Golden Eyes King
By Eglaide Seiber
This poem honors the life of our beloved friend King
Golden Eyes King, white angel full of grace,
Watching every move I make
I still sense you standing by
Never departing my wounded sad soul
Still looking for answers and asking God, “Why?”
Your peaceful white presence
Always gave me so much joy
As an angel, you watched me close
As a friend, you always stood by
Where will I find you now that you’ve gone?
When I long for your watchful and loving golden eyes
Oh, I hurt for the times I didn’t hug you
And the busy times, I shut you away
I hurt for the times I ignored your gentle white presence
Following me around, watching me, and hoping
That I would just turn, say hi, or play.
A king following me as only a loyal servant can do
Your beautiful, peaceful, white presence will never die
Because you taught me how to truly love you
White angel with golden loving eyes
A Core Problem with the Core Kids Ministry
By Dawn Hill
The first and most natural condition of things is for Christian parents to train up their own children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. Charles Spurgeon
One of the greatest privileges and blessings I have as a parent is to share the gospel with my children and to have meaningful moments of Biblical discipleship. Though it is not always picture perfect, there have been numerous opportunities to talk about Jesus, the cross, sin, repentance, and eternal life. There have been conversations with our seven-year-old daughter about reading the Bible, the importance of prayer, the facets of worship, and life lessons with Scriptural application. I would not trade these moments for anything.
When my daughter was three years old, I can recall her laying on prayer requests during intercessory prayer gatherings, lifting her hands while listening to radical worship music, and marching around as my shadow while I paced back and forth in prophetic declarations. This was during our time in the hyper charismatic movement. Personal experience was elevated, and I have no doubt that she would have gone down the same path had it not altered course. Over the past several years, things turned out much different than what I had expected or anticipated, but the changes have been for the better. This is not to say that I discourage her from lifting her hands in worship to God or in praying for others. Rather, I encourage her to return to the Word of God as the final authority for understanding God’s ways and instruction while sharing our need for the gospel of Jesus Christ. We never outgrow needing to hear the gospel.
I reflect on this in light of a children’s ministry called Core Kids, an offshoot from a women’s discipleship group, The Core Group. In order to be a Core Kid, the mother must be a member of The Core Group. I recently spent time watching some episodes directed towards children who are part of this group and the teachings being presented to the children. Some of these episodes have corresponding printable interactive workbook pages and journal pages covering topics such as breaking witchcraft and hearing a word from God. Monthly zoom meetings for these kids called Nights of Fire are held, and declarations that a children’s revival movement are being proclaimed in association with this group.
From what has been stated by the leader of the Core Group, the children are casting out demons, speaking in tongues, and rushing the stage to praise and to worship the Lord. They are laying on the platform crying and lifting their hands. They’re identified as being radical, and they are encouraged to lead now at their age, citing Isaiah 11:6 for confirmation.
When watching the teaching episodes for these children, I observed some things worth mentioning. I noted the teaching of the Law from the Old Testament without the presentation of the gospel of Jesus Christ. In one of the videos dealing with breaking witchcraft, the children were told they were forgiven of their participation with things such as tarot cards, objects of witchcrafts, and horoscopes. Yet there was no call to repentance for sin, no mention of the cross and the need for redemption. In other words, there was no good news. The thought occurred to me that perhaps a young person watched this video and had no understanding of why the things mentioned were a sin against God. What if they did not even ask God to forgive them, but the leader is telling them they are forgiven without personal repentance? This gives a false assurance of salvation and reconciliation without true repentance.
Personal testimonies from the leader were shared without the gospel being presented. I understand that we can be encouraged by other’s stories and testimonies of God’s faithfulness, mercy, and grace. At the same time, we must acknowledge that our personal testimony is not the gospel. People are not saved by our personal testimony. They are saved by hearing the word of Christ (Romans 10:17). They are saved by hearing the proclamation of the gospel, the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus Christ for the atonement of their sins.
The leader encouraged the children listening that they are to be “all in for God.” I wondered if the children knew what that meant, and if they believed “all in” meant having radical emotions and experiences. Does all in mean claims of casting out demons and prophesying? Does all in mean waving flags and jumping up and down with passion and enthusiasm? Does being all in mean that you blindly follow the leader without question? What happens to these young people when they feel nothing or the hype fades? Will they have lasting fruit testifying of Christ?
I am going to say some things that may spark frustration for those who disagree, and I mean no ill will or malice in saying these things. As a mother, I am thankful my daughter is no longer in this type of environment with this type of influence. Though I was not part of the Core Group, I was associated with similar beliefs and practices. As a mother, it saddens me to hear children hearing the Law apart from the gospel. Yes, our children need to understand the Law of God found in Scripture because they are sinners. Our children are not saved because we take them to church. They are born again when they receive Christ as their Lord and Savior. From there, they need proper Biblical discipleship within the church and within the home.
As adults, we need to understand the Law because it places a mirror before our face to show us our need for Christ. Having said that, if all one hears is the Law, then all one hears is legalism. You and I and our children need to hear the gospel of Jesus Christ, without apology and without compromise. This is the good news to the bad news of being a Law breaker. Our children are not someone else’s deliverer. Our children need to know the true Deliverer and as believers, they are to testify of Him for salvation of souls. Those who have been truly delivered by Christ Jesus from the domain of darkness will desire to walk in God’s ways and to obey His Word, not out of obligation but out of love for God.
My concern in these types of movements is that a superhero mentality is created to claim power and authority leading to pride, while using the name of Jesus for validation of the message. My concern is that emotional hype and experience are elevated and used as the litmus test for true passion for God, and those who are not as radical are called spiritually dead. My concern is that false converts are being manufactured, an eternal consequence that is too important not to voice these concerns. At the core of our Christian faith is the gospel of Jesus Christ, and though I hope my daughter unashamedly lifts her hands to God when meditating on His goodness and holiness, raised hands and outward expressions of zeal without knowledge will not mark her as a believer. That work lies in the power of God and the finished work of Christ on the cross, and that is sufficient.
Listen to this episode of The Lovesick Scribe podcast, discussing this topic in more detail: The Lovesick Scribe Podcast: A Core Problem with the Core Kids Ministry on Apple Podcasts.
In Remembrance of Him
As we are celebrating Jesus Christ Resurrection this weekend,
we invite you to be partaking of the Holy Communion with us by
clicking on the link below:
Ladies Gave The First Resurrection Message
By: Brother Sam Waddell
MATTHEW 28:1 Now after the Sabbath, as the first day of the week began to dawn, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary came to see the tomb. 2 And behold, there was a great earthquake; for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven, and came and rolled back the stone from the door, and sat on it. –5 But the angel answered and said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. 6 He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. Comments: Luke wrote: Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the other woman, Luke 24:10. (NKJV Matthew 28:1-10 and Luke 24:10).
These ladies were the first to see JESUS RESURRECTED. Why? Because they were the first ones there! JESUS loves all His followers the same, no matter the gifts or calling, but it is the ones who SEEK HIM FIRST who find Him. As James wrote: ” Draw near unto God and He will draw near unto you.” James 4:8 NKJV
REMEMBER, it is the ones who are there, when GOD MOVES, that get the BLESSING. Not the ones hiding away, or in bed with a hangover, or at the river fishing. If we want God, as Believers, we must pursue Him diligently and if we are lost sinners, we must repent, call on JESUS, to save us, and believe in Him, in our hearts, then pursue Him diligently. These ladies were first to the empty tomb. Then, JESUS appeared to them and sent them to tell the other Disciples, who weren’t there. Verse 9 “And as they went to tell His disciples, behold, Jesus met them, saying, “Rejoice!” So, they came and held Him by the feet and worshiped Him. 10 Then Jesus said to them, “Do not be afraid. Go and tell My brethren to go to Galilee, and there they will see Me.
Comments: JESUS always has a call and a mission for us. He sent these ladies to ANNOUNCE, to the other Disciple, that He had RISEN from the dead and that He would meet them in Galilee. All believers are called to ANNOUNCE THAT JESUS IS RISEN AND ALIVE AND HE RULES AND REIGNS FOREVERMORE. So go with JOY, like these ladies, and tell all those you know in this world, JESUS is alive and will meet them. If them turn around and COME TO HIM.
Brother Sam Waddell was a missionary in Africa and other parts of the world. He holds a M.Div. Theology, Missions and Evangelism at Asbury Theological Seminary.
Life in the Blood
By Fran Gardner Mora
Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. Hebrews 9:22
Have you ever watched an animal sacrifice scene in a historical documentary or show and marveled at just how horribly pagan and offensive the ritual was – and then thought, “These people were barbaric! What kind of god would …”
… And then you’re tracking along through Exodus and Leviticus and [insert the sound of screeching tires here] you come right up into chapters of scripture that detail the exact order of events when offering sacrifices to our God – and they include animal slaughter, catching blood in bowls, and sprinkling people and surfaces with the blood!
Because of my love for understanding God’s Word and my analytical nature, I found myself doing a deep dive into the possible answers to the question, “Why?” I didn’t hit the Internet or check the commentaries because I wanted the Holy Spirit to place His illumination on the subject.
I saw that the blood was sprinkled on people and smeared on specific parts of the body (ears, thumbs, big toes, etc.), which means that the blood of the sacrificial animal would have, undoubtedly, gotten on their clothes. Also, when men brought animals to be sacrificed, they had to slaughter them at the place where they burnt the offerings, which was a messy task! At this time in history, clothes were not washed very often, so these people would have walked around for days, or maybe weeks, with the stains – and the smell – of the blood on their person. Very disgusting! The priests, however, were told to wash their garments if they got blood on them.
Scripture also tells us that life is in the blood (Leviticus 17:14). But once the blood leaves the body, life leaves the blood, and it becomes putrid. So, sin causes this cycle of death and waste that destroys both the innocent and the innocence. In the sequence of events that were prescribed for sacrificial atonement, it seems that God wanted us to be conscious of His blood covenant with us. But, perhaps God was also demonstrating that atonement for sin is very costly and that we should bear the smell of the sacrifice in our nostrils as a reminder that life is sacred. It’s no small thing for one life to be slain for another, whether it’s a full-growth bull or a tiny dove.
But Jesus ended the requirement of wearing the stench and shame of our own sin. By pouring out His righteous and precious blood and taking the cup of the sins of humanity, He placed the seal of redemption on us and gave us the only way back into the Fathers holy presence. His blood carries eternal life, washes away all other blood and guilt, and restores our purity and innocence. We are free to hope because we are validated by this new covenant and not bound by lies. We are free to love because we can move in the graciousness of God and not be bound by fear. We can live to the fullest because we can drink from the flow of living water and not be limited by thirst.
Oh, Jesus, I love you. The only thing that I can ever do to thank you for my salvation is to serve You by humbly serving others, to honor You by being a reflection of You to those around me, and to glorify You by making Your influence over my life known. Holy Spirit, help me to do this well. Increase my measures of faith and perseverance, place before me anointed opportunities, and breathe into me a mighty, fresh wind. Amen.
And to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel. Hebrews 12:24
https://www.pearlsandpresence.com/
January 6th Two Years Later
By: Jeff Sutherland
Two years ago, on January 6th congress was counting electoral votes to decide the election. There has been over 1000 lawsuits brought against the votes claiming fraud and despite that, these were ignored, and Biden was elected President.
Uncountable millions of hours on media and social media have backed that President Trump incited an insurrection, calling people to kill and destroy our democracy. But in reality, our democracy is a constitutional republic where the winner of the electoral college in each state ultimately decides the outcome of the election and congress approves the vote.
A committee was formed to look into the happenings on that day but only those who hated Trump were allowed to be on the committee. When one side or other controls the media, education, congress, and the Presidency, where it is considered almost unlawful to discuss anything, we are turning Marxist in our government thinking. The first amendment is being butchered.
While in college I ran around with the people in the Debate Club. At the time they were discussing nuclear armament. You would get up and argue for disarmament then thirty minutes later you were required to argue for armament. Imagine if school was still taught this way where both sides are exposed, discussed and thought through rather than just decided that your side is right and everyone who doesn’t believe that is wrong. Even if you are right and the other side is wrong, we can be civil and discuss the issues. This has not happened.
One side hates Trump and will do anything to make sure he is never able to run for President again. The other side believes that Biden has done well, heading our country in the right direction, determined to shut up the right and their thinking.
In the founding of our country, over the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights, there was much debate that lasted for months. However, there was one agreement, a general consensus that no matter what direction we took as a country, that God, not government was the giver of our rights. This thinking lasted well into the 20th century where President Eisenhower began his inaugural address with a prayer to God that we would continue to look to Him for answers, for security and that He would lead and guide us as a country of believers. January 20, 1953. He was a general in world war two and was determined to keep our country focused not on arguing with the other side but focusing together on our walk with the Lord. He is the one who added “one nation, under God” in our pledge of allegiance. He determined to put, ‘in God we trust’ on our money. He was not considered a radical but a man who wanted to continue to lead this country as our founding fathers did, focusing on putting God first in everything.
Everything about January 6th 2021flies in the face of this thinking. It is a small tip of a huge iceberg headed right at our capitol. This isn’t even about politics, there is a much deeper more sinister root to this malodorous bloom that started in the 20th century.
But how do we fix the problem? As a former landscaper, I can tell you that if the real problem is in the roots of a plant, you will never fix it by pruning, fertilizing, or doing anything to the top of the plant. Our country wants to focus on everything but the roots.
There is a great example in the Bible of how to deal with problems. It is found in John 8.
But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. 2 And early in the morning He came again into the temple area, and all the people were coming to Him; and He sat down and began teaching them. 3 Now the scribes and the Pharisees *brought a woman caught in the act of adultery, and after placing her in the center of the courtyard, 4 they *said to Him, “Teacher, this woman has been caught in the very act of committing adultery. 5 Now in the Law, Moses commanded us to stone such women; what then do You say?” 6 Now they were saying this to test Him, so that they might have grounds for accusing Him. But Jesus stooped down and with His finger wrote on the ground. 7 When they persisted in asking Him, He straightened up and said to them, “He who is without sin among you, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.” 8 And again He stooped down and wrote on the ground. 9 Now when they heard this, they began leaving, one by one, beginning with the older ones, and He was left alone, and the woman where she was, in the center of the courtyard. 10 And straightening up, Jesus said to her, “Woman, where are they? Did no one condemn you?” 11 She said, “No one, [a]Lord.” And Jesus said, “I do not condemn you, either. Go. From now on do not sin any longer.”
Consider the Pharisees. They thought it would be great to show Jesus this woman caught in sin. They may have thought that He would bless them for exposing this ‘evil’ woman. He didn’t. His statement hit right at the heart of the problem. He who is without sin, cast the first stone. None did. Jesus is the only one who could have but He didn’t either. He simply told her to go and sin no more.
This small teaching, if applied to January 6, our government and those involved, would simply realize our own sin, drop the stones we are ready to throw at others we could make a huge repentant turn across this whole country.
Resurrection is Coming
By: Tresa Walker
Think about that feeling of waiting expectantly for something. Christmas and birthdays as a child, your wedding day, the birth of a baby, a long anticipated visit or trip, milestone birthdays (maybe when you were younger, now you probably dread those big birthdays). Most of the time, our wait is a few short weeks, months or maybe even years. But there is coming a day that Christians have awaited for nearly 2,000 years! John 5:28-29 says, “A time is coming when all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come out — those who have done good things, to the resurrection of life, but those who have done wicked things, to the resurrection of judgment.” For believers, there is a glorious new life in our future that is much more than anything this earthly life can provide. The joy will far surpass anything we have anticipated here on earth, and it will be a joy that endures through eternity!
Easter is a time of celebrating the resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, but the events prior to the resurrection were heartbreaking for those who witnessed the events. Jesus was betrayed, arrested, tortured, and then crucified on a rugged cross and died for all to see. The Gospels retell the details of these events leading to the death of Jesus. After His death, His body was wrapped in linen cloth and placed in an empty tomb which was sealed with a heavy stone. The tomb was then secured by guards to ensure that no one could attempt to steal His body under cover of night and then falsely claim that Jesus had risen from the dead. But no stone or army of guards could have compromised God’s perfect plan!
On the third day, an angel appeared at the tomb and removed the stone causing the guards to collapse in shock. Mary Magdalene and Mary the mother of James went to the tomb to anoint His body with burial spices, and the angel announced that Jesus had risen from the grave. The tomb was empty! Imagine the confusion the women must have felt. In Matthew 28:6, the angel said to the women, “He is not here! For he has been resurrected, just as he said.”
Just as He said! Jesus had predicted His own death and resurrection and tried to prepare His disciples for this moment on three different occasions. Matthew 16:21 says, “From then on Jesus began to point out to His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders, chief priests, and scribes, be killed, and be raised the third day.” Similar statements are also found in Matthew 17:23 and 20:18-19. This idea was completely incomprehensible to them, so they did not grasp the concept of resurrection and His future return.
The resurrection of Jesus is the foundation of Christian belief. If Jesus had not resurrected from the grave, He would have simply been a great teacher. But He conquered death just as He predicted and as had been prophesied many times in the Old Testament 700 years prior to His crucifixion! Jesus was truly the long awaited Messiah, the Savior of the World which was precisely who He claimed to be! Everything prophesied had come to fruition. Everything believers of that time had trusted, shared, and held onto had become reality because death could not hold our Savior in the grave! And everything that we hope for today is irrevocable truth!
The story of Jesus did not end at the tomb. He arose victoriously from the grave! Therefore, the story of a Christian’s life doesn’t end at the grave either. This is confirmed in John 3:16-17 which says, “For God loved the world in this way: He gave His One and Only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world that He might condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.” His resurrection changed everything! It finalizes God’s promise of eternal life for those who believe. If there had been no resurrection, there would be no basis for our belief as Christians.
After hearing from the angel that Jesus had been raised from the grave and seeing the empty tomb, the two women left full of joy and ran to tell the good news of the resurrection. Jesus then met them on the road, and they immediately fell at His feet in worship. What a moment! Their beloved Jesus was alive! He had conquered death and rose from the grave just as he claimed he would do!
His resurrection gives us confidence that there is more to our existence than just this earthly life of pain and sorrow. It gives us hope of everlasting life with the almighty God. It gives us assurance that what we hope for is real. The resurrection fulfilled the prophecies of the Old Testament and secured the promise that followers of Jesus would have everlasting life. John 11:25 states, “Jesus said, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in Me, even if he dies, will live.’” Because Jesus is life, those who believe will be resurrected to new life with Him. Even when we die, death will not defeat believers; we will have eternal life. We will be raised to everlasting glory!
As Easter draws near, make time to reflect on the resurrection. Death did not win the victory. Jesus did! Reflect on the empty tomb that could not hold our Savior. Reflect on the witnesses who saw Him, touched Him, and worshiped Jesus in all His glory. Reflect on the love of a Savior who took onto himself every sin that you have ever committed and then suffered and died in your place so that you could have eternal life. Reflect on the promises of a resurrection to a new life in glory that we have been promised as believers. The resurrection for believers is coming! Until that day, worship Him, teach about Him so that others may believe, and faithfully wait with joy and anticipation for that day! What a day, glorious day that will be!
How Would You Like to Save a Life – – or Two?
By: Donna Marable
It is Spring, a time of renewal and time for Women’s Care Medical Center’s 2023 Walk for Life. Since 1990 every man and woman who comes to their centers is offered dignified life-affirming options. WCMC not only seeks to save the life of the child in the womb, but they share with every client the eternal hope of salvation through Jesus Christ.
The Center’s website, https://friendsofwcmc.org/ tells the incredible facts about their beginnings and many successful missions; the Walk for Life information is under ‘events’ in the header. The success of the Walk, which culminates April 15th, is solely dependent on the involvement of businesses, churches and individuals. Participants can obtain pledges and walk or sponsor someone who is walking; donors can be billed for their one time pledge. The organization is affiliated with the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability and all gifts are tax deductible.
Thanks for your support in standing with them for the rights of ALL human life.
“Whatever you did for the least of these, you did for me.” Matthew 25:40
Will The Asbury Revival Transform America?
By: Stuart Kellogg
The revival that began during the regular February 8th chapel service at Asbury University in Wilmore, KY caught the imagination of not just the church, but the country as a whole. For those unfamiliar with revivals, it was a strange occurrence, seeing young men and women for hours, days and eventually, more than two weeks, praying and worshipping. (“Isn’t that supposed to be something you do once a week?”) For the evangelical church it was a promise of an awakening within an increasingly secular and hostile culture. We won’t know the real impact for years. The question of whether it will go down as a localized experience, or the start of something much, much bigger will depend not on the thousands who were part of the outpouring. It will depend on those of us who heard about it and then responded or did nothing.
Whether an awakening or revival, it was a powerful event that began with young Generation Z members and touched many more than those who witnessed it in person, including several residents.
Now, America is certainly no stranger to revivals, being part of world-wide awakenings since before we became a nation. Some examples: The First Great Awakening in the 1700s, The Second Great Awakening in the early 1800s, and the 1970 Asbury Revival which occurred at the beginning of the so-called Jesus Movement and is popularized in the current hit movie Jesus Revolution.
These large movements are a testament to the Holy Spirit moving among His people, and drawing in those thirsting for more than what the culture offers. Dr. Timothy Tennent, president of Asbury Seminary (a separate school across the street from Asbury University), prefers to call the event an awakening. It will be a revival, he believes, if something more permanent comes of it. As he wrote on his blog, “It is first, last and foremost a tribute to the grace of God to reveal himself and to call a new generation to faithfulness at a time when we most needed it….However, a deeper look at this outpouring reveals that it has the same elements which are found in any authentic revival: people repenting of their sins; people being filled with the Holy Spirit; men and women finding reconciliation with God and their neighbor; people capturing a renewed love for Jesus, the gospel and the Holy Scriptures.”
“The Presence of the Spirit”
A Baldwin County pastor, Dr. Barry Carpenter who leads Resurrection Church in Daphne AL., experienced the power with five others who travelled with him to Kentucky. What made the time special? “One word. Presence. That’s the word that captures me, captives me,” Dr. Carpenter told me. “The presence of the spirit. It was gentle. There was no leader. He was the leader.”
Started during chapel service February 8th and lasting 16 days, Asbury University president Dr. Kevin Brown told The Christian Post that 50,000 students and visitors came to the campus to pray from more than 260 colleges and universities. Similar outpourings of prayer were reported at other colleges and universities across the country.
For Loxley, AL resident Tim Philpot, the revival was a reminder of the powerful work of the Spirit in 1970 at that Asbury Revival. Tim was a freshman at the time. The son of evangelist Ford Philpot, Tim was not a Christian. He told me the revival 53 years ago transformed his life. As he wrote on his blog when this awakening broke out, “About sixty hours into the revival, I knew it was my time. I located a friend and said, ‘I know you won’t believe this, but I am not a Christian.’ She smiled and said, ‘That’s no surprise. Five of your friends are in the basement right now praying for you.’
As Tim witnessed the incredible moving of the Holy Spirit in February, he was taken back to his own earth-moving experience. “This was my moment — one divine moment. I slithered to the altar, hoping no one would see me but also believing that this was the biggest moment of my life. And sure enough, it happened. I experienced God. I wrestled with God and He won. He redeemed me. He washed me. He healed me.”
The key, however, is not just the powerful experience, but the fruit of those awakenings. For Tim, he wrote that the change was immediate. “For starters, when I stood up from the altar, I loved people that I hated the day before. I am thinking of two very specific young people. It was a juvenile eighteen-year-old teenager rivalry, but very real at the time. Next, the incredible burden of sin was gone. It was like going from being a caddie carrying a 100-pound tour bag full of thirty clubs and junk up a hill to being the a ‘tour player’ with God Himself on the bag, carrying all my burdens for me. Essentially, it is the freedom that comes from being forgiven!”
That encounter with Christ didn’t just change Tim, it’s changed the hundreds of lost souls touched around the world through his one-on-one discipleship and various ministries he’s been involved with and led for more than half a century.
Lasting Transformation?
As Dr. Tennent from Asbury Seminary wrote, “Only if we see lasting transformation which shakes the comfortable foundations of the church and truly brings us all to a new and deeper place can we look back, in hindsight and say ‘yes, this has been a revival.’”
What is your church doing in the wake of this outpouring? What are we doing individually? If we simply cheer and go back to our everyday lives—-a little bit of Jesus mixed with a lot of other stuff—-odds are there will be little fruit. If, however, Christ followers become more engaged with Christ, listening, and obeying the work of the Holy Spirit, well, watch out world!
The fruit of those earlier revivals, or awakenings, is obvious. Elmer Towns and Douglas Porter wrote The Ten Greatest Revivals Ever, and noted that each movement had a lasting impact because of major changes in the church and the culture. “The First Great Awakening in England, for example, resulted in Sunday school and educational reform, changes to labor and child welfare laws, significant prison reforms, and the abolition of slavery,” they wrote. “During the Welsh Revival, the culture was so transformed that new mules had to be secured to work in the coal mines: The old mules wouldn’t’t respond to miners who no longer cursed and abused the animals! In these and many other ways, revivals in England, America, and other nations have historically shaped those societies into more Christian communities.”
The Second Great Awakening birthed many great evangelistic organizations, such as the Baptist Missionary society, along with the modern missionary and Sunday school movements. Calvary Chapel is credited with planting more than 1400 churches in the wake of the Jesus Movement of the late 60s and early 70s that began at that small church.
In other words, there was no “going back to normal.” It was a wonderful new normal, with a revived church plus many, many new followers. You know what term didn’t rule the day after these revivals? “We’ve never done that before!”
Will the awakening/revival at Asbury University be more than a fondly remembered event in a year or two? It all depends on us. There has never been a greater need for Christ and what He can do to heal the wounds, repair relationships, and lead a country full of sinners to repentance and a new life. What are we willing to do to make that revival a reality?
Stuart Kellogg, author of The Post Covid Church: An Action Plan to Thrive Not Just Survive ( amazon.com) is host of What Now? The Post Covid Church Podcast, available on your favorite podcast platform. (Contact: stuart@thepostcovidchurch.org)
What Real Love looks like
What real love looks like…
By: Jeff Sutherland
I almost walked out of church last night. One of my favorite pastors started speaking and asked if we remembered Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs pyramid, and a few people in the congregation were quick to google and share what Maslow taught. At this point I was getting angry. This is supposed to be church not psychology class.
But quickly our pastor asked, where is God in that pyramid? And he wondered what our needs pyramid should look like if God is the center of our life. At that point not only did I want to stay and hear what he had to say but I wanted to create a ‘God’s hierarchy of our needs pyramid’.
In Maslow’s pyramid and in the world’s view love is all about ME. Most people only think about love being the good things that happen to me but the Bible stands this whole idea on its head. Consider being sold into slavery, false accusations, imprisonment and other horrible things that happened to Joseph yet in the end he was able to say, ‘you meant it for evil but God meant it for good’.
Consider 400 years of slavery for God’s chosen people followed by 40 years wondering in the wilderness before they made it to the promised land and only two of those original two million people actually crossed the Jordan into Israel.
And to see what real love looks like we only need to look at Jesus.
So if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort from love, anyparticipation in the Spirit, any affection and sympathy, 2 complete my joy by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. 3 Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility count others more significant than yourselves. 4 Let each of you look not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others. 5 Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, 6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Philippians 2
What real love looks like is not pleasing ourselves and getting what we want so we can move up the ladder toward self-actualization. God showed us the way. He did the opposite, He climbed down the ladder, all the way down. His focus was on our real needs, the only need that matters. Life. His death gave us life and He require those who believe Him to follow His example to die to self and live for others.
Ephesians 5 says to walk in love as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us. Husbands love your wife as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her. Husbands should love their wives as their own bodies, and they shall become one flesh.
This totally destroys Maslow’s hierarchy. Life isn’t supposed to be about me and getting what I need, it is about following Christ’s example and dying to self and living for others.
Next time your pastor wants to make his sermon into a psychology lesson, walk out. Run from that church. I am so thankful for a man of God who preaches the Word. Those who follow Maslow sound a lot like the lesson plan for church last night in Proverbs 4.
Do not enter the path of the wicked,
and do not walk in the way of the evil.
15 Avoid it; do not go on it;
turn away from it and pass on.
16 For they cannot sleep unless they have done wrong;
they are robbed of sleep unless they have made someone stumble.
17 For they eat the bread of wickedness
and drink the wine of violence.
We can’t worship the world’s ways or worship self while putting God first. Quit trying to blend psychology and the Bible. Thank you pastor!
Below is Maslow’s pyramid. God provides our needs. If we are having trouble breathing, eating, sleeping He has a greater purpose. God is our security and if we lose a job, or a house He has a better purpose. If we show love, others may not show it back but we will grow in our love for God. Our achievement, our confidence, our status is based on what He has done for us, Godly esteem. Our potential rests not on our effort but on His.
This pyramid should be turned upside down and the cross should be the pinnacle and focus of our lives and others should see that in us.
That is what real love looks like.
