Coming Prophet 2

When Jesus was crucified, he called on his Father and said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” These were vile sinners who had mocked, beaten, spit upon and nailed the perfect, sinless Son of God to a cross, yet he was calling upon the Father for their good. He had come for their sake in the first place, just as he had come for ours.

When Stephen was about to die, being stoned to death by the hard-hearted religious leaders, he cried out, “Lord, do not lay this sin to their charge.”

There are multitudes of scriptural and historical examples of believers loving, serving, forgiving and blessing in phenomenal, sometimes mind-boggling ways. Christians have been known to go into leper colonies to reach lepers; to go into slavery to reach slaves; to shelter people who were being hunted like animals at the risk of their own lives; to extend forgiveness to those who had done horrible things to them and their loved ones.

We must understand that doing “good” or nice things for fellow church members, or for neighbors and co-workers is not what God is after. Those things are good and right, but ultimately, God has placed a much higher calling upon us.

Ephesians 1:16-23 (The Message):  I couldn’t stop thanking God for you–every time I prayed, I’d think of you and give thanks. But I do more than thank. I ask–ask the God of our Master, Jesus Christ, the God of glory–to make you intelligent and discerning in knowing him personally, your eyes focused and clear, so that you can see exactly what it is he is calling you to do, grasp the immensity of this glorious way of life he has for Christians, oh, the utter extravagance of his work in us who trust him–endless energy, boundless strength! All this energy issues from Christ: God raised him from death and set him on a throne in deep heaven, in charge of running the universe, everything from galaxies to governments, no name and no power exempt from his rule. And not just for the time being, but forever. He is in charge of it all, has the final word on everything. At the center of all this, Christ rules the church. The church, you see, is not peripheral to the world; the world is peripheral to the church. The church is Christ’s body, in which he speaks and acts, by which he fills everything with his presence.

We are called to be the body of Christ… to manifest his love, grace, servant’s spirit, compassion, power and anointing in the midst of a sick, lost, sinful and dying world. When people look upon the church, they should see people who are radically different. They should think, “What’s the deal with these people? Which galaxy are they from?” And that’s exactly what happened, in the early church, and in the church at other times and other places, but not in our modern, western church.

The Son of God left the glory of the heavenly kingdom, where everything was perfect; where he never experienced weariness, pain or suffering; where he was highly exalted and honored. He made himself poor, that we might become rich, coming to us in our pain, misery and suffering. He had an incarnational mission, becoming one of us and living among us.

Jesus, the perfect Son of God, who knew no sin, became acquainted with suffering and grief, suffering beyond our imagination at the hands of wicked men, his enemies. He CHOSE to do this in order to purchase us back from Satan, darkness and death and bring us into his kingdom… into his family. He did it all out of love.

He told the disciples, “As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you.” He commanded that we heal the sick, cast out demons, raise the dead and preach the good news. He said that if anyone would come after him, they must deny themselves, take up their cross daily and follow him. He spoke of a real cost to being his disciple and that the cost must be counted and weighed. He warned about suffering with him and for him.

The scriptures clearly teach that believers will share in his sufferings. Here is one out of many examples:

Romans 8:31-39: If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” No, IN ALL THESE THINGS we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

We love to quote the part about nothing being able to separate us from the love of God, but somehow we miss the fact that this passage was written to comfort and encourage Christians about the reality of intense suffering, distress and persecution in the lives of believers.

By what we are… and do… and finally by what we say, we should be causing conviction and hatred to arise in the hearts of unbelievers. That statement will sound heretical to many believers today, but scripture supports it. We should be either the aroma of life, or the stench of death to people. People outside of the family should either want to embrace us and our gospel, or to destroy us and what we represent. There really should be no middle ground.

John 7:7 (Words of Jesus):  The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify that what it does is evil.

John 15:18-19: “If the world hates you, keep in mind that it hated me first. If you belonged to the world, it would love you as its own. As it is, you do not belong to the world, but I have chosen you out of the world. That is why the world hates you.”

1 John 3:10-13: This is how we know who the children of God are and who the children of the devil are: Anyone who does not do what is right is not a child of God; nor is anyone who does not love his brother. This is the message you heard from the beginning: We should love one another. Do not be like Cain, who belonged to the evil one and murdered his brother. And why did he murder him? Because his own actions were evil and his brother’s were righteous. Do not be surprised, my brothers, if the world hates you.

2 Corinthians 2:14-16: But thanks be to God, who always leads us in triumphal procession in Christ and through us spreads everywhere the fragrance of the knowledge of him. For we are to God the aroma of Christ among those who are being saved and those who are perishing. To the one we are the smell of death; to the other, the fragrance of life. And who is equal to such a task?

One thing is clear in this day and age in the western church, and that is the unbelievers do not hate us because we are not of this world, or because our lives testify that their works are evil. They hate us primarily because they see us as hypocrites, who either ignore them, or accuse and point our dirty fingers and say things like, “Turn or burn,” or “You should try Jesus!” All the while, they know we don’t love them and they know we are not united (the two main characteristics Jesus gave for his true followers). They’re also aware that the churches are full of sin, backbiting and corruption, too.

Romans 2:21-24: “You, then, who teach others, do you not teach yourself? You who preach against stealing, do you steal? You who say that people should not commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples? You who brag about the law, do you dishonor God by breaking the law? As it is written: “God’s name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.”

DO WE HEAR THE PROPHET?

It is past time for the prosperous, western, Protestant church to wake up and see that the things that we are and do, the things we call “church” and “Christian” are, for the most part, not pleasing to God, do not honor or glorify him, and need to be radically changed; perhaps even abandoned. There needs to be a massive, gut-wrenching repentance within the body and the churches.

The “gospel” that is preached today is man-centered. It is primarily for us and about us, not for and about the Lord. That’s why there’s so little, if any, power and anointing, or lasting fruit.

Peter said to the religious leaders, when the disciples were being threatened by them, “We must obey God rather than men! The God of our fathers raised Jesus from the dead—whom you had killed by hanging him on a tree. God exalted him to his own right hand as Prince and Savior that he might give repentance and forgiveness of sins to Israel. We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him (Acts 5:29-32).” Their ministry, words and actions were filled with power because they were obeying God.

We have become just another voice among many in the spiritual, psychological and entertainment marketplaces today, and not a very challenging or compelling one, at that. Perhaps this is part of the reason why so many churches are going multi-media and becoming “entertainment” oriented. Maybe its part of the reason why a huge percentage of people who “accept” Jesus at evangelistic rallies or “revival” weeks are nowhere near the church within five years (or much less) of their “decision” for Christ… why people bounce around from church to church constantly… why most “church growth” is usually more the result of people leaving other churches and coming to the one that’s “growing” (for whatever reason) than people being brought out of darkness into the light… why a large percentage of our children drift away or depart from the church after they come of age, or, perhaps even worse, go on doing “church” just as we always have.

Church is not supposed to be comfortable or acceptable, or user/seeker friendly. It’s not supposed to be where people look to see which church suits them best, and has the most “ministries” that are useful to them. It’s not supposed to be where we “go” once or twice a week for “inspiration”, or a good sermon, or a nice home-fellowship group, or pot-luck picnics, or the latest craze, like “Experiencing God” workshops. The church is not about man and his wants, “needs” or hurts that need to be healed.

The church should be a place where radically converted, repentant men and women come together to serve the Lord’s purposes and agenda… like bringing conviction to a lost world of sin, and righteousness and the judgment to come… like actively seeking, finding and drawing to God those who are lost and perishing… like challenging evil and corruption in people, society and government, not with dirty, pointing, self-righteous fingers, or with apathy, but with the love of God and lives that shine forth his purity.

Here are some more questions to ponder:

Why are our “prayer services” so sparsely attended, if there even is one? Shouldn’t vital, corporate prayer, getting before our God without an eye on the clock, be one of the main thrusts of the church? Shouldn’t groups of believers be getting together to pray apart from any official prayer service? We don’t pray because we’re all about our own wants and “needs”, not God’s, and there’s little if any life or power in such “prayer”. Why are pot-lucks and social activities well attended, but times of serious prayer sparsely attended, if they even exist?

What about outreach? It is rare that a western, Protestant church goes beyond the “Wednesday evening, soul-winning”-type ministry (with perhaps a handful of members taking part), and many (perhaps most) churches have no real, viable outreach of any kind. Aren’t we supposed to be invested in seeking, finding and ministering to the lost? The sick? The hurting? The dying? The poor (not the parasites who won’t work and care for their own needs)? The criminals? The addicts and drunks? The hopeless and lonely? The outcasts? The members of cults and occult groups? These kinds of people are everywhere!

Why are we so concerned and busy with seeing that our own “needs” are met, and our own “hurts” ministered to? Why do Christians go to so many conferences, retreats and seminars, and read so many spiritual books, but experience so little genuine righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit (Paul’s definition of the Kingdom of God in Romans 14:17)?

What about missions? Why are the vast majority of churches unwilling or unable to send missionaries? Why are para-church organizations so necessary in the sending out of missionaries? Why are there so few believers with a willingness to go, and why must they raise such large amounts of money annually to do so? Aside from the expense of getting there, which is usually not an exorbitant amount, it shouldn’t require lots of money to live and work among most people-groups. Why is most missionary work done among people-groups that are not unreached? Why are there so few living, vibrant local churches established by our missionary endeavors? Why is so little money, relatively speaking, given by Christians to missions?

The questions go on and on. Why does the average Christian have such a low degree of scriptural knowledge and understanding? Why do so few believers ever really challenge unbelievers or cult members with the demands of God or the truth of the gospel? Why do we tell people who are having troubles or hardships to “try Jesus”? Why do so many churches put up trite little blurbs and sayings on signs in front of their buildings, like “Seven days without prayer makes one weak”? Do we really think such drivel challenges the unbeliever? It only confirms for them our blandness.

Why are there so few relationships of substance among Christians? Why do we have such insulated, isolated lives? Why do the great majority of church members never get to know the “Pastor” or others in leadership in any real way?

We must get back to the essentials, such as:

Obedience- We in the modern-day, western church do not understand the “Lordship” of Christ. There is a major segment of the church today that teaches that we can have Jesus as “Savior”, but not necessarily as “Lord”, and those of us who see Lordship as essential do not necessarily submit to him as Lord. It’s not enough to claim “Lordship” as a doctrine!

We quote Romans 10:9… “If you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved,” not realizing that saying, “Jesus is Lord” is useless and meaningless without placing ourselves under his Lordship. Saying those words is not what is meant in the passage. It means you are embracing Jesus as your Lord, and sadly, we in the western church are not doing so, whether we are proclaiming a “Lordship salvation” or not.

We need to remember that Jesus said, “Those enemies of mine, who would not have me to reign over them, bring here, and slay them before me (Luke 19:27).” He also said, “Why do you call me Lord, Lord, and not do the things which I say,” and, “Not every one that says to me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that does the will of my Father who is in heaven.”

Passionate worship- Which includes singing songs to and about the Lord, but does not begin and end there. Worship recognizes the awesomeness and greatness of God and what he has done for us, and gladly submits everything to him and his will. It places him at the center of everything. It delights in praising him and telling others of his glory, goodness and wonder.

True praise of something, and telling others about it, is something that occurs naturally. If you see a great movie, you will tell others about it, and encourage them to go see it, not out of duty or obligation, but because it’s captured your heart.

Could it be that there is so little worship of God today in the churches because we do not truly see him for who he is, or recognize the wonder of the good he has done for us? Have we forgotten that we deserve judgment and wrath instead of good, or has all this become just doctrinal concepts to us?

Focused, goal-oriented, God-centered prayer- God has purposes, plans and intentions and we are called to play a vital role in their fulfillment through prayer and obedience. Jesus spent very much time seeking the Father in prayer and following his leading. The disciples and church after Pentecost did the same, both individually and corporately. The scriptural mandate to pray is strong and clear. Prayer should be an effectual weapon of war in the hands of believing, obedient Christians. The problem is, though, that we in the churches have deserted and gone AWOL.

Outreach and missions that have the heartbeat of God- God is a Missionary God who came to seek and to save that which was lost. He humbled himself and came to us, his enemies, in order to rescue us from sin, darkness and eternal death. We must understand that we were not lovely or desirable, otherwise we will always keep our distance from, or completely avoid the unlovely and our enemies, and this is what we do. God did not save us because there was anything good or noble about us, but because HE IS LOVE, and because he intends to have many sons and daughters who bear a striking resemblance to his Son.

Genuine outreach and mission will produce great joys, but also great resistance, hardship and suffering. If we are not willing to embrace these truths, we will never, ever serve God in the way he has ordained. The gospel should either cut people to the heart and draw them to the Lord, or infuriate them and cause them to resent or hate us.

Real relationships- Not just doing certain things together at certain times. We are called to love, care for and nurture one another, and provoke one another toward love and good works. There is some of this dynamic in the churches, but not nearly enough. Most church members do not develop strong, caring relationships with more than a handful of others, it they even get that far.

Separation from the world- Paul said that he and the world were crucified to each other (Galatians 6:14). John commands us to not love the world or the things of the world (1 John 2:15-17). Jesus said that the world would hate us because we were not “of” the world. Scripture encourages us to seek those things which are above rather than earthly things, and to lay up for ourselves treasures in heaven, not on earth.

This may be the area where we are “missing it” the most. We hotly pursue diversions, entertainment and toys… seek to gratify our own desires and egos… strive to climb the social and economic ladders… and have most of the same kinds of problems as our unbelieving neighbors.

Would these things be so if we were passionately pursuing the kingdom of God and his righteousness, as Jesus tells us to do? If we were denying ourselves, taking up our cross and following him? If we knew ourselves to be on a “rescue mission” as he was? If we saw ourselves as “servant of all” instead of the ones being served? If we were loving others and laying down our lives for them? If we were willing to embrace suffering for and with the Son of God? If we were pursuing holiness, without which no one will see the Lord?

Jesus, the prophet promised by God and sent into the world by him, expects all of these things from us, and more. Are we listening?