The scriptures below were overlooked by me for several years. Self righteously pounding my chest, I was sound in doctrine, and my name was not and would never be on that list. He who overcomes shall inherit all things, and I will be his God and he shall be My son, but the cowardly, unbelieving, abominable, murderers, sexually immoral, sorcerers, idolaters, and all liars shall have their part in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death. (Revelation21:7-8, NKJV)
Notice the first word on the list above is cowardly. The King James version says, "the fearful". In this verse, cowardly is referring to Christians who, through cowardice, give way under persecution and apostatize.-(Thayer's Lexicon) Confessing Jesus was the Son of God, could get you killed in those times. In some places in the world today, it still can.
What does this word mean to you and me today? If we say we are Christians, are we strong or cowardly Christians? Is this serious? You betcha! You ever heard a sermon on the topic of "being cowardly"? Do you really think the Devil wants you to?
What does God want? He wants us to believe in Him and trust Him. But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. (Hebrews 11:6, NKJV) God does not want us to doubt Him nor not trust in what He promises or commands us to do.
The definition in Strong's Lexicon for the above faith is: belief with the predominate idea of trust (or confidence) whether in God or Christ, springing from faith in the same. You and I must trust God and believe who He is.
If I act fearfully or cowardly, I am afraid of losing something. I am still fearful, although God has said, He will never leave me nor forsake me. What am I afraid of losing? I believe the number one fear is losing favor with friends, peers, and family.
According to The Center for Study of
Global Christianity, in 1970 the United States had 90.9 percent of
its people professing to be Christians and that number declined to 69.4
percent in 2010. It is projected to be 66 percent in 2020.
In the mid 1960s and early 1970s in this country,
in my opinion, there were seeds planted that have now produced uncontrollable
giants. The anything goes sexual revolution, prochoice movement,
and removing God's name, and any form associated with it, from every public institution, seemed to test our
society. Only a small number started this and the uniformed went along with it.
Did the 90.9 percent professing to be Christians catch your attention? Is this telling me that the 9.1 percent not professing to be Christians, in that same time period, had more power than those professing to be Christians? What happened? The salt lost its flavor and the light was hidden under a basket. You and I, professing Christians, lost it. We ran and hid, as did David's brothers, along with God's army, when Goliath challenged them morning and evening for 40 days.
David was the only one who had a cause and a backbone to go with it. He was the only one to have a pleasing faith toward God. One young man, slayed a giant, causing God's army to come out of hiding and defeat the army of the Philistines. God was with David and he knew it. God was with us in the 70s, but evidently we didn't know it.
Today, July 22, 2018, the three giants have grown to an uncontrollable strength. The approximately 68 percent of those still professing to be Christians are weaker than the 90.9 percent in the 70s. Of these only a small portion will worship God in spirit and truth this Sunday.
The "light of the world" is hidden not under a basket, but under the roof of multi-million dollar "church" building and the "salt of the earth" is in this same building as salt in a salt shaker, not yet to be shaken.
Ezekiel, in Ezekiel 3:16-21, warns God's people and we are warned against being cowardly in Revelation 21:8. You and I can't go back and start a new beginning, but we can begin today and make a new and better ending.
Being lukewarm in our faith is not going to get the job done. (Revelation 3:14-17) You and I need to examine our faith, because our children and grandchildren are watching. Do we want them to go to heaven?
Thanks for reading. Comments can be sent to rhepler52@gmail.com .
You can go to: http://amzn.to/1Mi2AXW to purchase my book, "The Heart Behind the Stone:Develop a Giant Slaying Heart". I tell about the three giants mentioned above and what we as Christians can do to defeat them.
Rick Hepler.
If I live a cowardly Christian life, I will not only take my place in the lake which burns with fire and brimstone, which is the second death, I will take my peers, friends, and family with me.
I want to be a Christian with a courageous love for God and you, my neighbor. If I love you as I love myself, we will both make it to heaven. And it doesn't matter neighbor, if you are scarred, tattooed, or wounded, I want to show God's love to you by my love for you. This will change us both, back to the image and likeness we were created in.
I believe you will agree, the people in this great land need to focus on loving one another, instead of all the hate we see each day on the news.
--Rick Hepler
