June 11, 2015 - A. V. Rauf
Has the Glory Departed???
2 Timothy 4:1-5—I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all long suffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables. But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry.
Hebrews 2:1—Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip.
Aside from the fact that Bible prophecy is being fulfilled before our eyes in an accelerating fashion, the apostasy that is increasing exponentially within the Church is a tell tale sign in itself that we are in the last of the last days. That being said, it should be painstakingly obvious to every biblical Christian that “sound doctrine” is scarcely being “endured.”
In fact, it’s ironic that at a time in the Western world when access to the Bible has never been greater, biblical illiteracy among Christians abounds. The “slipping away” from the truth, of which Hebrews 2:1 warns, has become a steep slope for the church.
1 Samuel 4:20-21-–And about the time of her death the women that stood by her said unto her, Fear not; for thou hast born a son. But she answered not, neither did she regard it. And she named the child Ichabod, saying, The glory is departed from Israel: because the ark of God was taken, and because of her father in law and her husband.
Ichabod was the son of Phinehas and the grandson of Eli, the priest of the Lord in Shiloh. The tragic story of Eli and his two wayward sons, Phinehas and Hophni, can be found in 1 Samuel, chapters 2 and 4. Hophni and Phinehas died in battle with the Philistines who captured the Ark of the Covenant and took it away from the nation of Israel. Upon hearing this terrible news, Eli fell backward off his chair and broke his neck and died. Phinehas’s pregnant wife went into labor and bore a son.
The word Ichabod means literally “inglorious” or “there is no glory,” and in her pain and despair, this woman (who apparently was unnamed in Scripture) was grieving over the loss of the glory of God from Israel.
Galatians 6:14—But God forbid that I should glory, save in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world is crucified unto me, and I unto the world.
Every man who ever has the privilege of preaching the gospel should deeply relate to what Paul said in the above mentioned verse. The focus of our preaching must be to glorify Christ. In a very real sense, all other ground is without glory…..or in other words: Ichabod.
Colossians 3:17—And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.
Everything we do as Christians ought to be done out of an intense desire to glorify God, and in nothing should this be more true than when we are communicating the very message of God. This becomes paramount when one is teaching about the Bible:
James 3:1—My brethren, be not many masters, knowing that we shall receive the greater condemnation.
Let’s look at this verse in the Amplified version:
James 3:1—Not many [of you] should become teachers ([a]self-constituted censors and reprovers of others), my brethren, for you know that we [teachers] will be judged by a higher standard and with greater severity [than other people; thus we assume the greater accountability and the more condemnation]
Hebrews 4:12 (Amplified Version) states that:
For the Word that God speaks is alive and full of power [making it active, operative, energizing, and effective]; it is sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating to the dividing line of the [a]breath of life (soul) and [the immortal] spirit, and of joints and marrow [of the deepest parts of our nature], exposing and sifting and analyzing and judging the very thoughts and purposes of the heart.
I want to go on record to state that I am not a pessimist nor do I endorse cessationism. If anything, it is my sincerest prayer and desire that the Church wakes up from its slumber and understands its true identity in Christ Jesus. It is my hope and prayer that we see revival in the Body of Christ and that the Gifts of the Spirit are manifesting as the Spirit of God leads.
In order to do what is right we must first identify with what has gone wrong. It can be said that Scripture is dealt with superficially from too many pulpits, if it is actually dealt with at all. Due to this misguided approach, Bible classes and Sunday sermons have come to be judged more for their entertainment value than for the edification of the saints, evangelization of the lost, and glorification of the Lord. In real exposition of God’s word, truth does indeed meet life. And it changes those lives who lovingly and humbly embrace the will of God. Then again embracing the will of God is a choice every believer must make.
Leonard Ravenhill (1907–1994) was an English Christian evangelist and author who focused on the subjects of prayer and revival. He is best known for challenging western evangelicalism to compare itself to the early Christian Church as chronicled in the Book of Acts. Here are some of his most noteworthy quotes:
“The only reason we don’t have revival is because we are willing to live without it!”
“Today’s church wants to be raptured from responsibility.”
“If weak in prayer, we are weak everywhere.”
“Men give advice; God gives guidance.”
“Are the things you are living for worth Christ dying for?”
“A sinning man stops praying, a praying man stops sinning”
“God pity us that after years of writing, using mountains of paper and rivers of ink, exhausting flashy terminology about the biggest revival meetings in history, we are still faced with gross corruption in every nation, as well as with the most prayerless church age since Pentecost.”
“The Church used to be a lifeboat rescuing the perishing. Now she is a cruise ship recruiting the promising.”
“The opportunity of a lifetime must be seized within the lifetime of the opportunity.”
“My main ambition in life is to be on the devil’s most wanted list.”
“If Jesus had preached the same message that ministers preach today, He would never have been crucified.”
“Entertainment is the devil’s substitute for joy”
I believe this dear Saint was “Spot-on,” with many of his statements.
Before we decide to point fingers at those who teach the Word of God we must be aware of this as well: Our adversary is always seeking to come after the Church leadership. We must pray for our church leaders. Whatever may prompt one to teach false doctrine and to lead others astray, one thing is certain: Satan has been at work. If the devil gets a foothold in the life of a person who preaches and teaches, it is only a matter of time before Satan gets a foothold on the pulpit.
Men of God must possess the strength and courage necessary to deal with sin. The days of Pop-Psychology and “Feel Good” Sermons have overextended their welcome.
1 Timothy 4:1-16—Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils; Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron; Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth. For every creature of God is good, and nothing to be refused, if it be received with thanksgiving:For it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer.
It is interesting to note that in 1 Timothy 4 Paul first mentions sins such as unfaithfulness and hypocrisy. However, the remainder of the chapter deals with character traits that all servants of God must have:
If thou put the brethren in remembrance of these things, thou shalt be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished up in the words of faith and of good doctrine, whereunto thou hast attained. But refuse profane and old wives’ fables, and exercise thyself rather unto godliness. For bodily exercise profiteth little: but godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come. This is a faithful saying and worthy of all acceptation. For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe. These things command and teach. Let no man despise thy youth; but be thou an example of the believers, in word, in conversation, in charity, in spirit, in faith, in purity. Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to doctrine. Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy, with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery. Meditate upon these things; give thyself wholly to them; that thy profiting may appear to all. Take heed unto thyself, and unto the doctrine; continue in them: for in doing this thou shalt both save thyself, and them that hear thee.
It seems as if nowadays, Biblical Christians are having greater difficulty finding churches that preach and teach the Scriptures. A growing numbers of Christians are turning to religious bestsellers and Bible- based movies rather than to the written Word of God. The work of the Holy Spirit is absolutely necessary in the life of a believer.
I believe that every true believer in Jesus is born of the Holy Spirit , sealed with the Holy Spirit, and enabled, empowered, and led by the Holy Spirit. This is critical in order to glorify God and to live one’s life in a way that is pleasing to Him. As a matter of fact according to the Scriptures, this is the only way that a believer can be spiritually fruitful.
John 3:3-5—Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. Nicodemus saith unto him, How can a man be born when he is old? can he enter the second time into his mother’s womb, and be born?Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water and of the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God.
Ephesians 4:29-32—Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers. And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. Let all bitterness, and wrath, and anger, and clamour, and evil speaking, be put away from you, with all malice: And be ye kind one to another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God for Christ’s sake hath forgiven you.
Romans 15:13—Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost.
If we want our churches to see revival, today is the day to seek the Holy Spirit. If we want our communities to see a mighty outpouring of His power, today is the day to seek Jesus Christ.
2 Chronicles 7:14— If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.
If the Holy Spirit of God is tugging at our heart today, we need to humble ourselves, pray and seek God’s face, turn from our wicked ways and we will hear from heaven and God will forgive our sins and heal our lives, families, churches, communities and our country. And perhaps there can be once more a great revival.
Time is very short. Our Lord is coming back soon.
I hope and pray and invite you to pray as well that God indeed brings revival to this country. The Biblical pattern has been that true revival is preceded by true repentance. What I hope does not happen is that His glory departs.