God has placed us in a wicked and corrupt culture and we are to do what Noah did. We don’t need to build an ark, because we already have one. Jesus is our ark who will carry us safely through the waters of God’s final judgment. So our job is to warn the people around us that there is going to be a final judgment against sin. And don’t be surprised if people mock you the same way they mocked Noah.
Have you ever been to an auction? When the bidding reaches a climax the auctioneer says, “Going … going …. gone!” and he raps his gavel. That item is no longer up for sale. I fear God may be looking at our nation and saying, “Going … going …” and that we are only one word away from losing the blessings of God. The answer for America’s problems isn’t going to come from the White House; it’s got to come from the Church House. But the problem is most American Christians are asleep and unaware of the dangers we face.
The security of our liberty is only guaranteed for every generation. Is this generation going to step up, like that greatest generation did and say we must have a revolution—not a revolution against a foreign tyranny—but a revolution of righteousness against those forces in America that would try to divert us from the road of righteousness that has brought us to this place?
Once you decide to cooperate with God’s change process, don’t expect to see results overnight. But you CAN expect to see some long term results. The Bible says, “He who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6). Isn’t it refreshing to know you aren’t responsible for working on your life to bring about change? It is God who is working in you. That truth alone should set you free. God isn’t expecting you to be perfect, so don’t expect in yourself or in others.
Imagine the shock of bearing all our sins to Jesus’ entire system—a sinless, holy man being defiled with the humiliation of every murder, rape, robbery, and lie every committed. It was the foul rottenness polluting His pure personality that killed Him—not the nails. Have you ever seen the significance in the fact that Jesus only survived the cross for six hours? It was common for crucified men to linger for many days before they died. The two criminals crucified with Jesus had their knees broken so they would die, but Jesus was already dead. If you were filling out a death certificate for Jesus and it asked for the cause of death, don’t write “crucifixion.” Don’t write “Roman Execution.” The true cause of death was carrying our sins. The strain of carrying that load overwhelmed His entire system and that’s what killed him.
God said, “East Texas is full of religious people, but that does not mean they are saved.” They get a good sense of satisfaction out of being religious. What’s wrong with being religious? Nothing, as long as it does not become a substitute for knowing Jesus Christ. You can brush your hair and there is nothing wrong with brushing your hair, but if one day you decide you are going to let brushing your hair stand as a substitute for breathing, in just a few moments that harmless act of brushing your hair will kill you, because you substituted it for something that was totally necessary.
Have you ever been in a relationship with somebody and it seemed like you could not please them? Some of you I’m sure have been and may be married to people like that. That’s somewhat true of God, because if you try on the basis of your own behavior to earn God’s approval or his glory, you’ll miss the target every time.
