Lethargy and the Church

Brother David Lipscomb used to say, “Brothers and sisters, we are playing at religion.” Unquestionably, lethargy is one of our greatest problems in the church of our generation. Thus, there is a need to arouse the church therefrom.

- Wendell Winkler Lecture in The Restoration: The Winds of Change.

Brother Winkler’s lecture needs to be read, meditated upon, preached, taught, and relayed to the people in our pews. He presents the definition, examples, areas, causes, the cure, the antithesis, and the tragedies of lethargy in the church today.

By clicking on the following link you can download it in PDF.

The Need Of The Present Day: To Arouse The Church From Its Lethargy.

The Separation of Church and State

Read the article, titled, “The Separation of Church and State” by David Barton, of Wallbuilders. The material helps to clarify the statement and its context by Thomas Jefferson.

Christians and Wealth

The following is from the Asbury Collegian, written by their editorial board, February 2, 2007. “Christians And Wealth: If you’ve got it, don’t flaunt it”

Do you ever sit in a location, say a shopping mall or boardwalk, marveling at all the different sorts of people that happen by? We all people-watch from time to time, taking note of an angst-filled teen moping by, his countenance riddled with piercings, or a Chanel-suited lady, her high-heels clicking as she struts past with the gate of a Lipizzaner stallion.

What opinions do people form about us as we walk by? Will the first thing they notice be our Louis Vuitton handbags? Designer jeans or shoes? A key ring studded with the logo of a sports car, dancing and dangling from our fingertips?

People will make lots of assumptions about us based on the way we outfit ourselves – whether simply and frugally or flashily and expensively. While there is absolutely nothing wrong with earning a lot of money or being affluent, or even owning nice things, there comes a point when excess is unacceptable.

Even if one might feel justified in purchasing a new luxury car by having given a great deal of money away for good purposes, what purpose does the purchase serve? What do we have to prove that we must clothe ourselves with the clothing of kings and drive automobiles favored by heads of state?

Christ had a lot to say on this matter; in fact money is one of the most frequently discussed topics of the Gospels. Jesus said: “No servant can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”

As Christians we are to have a burden for the poor, not a burden for a Bimmer and certainly not a burden for both. Even with abundant resources in our lives, overindulgence to support a wealthy image has nothing to do with Christ and everything to do with ourselves.

An Excellent Article

Worldly and

Inconsistent

Living

A story is told of a denominational preacher who justified being unable to answer a scriptural point by saying, “You people are better at arguing the Bible, but we are better at living it.” Regardless of the bias in his claim, it does remind us that sound doctrine needs to be accompanied with sound conduct.

-David R. Pharr

The above quote is a favorite from the linked article entitled “Worldly and Inconsistent Living” by David R. Pharr of Rock Hill, South Carolina.

Responsibility

The following has been in my files for several years and there is no author listed. For anyone who has been involved in church work, this provides an illustration that is all too real!

“Our church was saddened to learn this week of the death of one of our most valued members. Someone Else. Someone’s passing creates a vacancy that will be difficult to fill. Else has been with us for many years and for every one of those years, Someone did far more than a normal person’s share of the work. Whenever there was a job to do, a class to teach, or a meeting to attend, one name was on everyone’s list, “Let Someone Else do it.” Whenever leadership was mentioned, this wonderful person was looked to for inspiration as well as results; “Someone Else can work with that group.” It was common knowledge that Someone Else was among the most liberal givers in our church. Whenever there was a financial need, everyone just assumed Someone Else would make up the difference. Someone Else was a wonderful person; sometimes appearing superhuman. Were the truth known, everybody expected too much of Someone Else. Now Someone Else is gone! We wonder what we are going to do. Someone Else left a wonderful example to follow, but who is going to follow it? Who is going to do the things Someone Else did? When you are asked to help this year, remember – we can’t depend on Someone Else anymore.”

The warning is clear: “Woe to you who are at ease in Zion” (Amos 6:1). As Christians, we are to remember that “we are laborers together with God” (1 Corinthians 3:9). Successful churches are the result of faithful Christian volunteers being blessed by their heavenly creator!!