Recently, I spoke from Revelation 3:14-22 about being a dispassionate (lukewarm) follower of Jesus. While preparing the message I came across this list describing a lukewarm Christian and I felt it was important enough to share with a broader audience. It is convicting, so only read it if you desire a greater devotion to Christ. My prayer is that many of us will be stirred to repentance and a more passionate devotion to Him.
Lukewarm people attend worship fairly regularly because they think that is what they have to do, not what they want to do.
Lukewarm people tend to choose what is popular over what is right when they are in conflict. They care more about what people think about their actions than what God thinks of their hearts.
Lukewarm people do not really want to be saved from their sins. They only want to be saved from the penalty of their sins.
Lukewarm people do not believe that the new life in Christ is really better than the old sinful life.
Lukewarm people rarely share their faith with their neighbors, coworkers, and friends. They do not want to be rejected, nor do they want to make people feel uncomfortable by talking about personal issues like religion.
Lukewarm people gauge their “goodness” by comparing themselves to others. They are satisfied as long as they aren’t as “bad” as someone else.
Lukewarm people say they love Jesus and Jesus is a part of their lives. But only a part! They give him a section of their time, their money, and their thoughts, but he isn’t allowed to control their lives.
Lukewarm people love God, but they do not love him with all their heart, soul, and strength. They assure themselves by thinking that this sort of total devotion is not really possible for the average person.
Lukewarm people think about life on earth much more than they do about eternity in heaven. Daily life is mostly focused on today’s to-do list, this week’s schedule, and next month’s vacation.
Lukewarm people probably drink and swear less than average, but besides that, they really aren’t much different from the typical unbeliever.
Lukewarm people walk by sight, not by faith. They do not trust their lives to God, but trust in themselves.
Below is a list of some of the tangible things God did for us in 2010. Obviously, there are many spiritual blessings that can't be measured in the same manner as these I've given. I prepare a list like this every year, as it helps me to get my mind around God's working in our fellowship. Rejoice with me and ask God to do it again in 2011.
2010 Blessings
The total number of converts to Christ from all of the 2010 outreaches of LMBC is hard to pinpoint with specificity, but following are the numbers we’ve actually recorded: 50 Huntington High School football players (some now in discipleship studies), 38 adults from our church services, 32 children from our children’s ministry, 40 through our Encounter Bible Studies, one child from the AWANA program, an exchange student from Germany, etc., etc. Many others were reached through ministries like the Daily Walk and our numerous outreaches throughout the year.
Our small group ministry was actively involved in numerous Servant Evangelism projects such as the Pumpkin Festival outreach, Gift baskets (with Gospel literature) in the hospitals, quilts for Veterans and the crisis pregnancy center, several taste and see events (inviting unbelievers to dinner and discussing Christ/Scripture), water distribution on the campus of Marshall University, feeding the homeless, nursing homes, roofing houses and other repairs, etc. (too numerous to list).
We began the “Water of Life” outreach. A trailer was purchased to distribute free bottled water (along with Gospel and church literature) at local fairs, festivals and local community events.
One of our members introduced us to and we began working with the “Back Pack” program, which provides food for the weekend for 41 children from one of our local public elementary schools. These backpacks are filled each week by our members and teens so the children will have something to eat on the weekend when public assistance through the school system isn’t available to them (They also receive a copy of our Encounter Bible studies).
God opened the door for one of our deacons to speak to the HHS football team on a weekly basis at the practice field before the players, coaches and parents.
We sent out a total of 18,260 Encounter Bible Study lessons with 15,013 being returned. There were 1021 certificates earned by EBS students and we gained 347 new students during the year. (The number converted through this ministry is listed under #1.)
We had more than 2700 people present for our Trunk or Treat outreach event and 256 children involved in the VBS program.
There was a total of 84 new members added to LMBC in 2010.
Our largest Sunday morning attendance for 2010 was 1378 and we had 174 people that registered as visitors over the 52 Sundays of the year. Many other visitors were in attendance, but did not register.
Our small group ministry nearly doubled in size with more than 54 groups meeting throughout the week in 2010.
Many of our small group leaders also trained an apprentice so that we can perpetuate new leadership and multiply small groups.
The church’s first sermon-based small group was formed...a men’s group that met weekly.
A “grass-roots” discipleship effort was born that will have increasing impact over the coming years.
Our Heart2Heart ladies mentoring ministry continued to help women grow in their faith and discipleship.
We implemented a new children’s curriculum in the Kids Connection ministry (first through fifth grades) that will take children through every major story/character of the Bible, teach them systematically the basic doctrines of the Christian faith, and instruct them in creation science.
We began the Caring Hearts ministry that shares God’s love with more than 60 widows who are members of LMBC. This ministry sends cards and makes weekly phone calls to encourage one another, as well as many of our shut-ins.
We had 1,200 that attended our Huntington Festival of Christmas Music for the two nights of the performance.
Over 60 choir members and more than 20 instrumentalists participated in two major productions this year.
Our music ministry combined their efforts with the King’s Players from Liberty University in presenting a stirring Easter musical entitled, Days of Glory on Easter Sunday Evening. There were more than 600 in attendance that evening to worship our resurrected Savior.
Our hospital visitation staff visited 209 people in the hospitals in 2010. With a visit from someone every day there were 1537 total visits made by this team. These totals do not include the hundreds of visits made to our shut-ins and those in nursing/personal-care homes.
This years Missions Transformation Conference was inspiring as many people made new commitments to the cause of church planting around the world.
We added six new missionary families to our missions outreach and took church members on six short term mission trips to foreign fields.
In 2010 our people gave $270,000 above their regular giving to LMBC for the cause of missions.
Our church also hosted doctors, nurses, health professionals, and others on two trips to Haiti following the devastating earthquake in 2010.
More than $10,000 was raised for missions for our annual “Touch the World” Golf tournament.
There were three new families added to Daystar Baptist Missions, Inc., who are going to various regions of the world to plant churches.
We were blessed with the privilege of ordaining another of our church members (Robert Krzesinski) to the Gospel ministry. He and his family are now preparing to go to Poland to plant churches.
Our young people averaged approximately 90 students in attendance in their Wednesday night worship service.
In 2010 our teens helped a family in need in TN with home improvements, as well as re-roofed the house of one of our widows.
For the first time in our new Student Ministry Building our teens hosted the entire Sunday night congregation for songs of praise/worship and a “cardboard testimony” service.
Our Prime-time Fellowship (senior adults) took 10 trips in 2010 to places like Niagra Falls, Myrtle Beach, Cass Railroad, Pigeon Forge, etc. and 12 new regular attenders were added to the church through this outreach.
Due to a generous gift and the diligent efforts of a Realtor in our fellowship we were able to purchase two pieces of property at a significant savings, including a house now used for ministry purposes and a lot that became church parking.
Thanks to the efforts of one of our church members and a generous gift by a donor, we were able to complete phase three of our parking lot across from the Worship Center.
A generous donation allowed us to purchase a fifteen passenger shuttle bus to be used for transporting people from the parking-lots adjacent to the Worship Center.
There were many technological upgrades throughout the church facility. For instance, we installed a satellite dish so that we can host live streaming seminars and conferences from anywhere in the world. We are one of only two churches in this region that can provide this ministry.
Two of our members that are trained professional counselors began accepting referrals from the LMBC pastoral staff in 2010. They meet with these referrals on our campus in order to minister to the spiritual and emotional needs of our members. This has been enormously helpful to our pastoral staff, as well as those who are discipled in this new ministry.
The Daily Walk ministry continues to grow in viewers; and the faithful servants in that ministry completed more than 700 orders for CDs and DVDs. They also welcomed seven new servants to their ministry.
Our audio ministry began installing quality improvements for both live music and recordings that will be completed in early 2011.
Our “Thirty Pieces of Silver” offering raised $23,158 and our “Gifts for Jesus” offering raised $32,181 to be used to broadcast the Gospel through our Daily Walk TV program.
The West Ridge Bookstore was added to the lobby of our Worship Center with the assistance from Guiding Light Christian Store with whom we partner in this ministry.
The greatest challenge that God has given each parent is that of raising his/her children.
Jacquelyn Kennedy once said, “If you bungle raising your children, I don’t think whatever else you do really matters.” (Roy B. Zuck, The Speaker’s Quote Book, p. 50)
As I look over the 30 plus years of my ministry, I have many things for which I am thankful. I have weathered some difficult storms and leaned into the winds of adversity on more than one occasion. During that time there have been many that have come to faith in Christ and lives renewed in their walk with God. But, I could not feel that I have experienced even a measure of success if in the process I had lost my children to the world, the flesh and/or the Devil.
David McKay writes, “No success can compensate for failure in the home.” (Roy B. Zuck, The Speaker’s Quote Book, p. 50)
Sadly, it is at the level of the home that we are placing too little emphasis.
Do we really know the impact our homes have on the lives of our children?
Studies have shown that 1% of influence in a child’s life comes from the church and Sunday school. The percentage of influence increases to 7% from their classroom experiences at school. The greatest influence in a child’s life (92%) is from the home. (H. Wayne House & Kenneth M. Durham, Living Wisely in a Foolish World, p. 50)
If we as parents have such a powerful impact on our children’s lives then it is important that we see our children as God sees them.
Consider…
1.The Right Perspective on Our Children (127:3)
Children are called here “an heritage,” and “His reward.” It is implied in these terms that children are a blessing, not a burden. An inheritance is something of great value that is passed down to you by another. Our children are of great value given to us by God.
When a society degenerates, one of the evidences of this decline is a loss of family love.
“Being filled with all unrighteousness, fornication, wickedness, covetousness, maliciousness; full of envy, murder, debate, deceit, malignity; whisperers, Backbiters, haters of God, despiteful, proud, boasters, inventors of evil things, disobedient to parents, Without understanding, covenantbreakers, without natural affection, implacable, unmerciful: Who knowing the judgment of God, that they which commit such things are worthy of death, not only do the same, but have pleasure in them that do them.” (Romans 1:29-32)
Charles Spurgeon once wrote, “When society is rightly ordered children are regarded, not as encumbrances, but as an inheritance; and they are received, not with regret, but as a reward.” (Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, Volume 3, Psalms 120-150, p. 85)
a.Each Child is a precious gift
Implied in this phrase “an heritage of the Lord” is not only the thought that our children are from the Lord, but also that they “belong to the Lord.”
H.T. Armfield writes, “The Hebrew seems to imply that children are an heritage belonging to the Lord…” (Charles Spurgeon, The Treasury of David, Volume 3, Psalms 120-150, p. 85)
Our children are on loan to us from God! We are to be good stewards of the gifts that He has given us, knowing that we will give an account for our stewardship.
b.Each Child is a perpetual joy
The text says that the man who has children is a “HAPPY” man (Psalm 127:5).
It doesn’t always feel this way when you are in the throes of childrearing, though.
I am reminded of a bedraggled-looking mother of three unruly preschoolers who was asked whether she would have children if she had it to do all over again. The mother responded, “Sure, just not the same three.”
All parents feel like that mother at times, but the Scripture is clear that children are a blessing from God and can bring joy to the hearts of their parents.
Listen to these Scriptures:
“The proverbs of Solomon. A wise son makes a glad father…” (Proverbs 10:1)
“My son, if thine heart be wise, my heart shall rejoice, even mine. Yea, my reins shall rejoice, when thy lips speak right things.” (Proverbs 23:15-16)
“The father of the righteous shall greatly rejoice: and he that begetteth a wise child shall have joy of him. Thy father and thy mother shall be glad, and she that bare thee shall rejoice.” (Proverbs 23:24)
Consider…
2.The Rich Potential of Our Children
The analogy that is used here of an arrow and a mighty man reminds us of the tremendous potential our children possess.
A teacher of ten-and eleven-year old boys in Germany would take off his top hat and bow before the boys in deference to them. “Why do you do that?” someone asked him one day. He answered, “Who knows what one of these boys may become?” Little did he know what one of the boys would accomplish in his life and his name was Martin Luther.
It is not that every child will have a renowned impact on the world, but it is that every child will have some impact on the world around him.
What does it take for your children to realize the full potential of their lives?
a.They must be fashioned
Before an arrow can fly through the air to hit the target, it must be first fashioned by the archer. Children come to us raw and unformed.
A woman once said to me that when she had her first child she suddenly realized that he hadn’t come with an instruction manual.
While I understand her comment was in relation to how you care for her new child, we do have a manual instructing us about the important things that need to be developed in our children’s lives.
This Book is none other than the Bible and it is our instruction manual guiding us in the process of fashioning our children.
This process of fashioning our children involves cutting away things that would hinder our children and instilling things that will give their lives that polished finish.
b.They must be focused
As “a mighty man” must aim the arrow at his target so our children must be aimed at the glory of God.
Too many parents take the attitude that they will leave spiritual matters up to their children when they reach the age of maturity. That is a fatal mistake and a dereliction of our stewardship. (Roy B. Zuck, The Speaker’s Quote Book, p. 53)
Someone has said, “If you do not teach your child the ways of the Lord, the Devil will teach them the ways of sin.” (Roy B. Zuck, The Speaker’s Quote Book, p. 49)
“And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes. And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.” (Deuteronomy 6:6-9)
c.They must be freed
Probably the hardest thing a parent has to do after all the investment of their lives in their children is to let them go toward God’s will for their futures.
As the “mighty man” must release the arrow for it to strike its mark, so we must release our children to accomplish His will for them.
A pastor was preaching in his small country church about the importance of missions and he was imploring someone from his congregation to go to a place on the other side of the world where the Gospel needed to be preached. During the invitation he prayed that someone would respond to the message but after several verses of the invitation song no one had come. The pastor began to cry and plead with the people for someone to surrender to this far away land. As tears were running down his cheeks and dropping to the floor someone moved from the back of the church. As the music continued playing a young girl stepped out into the aisle and walked down to the front. When she reached the preacher she whispered in his ear, “I’ll go, daddy. God wants me to go.” The preacher became more emotional and said to her, “Not you honey! Let someone else go, I wasn’t talking about you! Oh please, God, not my baby girl.”
It’s hard to let your children go, but it is always God’s will that we free them to follow the Lord!
One of the things that I love about our church is its dedication to biblical preaching. The arduous effort to impart spiritual truth from the Bible is only the product of a deep-rooted love for the Scriptures. Think about the Bible for a moment. God chose to reveal Himself specifically through this book that was written by 40 different authors over a period of 1,500 years. The Bible is like no other book written. Its contents have shaped human history. You see, it's no small matter that our teaching team stands before us each week and exposits truth. Remarkably there are nearly 6,000 existing Greek NT manuscripts today. It has been said by scholars that the vastness of manuscript support for our NT is an embarrassment of riches. It is true. Our manuscript evidence for the NT is startling-far out numbering all other historical writings.
Here is where I must confess; I've been obsessed with the Bible for a while now. So when I was given the opportunity to travel and help preserve the New Testament (NT) using digital photography, I couldn't resist. God has given me the privilege to travel on two expeditions, both in Germany and the U.S., to digitally preserve ancient Greek NT manuscripts. I worked with an organization called The Center for the Study of New Testament Manuscripts (csntm.org) to preserve these documents. In short, CSNTM is a non-profit organization whose mission is to digitally preserve all extant Greek manuscripts of the NT for scholarly study and enrichment of the Church. If you visit their website, you will already see thousands of images posted from numerous expeditions. On my first expedition, I worked with a team in Munster and Munich, Germany. My second expedition kept me state side as we shot manuscripts at the Lutheran School of Theology in Chicago. It is crucial that these manuscripts be digitally preserved, for these documents are ancient treasures of the Church, which support and attest the validity of our NT text. By preserving NT manuscripts, scholars are able to draw us ever closer to the original wording of the NT, whereby we discover our Lord Jesus.
May I stop here and say, shooting manuscripts is intense work. It begins with a lot of politics just to even get permission to shoot manuscripts in certain countries. Once we receive the "go ahead," we then have to find a spot conducive for photography. Plus, we have lots of equipment: multiple 21 mega-pixel cameras, lenses, reflectors, tripods, cables, a copy stand (as seen in image), two laptop computers, multiple external hard drives, and other various essentials. All of this equipment must be set up properly and then, with gloved hands, one person must gently turn the pages and the other must operate the camera via the computer. For 8 hours a day, one person stands in a strenuous position as the other keeps a sharp eye on the screen watching the borders and edges so not to miss any crucial data on the page. Though difficult, nothing is more rewarding. Why? If our NT is important, then isn't it also important that we preserve those documents that undergird the very translations we hold in our hands? We have our NT because faithful scribes copied those words generations ago.
After these expeditions, I had to ask myself: "What did all this mean to me?" I think two responses are appropriate. First, the staying power of the Scripture is astounding. The oldest NT manuscript I have been privileged to handle was over 1,100 years old. Folks, that's ancient. Every generation, after our NT was penned, has had a copy of these writings. What I held in my hands was evidence of God's faithfulness to us. It reminds me that our NT is not a caged lion. It permeates the corridors of history. It is God's written self-revelation. It is used by the Spirit to change our lives. It cannot be silenced, even after nearly 2,000 years. So let us saturate our hearts and minds with its riches. Let us love our church for its commitment to biblical teaching.
Second, and most convicting, is the care in which these scribes labored over the NT. I quickly learned that not every manuscript is created equal. Some manuscripts are just a few leaves, while others are bound books. Some manuscripts are made of parchment, while others are made of papyrus. Some manuscripts contain only the Gospels, and others have the Gospels, plus the Epistles. Some manuscripts contain only Paul's writings, while a few possess the entire NT. I was overwhelmed with the realization that a scribe had a lot of writing to do. It could take months for him to finish, often in backbreaking positions. I had to ask myself if I loved God's Word that much. In a blessed culture like ours, where Bibles line the shelves of our local bookstores, we are at risk of forgetting the sacrifice of the ancient Church. What if the only copy of the NT you had is the one you copied by hand in the dim light of a flickering candle? It was precious to our ancient brothers. Is it precious to us?
