Do We Care Enough to Pray

How the church responds to difficult times is an indicator of the depths of its relationship to the Lord and its understanding of God, his will, his purpose, and his glory. Recently, much of the church has gotten this issue wrong by falling into the error of the extremes. On one hand, part of the church has responded to the current circumstances of the world with a compassionate gospel that focuses primarily on the social responsibilities of the church with insufficient regard to the spiritual responsibilities of the gospel. They are very outspoken and active about issues such as poverty, world hunger, AIDS prevention, and other social issues. The goal is to transform society by showing the compassion and love of the Lord, which is certainly a noble goal. This stance is usually associated with the more "liberal" (and I use that term very broadly) side of the church. On the other hand, the more "conservative" (and I use that term very broadly as well) side of the church has tended to focus on the spiritual issues with insufficient regard to the social responsibilities. They are very outspoken on moral issues, such as same-gender marriage, abortion, and other social and political issues. The goal is to transform society through moral integrity, also a noble goal. In their own way, both groups are right. Sadly, both groups are also wrong. They are both wrong for the same reason, the error of the extreme. My seminary ethics professor, Dr. Guy Greenfield, said that we must avoid the error of the extreme and seek the orthodoxy of balance. He was correct. 

I need to be very careful here. I do not want to be misunderstood. The church has a responsibility before the Lord for both of these ways of ministry. It certainly has a responsibility to show God’s love through social action, especially in the area of justice. Jesus himself was our example. He demonstrated a capacity for compassion and forgiveness that was truly divine. The church also has a responsibility to stand up for God’s moral law. Again, Jesus was our example. He clearly taught that God’s moral law continues to be binding upon us. During these difficult times, it is important that the church remember a basic truth: those who do not share our faith cannot share our values. Notice I said ‘cannot’ rather than ‘do not’. Paul says in 1 Corinthians 2:14, "But a natural man does not receive the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he is not able to know them, because they are spiritually discerned." (1 Corinthians 2:14 LITV) Unregenerate man cannot be anything except what he is unless and until God does a mighty work of regeneration in his heart.

This should have been one of the great lessons we learned from from the Prohibition Era. Unfortunately, the church did not learn that if man wants to to something, sinful or otherwise, that he will do it with or without the Eighteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, the Volstead Act, and Elliott Ness. The population of the U. S. wanted to consume alcohol at the time and they found a way in spite of the laws of the land. The same is true for any other moral issue, abortion, same-gender relationships, alcohol and drug use, and a host of others. Our responsibility as a church, therefore, is to be worried less about the laws of our land and more concerned with the spiritual condition of the citizens of our land. Our laws will always reflect the beliefs of our citizens rather than our citizens reflect our laws. It is simply human nature.

Similarly, unregenerate man is perfectly willing to take what the church offers in the way of social action and never repent. There is a great example in the New Testament. In John 6 Jesus fed more than 5,000 people from five loaves and two fish. Those present listen to Jesus and hailed him as a great teacher. The next day they came back for more, but when Jesus gave them teachings about complete commitment to him but did not give them lunch, they left him. Suddenly, he was not such a great teacher. 

So, what does this mean for us, especially in light of the purpose of this blog. It means that our first step in any ministry is a great deal of intercessory prayer that those to whom we minister be regenerated by the power of the Holy Spirit. Yes, Christ commands us to share the gospel and to stand up for the holiness of God, but unless men are regenerated they cannot receive the things of the Spirit of God and our ministry is in vain. Let us come together in prayer and fasting for the spiritual condition of our people.