The Spirit's Urgent Pleas

I'm living with a fear of being consumed by the spirit of this age. A fear of being assimilated by the world. A fear of becoming comfortable in Sodom. A fear of getting used to the dark. A fear of losing fear—the fear of God.

In 1996, former United States Court of Appeals judge and Yale Law School professor, Robert Bork, authored a book entitled Slouching Towards Gomorrah. Bork's basic thesis is that the rise of radical egalitarianism and radical individualism have undermined our culture, intellect, and our morality.

To frame it biblically: the judge is saying our world—American culture—is pervasively evil, and alarmingly so.

This, of course doesn't take God by surprise; we've been warned: "Don't be naive. There are difficult times ahead. As the end approaches, people are going to be self-absorbed, money-hungry, self-promoting, stuck-up, profane, contemptuous of parents, crude, coarse, dog-eat-dog, unbending, slanderers, impulsively wild, savage, cynical, treacherous, ruthless, bloated windbags, addicted to lust, and allergic to God. They'll make a show of religion, but behind the scenes they're animals.” (1)

We shouldn't be surprised that the world's wickedness is multiplying at a neck-breaking speed. What should alarm us as Christians is that the pervasive godlessness in our culture is effecting us (me?) more than we are willing to admit.

Jesus faithfully warned His end-time Church concerning the necessity of remaining vigilant in the face of an alluring world in three succinct words: "Remember Lot's wife!"(2)

Jesus also said that one thing which will characterize the end-time Church will be a waning love for God: "Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold . . ."(3) Think of it: Jesus prophesied that the majority ("most") of end-time believers' love for God would grow cold.

Now I ask you, dear Christian, Won't you join with me in being afraid? Or are we too sleepy? Has the devil already lulled us into a deep stupor? Do we hear the Spirit's warnings to a slouching Church?

Listen with me to some of the Spirit's urgent pleas to the end-time Christian.

The Spirit urges every Christian to make a total consecration to God.

"I urge you ... to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, ..."(4)

God is not pleased with less than a full surrender of our bodies. Yes, "bodies" means bodies: eyes, ears, tongue, hands, feet, stomach, as well as the totality of my inner being.

The Christian faces an ongoing challenge as to how to live in the world without being squeezed into the world's mold. Our viewing, listening, purchasing, and eating habits, the use of our time—all of these activities are to be sanctified and kept under the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Our bodies are to be consecrated to God.

While surrounded by an indulgent, surfeiting culture which continually feeds its sensual appetites, we need to remember the words of the Apostle Paul: "Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought with a price. Therefore honor God with your body."(5)

The Spirit urges every Christian to pray fervently for his Church leaders.

"I urge you ... to join me in my struggle by praying to God for me."(6)

If the Apostle Paul felt the need to ask his churches to intercede with God for him, can we do less as Church leaders?

We all know that every person will eventually give an account of himself before the judgment seat of Christ. Moreover, we know that every person will indeed reap whatever he sows. With this we will all agree. However, could it be if more leaders would faithfully urge the people of God to pray for them—to pray for the success of the gospel through their ministry, to pray for a deeper walk with Christ, to pray to be kept from sexual sin, to pray for the Spirit's power in their ministry, to pray for a love for their people, to pray that they would be kept from being swallowed up with this world—the Church would be blessed with an abundance of godly, consecrated, loving, faithful men of God?

With an epidemic of ministerial failures and a woods' full of incompetent, unfaithful pastors, let the pew pray mightily for the pulpit. And more importantly, let the pastor regularly express his desperate dependence upon God by urging his parishioners to pray for him.

The Spirit urges every Christian to walk in unity with his brothers and sisters in Christ.

"I appeal [same Greek word rendered "urge" elsewhere] to you, brothers, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree with one another so that there be no divisions among you and that you may be perfectly united in mind and thought."(7)

The Corinthian Church was a quarreling church. They quarreled over who was the greatest apostle; they quarreled over who among them possessed the best spiritual gifts. They excelled in everything but agape love.

Quarreling begets divisions. Carnal arguments create unbiblical division: brothers and sisters in Christ falling out with one another over secondary issues.

Too many of our local church divisions are precipitated by stubborn, self-willed leaders: someone insisting on having his/her own way—all in the name of principle. The resulting casualties are legion.

It takes work, sometimes a whole lot of work, to walk in fellowship with our brothers and sisters in Christ. But we are called to do just that. "Make every effort, Paul wrote, to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace."(8)

We have too many small-souled Christians promoting, in their opinion, "big" truth.

How we argue for right is just as important as the right we argue for. The perceptive William Barclay observed, "It is very difficult to be a teacher or a preacher and to remain humble; but it is absolutely necessary.... One of the most difficult things in the world is to argue without passion and to meet arguments without wounding. To be utterly convinced of one's own beliefs without at the same time being bitter to those of others is no easy thing; and yet it is a first necessity for the Christian teacher and scholar."(9)

More than likely if you are presently experiencing a fellowship problem with another Christian, the cause of the problem is attitude, not substance. Think about it.

Would you now join with me, dear reader, in my fear?

I trust that the fear of God—that reverential fear which issues in a surrendered, obedient lifestyle—will possess both you and me as never before. Let us, by God's merciful grace, purpose to keep alive in our heart the flame of the Spirit; let us listen attentively to the Spirit's urgings. "He who has an ear to hear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches."(10)

– Soli Deo Gloria – 

1. 2 Timothy 3:1-5, The Message
2. Luke 17:32, NIV
3. Matthew 24:12, NIV
4. Romans 12:2, NASB
5. 1 Corinthians 6:19-20, NIV
6. Romans 15:30, NIV
7. 1 Corinthians 1:10, NIV
8. Ephesians 4:3, NIV
9. The Daily Study Bible Series, The Letters of James and Peter, p. 92
10. Revelation 3:7, NIV