Take a Look at Yourself
What is the spiritual condition of the church? Putting it in medical terms I ask, “How sick is the church?” Some might say, “The church has the flu...with bed rest and plenty of fluids she’ll be fine.” But it is probably more realistic to say the church suffers with cancer and is in need of serious medical attention!
If the church is sick that means we are sick! It would be easy to simply blame “everybody else” for the poor spiritual condition of the church but the truth is we all contribute to it’s poor health. In ways we may not be aware of we bring symptoms of spiritual sickness into the places where we fellowship. The church’s recovery is directly linked to individual believers taking ownership of the problem. It won’t be easy because part of our sickness as the church of Jesus Christ is a blindness to the severity of our illness. The Lord faced this problem with Israel .
"Shout it aloud, do not hold back. Raise your voice like a trumpet. Declare to my people their rebellion and to the house of Jacob their sins. For day after day they seek me out; they seem eager to know my ways, as if they were a nation that does what is right and has not forsaken the commands of its God. They ask me for just decisions and seem eager for God to come near them.” Isaiah 58:1-2 NIV
Notice, they are going to church, finding pleasure in learning about God and eager to have God draw near as they worship while at the same time forsaking His commandments. God tells the prophet to remind them they are rebellious sinners. Later God gives them His evidence for His diagnosis.
“Yet on the day of your fasting, you do as you please and exploit all your workers. Your fasting ends in quarreling and strife, and in striking each other with wicked fists. You cannot fast as you do today and expect your voice to be heard on high.” Isaiah 58:3-4
Does this sound familiar? Is there a disconnect between what you say you believe and the way you live? Somehow we must awaken out of our stupor and realize that something is wrong...something is very wrong. The church needs to be changed and this change must begin with each of us as individuals.
The good news is that God is able to awaken us and show us our true condition and He is the Doctor that can heal us. Along with a huge dose of realism we also need hope. Things can change. The church can recover and become healthy again. God is able if we are willing...to take a look at ourselves.
It’s me, it’s me, it’s me O Lord, standing in the need of prayer!
Pastor Dan
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