|
Asa-Ministries
International
Bringing The Good News Of Jesus Christ
To All Nations
Making
Disciples Since 1992
These lessons are sent to you free of charge;
however we are supported by your generous donations.
Please pray about sending a love gift offering to help
keep these lessons going out.
Removal instructions at the end of this lesson.
HAVING FAITH IN AMERICA
Jeremiah 18:1-10
I. Is America a
Christian nation?
A. Our visit to Washington, D.C.
1) Grandiose buildings, lots of
statues of famous people.
a) Power, but little
religion.
2) Couple on capitol steps
protesting treatment of Kurds
in
Iraq.
B. Promise Keepers and political
statements.
1) Much attention during Washington rally.
2) Statements by leaders:
"We need to take back America."
3) As things are now, can a
Christian live in America
and
have
genuine faith?
C. Jeremiah - governments and
righteousness.
1) God is in control of all
nations, not just Israel.
2) If a nation does evil, God may
withhold good from it.
3) Could this happen to America?
II. Going against the tide.
A. A flood of sub-Christian behavior.
1) Drugs, distorted sex, greed,
violence, abortion, abuse,
broken
families, children without fathers.
2) Key institutions--the media,
universities and schools, and
government
agencies--sometimes seem less concerned to
change
such behavior than to defend it from "Puritanism."
3) This destructive behavior is
defended under the guise of
personal
freedom and individual rights.
B. Condescension and hostility.
1) ABC News religion commentator
Peggy Wehmeyer, herself an
evangelical, observed in an
interview in TV Guide:
"The elite in this country--the
courts, education, media,
the arts--tend to view
people who take their faith very
seriously
...with a smug, arrogant attitude."
2) On National Public Radio,
Harvard law professor Alan
Dershowitz
noted that no evangelical Christian could be
appointed
as a faculty member at Harvard
Law School.
He lamented the fact that
pluralism is often a code word
for
"someone who agrees with us."
C. Extremism.
1) Our worst enemies seem to be
inside, not outside.
a) Paul Hill, a former
evangelical pastor, assassinated
an
abortion doctor in Pensacola,
Florida.
b) He justified it as God's
punishment.
2) Painting all Christians with the
same brush.
a) Does being upset with the
moral drift of our nation
make
us narrow hate-mongers?
III. How do you bring about
real change?
A. The political illusion.
1) Just elect Christians, take dominion
over America,
set
everything right.
2) Political involvement has
limits.
a) It is better to shape the
culture.
b) Women seek abortions
because our culture has conditioned
them
to accept it, not because laws are liberal.
B. The spiritual solution.
1) Two attitudes.
a) Secularist - change people
by changing society.
b) Bible - change society by
changing people.
2) Moral reform alone won't make America
"Christian."
Many Christians focus on
changing the country through laws.
When they call for a Christian
America, they mean a nation
whose laws and general
standards of behavior do not
offend
moral principles as Christians understand them.
But by stressing moral
behavior, the 'Christian' in
'Christian America' suggests
that Christianity is more
about behavior
than faith, more about works than grace.
To reduce the adjective
'Christian' to label mere lawfulness
represents
a serious compromise of the gospel."
Changing people, not laws, is
the key to national renewal.
C. Where do you stand?
1) Paul and hypocrisy of Jewish
establishment. Rom 2:17-24
2) Christians can be just as bad.
3) Is your life consistent with
what you believe?
IV. Public opinion and morality can be
changed.
A. Prostitution in Britain.
Josephine Butler (1828-1907)
fought the prostitution
business
based on young girls.
She changed legislation,
established homes for the girls,
and
sought positive publicity for the cause.
B. Successful temperance in Ireland.
Theobald Mathew (1790-1856) was
a Catholic monk who
crusaded
for temperance.
He did not push for national
prohibition but encouraged
voluntary
pledges.
He only claimed that more
abstainers would make Ireland
a
happier and healthier land.
The result was at least a 45
percent decrease in liquor
consumption.
Similar results were achieved
in the revival in Wales
at
the turn of the century.
There was less hard drinking
because there were more
committed
Christians.
C. Social reform in late 1800's in America.
1) Small voluntary societies made
a huge impact.
D. What is happening today.
1) Charles Colson's "Prison
Fellowship."
2) Insurance salesman Authur DeMoss's positive
abortion ads:
"Life ... what a
wonderful choice."
3) Promise Keepers.
a) Little political emphasis.
b) Key theme is racial
reconciliation.
V. Stand up and be counted.
A. Christians cannot "take back America."
1) We never really had it.
2) But we don't have to sit in
the shadows.
B. Be a Christian where you are.
1) Do people at work know you are
a believer in Jesus?
2) Start prayer meetings, Bible
studies.
a) Catholics to go back to
meatless Fridays?
C. Think like a Christian.
1) Do you know what the Bible
says on key issues?
2) Do you even care?
3) Political rhetoric is reduced
to sound bites and cynicism.
a) Christians should do
better.
D. Speak out on the hard issues.
1) We want to be
"liked" too much.
2) America needs prophets today.
a) Martin Luther King, Jr.,
and appeal to Christian ideals.
E. Do it in love.
VI. One can make a difference.
The Roman
Empire was socially corrupt, and it took a long
time for
Christians to have a positive influence.
Romans liked "spice of
life" theater, with ample nudity, live
sexual
acts, and the actual torturing of criminals on stage.
Chariot racing was an obsession, and
(as with modern-day soccer
matches)
fans of rival factions often rioted.
In one riot in A.D. 532, 30,000
people were killed.
Note the date: 532 was more than 200 years after the
Roman
empire
had become (in theory, at least) Christian.
Worse than drama and racing were
gladiatorial games.
Their blood and brutality make 20th
century hockey and boxing
matches
seem like parlor games.
Gladiators, most of whom were
criminals or prisoners of war,
fought
to the death.
The loser in each contest was
usually stabbed through the
throat,
with the crowds roaring.
Such bloodbaths were not just for
the dregs of society but for
everyone,
including the emperors.
Blood flowed, bodies fell in droves,
and the Roman elite cheered.
From the time of Nero on, Christians
were part of the spectacle.
The famous cry "Christians
to the lions!" is truth, not legend.
When Christianity became legal in
the year 312 under Constantine,
Christian persecution ceased, but
the games did not.
Did the supposedly Christian
emperors find the games disgusting
and immoral?
If they did, they never let on.
Politically speaking, it wouldn't
have been prudent.
The gory games were a cherished
Roman tradition.
Both before and after Constantine's
conversion, some Christians
lamented the
evil of Roman public amusements.
One Christian author called the
games "cannibal banquets for
the
soul."
Other Christian leaders claimed that
the public shedding of blood
for sport encouraged crime and a general
disdain for human
life.
Many churches refused baptism to a
gladiator unless he changed
professions.
Some congregations refused holy
communion to Christians who
attended
the games.
In the year A.D. 391, something
dramatic happened.
A monk in Turkey named Telemachus
was tending his garden when he
thought
he heard God's voice, telling him to go to Rome.
He obeyed, setting out on foot.
Weary weeks later, he arrived in the
city at the time of a great
festival.
The little monk followed the crowd
surging down the streets into
the
Coliseum.
He saw the gladiators stand before
the emperor and say, "We who
are
about to die salute you."
Then he realized these men were
going to fight to the death for
the
entertainment of the crowd.
He jumped down to the arena, rushed
over to the gladiators, and
yelled,
"In the name of Christ, stop!"
When the crowd saw this small man
rushing to the gladiators
they
thought it was part of the show and began laughing.
When they realized it wasn't a joke,
the laughter turned to anger.
They ended up stoning him to
death.
Then a strange thing happened.
The gladiators stood looking at
the tiny figure lying there.
A hush fell over the Coliseum.
Way up in the upper rows, a man
stood and made his way to the
exit.
Other began to follow.
In dead silence, everyone left
the Coliseum.
The year was A.D. 391, and that was
the last battle to the death
between
gladiators in the Roman Coliseum.
Never again in the great stadium did
men kill each other for the
entertainment of the crowd, all
because of one tiny voice -
one
life - that spoke the truth in God's name.
The slaughter did not end solely
became of Telemachus's
martyrdom.
It was because enough Christians,
and people influenced by
Christians, saw the games as
vulgar and inhumane.
We can be such an influence today.
Feel Free To Pass This
Lesson Along To Someone You Think Would Benefit From It’s
Teaching
If This Lesson Was Forwarded
To You And You Would Lint To Be Included In Our Weekly Mailings Simply
Click The Following Link To Be Placed On Our Mailing List; mailto:lessons@asa-ministries.org?subject=add
me to the list
This message is in
compliance with U.S. Federal requirements for commercial email proposed in
bill S1618 Title III, Section 301, Paragraph (a) (2) (C) passed by the
105th U.S. Senate and cannot be considered SPAM since it includes a remove
mechanism.
To unsubscribe your
email address, put "REMOVE" in the subject line and mailto:Director@Asa-Ministries.Org?Subject=REMOVE
Send the email from the
same email account that received this message. We will remove you from our
list and you will not receive any more material from us. This is an
automated process so it is important to follow the instructions precisely
for the process to work correctly. Tampering with our email only hurts
other's chances of being properly removed
Contact
Information
Asa-Ministries International
614 W Maple
St
Deming, NM 88030
Main Number:
(575) 546-9742
Fax
Number: (575) 546-9742
|
