What is important to remember about Noah is that he was able to stay afloat when the whole world was in liquidation. God can hold us together as sure as He did Noah. I think it is time to recognize that what we are facing has not taken God by surprise. What is it that God may want to see happening in your life when the world, for the most part, is paralyzed with fear?
Could it be that even though what we are seeing is global, God is interested in what He is doing in us and through us on the local stage. I live by the conviction God has a definite place for everyone. He has providentially placed us right where he wants us to be. When GayNell and I were young in ministry, a large church in the suburbs of Dallas asked us to come and try out. They actually voted us in, and we were to call in the morning and tell them what our decision was. The next day was a Sunday morning, and I called and told them that they had voted “Yes”, and we appreciated their confidence in us, but God had voted “No”. God had other things in mind, and we then went to Houston and saw a move of God that changed the lives of hundreds of people, young and old. God spoke to the prophet Elijah and said, “Go down to the Kerith Ravine. I have commanded the ravens to feed you there.” I want to live in the THERE where God has commanded that I be fed. There is no better place better than the table God prepared in the wilderness in the presence of our enemies.
Let me take a stab so to speak in the dark hour mankind is facing. THE FIRST THING WE CAN LEARN IS: I BELIEVE HIS DESIGN IS TO MAKE US WEAK. Saul was chosen when he was weak in his own eyes. I just read 1stSamuel 15:17-19 (The Mssg), and it spoke to this issue: And Samuel told him. “When you started out in this, you were nothing - and you knew it. Then God put you at the head of Israel—made you king over Israel. Then God sent you off to do a job for him, …..So why did you not obey God?
First, God is in the business of making us weak. You will ask, of course, why would God do such a thing? It is easy to explain, because He wants us to be God Dependent, not Independent. Some of the most visible characters in the Bible have a lesson to teach us, i.e., “STRENGTH CAN DESTROY A PERSON.” Uzziah started out as a model King as you can see in 2 Chronicles 26: 5 - “And he sought God in the days of Zechariah, who had understanding in the visions of God: and as long as he sought the LORD, God made him to prosper.” God never forsakes the man who seeks Him, therefore, man is the cause of his own destruction.
THE NEXT THING THAT WE CAN LEARN FROM WHAT WE ARE SEEING HAPPEN AROUND US, i.e., THE DANGER OF COMPROMISE IS EASIER FOR SOME THAN WE THOUGHT. Genesis 19:21 - 22 (The Mssg) - “All right, Lot. If you insist. I’ll let you have your way. And I won’t stamp out the town you’ve spotted. But hurry up. Run for it! I can’t do anything until you get there.” That’s why the town was called Zoar, that is, Smalltown.
What if you and I choose to compromise? For those in Lot’s day, including his wife, the answer is judgment. The spirit of compromise weighs heavily on the church today, but we are to lay aside every weight and besetting sin.
A good place to feed upon in this hour is Hebrew 12:1-3, “Do you see what this means—all these pioneers who blazed the way, all these veterans cheering us on? It means we’d better get on with it. Strip down, start running—and never quit! No extra spiritual fat, no parasitic sins. Keep your eyes on Jesus, who both began and finished this race we’re in. Study how he did it. Because he never lost sight of where he was headed—that exhilarating finish in and with God—he could put up with anything along the way: Cross, shame, whatever. And now he’s there, in the place of honor, right alongside God. When you find yourselves flagging in your faith, go over that story again, item by item, that long litany of hostility he plowed through. That will shoot adrenaline into your souls!”.
FINALLY, UNBELIEF IS PREVALENT TODAY, AND IT IS NOT JUST AMONG PEOPLE OUTSIDE THE 4 WALLS OF A CHURCH.
In Mark 16:3-6, Jesus said, “He could do no mighty works among them because of their unbelief.” This was in their hometown and it is where he was among them at home, just as he should be at home in the church.
I BELIEVE IN YOU!
Your loving pastors,
Pastor Cleddie and GayNell