The Downfall Of A Nation

Scripture

Your country has been devastated, and your cities have been burned to the ground. While you look on, foreigners take over your land and bring everything to ruin.

~Isaiah 1:7, GNT

Quote

 Righteousness makes a nation great; sin is a disgrace to any nation.

~Solomon

I began a new daily bible study in Isaiah last week and it took me two days to get by chapter one. Judah was living in rebellion against God and Isaiah was prophesying doom. I have narrowed Judah’s downfall to five things; the startling thing is that it sounds like we are talking about the United States.

1. Rebellion against God. {v.2} “The children I brought up have rebelled”…{v.4}“You are doomed”…”You have rejected the LORD, you have turned your backs on Him.” This rebellion lead to moral depravity and sin sickness making the nation unhealthy and unholy. {v.5} “Your head is wounded, your heart and mind are sick…not one healthy spot on your body.”
2. Ruin from foreign invasion. {v.7} “Foreigners taking over your land [gas stations, motels, banks, etc] and bringing everything to ruin.” {This is literally happening before our very eyes}
3. Rulers who defy God and pay no attention to His word. {v.10} Jerusalem, your rulers and your people are like those of Sodom and Gomorrah. Listen to what the Lord is saying to you. Pay attention to what our God is teaching you.
4. Ritualistic Religion that is vain and powerless. {v.13-17} It’s useless to bring your offerings. I am disgusted with the smell of the incense you burn. I cannot stand your New Moon Festivals, your Sabbaths, and your religious gatherings; they are all corrupted by your sins. I hate your New Moon Festivals and holy days; they are a burden that I am tired of bearing. 
5. Refusal to help the helpless. {v.15-17} “When you lift your hands in prayer, I will not look at you. No matter how much you pray, I will not listen, for your hands are covered with blood. Wash yourselves clean. Stop all this evil that I see you doing. Yes, stop doing evil and learn to do right. See that justice is done—help those who are oppressed, give orphans their rights, and defend widows.” Help the helpless and who is the most helpless in our society? The unborn and we are killing them by the millions and our courts made it legal but it is not right and God will have the last word on the matter of abortion.

• I haven’t had much extra: today is a normal schedule. If you like normal, you better enjoy it because there is nothing normal about May.
• Since we don’t do a Sunday night/Monday blog, I will go ahead and ask for your prayers. Monday is a pivotal day for us. We are not the only family in DBC going through a difficult time. It’s not right for me to hog all the prayer but your prayers are appreciated more than you know. It’s not the length of your prayers that counts, it’s the sincerely. Peter prayed a three word prayer, “Lord save me.” Very brief but very sincere.
• Our final lap is going by in a hurry. June’s last AWANA store night is this evening. Our last Mother’s Day is two weeks away. Some big decisions will probably be made the next few weeks. We need to begin praying for the transition: [1] Pray that the Lord’s church at Danville will become one in Christ. [2] Pray for a moving or stirring of the Spirit of God. “HIS kingdom come, HIS will be done in Danville just like it is in heaven.”

Life That is Truly Life

Scripture

 Command them to do good, to be rich in good deeds, and to be generous and willing to share. In this way they will lay up treasure for themselves as a firm foundation for the coming age, so that they may take hold of the life that is truly life.

~I Timothy 6:18-19

Quote

Giving does not diminish our life; it enriches our life and brings us into an entirely new dimension.

~Ya’akov

I make no apology for preaching stewardship and I have sound biblical reasons for doing so. In 1 Timothy, Paul is admonishing his son in the ministry {Timothy} to be very careful. Greed is a temptation for preachers. It can be a trap that leads to ruin and destruction and it must be avoided. Paul told Timothy, “Don’t pursue wealth, rather pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness.” Not only was Timothy to guard against greed in his own life, he was to warn others of the dangers associated with greed. Paul told Timothy to command those who were rich to:

• Put their faith in God who provides us with wealth for our enjoyment.
• Be rich in good deeds for others.
• Be generous and willing to share.

What was Paul’s reasoning for commanding Timothy to address the problem of greed? The answer is found in verse 19, “So that they [rich] may take hold of the life that is truly life.“ I was addressing the issue of giving a few Wednesday nights ago and a layman who is a professional bow hunter came to me after the service making this exact point–Giving enriches the life of the giver. No miser enjoys life. Adam was the richest man who has ever lived: he had rights to all the timber, minerals, water, land, etc. but he wasn’t happy because he had no one in which to share this unbelievable wealth.

So there is life and there is true life. Some people exist but they never live. They never live because they never comprehend the key to true living which is giving.

• Another beautiful Spring Day, Thank You Jesus!
• I forgot to mention yesterday that it was Holly’s birthday [36] and also Jennifer Garner’s. I am not going to tell you how old Jennifer is but when I was 29, she was 19.
• Don’t forget our Mother’s Day Special: Kenny Evans of Pigeon Forge, TN. The man reminds me of Ronnie Shipley. I think Kenny is a big hunter, I can’t wait to introduce him to the world champion Female Bow shooter.

Kenny Evans