The Preacher's Unfavorite Sermons

Sometimes preachers have to preach on topics that they don't want to talk about. For me, personally, the topics that I least like to discuss are these: 1. Church Contribution. 2. Smoking, Alcohol, Gambling, et cet. 3. Modesty. 4. Attendance. You may ask why I am not excited when I am called to talk about these issues? Two reasons: 1. Most of the time people view this type of preaching as negative. 2. Christian people (those who have obeyed the gospel and who call Jesus "Lord" and who follow the Bible) should not need a great deal of help on these issues.

This coming Sunday, the elders have asked me to speak on modest apparel. This is a timely topic, as some people have the tendency to take off way too many clothes when the weather is warm. It is apparent to me that people need to be reminded about modesty. Just look at social media. This week alone I have seen posted pictures on web pages of a number of our folks displaying way too much of their bodies for everyone to see. Whether it is a trip to the lake or guys with shirts off at football games, it seems as if nobody has a problem with being immodest and inappropriate in public.

Recently this simple observation was made by a preacher while I was up in Michigan - "The parts that clothes cover are supposed to be covered." Correct. While certain outdoor activities in the heat allow us to wear less clothing for comfort (I run and when I do I wear cooler clothing), we need to be mindful of the reality that God saw the need to clothe His children in the garden once sin entered the world. If we do not use common sense coupled with Biblical teaching on this or any other issue, we are going to put a stumbling block in the path of other people and become a distraction to their spiritual walk.

When it comes to what we might call "topics of behavior" - the reason why the preacher thinks long and hard about these sermons is because so many people have learned to accept different standards. Church attendance - some people really think once a week is fine, and will go to the grave thinking that way. Modesty - strapless dresses and short skirts and bikinis and guys going shirtless or shorts with underwear showing for some are "no big deal" (and their parents don't care). Alcohol, cigarettes - there are people who will drink socially and smoke their whole lives because there is not a verse that says verbatim "thou shalt not smoke tobacco" or "thou shalt not drink an alcoholic beverage." Giving to the Lord - our churches typically give 3-4% of our gross income - which is gross indeed - and the bottom line is that some people have never fully committed themselves to Christ. The preacher knows that his only plea is to call people to holiness and to make the appeal that Christians think spiritually rather than carnally.

I am so thankful that preaching is aimed at pleasing God. There are times when you get up in the pulpit and you realize that a lot of people are not going to like what you have to say. It is then that you realize that you love them more than they could ever know. Because you are doing what has to be done, even though it is not what you would like to talk about if you had the choice.

Jonah was told to go to Nineveh. He did not want to go. But the people needed him to go. God said when he got there, "...preach unto it the preaching that I bid thee" (Jon. 3:2). Amen to that.

"For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God." ~ 1 Corinthians 1:18

10 Ways to Save the Lord's Church

After doing some research I have found that several sources on church statistics agree that about 4,000 congregations close their doors in America every year - never to reopen. Keep in mind that these statistics are regarding all the churches that exist in the world's definition of "Christendom." Also remember that with the rise of community churches, house churches, and other new non-traditional influences, it is true that many churches are being planted every year.

As a side note, those who love the Lord and His word are not going to be interested in saving, forming, or supporting those bodies which do not conform to God's Biblical pattern for the church. Jesus said, "Every plant which my Father has not planted will be uprooted" (Matt. 15:13). I am sure that the Lord looks down from heaven upon some religious institutions who claim to be His and would rather they not exist at all (this is food for thought for us isn't it?). This article has no intention of helping anyone who is not honoring God in their religious endeavor to save something that is already dead.

At the same time, if we are a part of a local body that has formed Biblically, is worshiping Biblically, and is teaching and practicing that which is in keeping with God's will for His church - not only do we need to continue to move forward, but we need to guard against the possibility that at some point we may cease to exist as a local congregation of the Lord's church. With this in mind, consider the following ways to save your local congregation if you are beginning to see signs of weakness and even death.

1. Attend every service. When an eldership decides that the church should come together, make sure that your life revolves around the times the church meets. We need to be built up spiritually and we need to exhort each other. We cannot worship too much. We cannot have too much prayer and Bible study.

2. Be on time. Let's be serious about our relationship with God. Being habitually late to worship is a choice. There will be circumstances that will force you at times to be late - in those cases, better late than never. But to be constantly late is really unacceptable. If you did that for work or school you would get fired or serve detention.

3. Be dedicated. Some only participate when it is convenient. Some check the weather forecast. Some shy away from any work or challenge. The only growth we experience spiritually will be outside of our comfort zone. Make the decision that nothing will deter you from your spiritual walk.

4. Encourage. Give people the benefit of the doubt. As sure as gossip will harm and kill a local congregation faster than anything, exhortation and praise between Christians will quickly provide an atmosphere where love and fellowship abound.

5. Take a leading role. Sign up for something that will cause you to be responsible for the growth of others. It pains me to see so many Christians so active in their communities, who will never take on such a role in the greatest institution on the planet. If you are going to make a difference, do so in the only kingdom that will not be shaken.

6. Humbly serve with no recognition. (This is in the middle on purpose. People who do this are the true heart of God's church).

7. Communicate. All relationships demand time spent together and fruitful communication. Most church problems arise from people not understanding each other. When we open up and extend our true feelings and kindly receive the thoughts and ideas of others we can live harmoniously and do great things together for God.

8. Go the extra mile. Jesus taught this. Your willingness to go beyond what is expected will cause others to do the same. Many times while running with a friend I have been ready to quit - but they wanted to go farther. I don't know exactly how, but every time I have found a way to join them for the extra mile.

9. Give sacrificially. If the only time or money you have given to your local church is what you have leftover, I feel sorry for you. Because this means you have never experienced the blessings that come from giving like Christ.

10. Be evangelistic. Evangelism is not a one-time door-knocking campaign. It is not the yearly "Bring-a-Friend Day." Evangelism is a way of life. We are here because we are standing on the shoulders of true evangelists. God help us to renew our plea to save the lost.

I love God. I love His church. I love you. We can do this together.

"For Christ, our dear redeemer, for Christ, who died to save, for the church his blood has purchased, Lord, make us pure and brave." ~ Eliza Hewitt (1890)

The Youngest Christian there was Ninety-three

This past week when I was in Michigan an announcement was made about a ninety-three year-old lady who was attending the lectureship who was recently baptized into Christ. The speaker went on to say that she was "our youngest Christian in attendance." That thought led me to some other ideas that I think may be important for us to remember.

1. When a person obeys the gospel, they are truly starting over. (2 Cor. 5:17) - "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new." The Bible tells us that baptism allows us to put on Christ (Gal. 3:27). Once we have made that decision, what a joy it is to begin our lives over in fellowship with God and with the blessings of continual forgiveness through the blood of Christ!

2. When a person obeys the gospel, they are still spiritually immature. While we all may have a different amount of experience and knowledge depending on our age, when we first come into Christ we still have much to learn. If we have just gained enough information to properly answer the call to salvation, chances are we still have need of a good and steady supply of the Christian doctrine. New Christians desperately need to keep studying. (1 Pet. 2:2) - "as newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the word, that you may grow thereby."

3. When a person obeys the gospel, they need encouragement. New Christians especially need help from other Christians to avoid the possibility of falling back into the world. Young people need older people to mentor them in Christ. Those in their middle years need responsibilities in kingdom work and plenty of people to praise them while they are sacrificing their time and energy. Elderly Christians need to be remembered and visited when they become feeble and cannot always attend as they would like. I recently visited a lady who is almost ninety who told me she had never had a preacher come to her home before! People need to know that they are not alone as they walk this life in Christ. We are told, concerning Satan, "Resist him, steadfast in the faith, knowing that the same sufferings are experienced by your brotherhood in the world" (1 Pet. 5:9).

4. Don't ever give up on anyone who has never obeyed. I have been privileged to baptize people in their 80's on several occasions. Sometimes, days before their death. Sometimes, we had to pick them up out of a bed or wheel chair in order to help them to get in and out of the water. Many of these people had refused the Lord's invitation literally thousands of times. When an elderly person obeys the gospel, we are reminded of the power of the Word to break even the hardest of hearts. There is a point at which the love of Christ constrains us (2 Cor. 5:14) to submit to the only perfect love that men will ever know, displayed in the cross of our Savior.

She may have been the oldest person in attendance, but she was the youngest Christian. What a blessing to be a child of God! At any age, it is the greatest honor any of us will ever know!

"Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God!" ~ 1 John 3:1

The Powerball Jackpot

As I was pumping gas this morning I was subjected to an advertisement encouraging me to play the lottery. After all, the Powerball jackpot as of today is at 400 million! That is a good deal of money even after taxes. But I have never been tempted to play the lottery. I have never spent even one dollar on a lottery ticket. Here are several reasons why:

1. It is statistically the poorest decision you could make with your money. Experts have analyzed the true probability of you winning. The results? If you spend over $100 a week on Powerball tickets you will eventually win the lottery - once every 30,000 years!

2. My reputation is important. As a soldier in the army of God I need to live a life that is above reproach. I could make a good case for why it is not wrong to spend a few dollars here and there on the lottery. The bottom line is that some people would not respect me if I did. I can certainly abstain from something as trivial as a lottery ticket if it hurts my influence.

3. I need to be careful about having the attitude that I want something for nothing, especially something so BIG for literally no work or investment at all. "But let each one examine his own work, and then he will have rejoicing in himself alone, and not in another. For each one shall bear his own load" (Gal. 6:4-5). Also, "For even when we were with you, we commanded you this: If anyone will not work, neither shall he eat" (2 Thes. 3:10). It is morally good to work and provide. It is morally evil to feel entitled. Constantly looking into getting something for nothing is a selfish way to live and it sets us up for more immoral choices and unbalanced priorities.

4. It is addictive. Let's be honest. It doesn't matter how good you think you are, or what a wonderful Christian you may be - you are also human. Human beings are weak and sinful. Solomon wrote about the lustful woman in Proverbs 7:26 - "For she has cast down many wounded,  and all who were slain by her were strong men." You may have never had an addiction. But gambling is one of the worst kinds of addictions and it can ruin your life and the lives of everyone else around you. You are not untouchable. So don't play with fire.

5. The feeling of winning is not genuine. One of the main thrusts of lottery advertising is the accentuation of the feeling that comes with victory. But face it. You didn't work for it. You didn't earn it. And if you had any kind of moral obligation to the needy how could you feel good about having so much when millions around the world starve to death everyday? On the other hand, there is nothing that compares with the feeling of providing for the ones you love by hard and honest work that has been well-earned through sweat, sacrifice, and dedication. To work so as to give will bring true rejoicing (Acts 20:35). This fulfills our purpose and makes all of the things we struggle through worth while.

These principles apply to more than just a senseless and temporal activity like the lottery. They translate to our entire Christian walk. I guess I will have to live with the fact that I will never have 400 million dollars. You know what? I think I am good with that.

"If then you have not been faithful in the unrighteous wealth, who will entrust to you the true riches?" ~ Luke 16:11

Gold from Fort Knox

 

Located adjacent to Fort Knox, Kentucky, is a vault used to store a large portion of the United States' official gold reserves. Also know as the United States Bullion Depository, this facility holds 4,578 metric tons of gold bullion (147.2 million oz. troy). According to some sources, this is about 3 percent of all the gold ever refined since the dawn of man. That's a lot of gold! But there is another Knox I know that holds more. His name is Knox Holder.

While I was preaching in Lawrenceburg, TN, I knew a couple named Knox and Marie Holder. They were kind and gentle people and they worshiped with us regularly, although Miss Marie's health prohibited her from attending a good portion of the time. This couple always reminded me that if the world were filled with such people, very few problems would exist. Knox was a skilled and hard-working man. He was very active in his old age, always compassionate, and constantly smiling. But in particular there has been one thing about Knox that for years has been his signature: his positive attitude. Anytime you would greet him and ask him how he was doing, he would say the very same encouraging thing. No matter the occasion or circumstance he would say it...it was dependable, and you learned to count on it. To hear his greeting would certainly change your day for the better.

This past Saturday I was privileged to travel back to Lawrenceburg and perform a wedding ceremony for a young lady that Knox and Marie helped raise. Nearing the age of 94, Knox was not only in attendance, but he, with the help of this young lady's father - walked the bride down the aisle! I found out later that Knox had also driven himself to the building that day! And so, when I had come into the church building that morning, with great anticipation I approached him as he sat in one of the pews while the pre-wedding pictures were being taken. The greeting! It was coming, and I couldn't wait to hear those words once more.  So I said, "Knox, how ya' doin' this mornin'? It's been a long time and it's so go to see ya'!" And then the words I had been waiting for came through with the demeanor and delivery perfected by an artist who had spent his entire life on one beautiful portrait. With his indelible grin and humble and sweet tone he replied, "Well, ya' know I'm ashamed to admit it, but I believe I'm the best I've ever been..."

The meaning and direction of our lives are shaped by the things we value. Who we are is determined by what we think, what we say, how we act, and all of these things begin with what is in our hearts. There is a fortress I know of that holds a great treasure. You might even say that hidden within the walls of this fortress there is pure gold. But this gold does not come by weight. It cannot buy anything physical. And it will not be left behind for future generations to enjoy. Because Knox Holder will soon move on to where his treasure truly lies. And then for certain and for eternity, he will be the best he's ever been.

And if you ask me, that's worth more than all the gold in Fort Knox, Kentucky!

"Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." ~ Matthew 6:19-21

Finishing His Work

I have this dream that won't go away. I have been having this dream over and over for years. I had this dream again last night. I am in college and I cannot graduate. I am always a course or two from graduating, and it is late in the semester and I have not been attending some of my required classes. I am destined to fail a class or two and therefore I cannot graduate. Sometimes the dream involves me coming to the end of the semester and realizing I did not take all the courses I needed to get my diploma. I have a term paper due immediately and I haven't started....or I missed some test days....I just can't get finished!

My dream is typical of life's experience on this soil. There is always another day of work, a new deadline, a different task or goal that must be addressed. If we have the perfect garden, new weeds will invade it. No matter how great our work situation is, problems that must be fixed will arise. Bills must be paid, mouths must be fed, and above all of this, people are lost without the gospel and they need the Lord. Sometimes it seems like we are just treading water.

It gives me great consolation to know that our Savior also felt this way. When one man came and pledged discipleship, Christ responded, "Foxes have holes, and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head" (Matt. 8:20). To the twelve Jesus once said, "I must work the works of Him while it is day, the night is coming when no one can work" (John 9:4). Jesus even reminded the Jews, "My Father has been working until now, and I have been working" (John 5:17). Jesus came to the earth with the intention of finishing. He told the apostles, "My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me, and to finish His work" (John 4:34).

Whenever I feel defeated and I just don't think I can go another step, I see Jesus. I see Him in that last recorded prayer to the Father before His crucifixion. I recall these words from that prayer, "I have glorified You on the earth. I have finished the work which You have given Me to do" (John 17:4). Somewhere between His birth and His death, Jesus finished the work God sent Him to do. John's gospel tells us the last words of Jesus on the cross before he bowed His head and died were simply, "It is finished!" (John 19:30).

Jesus finished. In the history of humanity, the Man who had the most difficult job of all - finished! I believe that no matter how difficult the task, and no matter how discouraging the process, if we are determined to keep on going, we will finish. We cannot stop in the middle. We must endure to the end. If we do not finish all is lost. And so I have decided to finish. The challenge of the work and the duration of the work have become immaterial. It is only a matter of time...

"...let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily ensnares us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking unto Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." ~ Hebrews 12:1a-2.

Another Reason to Abstain from Alcohol

Sometimes it is hard to understand why people do the things they do. I have never understood why any Christian would engage in social drinking. The Bible lists passage after passage about the foolishness and dangers involved with alcohol. I have countless personal stories I could share from my preaching career of families torn apart by alcoholism. Lives are ruined. Souls are lost. For me it is a no-brainer. I refuse to have anything to do with any intoxicating beverage.

Beyond the common sense arguments, the apostle Paul gives us another reason why Christians should not drink alcohol (Romans 14:21) - "It is good neither to eat meat nor drink wine nor do anything by which your brother stumbles or is offended or is made weak." First, note that Paul says we should do nothing which would make our brethren stumble (wine is not the only thing from which we should abstain). Second, understand that influence alone is reason enough not to engage in some things. Christians have places they will not go and things they will not do. This is just a part of holy living. This is what it means to be "called out" of the world and joined with Christ in His church.

The typical response to any discussion like this one from people who want to argue for participation is usually an argument from silence. The one contending for the right to partake of alconol will point out that there is no specific condemnation for having a drink. The Bible says clearly that drunkards will not inherit the kingdom of God (1 Cor. 6:10). What make a person drunk? Alcohol. It is enough for me to decide that I am not going to flirt with anything that may lead to my eternal condemnation. It is not a matter of arguing about the degree of something. It is about living in such a way that I can know without a doubt I am pleasing to God.

This principal for holy living applies to every aspect of our lives. What kind of language will I use or allow myself to be exposed to? What content when it comes to entertainment will I permit? What type of attitude will I have towards the laws of my country? What will I put in my body (food or drink) since it is the temple of the Holy Spirit? The list can almost be endless. The pursuit of holiness is a daily and difficult endeavor. But Christians must be dedicated to it. We are supposed to be continually transformed by the renewing of our minds. This implies that for the rest of our lives we will allow ourselves to undergo the changing that Christ wants to accomplish in us.

I don't know about you, but I want to be different than the world. I did not become a Christian so that I could try to get away with worldly practices and attempt to use grace as the fallback plan. I obeyed the gospel not only to receive forgiveness - but in the hope that God would begin to work in me and make me more like Him. This is what we were created for in the first place.

"Wine is a mocker, Strong drink is a brawler, And whoever is led astray by it is not wise." ~ Proverbs 20:1