Kingdom builders or Earth Fillers?

 Years ago pastor Wayman Mitchell preached a message called Kingdom Builders or Earth Fillers. His point was that we needed an outward looking vision.

I was thinking today about the Tower of Babel. How the people came together with a common language to build a city and a tower.

"And they said to one another, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth." Gen.11:4

This was not because they need a place to live. This is an act of rebellion against the call of God to fill the earth. They were building a religious site for worshipping other gods.

"And God blessed Noah and his sons, and said unto them, be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth." Gen.9:1

We meet a man, a descendant of Ham, named Peleg. He is noted because in his days the earth was divided.

"And unto Eber were born two sons: the name of one was Peleg; for in his days was the earth divided." Gen.10:25.

Peleg is mentioned before the tower of Babel and after it. Some think that the earth was geologically divided, like continental drift. I think that the division was a social one based on language. When my logic is confronted by the Biblical record, the bible always wins. So I choose to believe that God confused the languages by social upheaval, not by earthquakes.

And what was the result of this? God scattered them across the face of the whole earth.

"Therefore is the name of it called Babel; because the Lord did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the Lord scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth." Gen.11:9

We need to learn and to grow in our faith. But we need an outward looking vision for the regions beyond also to keep us on track.

We are not a mega church building Fellowship. We are a church planting Fellowship.

Born Again

 I was born again on December the 8th, 1973 in Prescott Arizona. That event so changed me that here, 53 years later, I still feel the effects of that experience. I am still not the same as I was before I was born again.

"Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new." 2Cor. 5:17

Being born again is as significant as being born. You know your birthday. You ought to know when you were born again. If you do not know, maybe you never were.

Being born again means that you live different, that you think different, that you speak different, than the rest of the world. There ought to be evidence in how you live and what you think and how you speak. For example:

People who drink alcoholic beverages have not been born again.

People who still cuss and drop F-bombs, have not been born again.

People who think sodomy is normal and acceptable have not been born again.

People who do not go to church in person, if they are able to, have not been born again,

People who have sex with someone they are not married to have not been born again.

People who do not pay tithes have not been born again.

If you are no different in these basic areas of life, I doubt that you have been born again. You may go to church on Sunday morning, you may read a Bible, you may talk religious talk, but until you have been born again you are not born again. You can be.

"Jesus answered and said to him, most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." John 3:3

Marriage Is Critical

The Ten Commandments are the list of basic rules by which people are to live in relationship to God. It is not an exhaustive list. But it covers a lot of moral and spiritual ground.

The first four commandments deal with out relationship to and worship of God. Honor and respect God. Obey what God says. Do not substitute anything or anyone else in place of God. Give to God the first and the best or your time. You could obey these commandments and be right with God.

The last five deal with our relationship to other people and to society. These are the moral rules of conduct. These five deal with hate and lust and greed. These deal with honesty in human relations. The rule of law rests on these basic truths.

In the middle of all of these is the one unique commandment concerning family. Let me say that family is the cornerstone of our faith It is the key to an orderly society. God instituted marriage long before there was any law of Moses. Marriage is the foundation on which society is built and in which we learn how to honor and how to please God. Our relationship to God and our relationship to our fellow man hinges on a stable traditional family unit.

The world, the flesh, and the devil all work tirelessly to undermine and to discredit and to destroy marriage as it was instituted by God. We as the local body of Christ ought to do all that we can to promote, encourage, and to support marriage. Marriage is critical to our church, to our vision, and to our survival.

Jesus The Social Man

How much time did Jesus spend alone? Not counting his relationship with the Father. I only count a few times where Jesus was not in the company of others.

Once it was in the temptation in the wilderness. Fasting for 40 days and 40 nights. He did that alone.

Then it was for times of prayer on the mountain. He withdrew from his followers and from his disciples for times of prayer. He did those prayers alone.

The rest of the time Jesus was always in the company of others. Sometimes a small group, sometimes with a big crowd. Even on the cross Jesus was not alone. He had two thieves crucified with him.

Jesus was an actively social man. Should we follow his example and engage in social activities? How about going to church in person? How about greeting others? 

It's the banana that leaves the bunch that gets skinned.

Honor Your Parents

"Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long upon the land which the Lord you God is giving you." Exod. 20:12

We are told that this fifth commandment is the first commandment containing a promise. Here are some basic thoughts on honoring your father and mother thus obeying God's command.

1. Honor means respect. It does not say to only honor them if they are good or if they are perfect. I take it to mean that we are to honor the position more than the person. This is a marriage commandment. 

2. Honor means maintaining the relationships. Taking the time and making the effort to keep the lines of communications open.

3. Honor could imply taking care of them as they age. This might be a stretch, but it is true that giving is proof of your love.

4. Honoring parents does something to us. I makes us better people. I teaches us how to successfully work in any field. It teaches us how to live that we might live blessed lives.

5. The God factor. It is the Lord who commands this. It is the Lord who gives the land. This only works if the Lord Jesus is involved.

6. Honor is not blind obedience. Do not go to Hell over a family obligation. At some point you have to honor God first. Honoring your parents teaches you how to honor God.

 

Things That I Would Do Differently

 If you could live your life over again what would you do different? This is a question that most people answer by saying that they would not change anything. I cannot say that. There are things that I would do different. I know that it would change how life worked out for me. But nonetheless, I would do a few things differently.

First, I would not get married so young. I was a teenager when we got married. I would not do it like that again if I could. I would wait a few years and wait until  I had grown up and become settled in church and become more mature.  

Second, I would not try so hard to get into the ministry. I spent years of my life trying to be a pastor with zero success. I would learn to be content to serve the Lord in Prescott without being a pastor.

Third, I would honor my mother and father and not try so hard to preach to them. I would not let my wife dictate to me the terms by which I honor my parents. I failed at this before, I would not do that again.

Fourth, I would make a living doing something more in line with my abilities, not letting the town dictate my career choice. If I couldn't make a decent living in Prescott, I would go where I could make more than subsistence wages.

Fifth, I might go back to school and get a degree. It would have helped back then.

Sixth, Along with marriage, I would have more than two children. At least three or four.

Finally, You cannot go back and change the way you lived your life. But if I could, these are things that I definitely would do differently.

Boot Camp Time

 Our annual boot camp starts tomorrow. It used to be a time to give kids a break from their phones and to teach them leadership and teamwork. Now it is a time where we hope that the kids will get saved. This tells me that we are missing the point of camp.

Call it boot camp if you want. Bring in drill instructors to yell at the kids. But don't treat it like a week long outreach. Let kids be kids. Teach them life skills and leadership skills and teamwork skills. Preach to them every night and tell them what God expects from them. They have churches and they have families and they have ample opportunities to get saved every week. Camp ought to be a special time, a memorable time. A moment in time that kids will fondly remember.

Parent will be praying this week. Not for salvation, but that their teens will be safe and happy. Parents are nervous about trusting us with their teens. We ought to be trustworthy to put their fears to rest.