"No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money." (Matt. 6:24)
Jesus does not say that it is difficult to serve the one true God and the god of money, He said it is impossible. and yet in the US we have equated material wealth with the blessing of God, and we have become so confused about what is actually the American dream and the Christian reality that most don't see any conflict of interest at all.
Jesus said, "It is only possible to be devoted to one god. So, which is it. God or money?" We love shiny things. New cars, new houses, bigger cars, bigger houses, new clothes. So true is this that the average American spends $1.20 for every $1.00 that they make. Proverbs says that the "borrower is the slave of the lender."
This summer my family and I visited the Magic Kingdom of Disney. There were big crowds, but no sense of community. There was a thrill available at every turn, but no commitment to significance. It was a fun time, but not a thing worthy of our devotion. But how like Disney World have we made our churches. Reggie McNeal says we have created "Six Flags Over Jesus". We have transformed churches into one stop worship malls where we can pick from a smorgas board of options and never really surrender our lives to Jesus. As surely as Jesus stood knocking at the door of the church in Ephesus, Rev. 3:20, He must desire that we let Him back into the churches of America. Would He be as angry as He was when He overturned the tables in the temple in Mark 11? Does He need to remind us, "My house shall be called a house of prayer for the nations."
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Prayer Requires Faith
"As the Lord God lives..." (I Kings 17:1)
Those were the first words that the prophet Elijah spoke to the wicked King Ahab as he prepared to tell him that it would not rain in Israel until he said so. Elijah was convinced of the reality of the one true and living God. In fact, faith begins with the confidence that the opening words of the Bible are true.
"In the beginning, God..." If you believe in the reality of the living God, the rest is downhill from there.
James 5 tells us that Elijah prayed that it would not rain, and it did not rain for 3 1/2 years. When Elijah stood before Ahab again, he pointed out that the rain had been withheld because of the wickedness the king had led God's people into. You remember in I Kings 18 there was the real show down between the prophets of Baal and Elijah, and God had responded with fire that consumed the offering.
Here is what I want you to see. Elijah then told Ahab to get ready because "there is the sound of the abundance of rain."The sky was clear, not a cloud in sight. The sun was shining bright. All of the evidence suggested 'no rain'. But Elijah's eyes were not on the sky, but on God. Elijah began to pray, and six times he had sent a servant to look, and the sky was as clear as it could be. But the seventh time, it says, "Behold a cloud as small as a man's hand is coming up from the sea."
When you pray for rain, can you hear the sound of its coming, even when the sky is clear? When you pray 7 times and finally see only a small cloud in the distance, can you still trust God? Jesus said, when you pray, believe. Now, do not misunderstand. Prayer that is wishful and not based on the promises of God's Word is merely presumption. But when God has promised, trust Him to do what He has said.
Those were the first words that the prophet Elijah spoke to the wicked King Ahab as he prepared to tell him that it would not rain in Israel until he said so. Elijah was convinced of the reality of the one true and living God. In fact, faith begins with the confidence that the opening words of the Bible are true.
"In the beginning, God..." If you believe in the reality of the living God, the rest is downhill from there.
James 5 tells us that Elijah prayed that it would not rain, and it did not rain for 3 1/2 years. When Elijah stood before Ahab again, he pointed out that the rain had been withheld because of the wickedness the king had led God's people into. You remember in I Kings 18 there was the real show down between the prophets of Baal and Elijah, and God had responded with fire that consumed the offering.
Here is what I want you to see. Elijah then told Ahab to get ready because "there is the sound of the abundance of rain."The sky was clear, not a cloud in sight. The sun was shining bright. All of the evidence suggested 'no rain'. But Elijah's eyes were not on the sky, but on God. Elijah began to pray, and six times he had sent a servant to look, and the sky was as clear as it could be. But the seventh time, it says, "Behold a cloud as small as a man's hand is coming up from the sea."
When you pray for rain, can you hear the sound of its coming, even when the sky is clear? When you pray 7 times and finally see only a small cloud in the distance, can you still trust God? Jesus said, when you pray, believe. Now, do not misunderstand. Prayer that is wishful and not based on the promises of God's Word is merely presumption. But when God has promised, trust Him to do what He has said.
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