The words of a worship chorus have been running through my mind for several days: “The name of the Lord is a strong tower; the righteous run into it and they are safe.” Over and over the words come. When I get up in the morning I am singing them in my mind; during the day when I pause, there they are.
Am I the only one this ever happens to? Or perhaps it’s the uplifting words of Kanye West or Rascal Flats that occupy your mind! (I’m just kidding! To all my friends in the emerging church, don’t get upset…it’s just a joke.)
The words of the song are taken from Proverbs 18:10 and I’m going to quote that and the next verse because to really understand the message of 18:10, you also need to understand the next verse. Verse 11 is a contrast to verse 10 and as such sets the message into a sharper image for us.
10 The name of the LORD is a strong tower;
the righteous run to it and are safe.
11 The wealth of the rich is their fortified city;
they imagine it an unscalable wall. (Proverbs 18:10-11 NIV)
The “name of the Lord” is God in His completeness. He is not just God the creator, or the provider, or the merciful, or the just. He is God and He is all those and much, much more. When I mention the name of a person you have known for years, as some of you have known me, what immediately springs to mind? A mental picture of that person and with it the memories, the knowledge of who that person is, and what kind of person he is. This is what “the name of the Lord” is meant to convey, as complete a picture of God as we are capable of having and then some, His strengths, His character, His mercy…all of Him!
To picture the “strong tower,” think of the high walls of a fortified castle. If you were one of the few who saw the movie Troy, you know that the Greeks could not defeat the city of Troy because of its high and unassailable walls. The only way the Greek army could get into the city was to resort to trickery because they could not get through or over the walls. And so it is with God’s people when we run to the strong tower; the only way the enemy can get in is to trick us into opening the door.
“The righteous run.” The word run is self-explanatory; it means haste, don’t mess around, get where the protection is. I struggle in this area because I am a negotiator. I like to work things out and instead of throwing myself into God’s arms, I try to negotiate a peaceful settlement of the pain, of the problem. The “righteous run” means we drop that pretension and throw ourselves into God’s protection. It’s tough for the John Wayne spirit to do this but “John Wayne” has screwed up enough times to finally begin to learn that his way is not God’s way.
“Are safe” means to be lifted up out of harm’s way; this is a powerful promise for God’s people. All of God is committed to keeping his children “safe.”
As someone said earlier, verse 11 is the contrast to verse 10 and as such sets the meaning of verse 10 into a more clearly defined image.When we speak of “the wealth of the rich,” we are not speaking only of financial fortune. We are also speaking of all those who are rich in many other ways: in success, in status, in celebrity, in education, in intelligence. The wealth that they have amassed in the area of their endeavors becomes, in their mind, their fortress. Their mind tells them to believe that in that wealth, they can find the security they are hungering for.
The wealthy imagine that their abundance is providing them a protection that is “unscaleable” (Proverbs 18:11). Their conceited minds believe, “Nothing can get to me, nothing can overcome the richness of what I possess.” The financially wealthy think that finances will insulate them; those rich in intelligence think they can find a solution without help by using their vast mental resources; the successful entrepreneur believes that with dogged determination and a few more dollars, he can press ahead and find a way.
Verse 12 helps to set it in perspective: “Before destruction the heart of a man is haughty (proud), And before honor (to be lifted up to safety) is humility.”
And the Patterson version says, “To Him I will run because I am a bankrupt person and He is everything I can never be on my own.”
Sunday, March 30, 2008
Sunday, March 23, 2008
JESUS WANTS YOUR.....DONKEY!
There is a quiet revolution taking place in the business world. Several months ago I read an article in a business periodical about the growing number of companies in this country that are employing Christian chaplains. I’m talking about secular businesses here. Why are they making this rather unusual move? Because the results affect their bottom line. Businesses are finding that having a chaplain available to their staff has measurable positive results; having happier workers means more work and less nonproductive down time…and that translates into more profit. Apparently the number of businesses retaining the services of chaplains is growing and shows no signs of slowing down. This is one part of the revolution.
The second part of the change going on in the business world is among those who are business owners but are already believers. A growing number of Christian business owners are dedicating their businesses to the Lord and committing to using a portion of their profits to invest back into the kingdom of God.
While the first part of the revolution is primarily taking place in the U.S., the second part is a worldwide phenomenon. Christian businessmen from all over the world are beginning to step forward in acts of dedication and are funding evangelism, humanitarian projects and church planting in their own nations and in missions worldwide. More and more businessmen are dedicating significant portions of the profits of their businesses to the Lord’s work.
Through his organization (www.aims.org), one of my long-time friends, Dr. Howard Foltz, has been involved in assisting thousands of businessmen learn how to move forward in faith. (At last count they have trained over 14,000 businessmen and women how to step out in faith.) You need to visit Howard’s Website and get a good understanding of the work his organization is doing.
Several years ago I heard the story of a very wealthy businessman here in the U.S. This brother in the Lord was one of the most successful men in his field at that time. His personal wealth was almost impossible to comprehend. He began to give rather large sums of money to the church he was attending and because the pastor did not know him personally, he arranged a time for the two of them to meet. It was the pastor’s intention to thank the man for his generosity. As the two met and got to know each other, the businessman told the pastor that he had received Christ as a teenager and soon after had felt that God was calling him into ministry. He had rebelled against that and pursued his own course for his life; he was very successful but he lived away from the Lord. Late in life he came to a time of crisis when he surrendered his life fully to the Lord. Not long after his “late in life” surrender, he felt strongly directed by the Holy Spirit to begin giving generously to the work of the Lord. The businessman said that God had said to him, “You have pursued your own course and secured your future financially, for yourself and your family. You have more than enough for yourself, so from now on I want you to give the bulk of what you earn into my kingdom!” And he was doing just that.
As Jesus was getting ready for His triumphal entry into Jerusalem, He said the following to his disciples, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Loose them and bring them to Me. And if anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord has need of them,’ and immediately he will send them” (Matthew 21:2-3). In the Bible donkeys were a symbol of commerce and were a primary means of distributing goods and services. So when Jesus asked for the use of the donkey, He was not simply borrowing the man’s bicycle, He was borrowing and using his means of making a living, his ability to engage in commerce.
When God spoke to the wealthy businessman about redistributing his earnings and sowing largely into His Kingdom, the Lord was asking him for his donkey. And this is an integral part of this quiet revolution that is affecting the presentation of the gospel worldwide. All across our world the word of the Lord is coming to businessmen and women, “I need your donkeys; turn loose of them and bring them to Me. I have need of them!”
Can you hear it? Can you hear what Jesus is saying? He wants your donkey!
The second part of the change going on in the business world is among those who are business owners but are already believers. A growing number of Christian business owners are dedicating their businesses to the Lord and committing to using a portion of their profits to invest back into the kingdom of God.
While the first part of the revolution is primarily taking place in the U.S., the second part is a worldwide phenomenon. Christian businessmen from all over the world are beginning to step forward in acts of dedication and are funding evangelism, humanitarian projects and church planting in their own nations and in missions worldwide. More and more businessmen are dedicating significant portions of the profits of their businesses to the Lord’s work.
Through his organization (www.aims.org), one of my long-time friends, Dr. Howard Foltz, has been involved in assisting thousands of businessmen learn how to move forward in faith. (At last count they have trained over 14,000 businessmen and women how to step out in faith.) You need to visit Howard’s Website and get a good understanding of the work his organization is doing.
Several years ago I heard the story of a very wealthy businessman here in the U.S. This brother in the Lord was one of the most successful men in his field at that time. His personal wealth was almost impossible to comprehend. He began to give rather large sums of money to the church he was attending and because the pastor did not know him personally, he arranged a time for the two of them to meet. It was the pastor’s intention to thank the man for his generosity. As the two met and got to know each other, the businessman told the pastor that he had received Christ as a teenager and soon after had felt that God was calling him into ministry. He had rebelled against that and pursued his own course for his life; he was very successful but he lived away from the Lord. Late in life he came to a time of crisis when he surrendered his life fully to the Lord. Not long after his “late in life” surrender, he felt strongly directed by the Holy Spirit to begin giving generously to the work of the Lord. The businessman said that God had said to him, “You have pursued your own course and secured your future financially, for yourself and your family. You have more than enough for yourself, so from now on I want you to give the bulk of what you earn into my kingdom!” And he was doing just that.
As Jesus was getting ready for His triumphal entry into Jerusalem, He said the following to his disciples, “Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find a donkey tied, and a colt with her. Loose them and bring them to Me. And if anyone says anything to you, you shall say, ‘The Lord has need of them,’ and immediately he will send them” (Matthew 21:2-3). In the Bible donkeys were a symbol of commerce and were a primary means of distributing goods and services. So when Jesus asked for the use of the donkey, He was not simply borrowing the man’s bicycle, He was borrowing and using his means of making a living, his ability to engage in commerce.
When God spoke to the wealthy businessman about redistributing his earnings and sowing largely into His Kingdom, the Lord was asking him for his donkey. And this is an integral part of this quiet revolution that is affecting the presentation of the gospel worldwide. All across our world the word of the Lord is coming to businessmen and women, “I need your donkeys; turn loose of them and bring them to Me. I have need of them!”
Can you hear it? Can you hear what Jesus is saying? He wants your donkey!
Sunday, March 16, 2008
DESPERATE FOR A BREAKTHROUGH
The army of Israel and Judah was desperate for a breakthrough (1Samuel17). They were caught in a Vietnam/Iraq like-quagmire. For 40 days they had been down in the Valley of Elah facing the Philistines and for 40 days the armies had faced each other without a significant battle—it was a standoff!
Every day the Philistines and the army of Israel, under Saul, lined up on their respective sides of the valley and taunted each other. Every day the Philistines sent out their champion, Goliath, who verbally ridiculed and vulgarly insulted the Jews. And what a splendid champion the Philistines had! Standing over nine feet tall and dressed in gleaming brass armor, Goliath was terrifyingly magnificent, a battle-hardened killing machine. Every day he broke from the ranks of the Philistine army and walked alone into the combat zone. Just the sight of him was enough to frighten the average soldier who had to be thinking, “Who could ever fight this man? He’s bigger than life!”
Goliath didn’t just pose and show his size and weapons but he mocked the Jews and called them children and dogs! He took it one step further and taunted the Jews with, “Let’s make this mano a mano (one-on-one combat).” His challenge was, “Choose a champion from among you and the two of us will fight. If he wins, we will be your servants! If I win you, will be our servants and serve us!”
Try to imagine the despair that must have settled on the Jewish army as day after day they were insulted and taunted! No champion arose from their midst, not Saul or any of his personal guard; they were all intimidated by the overpowering spectacle of Goliath. His terrifying challenges and the awful majesty of his size and power rendered the Jews completely impotent!
I believe that in large measure, the church of today has been intimidated by a Goliath and rendered impotent. Some call it changing with the culture, and often change is good and must happen. But when change is not voluntary and involves the breakdown of biblical and moral standards, it stops being change for the better and becomes something quite different.
When a man intimidates a woman into having sex with him, we quickly call it what it is…rape. When the world intimidates the church and forces it to change according to its standards, it is not good; it is not for the best. When the church is intimidated into change in order to meet the acceptance of the culture, this change does not take us into a bright new future; instead, it takes us into captivity and servitude! The church is being assaulted by the world system and we are desperately trying to call it change and to put a positive spin on it!
The Jews were desperate for a breakthrough or they would lose it all. We are desperate for a breakthrough or we are going to lose it all. A breakthrough came for the Jews and I am fervently praying that one will come for us, too. However, I am not sure we are ready for the kind of breakthrough God provided.
Into this despair-riddled situation came an unlikely candidate for savior, a kid who looked after sheep! Yes, I admit it, shepherds were tough, resilient men but the enemy here was a life-long, bigger-than-life-itself, battle-hardened killing machine. And to this monster we are going to send a boy? An unlikely choice for a hero!
And then there was the matter of his weaponry. The boy didn’t use a sword or a spear; he didn’t even have one. Instead, he brought a sling! A sling? Talk about an unlikely weapon for a potential champion to fight with!
And then there were David’s tactics. First, he was totally unprepared for this conflict and he had no armor and no stones to use in his sling. He passed on wearing armor and simply picked up several stones as he went out to meet Goliath. And then he did the most unlikely thing. Instead of walking out like champions do, taunting their enemy, showing their weapons, flexing their muscles, and generally messing with the head of their enemy, he did exactly the opposite. He ran straight at Goliath—a very unlikely tactic!
I am sure there was bewilderment in the ranks of the Jewish soldiers as they watched this drama unfold. When they saw David prepare the sling and saw him “fire” at Goliath, I am sure they stood there in total disbelief at what they were seeing. For a moment after David “fired,” nothing visible happened and I am certain that many of the army of Saul were prepared for the terrible sight of one of their own being cruelly cut to pieces by an enraged enemy. But then one of the Jews noticed a spot appear in the middle of Goliath’s forehead and a trickle of blood began to run down and into his eyes. As they watched, the giant’s knees slowly began to buckle and the rest, as they say, is history.
An unlikely champion, with unlikely weapons and unlikely tactics brought about an unbelievable breakthrough. I am believing God for a champion or champions to arise in our generation. We are desperate for a breakthrough!
I don’t believe these champions are going to come from the ranks of the stars on TBN or Daystar or 100 Huntley Street or from among “celebrity Christians.” They are being prepared in their own remote field of training by the Lord out of the sight of the fools of Christendom. When they are ready, the Father will send them to take supplies (encouragement) to the brethren and the miracle will be on!
Every day the Philistines and the army of Israel, under Saul, lined up on their respective sides of the valley and taunted each other. Every day the Philistines sent out their champion, Goliath, who verbally ridiculed and vulgarly insulted the Jews. And what a splendid champion the Philistines had! Standing over nine feet tall and dressed in gleaming brass armor, Goliath was terrifyingly magnificent, a battle-hardened killing machine. Every day he broke from the ranks of the Philistine army and walked alone into the combat zone. Just the sight of him was enough to frighten the average soldier who had to be thinking, “Who could ever fight this man? He’s bigger than life!”
Goliath didn’t just pose and show his size and weapons but he mocked the Jews and called them children and dogs! He took it one step further and taunted the Jews with, “Let’s make this mano a mano (one-on-one combat).” His challenge was, “Choose a champion from among you and the two of us will fight. If he wins, we will be your servants! If I win you, will be our servants and serve us!”
Try to imagine the despair that must have settled on the Jewish army as day after day they were insulted and taunted! No champion arose from their midst, not Saul or any of his personal guard; they were all intimidated by the overpowering spectacle of Goliath. His terrifying challenges and the awful majesty of his size and power rendered the Jews completely impotent!
I believe that in large measure, the church of today has been intimidated by a Goliath and rendered impotent. Some call it changing with the culture, and often change is good and must happen. But when change is not voluntary and involves the breakdown of biblical and moral standards, it stops being change for the better and becomes something quite different.
When a man intimidates a woman into having sex with him, we quickly call it what it is…rape. When the world intimidates the church and forces it to change according to its standards, it is not good; it is not for the best. When the church is intimidated into change in order to meet the acceptance of the culture, this change does not take us into a bright new future; instead, it takes us into captivity and servitude! The church is being assaulted by the world system and we are desperately trying to call it change and to put a positive spin on it!
The Jews were desperate for a breakthrough or they would lose it all. We are desperate for a breakthrough or we are going to lose it all. A breakthrough came for the Jews and I am fervently praying that one will come for us, too. However, I am not sure we are ready for the kind of breakthrough God provided.
Into this despair-riddled situation came an unlikely candidate for savior, a kid who looked after sheep! Yes, I admit it, shepherds were tough, resilient men but the enemy here was a life-long, bigger-than-life-itself, battle-hardened killing machine. And to this monster we are going to send a boy? An unlikely choice for a hero!
And then there was the matter of his weaponry. The boy didn’t use a sword or a spear; he didn’t even have one. Instead, he brought a sling! A sling? Talk about an unlikely weapon for a potential champion to fight with!
And then there were David’s tactics. First, he was totally unprepared for this conflict and he had no armor and no stones to use in his sling. He passed on wearing armor and simply picked up several stones as he went out to meet Goliath. And then he did the most unlikely thing. Instead of walking out like champions do, taunting their enemy, showing their weapons, flexing their muscles, and generally messing with the head of their enemy, he did exactly the opposite. He ran straight at Goliath—a very unlikely tactic!
I am sure there was bewilderment in the ranks of the Jewish soldiers as they watched this drama unfold. When they saw David prepare the sling and saw him “fire” at Goliath, I am sure they stood there in total disbelief at what they were seeing. For a moment after David “fired,” nothing visible happened and I am certain that many of the army of Saul were prepared for the terrible sight of one of their own being cruelly cut to pieces by an enraged enemy. But then one of the Jews noticed a spot appear in the middle of Goliath’s forehead and a trickle of blood began to run down and into his eyes. As they watched, the giant’s knees slowly began to buckle and the rest, as they say, is history.
An unlikely champion, with unlikely weapons and unlikely tactics brought about an unbelievable breakthrough. I am believing God for a champion or champions to arise in our generation. We are desperate for a breakthrough!
I don’t believe these champions are going to come from the ranks of the stars on TBN or Daystar or 100 Huntley Street or from among “celebrity Christians.” They are being prepared in their own remote field of training by the Lord out of the sight of the fools of Christendom. When they are ready, the Father will send them to take supplies (encouragement) to the brethren and the miracle will be on!
Sunday, March 9, 2008
OAKS OF RIGHTEOUSNESS
“They will be called oaks of righteousness, a planting of the LORD for the display of his splendor” (Isaiah 61:3, NIV).
The majestic tree dominated the front yard of my old friend’s home. Nothing ever seemed to bother that beautiful California oak. The summer heat, the winter cool, the rains, the wind, the occasional earthquake—nothing affected that great tree. California suffers through periodic “semi-droughts” but that never seemed to bother the oak, either. It stayed healthy and majestic no matter what was going on around it. Without fanfare, the oak had sunk roots deep into the earth and those roots continued to bring life to the part of the tree that is evident on the surface.
My, my! I wonder if there is a lesson for us here?
Throughout the Bible the oak tree is referred to as a symbol of strength and endurance. The strength of the oak does not come from what you can see of it above the surface; rather, its enduring strength comes from the roots that cannot be seen by the naked eye. The root system reaches down to where there are ample supplies of water and nutrients in the soil that feed the tree. The average large oak tree, I am told, needs as much as fifty gallons of water per day, so the root system is large and goes deep to reach that water. The root system not only brings the needed nourishment to the tree but it provides the anchoring base that allows the tree to withstand all kinds of assaults, from the wind, from the rain and from the shaking of earthquakes.
God likens His people to oak trees and says we can be just like them: “They shall be called oaks of righteousness.” These are not the words of a long-fulfilled prophesy that have no meaning for us. This is the expression of God’s heart for His people down through the generations. God wants His people to be strong and enduring and He has given us a clear insight as to how that can happen.
Jeremiah 17:7-8 is a powerful amplification of what Isaiah is presenting:
"But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in him.
He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream.
It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green.
It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit."
Root systems that can hold a tree upright in all manner of weather and in all kinds of terrain do not magically appear, they cannot be bought in the Christian bookstore, and they don’t come solely from attending conferences and conventions. Extensive root systems develop slowly, and for our over-caffeinated, fast-track society that just goes against the grain of popular thinking. Too many Christians want to be strong…and they want to be strong now! And that is just not the way it works. Strong root systems take time to develop!
“A planting of the Lord.” There is nothing haphazard happening here. This is not the taking of seeds and scattering them to the wind, disregarding where they may fall. This is God picking a place for you, and personally putting the tender shoot in the ground, knowing exactly what lies ahead. God fully knows every detail of your life and the place of your planting and He is not prone to making mistakes; you were not planted in the wrong part of the garden!
“For the display of His splendor.” This is a great and powerful promise. We were destined to display the “splendor of the Lord.” It doesn’t matter how you feel, you are destined to display the splendor, the majesty of the Lord. There are days when I don’t feel that I am properly displaying God’s involvement in my life but here is the truth to get your spiritual arms around. A person who lives in consistent personal relationship with the Lord, who lives uprightly, is displaying one of the greatest portraits of God’s splendor in all creation. That man or woman is not going to be affected by the changing political, economic, environmental or personal safety climate. They are not going to wither when the heat is on or fall down when the winds of change are blowing or earthquakes of disaster strike. They will show to the whole world what it means to truly be a “Jesus person” because in the midst of uncertainty all around, they will draw life from an eternal source that can only be tapped into by receiving the gift of God through faith in Jesus Christ.
Maybe it’s time to strongly remind ourselves that we are here “for the display of His splendor.”
The majestic tree dominated the front yard of my old friend’s home. Nothing ever seemed to bother that beautiful California oak. The summer heat, the winter cool, the rains, the wind, the occasional earthquake—nothing affected that great tree. California suffers through periodic “semi-droughts” but that never seemed to bother the oak, either. It stayed healthy and majestic no matter what was going on around it. Without fanfare, the oak had sunk roots deep into the earth and those roots continued to bring life to the part of the tree that is evident on the surface.
My, my! I wonder if there is a lesson for us here?
Throughout the Bible the oak tree is referred to as a symbol of strength and endurance. The strength of the oak does not come from what you can see of it above the surface; rather, its enduring strength comes from the roots that cannot be seen by the naked eye. The root system reaches down to where there are ample supplies of water and nutrients in the soil that feed the tree. The average large oak tree, I am told, needs as much as fifty gallons of water per day, so the root system is large and goes deep to reach that water. The root system not only brings the needed nourishment to the tree but it provides the anchoring base that allows the tree to withstand all kinds of assaults, from the wind, from the rain and from the shaking of earthquakes.
God likens His people to oak trees and says we can be just like them: “They shall be called oaks of righteousness.” These are not the words of a long-fulfilled prophesy that have no meaning for us. This is the expression of God’s heart for His people down through the generations. God wants His people to be strong and enduring and He has given us a clear insight as to how that can happen.
Jeremiah 17:7-8 is a powerful amplification of what Isaiah is presenting:
"But blessed is the man who trusts in the LORD, whose confidence is in him.
He will be like a tree planted by the water that sends out its roots by the stream.
It does not fear when heat comes; its leaves are always green.
It has no worries in a year of drought and never fails to bear fruit."
Root systems that can hold a tree upright in all manner of weather and in all kinds of terrain do not magically appear, they cannot be bought in the Christian bookstore, and they don’t come solely from attending conferences and conventions. Extensive root systems develop slowly, and for our over-caffeinated, fast-track society that just goes against the grain of popular thinking. Too many Christians want to be strong…and they want to be strong now! And that is just not the way it works. Strong root systems take time to develop!
“A planting of the Lord.” There is nothing haphazard happening here. This is not the taking of seeds and scattering them to the wind, disregarding where they may fall. This is God picking a place for you, and personally putting the tender shoot in the ground, knowing exactly what lies ahead. God fully knows every detail of your life and the place of your planting and He is not prone to making mistakes; you were not planted in the wrong part of the garden!
“For the display of His splendor.” This is a great and powerful promise. We were destined to display the “splendor of the Lord.” It doesn’t matter how you feel, you are destined to display the splendor, the majesty of the Lord. There are days when I don’t feel that I am properly displaying God’s involvement in my life but here is the truth to get your spiritual arms around. A person who lives in consistent personal relationship with the Lord, who lives uprightly, is displaying one of the greatest portraits of God’s splendor in all creation. That man or woman is not going to be affected by the changing political, economic, environmental or personal safety climate. They are not going to wither when the heat is on or fall down when the winds of change are blowing or earthquakes of disaster strike. They will show to the whole world what it means to truly be a “Jesus person” because in the midst of uncertainty all around, they will draw life from an eternal source that can only be tapped into by receiving the gift of God through faith in Jesus Christ.
Maybe it’s time to strongly remind ourselves that we are here “for the display of His splendor.”
Sunday, March 2, 2008
THE WEAPONS OF OUR WARFARE
“For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal but mighty in God…” (2 Corinthians 10:4).
I can’t remember all the good sermons that I have heard on this subject; I’ve even preached a few of them myself. (Of course, I say that with great humility—no sarcastic comments from anyone reading this, thank you!) Along with the sermons are scores of books and articles teaching us about the weapons of spiritual warfare available to all God’s people. Most of this emphasis happened ten or fifteen years ago; the church has been eerily quiet on this subject for the last five years.
So why is it that the church in North America is so crippled and bloated that the culture is overtaking the church more quickly than the church is overtaking the culture? Instead of the church defining the culture as it has down through history, we have lost that war and the intrusion of culture is now redefining the church. As this new church “emerges,” in some cases what is emerging is more defined by business models and surveys than it is by the Word of God or anything sacred. Church services sometimes looks more like the world at a rock concert than they do a meeting of the redeemed!
What has happened here? Is it a lack of quality teaching? I don’t think so! Is it a lack of finances? I think not! So if the church is armed and ready, why are we steadily marching—backwards?
Perhaps this story will help us to understand. In his book Men Against Fire, S.L.A. Marshall, a military historian, writes that on D-Day (June 6, 1944), by the best estimate, only one man in five (twenty percent) of the combat troops that landed on Omaha Beach actually consistently fired his weapon at the enemy. Here is a quote from Marshall’s book:
“Only five infantry companies (on Omaha Beachhead, June 6, 1944) were tactically effective. In these companies, one-fifth of the men fired their weapons during the day-long advance from the water’s edge to the first row of villages—a total of not more than 450 men firing consistently.”
In further research Marshall found that in a few instances, in other battles on D-Day, the percentage of combat troops actually firing their weapons rose slightly from one in five to one in four. Marshall’s interviews with the soldiers and insights he gleaned helped the U.S. military change its training, and by the time the Korean War broke out in 1950, fifty percent of combat troops were using their weapons in fighting situations. But to bring about the change, the military had to acknowledge that it had a problem and then adjust their training accordingly.
In Texas, where I live, it is entirely possible to carry a concealed hand gun legally. With just a few hours’ training, you can get a concealed handgun permit and are thereby allowed to carry it on your person. It is one thing to have a handgun and a permit and something else to actually use it when needed. If there is no will to use the gun, then you might as well have a banana in your holster! An undrawn weapon is not a threat except in a Hollywood fantasy.
Is it possible that with all our excellent teaching about “spiritual weapons,” we have forgotten to teach people that you actually have to point and fire? Have we forgotten to tell people that in order for the power of prayer to actually be released, you have to pray? Have we forgotten to tell people that fasting involves more than skipping that extra helping of cake? The power of God is resident in God’s people but unless we actually acquire a target, take aim, and pull the trigger, the power remains “holstered” and is not a threat—“to nobody, nowhere, nohow”!
We seem to have come to a time when large segments of the church in North America have embraced the teaching about “the weapons of our warfare” but they seem to lack the will to use them. The church has been told that we are “armed and dangerous” and in theory we are and in practice we should be! However, it is one thing to be armed and another to actually be inflicting damage on the enemy. An undrawn, unfired weapon is not going to do any damage; no strongholds will be torn down, no evil displaced…nothing is going to happen. Sadly, much like many of the churches in our fair land!
I can’t remember all the good sermons that I have heard on this subject; I’ve even preached a few of them myself. (Of course, I say that with great humility—no sarcastic comments from anyone reading this, thank you!) Along with the sermons are scores of books and articles teaching us about the weapons of spiritual warfare available to all God’s people. Most of this emphasis happened ten or fifteen years ago; the church has been eerily quiet on this subject for the last five years.
So why is it that the church in North America is so crippled and bloated that the culture is overtaking the church more quickly than the church is overtaking the culture? Instead of the church defining the culture as it has down through history, we have lost that war and the intrusion of culture is now redefining the church. As this new church “emerges,” in some cases what is emerging is more defined by business models and surveys than it is by the Word of God or anything sacred. Church services sometimes looks more like the world at a rock concert than they do a meeting of the redeemed!
What has happened here? Is it a lack of quality teaching? I don’t think so! Is it a lack of finances? I think not! So if the church is armed and ready, why are we steadily marching—backwards?
Perhaps this story will help us to understand. In his book Men Against Fire, S.L.A. Marshall, a military historian, writes that on D-Day (June 6, 1944), by the best estimate, only one man in five (twenty percent) of the combat troops that landed on Omaha Beach actually consistently fired his weapon at the enemy. Here is a quote from Marshall’s book:
“Only five infantry companies (on Omaha Beachhead, June 6, 1944) were tactically effective. In these companies, one-fifth of the men fired their weapons during the day-long advance from the water’s edge to the first row of villages—a total of not more than 450 men firing consistently.”
In further research Marshall found that in a few instances, in other battles on D-Day, the percentage of combat troops actually firing their weapons rose slightly from one in five to one in four. Marshall’s interviews with the soldiers and insights he gleaned helped the U.S. military change its training, and by the time the Korean War broke out in 1950, fifty percent of combat troops were using their weapons in fighting situations. But to bring about the change, the military had to acknowledge that it had a problem and then adjust their training accordingly.
In Texas, where I live, it is entirely possible to carry a concealed hand gun legally. With just a few hours’ training, you can get a concealed handgun permit and are thereby allowed to carry it on your person. It is one thing to have a handgun and a permit and something else to actually use it when needed. If there is no will to use the gun, then you might as well have a banana in your holster! An undrawn weapon is not a threat except in a Hollywood fantasy.
Is it possible that with all our excellent teaching about “spiritual weapons,” we have forgotten to teach people that you actually have to point and fire? Have we forgotten to tell people that in order for the power of prayer to actually be released, you have to pray? Have we forgotten to tell people that fasting involves more than skipping that extra helping of cake? The power of God is resident in God’s people but unless we actually acquire a target, take aim, and pull the trigger, the power remains “holstered” and is not a threat—“to nobody, nowhere, nohow”!
We seem to have come to a time when large segments of the church in North America have embraced the teaching about “the weapons of our warfare” but they seem to lack the will to use them. The church has been told that we are “armed and dangerous” and in theory we are and in practice we should be! However, it is one thing to be armed and another to actually be inflicting damage on the enemy. An undrawn, unfired weapon is not going to do any damage; no strongholds will be torn down, no evil displaced…nothing is going to happen. Sadly, much like many of the churches in our fair land!
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