is the power of God to salvation to every one that believeth….”

George Muller, known for his monumental labors of love in England for orphans, told of how he became a believer.  As a young, wild “swearing and beer drinking” university student—a ring-leader of the rowdies—his life was impacted by a handful of young Christians who were “brave, manly fellows” and met weekly for a prayer meeting. Muller related how, toward the end of his university studies, he became restless and dissatisfied with the direction his life had taken.  He traveled to Switzerland, where he thought a change of scenery would put his soul at ease, but that did not happen. He returned to his studies at Halle, but his burden grew heavier. Muller testifies that he then remembered the eight Christians on campus and their weekly prayer meeting, so he sought them out. Finding them, he related that “One and another told me of Christ. They prayed with me, and I prayed for myself.” The seeking sinner found Christ, believed on Him, and gave his life to the Savior as “a great love for Christ filled my soul.” Muller concludes his testimony by affirming: “That was more than fifty years ago. I loved Jesus then, but I loved Him more the year after that, and more the year after that, and more every year since.” Once again, it was the gospel of Jesus Christ that was the power of God unto salvation for a young man who had drunk deep of the cup of pleasure and come up unsatisfied. He found the water of life in Christ. Year after year, he experienced a deepening love for—and devotion to—the Person who gave him a drink of everlasting life from the cup of Salvation, which fully and forever satisfied Muller’s once thirsty soul. 

One Sunday afternoon a group of Chicago ballplayers, leaving a saloon, heard a gospel-singing group on a street corner, playing on their instruments some of the great, old hymns. One of those ballplayers, having been born in a log cabin in Iowa, remembered his godly mother’s singing those very songs as she did her daily chores.  Tears came to his eyes as the young gospel group sang sweetly, and the player announced to his drinking buddies, “Boys, I’m through!  I’m going to turn to Jesus Christ. We’ve come to a parting of the ways!”

Of course, some of his companions mocked him, and some responded with silence while one of the ballplaying buddies encouraged him. Billy turned into the Pacific Garden Mission. Then and there, he accepted the claims of Christ and turned from his sin to his Savior. His own words: “I called upon God’s mercy. I staggered out of my sins into the outstretched arms of the Savior. I became instantly a new creature in Him! The next morning at practice, my manager, Mike Kelly, greeted me and said, ‘Billy, I read in the paper what occurred yesterday. Religion isn’t my long suit, but I won’t knock you and I’ll knock the daylights out of anyone who does.’”  Billy Sunday left baseball to hit homeruns for Jesus Christ all across America as one of our nation’s great evangelists in the late 19^th century and early 20^th century.  It has been said that, after he held a meeting in a city, the saloons had to close for lack of business.  Thousands attended his great, protracted city campaigns. Multiplied thousands were saved and added to churches.  All because “the gospel of Christ…is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.”

I have collected the above testimonies of the gospel’s power from various sources over the course of my 50 years pastoring. Most are commonly found either in books or publications.  I did not note the specific source of each testimony, but each could be verified without much difficulty. I share them in hopes that all who read them will be encouraged to spread the good news that Jesus Christ came into the world to seek and to save that which was lost. (Luke 19:10).  Share the gospel.  It is and always will be the “power of God unto salvation.” (Romans 1:16)

“This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners; of whom I (Paul, the Apostle) am chief.” (I Tim. 1:15)

That’s how most Christians identify the first day of the week. Early churches, which we read of in the book of Acts, met on that day to worship the Lord together. Paul wrote to first-century churches that when they met on the first day of the week, they should set aside an offering. (I Cor. 16:1,2)

Before Calvary, the weekly day of rest and worship was called the Sabbath because it was the seventh day, and God ordained that man should rest one day in seven. God gave us the prototype of this day in the first week of the world when, having created the heavens and earth and all that is therein, including man, God rested from His labors on the seventh day.

When God called a people who were to be peculiar and holy for His glory, He gave them ten commandments. (Exodus 20) One of those commandments was that they were to sanctify one day in seven, the Sabbath, as a day of rest. This was part of the Old Testament revelatory and regulatory law. No work was to be done on this day: it was a day hallowed unto God.

 “For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ.” (John 1:17) Jesus Christ, the only man (the God-man) who ever fully kept the law, fulfilled the law and the regulatory aspect of it was abolished. In Christ, we are free from the law, which served as a “school master” to bring us to Christ. It served its purpose well but no longer regulates (with its 613 commands following the 10 commandments) every aspect of the believer’s walk and work, dress and diet. However, the universal principle ordained of God before the law was given on Mt. Sinai and codified in the law of God—i.e., the “one day in seven as a day of rest”—still obtains as part of the order of the universe. He who follows God’s example, and sets aside one day in seven as a day of rest, is wise.

For those who are members of His Body, the Church, we recognize that there is more to keeping the one day than merely resting. We come together to praise the Lord of creation and to worship Him with prayer, preaching and praise. It is a day of worship. We celebrate what He has done for us, what He is doing through us, and what He will one day do for us when He comes to call us to Himself.

Are you benefitting from practicing this one day in seven principle? Is it truly a day that you cherish? Is it your favorite day of the week? Do you treasure the time when, on the first day of the week, you once again assemble with your family of faith and sing praises, lift up prayers and receive food from the Word of God? We pretty much took these gifts for granted until about the end of March 2020 when, due to the worldwide Covid 19 pandemic, public gatherings, including most worshipping assemblies, were shut down for some time.  We then realized how precious those privileges were and how very much we missed them every Lord’s Day.  Watching the streamed messages delivered by faithful shepherds of the flock, though it was an immeasurable blessing, just did not take the place of face-to-face fellowship with brothers and sisters in Christ.

Blessed are the children whose parents have prioritized the one day in seven principle! They will grow up having spiritual foundations and moral moorings that will stand them in good stead all the days of their lives.

Blessed is the nation whose people shut down the work week for a day of physical and spiritual refreshment. Our nation was once a land where church bells called congregations apart for a day of edification and spiritual nourishment. In 1979, when we moved to Indianapolis, there were a number of stores and businesses that still respected so-called “blue laws,” and their retail establishments were closed for business on Sundays. But it was not long before that changed and one could hardly find a store that was closed on Sunday, as is the case today.

Sunday School and Sunday worship were part and parcel of the strongest days of America’s history. Preaching and music and revival meetings and Bible Schools and camp meetings—all have been part of the great religious heritage of this nation, which God has allowed to become one of the superpowers of the universe. Our faith in God, our honoring of His Word, preaching the gospel and sending it through great missionary endeavors to the uttermost parts of the world, and our hallowing of the first day of the week—all have been vital components in the mix that made America the giant that it became.

But giants fall. In proportion to our desecrating of His holy day, we can almost trace the spiritual slippage of America. Church attendance shot up dramatically after 9-11 for about two weeks. People trekked back to church to hear a word from God. But soon things got back to “normal.” Weekends in the woods or on the beaches or at the flea-markets or visiting relatives or just shuffling around the house lazily replaced reverent seeking after God by setting aside the first day of the week—the day upon which His Son rose from the grave triumphant over death and hell—as a day of worship.

A Gallup poll in the early 1990s found that 32% of American adults at that time claimed to be “reborn.” When asked if they attended church regularly, the figure dropped to 8%. When asked if they were “regenerate” and had the Christian character and desire to make a difference in the world, the figures plummeted to 1 or 2%. It is safe to assume that the figures today are not an improvement on that late-20^th century polling data.

For far too many, even those who name Christ as Lord, Sunday has become Funday. Instead of a day of worship, it has become a day of “workship” or a day to do whatever one wants. Christ’s church suffers today because we bought into the spirit of the age and have compromised our reverence for the Lord’s Day. We have enjoyed our pursuits. We have cultivated our personal interests. Sports, of course, is huge. We have seen the world. But we have too often sacrificed our weekly appointment with the One who loved us so much that He gave His Son, His only begotten Son, to die for the remission of our sins.

It would be well, then, for each of us to evaluate our view of Sunday. Is it high on your list of special days? Do you honor the Lord with rest and worship on the Lord’s Day?

(When I was senior pastor of Thompson Road Baptist Church, we published a monthly “TRBC Times” newsletter.  This is a reprint of an article I wrote for it in July 2004.)

For several hours the Friday before Father’s Day, I sat transfixed before the television watching the funeral service for the 40^th President of the United States, Ronald Wilson Reagan. Not since the laying to rest of the slain John F. Kennedy has America paid such homage upon the death of one of its leaders.

Ellen and I cleared our schedules so that we could watch together the service, held in a church in Washington, D.C. From the very first word of Sen. John Danforth—who quoted the words of Jesus when He said “I am the resurrection and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live” (John 11:25)—to the benediction, the service was emotionally compelling, spiritually uplifting, and nationally unifying.  The eulogies by President George W. Bush, his father, Margaret Thatcher, and the former Prime Minister of Canada were beautiful and appropriate. Especially moving was Mrs. Thatcher’s taped tribute to the man with whom she had forged such a close friendship.

But what was most memorable about the funeral was the graveside service in California, at the site of the Reagan library.  Of course, the television cameras were fixed upon every detail. Invited guests began arriving more than two hours before the service was scheduled to begin. Many of them were dignitaries, including the governor of California and his wife, many movie stars, and other prominent figures. For at least 90 minutes before the service officially began, an Armed Forces choir sang many great hymns of the faith. Most of them were old-fashioned gospel hymns and, specifically, invitation songs. Did you get that?  “Just As I Am,” “Softly and Tenderly,” “Till the Storm Passes By,” and many, many more.  Not one contemporary hymn was played. The music would have been appropriate in any church in America where the Word of God is proclaimed.

And the message was eloquent. The former pastor of the Bel Air Presbyterian Church in California spoke to Mrs. Reagan and the family while the nation watched. Who will ever forget the moment he opened his Bible to 2 Chronicles 7:14? Someone said it was as if God was giving America another chance to hear and to heed His call to repentance.

None of us could have anticipated this glorious demonstration and testimony to God’s grace and power. As a nation, for a week, we were reminded of our foundation of faith; we were told of our fallen leader’s God and his commitment to Him. We heard strains of the old songs of Zion wafting through our homes and into our hearts. What a glorious week it was. We can only thank God for His providential timing and for His powerful triumph, even in death.

(Ellen wrote her own regular column, “Ellen’s Corner,” for the TRBC Times, and I would like to share her contribution for July 2017):

“Against the backdrop of history, I gazed at the giant columns remaining from the Roman Forum and the Coliseum. One is struck with the grandeur and enormity of the structures. Then, as you go a short distance away to a dark, damp church basement where Paul was imprisoned, you have the contrast of the two worlds during the first century. Rulers had no newspapers, televisions, or electronic media to communicate with their constituents, so they built grand, beautiful buildings and statues to themselves to let everyone know how important they were. They provided entertainment by the gladiators in the Coliseum to keep the people happy. The games were cruel and the bloodier they were, the more the crowd cheered. A short distance away, Christians were thrown to lions for the enjoyment of the onlookers.

Paul, in his prison cell with a guard, could receive people.  So, for two years, he witnessed and preached about Jesus Christ to all who would listen. With visible images of massive statues to gods, kings, and emperors all around, how could one man in prison make an impact with a message of an invisible God? And yet, with his testimony and the Holy Spirit, he saw a great church established in Rome.

I visited the Louvre in Paris, which houses one of the greatest art collections in the world. I don’t know the percentage, but a majority of the paintings were about Biblical characters or Biblical themes. I also visited Rembrandt’s home in Amsterdam, and almost all the paintings there were about Biblical characters. I wondered why this was so until I realized that people didn’t have the Bible in their language and this was the way they learned Bible stories and passed them along to others. (The King James Bible was translated five years after Rembrandt was born). The stained-glass windows in the churches also told the Bible stories. St. Chapelle in Paris was built in the 13^th century, and every wall is a stained-glass panel. The panels tell the Biblical stories from creation to crucifixion and redemption through Christ. The Pentateuch, the Kings, history books, the prophets and the New Testament to John the Baptist follow one after the other. Each window, divided into arches, reads from left to right and from top to bottom.

The history of Christianity has been that of difficulties. The persecution of Christians from the first century through the Dark Ages was an attempt to mute the story of how Christ works, but it was told in numerous ways, and in the 17^th century the Bible was printed for the common man. Today we have the privilege of reading His Word and knowing Him in a way previous generations could never have fathomed. Some of those beautiful buildings in Rome are crumbling, but God has promised that His Word would never pass away. It has been kept alive from creation until the present hour through various means and ways—and it will prevail until the final chapter in Revelation is fulfilled.

On February 2, 2021, a dear friend and faithful servant of God was ushered to his home in heaven, having served faithfully His Lord and Savior both at home and abroad.

Kelvin was born one month before our nation’s 200^th birthday, June 4, 1976. Before he was five years old, Kelvin was diagnosed with a cranial tumor that required extensive surgery. His doctor counseled that the operation would quite possibly leave Kelvin seriously handicapped for life, speech and bodily movement wise. His loving parents proceeded in faith, trusting God unquestionably, and moved ahead with plans for the delicate brain surgery.

Kelvin did survive that surgery—and many others—and he did live to walk, talk, and communicate with not only a keen sense of humor but a living and abiding faith in his Lord and Savior. By God’s grace, Kelvin was able to attend college and receive a well-deserved diploma. He cultivated, as much as possible, an independence that would in time allow him to drive and live in his own residence.  His tender heart for God, for people, and for world missions would take Kelvin in time to South Africa where, under the auspices Baptist World Mission, and sent out by Thompson Road Baptist Church, Kelvin would realize his lifelong dream of serving God on a foreign field. To be sure, his service was not without steep challenges due to his handicaps that had to daily be reckoned with. But, because of his loving and devoted parents and the prayerful support of a network of hundreds of friends, Kelvin was able to minister, serving in and through the Calvary Baptist Church in Johannesburg, South Africa. I was privileged at that time to be pastor of his sending church, and I can attest that the love and care for him by the people of his home base was with thanksgiving and generosity.  We were so proud of what God was doing and had done through Kelvin Krueger—hindered seriously, but never to the point of giving up or giving out. His spirit was indomitable.

But, while serving in South Africa, Kelvin eventually suffered a stroke that necessitated his coming home to the states for medical attention. He never fully recovered from that final blow physically, but his spirit was never crushed, and his love for Christ never diminished as long as he had breath and being. He did, of course, retire as a missionary, and I would like to share with you—in an attempt to keep Kelvin’s memory alive, and with the hope that our God would inspire another would-be missionary to serve—a letter that I wrote to Kelvin upon the fulfillment of his service as a missionary appointee under Baptist World Mission, a fundamental mission board on which I have been privileged to serve for 40 years:

“In the wise and good providences of our great God, He has relieved you, Kelvin, of your assignment there for now; but He has not withdrawn your commission as a missionary; that will stand as long as your heart is right with God and I am confident that you will remain steadfast for Him, a good and faithful servant until He summons you to His beloved side.

Thank you, Kelvin, (and Mr. and Mrs. Krueger, without whose loving care and assistance Kelvin could not have done what he was able to accomplish) for loving Jesus and His gospel so much that you were willing to go alone to South Africa with that saving gospel. Because of your early in life physical trials and subsequent resulting hardships, it would have been easy to excuse yourself and to expect someone else to do the job.  But you stepped up and said without hesitation, “Here am I, send me!” And He did, to God be the glory!

You served well and were faithful to your calling. As your pastor, I could not be more proud of anyone. I count you my peer in Christian service, fellow servant, beloved in the Lord and co-laborer. I cherish your friendship and treasure the times of past, and hopefully yet future, fellowship. You have done well, my fellow soldier of the cross. Know that your life has impacted and will continue to impact more people than you can imagine.

So, this is not the end of the road, but a bend in the road. Keep preaching, Kelvin, with or without a voice, with or without a microphone or a pulpit. By your life, labors, and love you are writing a beautiful story and I am anxious to see what the next chapter holds.  I am, as always, Your Friend.”

Kelvin, while in South Africa, had a ministry through his church in Johannesburg of visiting weekly a home for handicapped children. They loved to gather in a group, each of them in wheelchairs, maybe 40 or 50 in number, as Kelvin would come to them in his own handicapped way, to share with them the love of God through Christ. Only eternity will tell what this man, who had a lifelong dream of serving Christ as a missionary, accomplished for His kingdom.  I hope never to forget Kelvin Krueger, and I hope if you have never heard his story before, this brief reminder of his life and labors will encourage and inspire you. What can you do for Christ with what—and how and when and who—He has made of you?

Kelvin U. Krueger

June 4, 1976-February 2, 2021

“I can do all things through Christ which strengtheth me.” (Phil. 4:13)

Note: In the “You and God” archives you will find previous posts about Kelvin Krueger on October 7, 2020 (“The Kelvinator”) and February 8, 2021 (“Here Am I, Send Me”).  

The English pastor and theologian Griffith Thomas was once asked if he thought the world was becoming a little churchy, to which he replied, “It’s true that the world is becoming a little churchy; but the church is becoming immensely worldly.”

D. L. Moody, the 19^th-century American evangelist, was quoted as saying, “The churches are full of men and women who have no power at all.  Where did they lose it? It was when they formed an alliance with the world. I would rather be alone with God than be with the whole world without God.”

William Wordsworth, Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom from 1843 to 1850, wrote: “The world is too much with us: late and soon; getting and spending, we lay waste our powers. Little we see in nature that is ours.”

John the Apostle, in his first general epistle, admonished 1^st-century readers to “Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.” (I John 2:15)

The world (“cosmos”) has been defined as that which, in the context of what John said in I John 2:15, is the civilization, social order, custom, government, education, entertainment, culture, etc. The “things” of the world, which John said we should not love, are politics, luxury, pleasure, arts, entertainment, eating and drinking, financial pursuits, and on and on—anything that is part of our everyday life that appeals to what we would like to do, or pursue, while blunting our ardor for God. John Stott, I believe, put it this way: “Only when prostituted to the selfish purposes of man, to the exclusion of God, do the these become wrong. How do you use them?”

James addresses the root cause of worldliness: “From whence come wars and fightings among you? Come they not hence, even of your lusts that war in your members? Ye lust, and have not: ye kill, and desire to have, and cannot obtain: ye fight and war, yet ye have not, because ye ask not…Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the friendship of the world is enmity with God? Whosoever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy with God.” (James 4:1-4)

Some of you will remember when the United States Treasury minted the Susan B. Anthony dollar. Designed as a durable, lightweight alternative to the paper dollar, it never succeeded and finally fell completely out of circulation because it was easily confused with the quarter.  So is the Christian whose life cannot be distinguished from his unbelieving neighbor’s life. When the believer adopts the world-view of the culture in which he lives, his testimony is muted, and his witness becomes of no effect.  The 19^th-century naturalist Henry Thoreau once went to jail for refusing to pay his poll tax because it would go, in part, to supporting slavery. His friend Ralph Waldo Emerson visited him in jail and, peering through the bars, said, “Henry, what are you doing in there?” Thoreau replied, “Ralph, what are you doing out there?” It does matter where we go, what we say, what we do, and how we are perceived by the world around us.  Christians can have a love affair with the world. Poet Robert Frost once admitted that “I have a lover’s quarrel with the world. When I look at our (America’s) wealth and power and how it is being used, I may still have a quarrel with America, but I hope it will always be a ‘lover’s quarrel.’”

The late J. Vernon McGee said that “We do not become pilgrims until we become strangers.” Peter urged, “Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul; having your conversation honest among the Gentiles: that whereas they speak against you as evildoers, they may by your good works, which they shall behold, glorify God in the day of visitation.”  (I Peter 2:11-12) Adopting a worldly life style and mindset does not lend itself to the “stranger/pilgrim” model for either 1^st century or 21^st century saints.

The UPI once published a sad story about a 9-year-old girl who had been raised in a barn-yard with pigs in the Chinese province of Liaoning.  The girl had been suckled and raised from infancy by a peasant family’s pigs, because her disabled parents supposedly could not care for her. Rescued in time, the child was taught to abandoned pig-like behavior. It was a difficult task, for the little girl had—from her earliest days—crawled like a pig and imitated other piggish actions. She wanted to be left in solitude. That is sad, to be sure. But what about believers who have learned the ways of this world, and who gravitate often to worldliness, so that they have become indistinguishable from the pagans whose spiritual habitat is the pigpen of this world? Jesus knew of the lifelong struggle that His own would have when He petitioned His heavenly Father: “I have given them Thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not of the world even as I am not of the world. I pray not that Thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that Thou shouldest keep them from the evil. They are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.” (John 17:14-16)

English poet T.S. Eliot captured the Christian’s (and the world’s) dilemma in a poem entitled “The Rock.” I close with this powerful poetic reminder:

“O weariness of men who turn from God to the grandeur of your mind and the glory of your action,

To arts and inventions and daring enterprises, to schemes of human greatness thoroughly discredited,

Binding the earth and the water to your service, exploiting the seas and developing the mountains,

Dividing the stars into common and preferred, engaged in devising the perfect refrigerator,

Engaged in working out a rational morality, engaged in printing as many books as possible,

Plotting of happiness and flinging empty bottles, turning from your vacancy to fevered enthusiasm

For nation or race or what you call humanity; though you forgot the way to the Temple,

There is One who remembers the way to your door; Life may evade you, but Death shall not.

You shall not deny the Stranger.” (T.S. Eliot, 1888-1965)

“Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world…For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh, and the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life, is not of the Father, but is of the world.” (I John 2:15, 16)

This weekend we celebrate America’s 246^th birthday! We sing “God Bless America,” and we must say that God has blessed America.  With all the monumental problems facing this great land of liberty, the USA is still at the top of the mountain of nations, with no country even running a close second.  That is not to say we should breathe easily; there is plenty of cancer at our core, rottenness if you will, which, if left unattended, will put us on the ash heap of history. But today, the words of Sir Walter Scott still resonate within our breasts: “Breathes there the man with soul so dead, who never to himself hath said, ‘This is my own! My native land!’ Whose heart hath ne’er within him burned, as home his footsteps he hath turned, from wandering on a foreign strand!”

Not everyone has wandered on a “foreign strand.” But if you have, no doubt you wanted to kiss the ground under your feet once they were planted back on the soil of your native homeland! We cannot fully appreciate what we have here in America until we have seen something of what most of the rest of the world does not have!  And I’m not just talking about material things, though in that category alone we are without equal.

In spirit, in strength, in character, heart, freedom, faith, family, generosity, love and a thousand other intangibles, America is #1! Yet, in spite of all of this, there is a malignancy in our body politic. It is a spiritual and moral cancer that is fast sapping away the life and liberty of the America soul. The solution, of course, is not to “vote the rascals out.” What takes place in Washington is only a mirror of what is going on throughout the land. The enemy is us! In spite of God’s abundant goodness to us, in spite of material prosperity and individual liberty, in spite of educational and scientific superiority, we have become morally bankrupt, spiritually decadent, politically perverse, and disabled. We do not need different politicians or better schools or more jobs or improved infrastructure, or reformed welfare, or a revamped social security system. We need a grass-roots revival that will spread throughout the length and breadth of this land. We need a fire ignited in the hearts of 10,000 preachers that will set ablaze their pulpits, fanned by flames of faith that send men and women to their knees in prayer—producing purity, promoting prayer, and propagating peace with God from shore to shore. So that He will, as He has promised, hear from heaven, forgive our sin, and heal our land. (2 Chr.7:14)

May God spare His judgment that we so deserve and mercifully give us another day to repent and enjoy His divine mercies.

On a personal note, I want to thank all of you who have been praying that God would put into remission the multiple myeloma cancer of the blood that I have been dealing with most of this year. A trip just this past week to a myeloma specialist at Indiana University Hospital brought good news on that front. Having examined the statistics and charting the progress of the treatments I am undergoing, he said that the myeloma had improved 90% from the diagnosis to this present day.  That, of course, is very encouraging.  I know many people are praying for “remission,” and Ellen and I want to thank you from the depths of our hearts.  God has a plan, and I am OK with that, whether to live or to die. But with my 80^th birthday only months away, by God’s grace I have preached the past three Sundays! God is exceedingly good, and His compassions and loving kindnesses never fail.  Once again, thank you for your intercessions and encouraging calls and cards along the way. No words can express the joy that one experiences, living in light of the love of God and the caring kindness of God’s people. As our dear friend Elaine Camp—widow of beloved pastor and evangelist Don Camp of Anderson, Indiana—heard Vance Havner say (in the Billy Sunday Tabernacle in Winona Lake, Indiana, where she worked as a teenager), “God will give you what you need, when you need it!” Amen.  Selah.