I am nearing my ninetieth birthday. I made public my call to preach on Thanksgiving night of 1954. A few days after that I preached my first sermon in the prayer meeting service of the Black Oak Baptist Church in Gary, Indiana.
Over the past several years, the term woke has been used to describe people who have been awakened to the injustices of society, particularly in regards to racism. Many Christians, committed to displaying God’s heart for the oppressed, have eagerly embraced the term.
Recently, as the Lord saw fit to have me walk down this road once again, I began to write down some of the things that God has been teaching me about the process
Scofield and other Bible students have called the sixth chapter of Isaiah, the prophet’s “transforming vision.” The account of his experience seeing God’s glory reminds us of Simon Peter’s transforming experience in Luke 5. When Peter realized Who Jesus really was, he could see how sinful he was, and said to the Lord, “Depart from me; for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” In response, the Lord said to him, “Fear not; from henceforth thou shalt catch men.”
Filtering Your New Year’s Goals in Light of Your Calling
There’s nothing like an approaching new year for bringing out our best aspirations. Somehow everything seems doable when it’s written under a “Goals for the New Year” heading! And there’s nothing like an over-committed, unreasonable list of goals for deflating the very enthusiasm with which we made those goals.
We are tempted to think that the time in which we live is the worst time in the history of civilization. That’s nonsense. The Bible speaks of a time when “every man did that which was right in his own eyes.” (Judges 21:25). What is new, however, is the way in which Christians have succumbed to social pressure during such a time. I believe some Christians’ lack of indignation at what we see in our world today is not a sign of their spirituality but of their indifference.
Sometimes in preaching it seems that the Scripture text has as much to do with the sermon as the National Anthem has to do with a football game—it gets everything started, but you never hear from it again.
Your Relationship with God Withers When it Is Neglected
If I asked you a question about your own devotional life, would you be uncomfortable? Some Christians spend little—if any—time with the Lord on a daily basis.
It’s true for people, and it’s true and for churches: the passing of time does not guarantee the development of maturity. When it comes to church growth, it’s easy to fall into a pattern of measuring only numeric growth or decline.