Sat, Jul 25th - 5:59PM

Have your ever taken a look at the Old Testament book of Habakkuk? If not, this is a good time to observe its message. It isn’t pretty, it isn’t one that an individual can shout praises all the way through. It’s a short book of prophesy for its time. Only three chapters. But it can be a source of encouragement for today’s believers.

In the context of the book, Habakkuk asks two questions of God and receives answers back from God. The questions are prompted by the prophet’s observation of the people of Judah. In the first four verses of chapter one comes the first question from the backdrop of the sinfulness of the people along with an evil justice system.

From the population, the prophet sees rampant sinfulness. He was bewildered that God would permit such sin in the nation. Plundering and violence were an ongoing occurrence. Wickedness prevailed. The King James Version of the Bible has the end result in 1:4 this way: "Justice goeth forth perverted". He concluded that righteous folk were surrounded by wicket people.

The prophet, along with the righteous people, couldn’t help but wonder why God was allowing such ungodliness to continue without His judgement. We’ve seen righteous people suffer in their homeland throughout history as evil prevailed. There are millions of individuals around the world today suffering physically, emotionally, and financially because of the power wicket people gain when rising to the position of power in communities.

So, Habakkuk approached God with his first question: "O LORD, how long shall I cry, And You will not hear?"(1:1). This question led to God’s answer.

The prophet doesn’t hear what he is hoping to hear. Instead of God giving him hope for a quick revival and a powerful sweeping revival across the land, He speaks of judgement. He was raising up a people more wicket than Judah to become the rod of correction in His hand. They are Chaldeans, a very strong and evil people. Their reputation was already known. They would come with their horsemen who would spring about in their conquest and capture of the people of Judah. They ascribed their power to their god.

Habakkuk then reminded God just how bad things were back in Judah. He pleads their case before the Judge of the universe. And He reminds God just how terrible are the Chaldeans, how fierce they are in their wars.

The prophet promises to stand as watchman over the spiritual condition of the land. Like the soldier on duty who climbs the ladder up to the rampart to watch for any incoming enemy, Habakkuk tells God he will be watching to see what is coming down the road. The prophet will be watching and be ready to be corrected.

God’s second answer isn’t any better than the answer to the first question. But He does give us the key verse for this short book. In 2:4, he wrote, "Behold the proud. His soul is not upright in him; But the just shall live by his faith". The proud are the self-reliant people. They don’t need spiritual or Godly advice. "His soul is not upright in him" is God’s description of the wicked.

On the other hand, people of faith, the righteous, will depend upon God for their safety and care. Living by faith always gets believers through trials and troubles.

And that faith is the prophet’s concluding chapter. It is triumphant faith that can declare, regardless of circumstances, his faith in God will be maintained.

Habakkuk declared that if there is nothing left after the invasion of the Chaldeans, "Yet I will rejoice in the LORD, I will joy in the God of my salvation". The crops are gone, the herds are stolen, and no cry of the young animals in the stall! "Yet" — even though all is lost, the prophet declares his faith in God.

Wars are started as a result of evil people. Thus, its not about this nation nor another, its always a war between good and evil, between God and Satan. Let’s stay with the faith which has brought us this far and will usher us into His Heaven at the end of the age.

Mon, Jul 20th - 12:18AM

Fifty Years Of Ministry Sees Many Changes

Fifty years of pastoral ministry has now come and gone. On July 19, I celebrated my fiftieth anniversary of ordination. These have been wonderful years, a lifetime I wouldn’t trade for any other. I would, if the opportunity was given anew, only seek for more dedication and commitment to the Lord Jesus Christ.

In the early days of my preaching ministry, this calling was looked upon as honorable, as something which made friends and family proud. There were no vocal individuals or crowds stepping forward to publicly ridicule ministers of the gospel, to classify them with hypocrites who did what they did just to have people say nice things to them and about them.

But fifty years has seen changes in attitudes and people view the world a whole lot differently than in those days now gone forever. Ministry is no longer considered as one of the top career choices on any secular list of desired career choices. But we weren’t back then nor are men today selecting the ministry as a career choice because it is popular, a well paying position, an easy Sunday only job, or some other lame excuse to do nothing else. The man who is truly called of God to stand in the pulpit and proclaim the gospel is there by the power of God in the person and ministry of the indwelling Holy Spirit of God.

When the church was just beginning to breath, two of Jesus’ disciples went to the temple at the hour of prayer as was their custom. They went to the temple because that is where the people were and they desired to share the gospel.

As they entered, there was a man by the doorway, who had been lame since birth. He was brought to the temple each day so he could beg for a handout from those entering the House of God for their prayer time. As Peter and John was entering, the man gave his usual plea for help. Peter said, "Look at us"(Acts 3:4). Surely they were going to drop a coin into his coffer! He expected as much.

Peter spoke to him, "Silver and gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk"(v. 6). As the story of this encounter moves forward, you see the man walking and leaping and praising God. This lame man’s experience was witnessed by other people who had come that day to the temple.

Wow! Now the Devil will tremble! Now Satan will get out of the way and allow the movement of the Christian faith to grow without interference! No! That’s not the way this story ends.

Instead of being praised by the religious leaders of the day, Peter and John were called upon the carpet for acting differently from the established law of the priests and the Sadducees. They were arrested. The healing incident, along with the sermon Peter preached when he saw the crowd, required an answer to satisfy the rulers, elders, scribes, and Annas the high priest. So, these two men of God were brought before them and the first question was: "By what power or by what name have you done this"(4:7).

All this did was give Peter another opportunity to lay before those who listened the claims of Jesus Christ as the Savior of the world.

The religious leaders who heard their words were impressed with their boldness. They admitted that the two disciples had not been trained in religious things as they themselves and had to acknowledge "that they had been with Jesus".

This story ends with Peter and John being threatened with punishment if they continued to speak in this manner. They tried to scare these men of God to the point that they would fear them and not speak and preach in Jesus name any longer.

Their answer? "Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you more than to God, you judge. For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard"(4:19-20).

Christians who follow true faith will no doubt be singled out for reticule as we come nearer and nearer the great falling away from the faith. So, dig in! Hold on! And never be ashamed of speaking out for the gospel of Jesus Christ. It might cost a heavy price on this side of eternity, but the rewards on the other side of death far outweigh the difficulties of a few years down here.

Sun, Jul 12th - 11:50PM

The Bible is the most precious book one can possess. In the pages of scripture, one finds a gold mine of spiritual information which can set one’s feet on the correct path in life as well as show the seeker how to get to Heaven. It is the record of information which our eternal God wants us to know.

Yet, there are multitudes of individuals who can’t or don’t see the value of the words it has for mankind. Many claim that it isn’t the only source through which spiritual and eternal values are found. They don’t see the Bible as the inerrant, Holy Spirit authored word from God. It has many good sayings, but it is only one of many just as valuable holy books.

And so goes the battle over the trustworthiness of the holy scriptures. But I’ll never lay it aside for some other holy book. I have found tucked away in its pages many valuable promises to folk who believe in Jesus Christ as their personal savior.

So, I turn to this deep reservoir of truth for answers to the questions of life and of the hereafter. Within it’s pages I’m reminded that Jesus has already come to earth.

At times, in our expectation of the second coming of Jesus, we lose sight of the fact that He has already come. He isn’t just a personality of the history books. He is more than someone who died some 2,000 years ago. When I say He has come, I’m reminding myself, along with those who read these lines, that the One yet to come, has already come the first time.

That first coming is what Christmas is all about. God stepped out of eternity for awhile, took up the garments of human flesh, was laid in a manager, and lived some 30 + years upon the earth without sin. His human name is Jesus, the savior of the world. John, the writer of the gospel and 1, 2, and 3 John, along with The Revelation, wrote it this way: "And He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the whole world"(1 Jo 2:2).

Yes, Jesus came into this fallen world. He lived among its people. He attended a wedding ceremony. He observed the Passover on more than one occasion. Jesus spoke to the young children, fed the thousands from a fish and small loaves of bread, taught the disciples, and then went to the cross to pay for our sin. John wrote in his gospel that "He came to His own, and His own did not receive Him"(Jo 1:11).

All whom I’ve heard give a personal testimony to their faith, have expressed thanksgiving to Him for His sacrificial death on the cross. They admit that the cross made the difference in their lives. They and we realize that the birth, life, death, and resurrection of Jesus are the most significant events in all of history.

But even with this information, some folk still step back and wonder why He came to earth. Some think it was for the purpose of giving an example of how to live a good life or to show how important our good works are in the midst of our lifetime. Most in our generation simply haven’t gotten the reason for His life upon the earth. If you’re still wondering, allow Jesus Himself to tell you why He came to earth. "For the Son of Man has come to save that which was lost"(Mt 18:11). So, there you have His reason for visiting earth! It is to save the lost, which according to Romans 3:23, all of mankind has sinned and is in need of a Savior.

Jesus has indeed already come to the earth. That is past history. But, according to an angel, "This same Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will so come in like manner as you saw Him go into heaven"(Acts 1:11). And John wrote what Jesus said to him while he was on Patmos, "Behold, I am coming quickly"(Rev. 22:7).

And so, one of these days, Jesus will quickly appear for the church, His bride. John also wrote in his gospel, "And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also"(14:3).

Detractors to this wonderful truth come and go, but the Word of God and His promises still stand as monuments along the road of life to guide us to His promised Heaven. When is He coming? I don’t know. It could be any day, even today. Are you ready to meet Him if His coming was right now?

Mon, Jul 6th - 3:51PM

Waging A Battle in Prayer For Spiritual Awakening

America’s age of 233 has now been written into the history ledger of the world’s greatest nation. American is now pursuing 234 years of service to her citizens as well as to those of the world’s other countries. Over the past few days, perhaps millions of words have been spoken and written about her past history, about her glory days of excellence, of her service to the peoples of the world. These reminders are good as we remember her history, her tribulations, her defeats and her victories.

Now where do we go? Ever wonder what the next 233 years will be like, if God permits the world to turn another couple centuries? Have you stopped, while celebrating our nation’s birth, to consider her health? If so, what kind of health report are you giving?

I’ve read the report of some, including the editors of the Enterprise Journal. And I’ve come to the conclusion that our nation is in poor health. Yes, we are still a great nation, relying upon the freedoms handed down to us through the years. The difficulties ahead are becoming more overwhelming with each passing week.

Difficulties have been overcome in the past, but that doesn’t mean they will, by simple hard work, be overcome in the future. Our founding fathers, and those who followed through the years, had something in the political arena which seems to be missing in our present day. Our nation is drifting further and further away from God and our dependence upon Him. They believed He would answer their prayers.

Patrick Henry, one of the leaders in the American Revolution, said in 1775, "It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great Nation was founded not by religionist, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the Gospel of Jesus Christ."

Thomas Jefferson wrote in the front of his well-worn Bible: "I am a real Christian, that is to say, a disciple of the doctrines of Jesus. I have little doubt that our whole country will soon be rallied to the unity of our creator."

In 1782, the United States Congress voted the following resolution: "The Congress of the United States recommends and approves the Holy Bible for use in all schools." The ACLU would have a problem with that resolution!

In 1781, the congress was petitioned to print Bibles. The green light was given and the "Bible of the Revolution" was printed by the government.

In "The Rebirth of America", printed by The Arthur S. DeMoss Foundation, most of the facts sighted above are found. Our history is filled with the promises and protection of God.

Today we are being told that America is no longer a Christian nation. We have been warned that science will trump anything and everyone else’s opinion and point of debate. We are in danger of losing freedom of speech if we condemn or oppose decisions of the courts or laws passed by congress. Those dangers are clouded with new word meanings.

The question then arises as to whether our Christian population is moving forward in the battle, not with guns and bullets, not with mean spirited words of ridicule, but in the powerful position of their knees in prayer. We need revival to sweep through our churches, into the public square, and up and down every country road in the nation.

Why have we come to this spiritual stalemate? Why are so many of our churches suffering from low attendance and faithful support of the local church? Some say its because pastors aren’t preaching the Word of God as they should. Perhaps there are some! But the Word of God goes out Sunday after Sunday and on Wednesdays to people interested in hearing His truth.

Let’s not cast stones, but each one join our redeemed hands together, realizing that we are all to some degree at fault. Too many live their daily lives without prayer, without Bible study, without considering the Lord’s guidance in their lives. Instead of being salt and light to a world that is suffering from sinfulness, too often of us blend in with the crowd and allow them to influence our thinking and acting.

Yes, America has faced difficulties and met most challenges in victory. But, even though not everyone has professed faith in Jesus Christ, for the most part, the guiding principle of right and wrong has been the Ten Commands and laws have been written to reflect that principle. Now, if we preachers preach the Word correctly, and if we as believers live the life of Christ in our daily lives, and if we have in place government leaders who connect civil government with the principles of Christianity, then America’s future is very bright. Let’s sincerely pray toward that end.