Sermon - Things We Need... Awakening - Littleby Baptist Church - March 28, 2021
The first Things We Need list ended with our Need for a God given Revival. A Revival is something that every believer in our Lord Jesus needs at one point or another. We need to grow in our Faith and many need to return to their first Love, Jesus. The state of our churches today, with declining attendance is proof that we need Revival, we need people to turn to Jesus and follow Him as their Lord and Savior.
For fifteen weeks we have looked at things that we Need that should bring us closer to our Lord. As we grow in Faith, get Excited about the Word of God, learn to walk with Humility and Wisdom, as we learn to Persevere to the end, while Depending on the Holy Spirit, we will be Revived. As we let God work in us, as we spread His Love, as we walk in Boldness, as we embrace Others, God will use us.
As we faithfully serve our Lord there is a chance that our God will use us to bring about another Things We Need… Awakening!
A Revival is a time when new life comes to those who are already followers of Jesus. An Awakening is when people who do not know Jesus open up their lives to Jesus and the Awesome gift He is offering.
Many of us are concerned about the need for Revival in our churches, I believe the Need for an Awakening in our communities is much greater. It was not too long ago that most people knew who Jesus was and would profess to having Christian beliefs. I remember having conversations with people who said they never attended church, read the Bible, or followed Jesus, but considered themselves a ‘Christian’. They obviously did not understand what they were saying, but they still had a cursory understanding of who Jesus is. In more recent years I have encountered more and more people who will say they do not even know who Jesus is. They may have heard the name, but not much beyond that.
Today, even those with superficial knowledge have turned away. Sadly, there are those who have attended church for years, but never really followed Jesus, they too have decided to stay away. Society continues to slide further and further away from Jesus.
If we were to compare the lostness of our communities from ten years ago to today, we would be shocked to see how much it has grown. There are many things that people are very public about in their lives today that would never be out in the open ten years ago. One example that I saw recently was someone selling a decade’s worth of pornography magazines on a very public social media swap shop. There was a time that people knew they existed, you could find them in a liquor store, but people would not advertise to sell them in a very public forum where minors could see it. It is one of many signs that show how bad things have gotten and that we need to pray for God to bring about another of the Things We Need… Awakening.
“18 For God’s wrath is revealed from heaven against all godlessness and unrighteousness of people who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth,” – Romans 1:18
Not to paint our God as an angry God who is determined to punish His creation, but Scripture does tell us that God’s wrath will fall on those who turn their back on Him. Our God cannot be around our sin, so those who do not turn to Jesus will be cast out. They will experience loss greater than anything we can imagine. They will feel the wrath of God.
People not knowing who Jesus is and not accepting Him as Lord is why the Things We Need… Awakening is as is critical as it is.
“9 The Lord does not delay his promise, as some understand delay, but is patient with you, not wanting any to perish but all to come to repentance.” – 2 Peter 3:9
Our God is a patient God. What we may see as God dragging His feet as the world falls deeper into sin, is really God taking His time so that as many people as possible can hear and respond to the wonderful news that Jesus is their Savior. Our God does not want any to perish, He wants all of His creation to be in His presence for all of eternity, He wants us, our family, our friends, the waitress who served you dinner the other night, the mailman, and everyone else to spend all of eternity with Him.
Many of us have been praying for our loved ones in Hope that they would open their eyes to the Truth that can set them free. Some of them have been on our prayer lists for years and we would love to see them turn from their sin and embrace Jesus. Some on our lists have become wayward and need to be Revived and others need to be Awakened.
“3 For the time will come when people will not tolerate sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, will multiply teachers for themselves because they have an itch to hear what they want to hear. 4 They will turn away from hearing the truth and will turn aside to myths.” – 2 Timothy 4:3-4
A time will come when people will no longer listen to the Good News of Jesus, they will only listen to what they want to hear. We are getting closer to a time when the truth of Jesus and His message of Mercy and Grace will be turned away. There are many who only want to hear what makes them feel warm and fuzzy on the inside and turn away from the truth. Sadly, there are teachers who are willing to feed people’s worldly natures instead of calling them to the Truth of Jesus.
“10 Then many will fall away, betray one another, and hate one another. 11 Many false prophets will rise up and deceive many. 12 Because lawlessness will multiply, the love of many will grow cold.” – Matthew 24:10-12
As part of Jesus’ teaching on the End of Days, He tells us that people will turn from Him, hate will prevail, and false teachers will become popular. While we may not know how close we are to our Lord’s return, we can see these verses unfolding before us. Chances are each of us know someone who has turned away from their faith in Christ for one reason or another. Many have walked away to embrace what is popular and turned away from the truth. Some of them will turn away from church completely and others will choose to follow some trendy speaker who makes them feel good about their choices even if they are living counter to God’s Word.
If you spend any time on social media or pay attention to political news you will see hate as Jesus mentioned here. We used to be able to disagree about topics, have good solid discussions over our opinions, and still enjoy having lunch as friends. That is not the case anymore. We seem to have lost the ability to agree to disagree with each other. In some circles if you do not agree with the popular opinion you are hated and cast out. It is sad to see how relationships, careers, and businesses have been destroyed simply because people cannot accept that other people’s opinions may be different. Hate is prevailing in this world we live in.
As people fall away, as hate prevails, as false teachers step forward, our need for the Things We Need… Awakening only grows.
“17 For the time has come for judgment to begin with God’s household, and if it begins with us, what will the outcome be for those who disobey the gospel of God? 18 And if a righteous person is saved with difficulty, what will become of the ungodly and the sinner?” – 1 Peter 4:17-18
Every person will stand before the judgement seat of God. Even those of us who have given our lives to Jesus will be judged. Without the blood of Christ cleansing us of our sins and His resurrection giving us eternal life, we would be cast out where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth. If those of us who spend time talking to our God, spend time studying His Word, spend time fellowshipping together, and serving others cannot escape judgement without Jesus, I do not want to imagine how hard will it be for those who do not have faith in our King?
The only path to an eternity in Glory with our God, is through following Jesus.
“13 “Enter through the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who go through it. 14 How narrow is the gate and difficult the road that leads to life, and few find it.” – Matthew 7:13-14
Those false prophets and ear ticklers are telling people that there are many paths to an eternity with God. They are leading people towards the wide gate that leads to destruction. They are leading them to an eternity in agony.
It is heart breaking to know that so many are going to be lost forever, which is why the Things We Need… Awakening is needed urgently. There will come a time that it will be too late, but that is not today.
“4 But when the kindness of God our Savior and his love for mankind appeared, 5 he saved us—not by works of righteousness that we had done, but according to his mercy—through the washing of regeneration and renewal by the Holy Spirit. 6 He poured out his Spirit on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior 7 so that, having been justified by his grace, we may become heirs with the hope of eternal life.” – Titus 3:4-7
If we have been saved out of the kindness and love of our Savior, if we have been saved by His mercy, if we have been saved by the work of the Holy Spirit in us… so can everyone else.
It is not too late for that wayward family member to turn back to God. It is not too late for those who attended church all their lives but have never committed to following Jesus. It is not too late for our loved ones who roll their eyes when we talk about church or what God has done in our lives. It is not too late for all the people we have been praying for their eyes to be opened to the truth of God. It is not too late for people all around the world to realize they that they NEED a Savior.
It is not too late for the Things We Need… Awakening!
You may be in complete agreement that we need a Revival and an Awakening but wondering what you can do to help… let’s turn to Acts.
“42 They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and to prayer.” – Acts 2:42
As followers of Jesus, we need to devote ourselves to learning the Word of God, fellowshipping with Others, which breaking of bread is a part of, and we need to Pray.
All of these things will help us to walk the path that our God has laid before us. The more time we spend studying the Word of God and in Prayer, the closer we draw to our Lord. The time spent with Others, helps us to stand strong when we are being challenged and to Love Others. In devoting ourselves to God, we are expressing our Love for Him.
The more we Love God and Love Others, the more we are drawn to Pray for those who do not know Jesus.
“43 Everyone was filled with awe, and many wonders and signs were being performed through the apostles. 44 Now all the believers were together and held all things in common. 45 They sold their possessions and property and distributed the proceeds to all, as any had need. 46 Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple, and broke bread from house to house. They ate their food with joyful and sincere hearts, 47 praising God and enjoying the favor of all the people. Every day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved.” – Acts 2:43-47
The followers of Jesus in Acts 2, Loved God, Loved Others, and they Prayed. The result was that people were saved. As a follower of Jesus today, we need to live our lives putting God first in all things. We need to trust in the Hope that He has given us. We need to remember to live Humbly, with Wisdom, and with Generosity. As we let God work in us, as we Depend on Him, as we follow His lead, our God will use us.
As God uses us in this world… as we pray for those who are lost. There is a chance He will bring the Things We Need… Awakening.
Pray for those who do not know Jesus and ask for Him to open their eyes, ears, and hearts… Pray for Revival and Pray for another Awakening.
May the Lord's Blessings be upon you!
Robert
Comments
Post a Comment