Pulpit Truth

WEDNESDAY'S WORD: ACTS 2:46-47

9/26/2018

"So continuing DAILY with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church DAILY those who were being saved."
Acts 2:46-47

I have been re-reading several classic books on the subject of revival over the summer, as well as some that have been recently published concerning this very important issue regarding the people of God. Any committed and compassionate follower of Christ realizes that the current political climate, along with the hateful rhetoric of unbelievers toward anyone with a conservative viewpoint, is a sign of God's judgments being fulfilled. I believe that if we do not experience a Heaven sent revival among the body of Christ, we are only beginning to see the tip of the iceberg of what awaits us in the days, months and years to come, as vile and vicious God-haters strengthen their grip on our nation. Church history, however, reveals that when God moves in mighty power among His people in revival, it culminates in an incredible awakening that ushers multitudes into His kingdom. The result is a dramatic change in the spiritual and moral condition of a people, and the intensifying judgment of God is postponed as multitudes begin to seek Him and His saving grace.

The Book of Acts is looked upon as the pinnacle of truth concerning the experience of revival and awakening in and through the body of Christ. No blood washed believer should be able to read this book without a tear in their eye, a longing in their heart, and a cry in their voice that says, "Do it again, Lord, do it again!" The breathtaking testimony of what God was doing begins to avalanche on the great Day of Pentecost. Thousands were brought to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, and they quickly identified with His death, burial, and resurrection through their obedience of baptism. As God worked, the city of Jerusalem was shaken with His presence. These new believers had such an appetite for God's word and a longing for His presence, that the Bible says they gathered DAILY to worship and fellowship with one another. The testimony also reveals that as the body of Christ was filled with His Spirit, God was awakening and saving men and women on a DAILY basis. Wow! What an awesome revelation of God working in an incredible way! Praise His Name!

It was about fifteen years ago that I was privileged to preach at the First Baptist Church in one our most notable towns in north Mississippi. The pastor had previously served in the ministry of evangelism for several years while living in another state. He and his wife were so gracious in their inviting Tammy to join me for this special Sunday evangelistic event. As they treated us to lunch, he shared a deep burden on his heart. "Charles," he said, "please give me your opinion on a matter. I have shared many testimonies of my experiences as an evangelist, and have dropped occasional hints that we should set aside a special time to seek the Lord in an old fashioned revival meeting. Whenever I approach this subject, however, many of my key leaders voice their opposition to such an idea. 'Bro. Tom,' they say, 'we love you, but please don't ask us to come to church several nights in a row. We are an extremely busy people, and we just don't have time today for those kinds of services that were so prominent yesterday.' What do you think, Bro. Charles?"

I immediately opened my Bible and read these verses from the Book of Acts. "Pastor, here's what I believe: The early church so longed to encounter the presence of God, that they could not endure a twenty-four hour period without seeing one another. They desired to worship Christ with one another, and to share a witness of His love and grace with those who might join them in this special season of grace and glory. I believe the key word is desire. This is something that they wanted to do, they were not forced to gather daily. We know that coming together everyday to fulfill an obligation of attendance is not going to mature someone to become a super-saint. However, when church members display their desire to AVOID coming together on a DAILY basis, even for a brief period of time, that shows a very real and deep problem of their own spiritually immature condition."

It has amazed me over the years how many churches never utilize those who have been called into the ministry of evangelism. Some choose to neglect this gift because of an unfortunate experience in the past with someone who was not a man after God's own heart. Others, however, simply do not consider using those with special gifts of revival and evangelism because they believe less is more. In other words, those events placed on the calendars of the past will not be considered today, because our folks are very busy people with very demanding schedules. I believe that we as church leaders have simply coddled to the demands of mostly carnal members. Not only do we not dare suggest some type of revival campaign, but now the trend is to eliminate Sunday evening services as well. After all, families today rush to and fro from school and work to fulfill important obligations all over the community, so let's help them out by asking less and less of their time, focus, and energy when it comes to the things of God. Amen? Or, oh my?

We cannot force the Spirit of God to work, and putting an event on the church calendar does not guarantee His presence and power. However, if the heart of our churches does not look something like the heart of the church revealed in the Book of Acts, longing to be together in order to experience Him, something is terribly wrong. And the heart of the problem, is the problem of the heart.

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WEDNESDAY'S WORD: Genesis 22:1-4

9/19/2018

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"Now it came to pass after these things that God tested Abraham, and said to him, 'Abraham!' And he said, 'Here I am.'

Then He said, 'Take now your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.'

So Abraham rose early in the morning and saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son; and he split the wood for the burnt offering, and arose and went to the place of which God had told him.

Then on the third day Abraham lifted his eyes and saw the place afar off." Genesis 22:1-4

When someone only casually reads the Bible, the great truths of scripture will often remain hidden. In this passage, which many of you might be familiar with, God put Abraham through an incredible test of faith. He was instructed to sacrifice his son, who of course was the son of promise. The son by which all of the world would be blessed, and the son by whom Abraham would father a great nation. How could all of these incredible promises of God be fulfilled if Isaac was put to death? Well, to put it quite simply, if Abraham did sacrifice Isaac, then God would have to perform the miracle of resurrection in order to fulfill all of the divine promises that He had given to Abraham. Amen? Yes, amen. And by the way, resurrecting Isaac from the dead would be no problem for our omnipotent God.

Abraham undoubtedly believed this, as he told his servants that he and his son were going to worship, and that "we will come back to you." When everything was prepared, Isaac willingly positioned himself as the sacrifice, Abraham drew the knife to slay his son, and the angel of the Lord called out to him and prevented him from harming his son. At that precise moment, Abraham turned and saw a ram caught in a thicket by its horns, and this ram became the substitute sacrifice for Isaac. What an incredible picture Abraham gives to us of absolute surrender to the word and will of God! And what an incredible encounter that Abraham and Isaac had that day of the grace of God on that divinely chosen mountaintop!

Now, what can we easily overlook in reading this passage if we are not careful? In the instructions that Abraham received from the Lord, he was told to go and offer Isaac on "one of the mountains of which I shall tell you." The narrative goes on to say that Abraham gathered everything necessary and went to "the place of which God had told him." And finally, after three days of traveling, Abraham "saw the place afar off." Three times in these four verses, we are told that Abraham was instructed to go to a PARTICULAR mountain, not just any mountain, and that he precisely followed God's instructions to THE place, not just any place. Think with me for a moment: If Abraham went to any mountain of his own casual choosing, would he have encountered the ram caught in a thicket for a substitute sacrifice? Or was it utterly necessary for Abraham in be in the exact location of God's divine choosing in order to experience all that God desired to do for both he and Isaac?

I believe that one of the great problems today among believers is that very few of us truly know what it is to walk by faith. Individuals, families, and churches are guilty of incorporating human reasoning and circumstantial logic into their decision making. What's the result? We find ourselves on any old mountain, rather than the one uniquely, divinely, and specifically chosen by our loving Father. As Tammy and I were growing in Christ several years ago. we discovered that He had a plan for us that is tailor made. Finding the will of God is not like going to Belk or JC Penney in hopes of finding something that will be sufficient from the clearance section. He has a pathway chosen for our lives, and we must invest the necessary time to find and follow that path.

Please allow me to illustrate this important principle: In 2001, God made it very clear to us that we were to trust Him for the home in which we now live. For a year or so, we felt that our nest was being stirred concerning a possible relocation for our family and ministry. As His will was being clarified to us, we finally began the necessary steps to build our faith house. During this process, however, we began to be contacted by numerous churches that were confident that I should move to their communities and serve on their staff. Opportunities for me to become pastor were being extended that would have us move to several locations in Mississippi, including Clarksdale and Baldwyn. Churches in Alabama, Jasper and Mobile, contacted us. And even as our home was nearing completion, as well as after we moved in, invitations were coming for us to serve in Osceola, Arkansas; Cleveland, Tennessee, and even an invite to Honolulu, Hawaii.

Now, beloved, we could not go to all of these different places. And God was not asking us to sit down as a family and decide which place might be the most personally fulfilling or financially rewarding. We believed that He clearly revealed to us THE mountain upon which were to climb, build and plant our lives, so we came here rather than Honolulu! In your journey of life, make sure that you and your family are not foolishly implementing the decision making processes of the world. When we walk by faith, we should be yielding ourselves to the direction of our Lord. And remember, whenever we are obedient to Him, He will insure that we encounter the ram caught in the thicket!

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WEDNESDAY'S WORD: Job 38:17

9/12/2018

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"Have the gates of death been revealed to you? Or have you seen the doors of the shadow of death?" Job 38:17

When Job, that unique and godly man, was attacked by the kingdom of darkness, he lost everything that was precious to him. Friends came to "console" this man of faith, but their words brought no soothing comfort to his physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual torment. Before the book concludes, however, God wonderfully visits Job and begins to address him. As God speaks to His servant, He asks if Job had been privileged to see the gates, or the doors, of death.

On September 11, 2001, a horrific scene was played out before our eyes as a strategically planned terrorist attack unfolded on an otherwise beautiful day. When the fire, smoke and dust had finally settled, the total number of lives lost that day were 2,996. Nearly everyone of these (excluding the terrorists included in this number) had no idea that they would not return home to their family and friends as they went about their daily routine on that Tuesday morning. They may have passed through many different doors that day, but they would all eventually pass through the doors of death.

Think with me for a moment about the doors of death. This unsettling subject is one that we often desire to hide from, or forget about, yet death is a REALITY to EVERYONE. Wherever we might travel, we are constantly being reminded about death. In large cities and in the open countryside, we discover pristine land dedicated as the last resting place for those who have walked through the doors of death. Along busy interstates, as well as rural highways, we find memorials erected in those areas where someone's life came to a sudden end. Whether they were ready or not, they passed through the doors of death. Our local news, no matter the source, informs us on a daily basis that someone has died, a family is grieving, and once again we realize that the doors of death have opened for another person to walk through and they have stepped into eternity. Yes, death is a reality to everyone. But death is also a RESPECTER of NO ONE. It makes no difference who you are, what you've accomplished, your education or income level, nor your age, death is a respecter of no one. I have helped in funeral services for those who passed the century mark, as well as for those who never celebrated their first birthday. Death doesn't care about your age, your plans, your dreams, your goals, your desires, for death does not respect you, nor does it respect your family. Death is a respecter of no one.

As I write these words, Hurricane Florence is targeting the Carolina coastline. Predictions are being made based upon potential wind speed, storm surge, and rainfall approaching thirty-six to forty-eight inches, that will cause this storm to possibly be the worst in U.S. history to strike the east coast. Mandatory evacuations are now taking place across hundreds of miles of South Carolina, North Carolina, and Virginia. In spite of the warnings, however, some residents will foolishly decide to stay and ride out the storm. In all likelihood, their remains will never be found.

On 9/11, very few understood that they would be passing through the doors of death on that fateful day. With Hurricane Florence, some will choose to remain in place and face those doors regardless of the opportunity they had to escape. What about you? God does not promise us advanced time to prepare to step out of this life and enter into eternity. Death might come slowly for some of us, yet it also might come suddenly, unexpectedly, in a way that we never imagined. So, what's the best solution to such a problem? It's really quite simple: WE SHOULD ALWAYS BE READY! Why? Because we never know how, nor when, we might pass through the doors of death.

"For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have everlasting life." John 3:16

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WEDNESDAY'S WORD: ACTS 2:46-47

"So continuing DAILY with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church DAILY those who were being saved."
Acts 2:46-47

TO GET THE WEDNESDAY'S WORD DELIVERED STRAIGHT TO YOUR INBOX USE THE ENVELOPE TO THE LEFT.

WEDNESDAY'S WORD: Genesis 22:1-4

TO GET THE WEDNESDAY'S WORD DELIVERED STRAIGHT TO YOUR INBOX USE THE ENVELOPE TO THE LEFT.

WEDNESDAY'S WORD: Job 38:17

"Have the gates of death been revealed to you? Or have you seen the doors of the shadow of death?" Job 38:17

TO GET THE WEDNESDAY'S WORD DELIVERED STRAIGHT TO YOUR INBOX USE THE ENVELOPE TO THE LEFT.

Charles Smith

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WEDNESDAY'S WORD: ​ACTS 2:46-47

"So continuing DAILY with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church DAILY those who were being saved."​Acts 2:46-47

TO GET THE WEDNESDAY'S WORD DELIVERED STRAIGHT TO YOUR INBOX USE THE ENVELOPE TO THE LEFT.

WEDNESDAY'S WORD: Genesis 22:1-4

TO GET THE WEDNESDAY'S WORD DELIVERED STRAIGHT TO YOUR INBOX USE THE ENVELOPE TO THE LEFT.

WEDNESDAY'S WORD: Job 38:17

"Have the gates of death been revealed to you? Or have you seen the doors of the shadow of death?" Job 38:17

TO GET THE WEDNESDAY'S WORD DELIVERED STRAIGHT TO YOUR INBOX USE THE ENVELOPE TO THE LEFT.

Charles Smith

Archives

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WEDNESDAY'S WORD: ACTS 2:46-47

"So continuing DAILY with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread from house to house, they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart, praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to the church DAILY those who were being saved."
Acts 2:46-47