Welcome to Leaving Laodicea

One of the great things about the Lord is the fact He is slow to anger and abounds in mercy.  In fact, Lamentations says “Through the LORD’s mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not.  They (His compassions) are new every morning; Great is Your (His) faithfulness” (Lam. 3:22-23).  Do you know what that means?  It means no matter how bad yesterday was, we can always begin again tomorrow with our God.  Always!

Do you believe that?  Do you truly believe that?

If so, it means that no matter how great your sin, or failure, or disappointment, or bitterness, or unanswered prayer you suffered from yesterday, it is just that— yesterday’s news.  And today it is all forgotten, all forgiven, all put to rest.

God promises His compassion is new, fresh, and in abundant supply every time we open our eyes and behold the new morning.  They are new every morning.  Not some mornings, but every morning.  God provides His mercy and compassion to us each new day, regardless of how we defiled the day before.

Therefore, in wonder and appreciation, we cry out to our God, “Great is Your faithfulness!”

After all the chaos and upheaval we’ve seen in our country these past few weeks that threatens to tear apart the very fabric of our republic and the church, we have come to a place in our lives where we must ask ourselves the question, What do I believe?

That’s right.  What do I believe?

•   What am I willing to die for?
•   What is the mission and calling of my life?
•   What means the most to me?
•   And what truth will I not compromise on?

Or, as Martin Luther said when commanded to recant his beliefs to save his life, “Here I stand, I can do no other, so help me God.”

So let me ask you, what do you believe about the times in which we live?

When we compare the church today with the example given in the book of Acts, we come up short and wanting.  It looks like what life was like in the book of Acts and our church life now are not even related, like they were from different parents, from different planets.  And if you are honest with yourself, you will see how much we have lost and how far we have fallen from the prototype God gave us in His Word.  Which begs the question: How can we recover what we have lost?

What do we know about the early church?  Consider the following:

•  They lived in communities, like one large, extended family.
•  They met in homes or rented facilities.  There was not a million-dollar building on every street corner that sat empty six days a week.
•  Their key distinctive was worship and evangelism.  Or, worship expressed as evangelism.
•  They were led by lay leaders.  You and me.  The guy next door.  There was nothing of the clergy, laity divide.  There were no hired holy-men.  Everyone was obedient to the command of Christ, individually.
•  They were guided by Scriptures.  Not tradition, nor public opinion, nor vote of the congregation.  God and His Word was the final authority.
•  Everyone was a priest.  Each believer had direct access to the throne of God.  Hence, they were all equal in His sight.
•  They had all things in common.  This is probably the hardest concept to get our heads around since we are happy living in a narcissistic world.
•  They were known, both within and outside of the church, as holy men who lived sanctified lives.

Looks a bit different from any church I have ever been a part of.  Can you say the same?

One of the most important things we can do to combat the coming apostasy, as we have shared before, is to develop an intimate relationship with both God and His Word.  In essence, to have an experience with Him through His Word.   And we do this by slowing down and asking questions of the text, just like we would if we experienced it, first-person.  As if we were actually there.  Today, being close to Christmas, we will briefly look at the birth account of Jesus through Luke’s eyes and see if some questions arise when we read Luke’s words.  Maybe some questions we would want to ask Joseph about the trip to Bethlehem.

And why is that so important?

To begin with, the first step in learning how to experience God through His Word is to slow down and take your time.  In essence, give God time to speak to you.  Remember the points we discussed earlier?

•  Take your time.  After all, this ain’t no race, and the prize doesn’t go to the one who finished first.  The winner is the one who hears from God.
•  Therefore, you must wait for God to speak to you wherever you are reading.  Slow down and take your time.  Remove the yoke of bondage you have placed on yourself with your agenda or Bible reading plan that is more important than experiencing God in His Word.
•  Again, slow down and take your time.
•  Wherever you are at in His Word, read the passage over and over again, out loud.  Emphasize each word or phrase.  Let your ears hear what your lips are reading.  Use dramatic effect in your voice if necessary.  Become the characters.  Feel what they feel.  And think what they must have been thinking.
•  Then ask the obvious questions or wait for questions to arise.  They will if you don’t rush your time with Him.  And when they do, watch what happens.

As an example, today we will look at Luke 2:1-21 and see if we can experience God in this account of Jesus’ birth by waiting for our questions to arise.

As we see the church beginning to bend to the whims of our culture we struggle to ask how we, as the church, have let this happen on our watch?  How did things in our society go so wrong, so fast?  If the church is the light of the world and the salt of the earth, we have gone AWOL and abandoned our posts.  And the reason is simple, we have a crisis of Godly leadership in the church, in our marriages, and in our families.  Where did all our leaders go?

Part of this crisis is found in our assumptions about the church and the expectations of the Christian life.  Consider the assumptions we, as men, constantly make regarding church and our responsibilities to lead our wives and children in the things of the Lord.

We assume:

•  There will always be a church on every street corner so I can freely church-shop without having to make a commitment to any in particular.
•  There will always be paid staff to do ministry for me so I won’t have to.
•  Praise and worship will always be what I enjoy.  And if not, “I’m outta here, bub!”
•  There will always be a preacher/pastor/teacher, my personal hired holy man who will do the heavy lifting for me and my family so I can spend my time doing other things that I enjoy more.
•  There will always be good study materials available for free so I won’t have to spend my money on learning the Bible but can spend it on what I want.
•  Church will always be about me.
•  I can come when I want, late or not, no matter.
•  I can do what I want, no matter how it affects others.
•  I can live the type of life I want, sin and all, and if someone has a problem with that I can always leave and go to another church of my choosing.

But these are all just assumptions.  And church life is quite different on the front lines.

One of the best ways to soar above the apostasy that seems to be raising its ugly head in the church today is to have a true, passionate, life-changing experience with the Lord.  No, we’re not talking about memorizing more Scripture or doubling your time in prayer, although those things will help you experience God personally.  And we are not talking about growing in your knowledge of the Lord if that means knowing Him as we know George Washington, all history and facts, impersonal doctrine and theology.  What changes your heart is to experience God in a personal way, where He speaks to you and you recognize His voice.

But how is that done?  How do we experience God?  And why is that even important?

Let’s answer the last question, first, by listing some troubling facts discovered about evangelicals in a recent Barna survey.  This alone should show us that knowledge has replaced experience in the church today.

According to a recent Barna study of professing evangelicals:

• 48% believe a person who is good enough or does enough good works can earn eternal salvation
• 44% claim the Bible is ambiguous in its teaching about abortion
• 44% do not believe that history is the unfolding narrative of God’s reality
• 43% maintain that when Jesus was on earth, He sinned
• 43% do not believe that there is a common, God-given purpose to humanity (i.e., to know, love, and serve Him)
• 42% seek moral guidance primarily from sources other than the Bible
• 42% do not identify and confess their sins on a daily basis
• 40% do not believe that human life is sacred
• 40% accept lying as morally acceptable if it advances personal interests or protects one’s reputation
• 39% identify the people they always respect as being only those who have the same beliefs as they possess
• 36% prefer socialism to capitalism
• 36% fail to seek and pursue God’s will for their life
• 34% reject the idea of legitimate marriage as one man and one woman
• 34% argue that abortion is morally acceptable if it spares the mother from financial or emotional discomfort or hardship
• 32% do not thank or worship God each day

How is this even possible in a nation that has “In God We Trust” on its currency?

If you ask most Christians, they will tell you their prayer life is usually directed to the “Father” or “God” or “Lord” and in the “name of Jesus”.  Yes, there are some who actually pray to Jesus but seldom, if ever, do you hear of someone praying to the Holy Spirit.  And why is that?  Often it is because we have been taught by well-meaning Sunday School teachers that “We are never to pray to the Holy Spirit because the Holy Spirit always gives glory to the Father and the Son, and never to Himself.”   Which is basically true but misses the point altogether.  So the question remains, is praying to the Holy Spirit wrong?

In order to understand this key question, we have to look once again at the definition of the trinity.  These are the facts from Scripture, even though they are difficult to understand.

One, God eternally exists as three persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Two, each of them is fully God.
Three, there is one God.

Which means Jesus and the Father are the same, yet separate.  Therefore, if you have seen Jesus, then you have seen the Father (John 14:9).   In fact, Jesus said “the Father who (what) dwells in Me (ménō – to remain, abide, live, to be united with someone in heart, mind, and will) does the work (referring to the works that Jesus does that He offers as proof that He and His Father are one and that He exists “in” His Father and His Father exists “in” Him.)

But what does that say about the Holy Spirit?

If you look around, you can see darkness coming upon our land.  There is no denying it.  Just watch the news.  It’s depressing.  And the church is not immune to what happens in the culture.  In fact, the church often follows the culture to its own demise, which is what we are seeing today.  We are in the early stages of the great apostasy Jesus warned us about in Matthew 24.  But we also have a mighty weapon to confront the darkness.  And that weapon is the Holy Spirit.  So the most important question we can ask ourselves is this: How can I be filled with the Hoy Spirit?  How can I have more of Him in me?

But when it comes to the Holy Spirit, many of us are confused and conflicted as to what it means to be filled with the Holy Spirit.  Is it a Charismatic thing or is it for everyone?  Is it something that comes naturally, or do we have to ask for this filling?  And if we have to ask, are there any conditions we must meet first?  Again, if there are conditions, what are they?

Ah, so many questions and so much confusion.

D.L. Moody once spoke about the need to be filled by the Spirit (and he was a pretty non-Charismatic guy.  Look at what he said:

“I believe firmly, that the moment our hearts are emptied of pride and selfishness and ambition and self-seeking, and everything that is contrary to God’s law, the Holy Ghost will come and fill every corner of our hearts.  But if we are full of pride and conceit, and ambition and self-seeking, and pleasure and the world, there is no room for the Spirit of God; and I believe many a man is praying to God to fill him when he is full already with something else.  Before we pray that God would fill us, I believe we ought to pray Him to empty us.”

I couldn’t agree with him more.  But how is someone filled by the Holy Spirit?