Examine Your Steps!-Which Road Are You On?

Adoniram Judson, the great missionary to Burma (now called Myanmar), lived in the early 1800s. At that time, Burma was so opposed to the Gospel that William Carey told Judson, “Don’t go there. It is useless. All the missionaries their either died or quit.” For William Carey to say such a thing about a country is quite a statement. William Carey is the reason Baptists are still in mission work today. When everyone else wanted to sit back and let the rest of the world go to Hell, Carey was the one to stand up and say, “Something must be done!”
While in Burma, Judson only made one trip back home—and that was to escort his second wife back to the States in hopes that she might recover from her sickness. Judson lost two wives and 6 of 13 children to diseases. He was imprisoned during Burma’s war with England. His feet were bound, and at night, they were lifted off the ground by a bamboo pole so that only Judson's head and shoulders touched the floor. This was just the beginning of the trials God would allow Judson to go through.
For all that he suffered in his 38 years as a missionary, Judson translated the Bible into the Burmese language, and put together a Burmese-English Dictionary for later missionaries to use in language training. After decades of service, Judson saw great rewards in 1831. People would come from all around to hear from whom they called the “Jesus Christ man” and to get his writings to take back with them. Adoniram Judson did all of this for the glory of his God.
“But that was 200 years ago,” you might say. Well, let us look at some more recent examples. Aside from the numerous and, dare I say, “typical” bombings of churches, and beatings, murders, and beheadings of Christians all around the world, there are a few instances of persecution in our time of which we should take note:

• Iraq—one priest of the Syriac Orthodox Church was disemboweled, quartered, and beheaded.
• Ethiopia—one Christian was first beaten, and then hanged on a cross.
• Somalia—Christian children have been kidnapped and taken to Islamic schools for “rehabilitation.”
• China—prison, torture and death await anyone who professes Christ.

In June 2002, the US Senate Committee on the Judiciary heard this testimony from Ok Lee, a former prisoner in a North Korean prison camp:

“The cast iron factory was considered the most difficult place to work in the entire prison. Christians were usually sent there to work. I was carrying a work order to the cast iron factory in the male prison. Five or six elderly Christians were lined up and forced to deny their Christianity and accept the Juche Ideology of the State [that Kim Jong Li is god]. The selected prisoners all remained silent at the repeated command for conversion. The security officers became furious by this and killed them by pouring molten iron on them one by one.” (From www.persecution.org)

We think we are spiritual because we can drag ourselves to a church building on Sunday morning—if we are not too tired from the wild night before—put on a “Christian” T-shirt, sing a couple of warm-fuzzy songs, and maybe give the preacher an amen during his sermon—if we have not already fallen to sleep.

Do you see something wrong with this picture?

I am becoming more convinced that when—not if—persecution comes to this country, most of the so-called “churches” you see will be able to make a couple of minor adjustments and continue on just as if nothing ever happened. You might now ask, “Why are you so down on the church in America?” I am not down on the church in America; I am down on the American Church. There is a distinct difference. The American Church is a congregation of people who repeat a little meaningless prayer, take a swim in a baptistery, live like Hell 6 ½ days out of the week. They do nothing, nor do they care about anyone else but themselves and their little circle. They have their rights. They have their savior. They are still lord of their own lives.
But the church—the true church—in America is a Remnant—a beautiful Bride. She is a people—regenerated by the Holy Spirit, redeemed by the blood of Christ, and justified by God the Father. Though not perfect by any means, she strives for perfection through love and grace. Her heart beats for her Bridegroom, and to do what he commands.

Look at Matt 7:13-14: "Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it."

The American Church has been set upon a road. You will see hundreds of thousands of people on the left side of that road, and hundreds of thousands of people on the right side of that road. But in the middle of that road is a scarlet thread. There are few that find it. There are even fewer that actually walk it. Only the Remnant finds that scarlet thread and walks its length. They suffer ridicule and scorn. Family and friends turn their backs on them. They will be called legalists, blasphemers, blind, brainwashed—even heretics and cultists. People will try to pull them off that thread, push them off that thread, and beg them off that thread. They may even suffer torture and death because they walked along the thread.
But, one day, the Remnant will find their feet clinging to nothing but that scarlet thread, because the road has descended to its destination at the gate of Hell. The Remnant will cling to that thread until they have passed through the fire, and their journey will have a most blessed end.

Now, look at Matt 7:21-23: "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, 'Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your name, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name perform many miracles?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.'"

“Lord, Lord”—this is what is called parallelism. The Hebrew writing system (particularly) had no other way to emphasize a point other than stating that point two or sometimes even three times because they did not have punctuation. The “Lord, Lord” in these verses is an emphatic expression.
“You who practice lawlessness”—this literally reads “you who lived as though I never gave you a law to obey.” Do you see the context of this passage? (Ref. Matt 7:15-20) A Christian is not a Christian because he keeps the laws; a Christian keeps the laws because he is a Christian!

Before I move on, let me tell you about the four distinct differences between the Old and New Covenants.
1. The sacrificial system is no more. Jesus Christ—the perfect sacrifice—came and died for our sins. Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those that are in Christ. (Rom 8:1)
2. The law of God is no longer written on stone (in the literal sense), it is written on the hearts of Christians. (Ref. Scripture below)
3. Each Christian is ultimately accountable for his own actions.

Here is a great passage on the New Covenant. See if you can find points 2 and 3 here. Jer 31:31-34 “’Behold, days are coming,’ declares the Lord, ‘when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah, not like the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt, My covenant which they broke, although I was a husband to them,’ declares the Lord. ‘But this is a covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days,’ declares the Lord, ‘I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. They will not teach again, each man his neighbor and each man his brother, saying, “Know the Lord,” for they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest of them,‘ declares the Lord, ‘for I will forgive their iniquity, and their sin I will remember no more.’”

4. The condition of the heart is permanently changed when a person becomes a believer and follower of God.

Look at Ezek 36:24-27: “’For I will take you from the nations, gather you from all the lands and bring you into your own land. Then I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean; I will cleanse you from all your filthiness and from your all your idols. Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. I will put My Spirit within you and cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will be careful to observe My ordinances.’”

This passage is the very definition of the doctrine of regeneration. A man’s heart MUST BE CHANGED in order for him to walk according to the law of God. Conversely, if a man is not walking, or not at least striving to walk, according to the law of God, that fact is evidence that he does NOT have a changed heart!

If you need further proof, lets look at another passage: Luke 6:46-49: “Why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say? Everyone who comes to Me and hears My words and acts on them, I will show you whom he is like: he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid a foundation on the rock; and when a flood occurred, the torrent burst against the house and could not shake it, because it had been well built. But the one who has heard and has not acted accordingly, is like a man who built a house on the ground without any foundation; and the torrent burst against it and immediately it collapsed, and the ruin of that house was great.”

Again, context demands that this passage is not talking about the difference between a blessed Christian and an un-blessed Christian that still gets in because he prayed a prayer. The context demands that this passage is talking about the difference between a REAL Christian and a NON-Christian! Now that we understand a little bit about regeneration—the essential work in the heart of a true Christian—I want you to examine yourself with one of the simplest commands in scripture to see if that work has been wrought in your heart:

Ex 20:4-6: “’You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth. You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the Lord you God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing loving-kindness to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.’”

We need to understand just exactly what idolatry is. Idolatry is not just bowing before a wooden or stone carving. Idolatry is worshipping something that is less than God. Louie Giglio stated in his book on worship: “You cannot help but worship something…Worship is our response to what we value most. [To find where and what you worship,] You simply follow the trail of your time, your affection, your energy, your money, and your allegiance. At the end of that trail you’ll find a throne; and whatever, or whomever, is on that throne is what’s the highest value to you. On that throne is what you worship.” (The Air I Breathe by Louie Giglio)

So what do you really love? What do you worship? What consumes your thought life? Maybe it is one of these things:

• A certain television program?
• A certain music group?
• Your job? Do you spend so much time at work that you hardly know your children—much less where they are at and what they are doing?
• Your vehicle?
• That new house?
• A boyfriend/girlfriend or the desire to have one? (And no, unfortunately, I’m not just talking to single people.)
• A certain football team? After the last game of the season, is the next day you look forward to the first day of the next season? All this twelve national championships, and the thumb—what will it all mean in eternity?
• Hunting? Have you ever said, “I can’t wait for hunting season to start so I can get out of the house and away from my wife”? I have heard that, in not so many words. If that is you, you need to get on your knees and repent before Almighty God! And you should probably read 1st John again to test your salvation, because you are not only an idolater, but you have disdain in your heart for the wife of your youth—the wife that you made a covenant before God to love, honor, and cherish!
• That position in the church? Deacons, Sunday school teachers, etc.
• A larger congregation? “We have 400 people on the church role…” So what? Are they all TRUE Christians-loving and living for God with every single fiber of their beings?
• Your rewards? How many people would sit and sulk on the streets of gold if they found out that they do not get their gold mansion with silver trim? I'm laying my crowns at the feet of Jesus, and if I get the beggar's seat just inside the gate of Heaven, I will praise Him forever because I know that I do not deserve even that seat.

I do not want to make you angry for the sake of making you angry. But, I want to confront you with your sin so that you have the opportunity to repent and go on loving God with all your heart!

REMEMBER JESUS' WORDS! Mk 12:29-30: “Jesus answered, ‘The foremost is, “Hear, O Israel! The Lord our God is one Lord; and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.”’”

Do you love God enough to spend the rest of your life doing whatever it is that He has for you to do—whether it is preaching, teaching Sunday School, or even spending the rest of your earthly life in a jungle telling people about Him? Are you willing to suffer and maybe even die in order to glorify Him?