The Apostle Paul stated,
For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ. 1 Corinthians 3:11,
and the Psalmist stated,
If the foundations are destroyed what can the righteous do? Psalm 11:3
We are warned in Scripture to guard against apathy, deception, and the seductions of the world. We are instructed to contend for the faith, to make disciples, to resist the devil, train ourselves in godliness, to be disciplined in our walk with the Lord, to grow in the knowledge of Christ, speak the truth in love, to produce lasting fruit, to press on and fight the good fight of faith, and many other instructions.
We must be diligent in our Christian lives, set apart for Christ, and intentional about living for the Lord.
Why? Because it’s easy let up, get comfortable, pursue leisure, and fall away from God. I’m not necessarily talking about sin, but conforming to this world, being lukewarm in our faith; being less concerned about spiritual things, saved but ineffective and unproductive as Christians. Most of us struggle at times with loving this world a little too much.
See JOSHUA 24:14-17
So the people served the Lord all the days of Joshua, and all the days of the elders who outlived Joshua, who had seen all the great works of the Lord which He had done for Israel. 8 Now Joshua the son of Nun, the servant of the Lord, died when he was one hundred and ten years old. 9 And they buried him within the border of his inheritance at Timnath Heres, in the mountains of Ephraim, on the north side of Mount Gaash. 10 When all that generation had been gathered to their fathers, another generation arose after them who did not know the Lord nor the work which He had done for Israel. Judges 2:7-10
It just takes a generation for a people to fall away from God. Is it much different for us here in America?
Samuel Langdon was a colonial chaplain and pastor before becoming President of Harvard in 1776. One year earlier he spoke to the Massachusetts Provincial Congress:
“We have rebelled against God. We have lost the true spirit of Christianity, though we retain the outward profession and form of it.”
…Yes, we are surrounded by evil. There is a war on truth going on. This nation’s moral and spiritual foundations have been attacked and shaken; culture is collapsing, and the church has been weakened. But if God be for us, who can be against us? Our instruction from God’s Word is to trust Him, pray, make disciples, and engage in battle!
We must overcome the temptation to seek our own comfort or worldly success. We must overcome evil with good (Rom. 12:21). Since we cannot possibly know how much time we have left, let’s be about the Lord’s business – preaching the good news and calling Christians back to God. Onward, forward. One day at a time.
For His glory and coming kingdom! May you and I say, like many early American pilgrims and patriots; and like Joshua:
But as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord. (24:15)
Sunday sermon 11/24/19 at Freedom Fellowship Church, Kaukauna, WI.