Cross the Line!

When I was in college studying to be a pastor I minored in history. I guess I still hadn’t come to grips with my calling and was hoping that I would still be able to pursue my dream of teaching. Eventually I knew that wasn’t in God’s plan. This week as I was reading a passage of scripture in 1 Samuel 17 one of the stories that I heard in class came to mind. God used that story to show me something, and today I feel led to share what God showed me.

In the year 1836, the Republic of Texas was fighting for its life after some very costly battles with the Mexican General Santa Anna. In the opening days of this campaign to reclaim Texas for Mexico, Santa Anna had to face the Texians, as they were called then, at a lonely mission outpost known as the Alamo.

Outnumbered greatly, legend says that the commander, Col. Travis drew a line on the ground with his sword and, after making a patriotic call, asked every man willing to give his life for Texas to cross that line. The same legend says that only one man did not cross the line. His name was Louis Rose and he was the one that supposedly told the story that the legend is based upon.

Within 24 hours every man who had crossed the line was dead. They had all given their best, their lives, their fortunes and their homes attempting to bring freedom from the tyranny of the Mexican Army. Their lives were given for a cause that was great and a cause they deemed more important than life itself.

In the Old Testament book of I Samuel, chapter 17 we can read of the account of David and Goliath. It’s a story that all of us are familiar with but I want to call your attention to verse 29.

"And David said, ‘What have I now done? Is there not a cause?’" – 1 Samuel 17:29

David’s own brothers were angry with him because he was shaming them for having run from Goliath and the army of the Philistines. Some had told David that he should be at home keeping the sheep and leave the fighting to real men, but that didn’t deter David. He knew that Israel was God’s chosen nation and that his God was real and would not fail. David’s cause wasn’t so much to defeat Goliath, or to protect Israel, his cause was to serve his God and fight against all who would mock the God of Israel.

Friends, we too are fighting a battle for freedom. Our great cause is the freedom and deliverance of men, women and youth who will face eternal damnation and the prison of hell if we don’t win this battle. Jesus has drawn a line in the sand, spiritually speaking, and has asked, “Who will step across that line and give your all to win the war against sin?”

"Therefore, said he unto them, the harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few: pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth laborers into his harvest. Go your ways: behold, I send you forth as lambs among wolves. Carry neither purse, nor scrip, nor shoes: and salute no man by the way." – Luke 10:2-4

Over 2000 years ago Jesus sent his disciples into the world with the words above. And today Jesus is still seeking to send those who will cross the line and commit their all to setting the captives free. Those who cross the line must realize that there is a price to pay for victory. It will mean either victory or death for there can be no surrender. To surrender in the war against sin is the same as death for the penalties are the same. The devil takes no prisoners. His job is to steal, kill and destroy and don’t ever forget it.

I want to remind you that once the men of the Alamo had crossed that line it meant either win or die and when David crossed that valley to meet Goliath head to head, he knew it was either win or die. I believe that the men of the Alamo knew death was certain, but they chose to die in the fight rather than give up and live a life of mediocrity.

David knew that God would not allow Goliath to win and had faith in the victory. I’m not so sure that David knew he would live or not, but he committed his life and his faith into God’s hands and trusted God for the victory.

When we cross the line and commit our lives to Jesus, we must understand that there is no turning back. It’s a do or die battle to the end. We must put our trust and faith in God for the outcome. Like David, we must realize that in the end, no matter what happens, victory is ours. We must also have the same heart felt commitment as the defenders of the Alamo, knowing that even if we die physically, our life is nothing compared to the greater cause of winning souls and making Heaven our home for eternity.

If we are to join this battle for souls in God’s army, we must realize a few facts from the verses in Luke 10:2-4.

First, we are vastly outnumbered. There are far more unsaved than there are saved in the world. If you were to look around you and realize that only a few of the people you know are going to Heaven and understand that most of them will spend eternity in hell, it’s a sobering thought.

There are few people, who call themselves Christian, that are concerned about lost souls. Most people in our churches are too self-centered to worry about others. Thank God for those who are concerned and who are doing all they can to reach out to those who need Jesus.

"Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world." – 1 John 4:4

That’s the good news that I must share with you. You may be outnumbered but you are still stronger because Jesus resides inside us. His will is that we spread the gospel to a lost world. You are always walking in the Lord’s will to witness and testify to God’s saving grace and mercy through the shed blood of Jesus.

Second, we must realize that laboring in the field of God’s harvest is not going to be easy. Not only will you be trying to reach souls who refuse to hear your message, but you will also have to face demonic power to reach them. Satan won’t go away without a fight.

How many times have we seen people who repented of their sin, were baptized in Jesus name, and prayed through to the Holy Ghost, and yet a few months later we find them right back in their old lifestyle? Satan won’t stop trying to keep those that have served him for so long. Thank God that Jesus has the last word! No soul who, really wants to serve Jesus, can be stopped by the powers of hell.

Third, not only will people refuse your ministry and the devil will try and stop you, but we must realize that the field is hot and dry – It’s just plain hard work. Ask any pastor, missionary, evangelist, or anyone who spreads the gospel and they will all tell you that it’s not easy. Some may have to endure great pain and hardships. Others may have to endure great persecution from the unbelievers. Others will be required to give up everything to answer the call to some foreign land. Each of us, whether in our nation or a foreign nation will have our own burdens to bear.

No matter how hard the battle gets or how tired we are from the work of the harvest, we must press on! The cause is too great to stop. Jesus will make a way of escape from every trial and He will give us the grace to withstand every hardship.

Finally, we must realize that we are being sent forth as sheep among wolves, in harm’s way. Jesus told His disciples that they would face persecution and even death in the course of their duties. We are not exempt from those same circumstances.

We don’t need to worry about what path is there, just walk it. We don’t need to worry about providing for the necessities of life for Jesus has promised to take care of the things we need. If he feeds the birds, clothes the flowers, causes the rain to fall on dry ground, what makes us think that he can’t handle our financial, physical, or emotional needs? I will step out as a defenseless sheep, into a world of wolves, because He is my strong and mighty tower! He is my refuge and my strength! It is not in my strength that this battle will be won, it is His strength.

Has God called you to a ministry? If He has, be a man or woman of God and cross the line! Stick to it and do your ministry with all your might! Do it with joy, with thanksgiving for an opportunity to serve Jesus and others, knowing that you in God’s will. Do it quickly and without fail knowing that souls are hanging in the balance.

God hasn’t saved us to enjoy a life of perfect ease or for a bed of roses. He saved us by His grace, washed us in the blood of Jesus, lifted us out of the miry clay, and filled us with the Holy Ghost and commissioned us, "…Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature."

The United States Marines have a slogan that says, “When the going gets tough, the tough get going.” 

I pray God that every one of you, and every Christian in God’s army would have that same motto. So, what, if things are tough, get tougher than the circumstances. If you get knocked down, discouraged, bruised in the fight, and fall do like one speaker that heard say, “If you must get knocked down, fall on your back. That way you can still reach up and punch the devil in the nose while you are getting back on your feet!”

I get so tired of those who are in ministry who have no time or energy for their ministry. If you don’t have enough vision to get in there and fight, then either get down on your knees and pray for a new vision or get out of the way and let someone else who will.

There are no acceptable excuses for not being in place for the battle. If you are a preacher, preach! If you are a singer, sing! If you are a youth leader, then lead by example, not by word! How can we ever expect to win people to Christ, if all we are ever concerned about is our own little world?

There are people all around us, thousands, millions of people who have been taken captive. They are behind enemy lines. Trapped in all kinds of bondages: Drugs, alcohol, depression, loneliness, and every kind of human depravity imagineable. They are enslaved by the devil. Some of them are aware of their need to be freed, others are so deceived they cannot see the chains that bind them, but nonetheless, they are bound.

There is a great need for God’s people to cross the line and deliver the gospel of freedom, an urgent need for those who are filled with the Holy Ghost to bring them a message of liberty. We must answer the call that has been sounded by the ‘Lord of the harvest.’

I know their need, because I have lived behind enemy lines in chains. I was bound by drugs and alcohol. I yearned to be free from that bondage, but I didn’t think I would ever be free of it. Until the Lord sent a man into my life who was filled with the Holy Ghost. He crossed the line for me, he took a risk for me, and he loved me into the Kingdom of God. Thank God, Nathan was relentless! Now it’s my turn to cross the line for the lost.

Yes, I know the battle is hot. I know the way is hard. I know the world doesn’t want to hear your message. I know it requires a lot of inconvenience. I know it requires a great commitment. But I also know that Jesus is my Lord. Jesus saved me, I am baptized in His name, filled with the Holy Ghost, and anointed me with the power of the Gospel. Now I have a job to do, so, I am crossing the line! Are you with me?

You Are My Rescue Story

Psalms 13

1 How long wilt thou forget me, O Lord? Forever? How long wilt thou hide thy face from me?

2 How long shall I take counsel in my soul, having sorrow in my heart daily? How long shall mine enemy be exalted over me?

3 Consider and hear me, O Lord my God: lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death;

4 Lest mine enemy say, I have prevailed against him; and those that trouble me rejoice when I am moved.

5 But I have trusted in thy mercy; my heart shall rejoice in thy salvation.

6 I will sing unto the Lord, because he hath dealt bountifully with me.

I have been suffering some serious health issues over the past year or so. It has even, at times, kept me from writing this article every week. Not because I was feeling sorry for myself, although at times I have been, but because I was just too sick to do anything. Then 3 weeks ago, on top of it all, I suffered a mild stroke which left me unable to type with both hands. I have to admit I found myself quoting a verse from Psalms 13, “How long wilt thou forget me, O Lord? Forever? How long wilt thou hide thy face from me?”

Friends, I don’t know why the Lord put this word on my heart this morning but I suspect that there are several others that are asking the same questions I have been asking. How long will I have to tolerate this? How long will God let this happen in my life? How long before I get my breakthrough?

When David wrote these words, he sat in solitude in a cave. Saul was seeking his life. This is a man after God’s own heart was going through a time of suffering in his life that seemed like it would never end. Samuel had already anointed him King, but David was feeling that God had forgotten him. He was feeling that God had abandoned him.

I do not need to be reminded, nor do I need to remind you, that we are not promised an end to trouble? Sometimes we think that we have it all figured out. We’ll grow up, get married, have children, get a house, and live healthy and happily ever after. Then, it seems to us, life shows up. Sickness comes along and takes you for a ride, finances disappear, relationships disappoint, or your children turn their back on God. You are hurt, frustrated, discouraged, you feel alone, you’re angry, and you are starting to get bitter.

You have rebuked it, claimed it, cast it out, laid hands on it, you’ve done everything you know how to do, and still there is no breakthrough in sight. You’re at the breaking point and finally you say, “How long, O Lord, wilt thou forget me? Forever?”

We all have troubles in life, struggles, trials, especially those who truly serve God. It’s going to rain sometime in your life. “How Long?” David asks this question four times in this Psalm. Asking the same question four times shows the level of his frustration, and his intense desire for relief and deliverance.

David was a mighty man of God, a warrior, and a man after God’s own heart. But he was subject to the same despair that we feel when things were going awry in his life. Look how many times David lamented to the Lord for relief:

“My soul is in anguish. How long, O LORD, how long?” – Psalm 6:3

“O Lord, how long will you look on? Rescue my life from their ravages, my precious life from these lions.” – Psalm 35:17

“We are given no miraculous signs; no prophets are left, and none of us knows how long this will be. 10 How long will the enemy mock you, O God? Will the foe revile your name forever? 11 Why do you hold back your hand, your right hand? Take it from the folds of your garment and destroy them!” – Psalm 74:9-11

“O LORD God Almighty, how long will your anger smolder against the prayers of your people?” – Psalm 80:4

"How long will you defend the unjust and show partiality to the wicked? Selah” – Psalm 82:2

“How long, O LORD? Will you hide yourself forever? How long will your wrath burn like fire?” – Psalm 89:4

“How long will the wicked, O LORD, how long will the wicked be jubilant?” – Psalm 94:3

“How long must your servant wait? When will you punish my persecutors?” – Psalm 119:84

Will You forget me forever? David had been promised a kingdom. He must have been asking, “Hey God, what happened? You brought me this far, have you now abandoned me?”

If we were looking at this for the first time we might say, "Come on David, Can God forget?" The truth is we’ve all said the same thing at some point in our life. People say this. Churches say this. Pastors say this, etc.

David asked how long God’s face would be hidden from him. This is a picture of hopelessness. He is accusing God of deliberately turning away. As if God were playing some cruel joke on him. He was accusing God of not caring about his suffering. The phrase, ‘hide your face from me’, denotes divine displeasure or even punishment.

He was doing the same thing that we do; David was wrestling with his thoughts. I can’t win. I can’t even help myself. There are questions in these times that we all ask: Does God Forget? Is He concerned? Does He know? Is God fair? Where is the justice? Why do the unsaved seem happy? 

What were some of the thoughts going through David’s head? What are the thoughts going through your heads? Why God? Your Word promises us security. How can we be secure when we are surrounded by such uncertainty?

David moves from Complaint to Intercession. His Complaints turn to prayer: Psalm 13:3, “Look on me and answer, O LORD my God. Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death;”

God wants our attention. Sometimes God strips us from our physical comfort so He can get our spiritual attention. David’s prayer was for understanding, for God’s enlightenment. This takes our eyes off ourselves to see what God sees. Only God can save. If He does not intervene, David will die. He wants to see God’s ways. God’s ways are higher. "Let me see your way."

David moves from Intercession to trust. Psalm 13:5, “But I trust in your unfailing love;”

"But" – even though; David remembers that he trusted before and found God faithful, he is going to trust again. Trust is not easy, it requires faith. We must remember, God rescued before, God never changes, He will not leave you in the pit, count your blessings, praise Him from the pit, and God will rescue again. The fruit of prayer, the natural result of praise, is confidence in God.

The Writer of Lamentations writes:

“Remembering mine affliction and my misery, the wormwood and the gall. My soul hath them still in remembrance and is humbled in me. This I recall to my mind, therefore have I hope. It is of the Lord's mercies that we are not consumed, because his compassions fail not. They are new every morning: great is thy faithfulness. The Lord is my portion, saith my soul; therefore will I hope in him. The Lord is good unto them that wait for him, to the soul that seeketh him.” – Lamentations 3:21-25

The Christian life is about trusting an unseen God to do the impossible. David moves from trust to praise. "My heart rejoices in your salvation. I will sing to the LORD, for he has been good to me."

David is thankful for salvation, even if nothing else. Notice that his situation did not change a bit, but he remembered, God has been good to me.

One thing that touches me more than anything, and the Lord knows this, is music. I have committed to God that I will not listen to the world’s music. I only listen to Christian music. God uses music to minister to me, sometimes in ways that nothing else can. This week while I was alone, feeling poorly and lamenting that God had not yet changed my current circumstances despite my many prayers a song came on the radio, “Rescue Story.”

There I was empty-handed

Crying out from the pit of my despair

There You were in the shadows

Holding out Your hand You met me there

And now where would I be without You?

Where would I be Jesus?

You were the voice in the desert

Calling me out in the dead of night

Fighting my battles for me

You are my rescue story

Lifted me up from the ashes

Carried my soul from death to life

Bringing me from glory to glory

You are my rescue story

You are, You are

You are my rescue story

You are, You are

You were writing the pages

Before I had a name

Before I needed grace, oh

Singing songs of redemption

'Cause every time I ran away

You were louder than my shame

And now where would I be without You?

Where would I be, Jesus?

As I listened to the words that I had heard before, but that never really captured my attention until that moment, tears began to roll down my face. I began to realize that everything God has already done for me was enough.

I am saved, baptized in the name of Jesus, and filled with the Holy Ghost. If God never moves on my behalf again, though I have faith that He will, He rescued me from the pit of Hell and saved me! And that’s enough, it’s more than enough, and more than I deserved!

Have You lost Your First Love?

This road of life often seems to have unexpected turns that throw us off course.  We begin to go this way or that, and soon discover that we are off the path that God intended us to travel.  That's when the warning of Jesus to the church at Ephesus is given:

Revelation 2:1-7

Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks;

2 I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars:

3 And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name's sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted.

4 Nevertheless I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.

5 Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.

6 But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitanes, which I also hate.

7 He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.

I believe that the Holy Ghost led me to a passage of scripture this week, and I am certain He wants to use what He has shown me to speak to some people. As I read this passage, I could not help but feel the heart of God as it ached; and I could sense the very hand of Jesus reaching out, hoping that someone would hear what he was saying; that someone would reach out, take His hand and begin to get closer to Him than ever before.

I felt as though Jesus was looking at me, and at each one of us, with both a look of approval and a look of disappointment at the same time. It’s like the look you would give one of your grandchildren, that you love so dearly, after they have spilled their grape juice on your carpet. You love them, yet in that moment you must resist the urge to paddle them because you know they don’t understand the full impact of what they’ve done. I believe that Jesus is looking at some of us that way. His love is everlasting; but there are times when His chastisement is what we need most of all, even though it’s never pleasant to experience. He loves us all too much to allow us to carry on without His guidance and course corrections in our life.

In the 2^nd chapter of the book of Revelation, the Lord Jesus Christ is walking among the golden candlesticks, which represent the church in its various spiritual conditions. Any church body, or any individual among us, can find themselves among the descriptions of the various churches. The churches are candlesticks because we are the ones to whom God has entrusted the Light of the Gospel. We are called, anointed, and commissioned to spread the light so those around us who are caught in the darkness of sin may be able to lift their eyes and see Jesus.

Jesus spoke to seven churches listed in the prophecy; but not only to those churches, the words that Jesus spoke are timeless and eternal, and they reach right down into the very heart of each of us today. They still speak the same lessons, still carry the same warnings, and they still carry the same promises if we will heed what Jesus says.

Perhaps this message isn’t for you personally; and then again, maybe it is. If this doesn’t speak to you personally, then somewhere in those first three chapters of Revelation, you will find yourself. Somewhere among those messages, you will step in front of the mirror of God’s Word and you’ll find your image being described by the Words of Jesus to the churches.

I believe that the Lord wants to talk to someone who is walking the rocky roads around the church at Ephesus. As we examine Jesus’ message to Ephesus, look within your own heart; examine yourself; listen to the voice of the Holy Ghost; shut everything else out and see if the Lord is speaking to you.

“Unto the angel of the church of Ephesus write; These things saith he that holdeth the seven stars in his right hand, who walketh in the midst of the seven golden candlesticks;” – Revelation 2:1

The first thing that we must realize here is that God speaks first to the “angel of the church”, and then that “angel” is to speak forth what Jesus has said for all the church to hear.

Those seven stars represent the ministry, those are involved in the 5-fold ministry, who are called and anointed to bring the messages of God to the church. Jesus is the power that holds it all together. In His hand, and by His hand we move, and we speak. He holds in the palm of His hand, and the Bible tells us that “no man can pluck us out of His hand.” It’s a comforting thought to know that while you are ministering in this ungodly world, that the Lord has you in His loving and protecting hand, and that He will never let you fall.

God speaks to the church through His Word, and that Word is most often given through the voice of the minister that stands before the church, led by God, to speak what the Lord would have him to say. I would hope that all ministers would take this calling seriously, but sadly, there are many today who do not. They speak not what ‘thus saith the Lord’, but whatever tickles people’s ears. The true message is lost, and the whole body of Christ under their care suffers from the lack of knowledge and understanding.

If you stay in that condition long enough, your Light will grow so dim that no one will see Jesus in you, for there is no light of God in you to shine forth. There is no Light outside of Jesus and the true Light of the Gospel. If we aren’t preaching Jesus and the gospel of repentance unto salvation, if we are not telling people they must be born again, then there’s no Light in anything we have to say.

“I know thy works, and thy labour, and thy patience, and how thou canst not bear them which are evil: and thou hast tried them which say they are apostles, and are not, and hast found them liars:” – Revelation 2:2

So many in the church today are caught up in doing good works. It doesn’t matter which church you look at; the congregations are just about always involved in doing good things for the people of the church and they are reaching out beyond the walls of the church in some manner, trying to help their fellowman.

Good works, laboring for the Lord in any capacity, and having patience in your good works while we wait for the coming of the Lord; even though often times those good works don’t produce the results we desire – all good works that are done for the cause of Christ are very commendable. And if they are done with the right heart, they will mean so much even in eternity where rewards will be given for faithfulness in doing good works that have been ordained by God. So, keep up the good works. God approves of your good works!

It is very commendable to speak out against the evils in our world. Though we cannot judge the heart of a man, we can certainly be fruit inspectors and we can see the fruit that they bear. Since the Bible tells us that evil trees can’t bear good fruit, and good trees cannot bear evil fruit, then the obvious conclusion is that you can judge whether someone is good or evil by the fruit they bear.

We don’t condemn the person; but we absolutely have the right to judge the evil deeds by fruit they bear, and we then pray for their evil heart that has revealed their true nature.

It is right that we should stand against evil and not accept everything like sheep without a shepherd. For as long as we have breath, we must speak out against evil, and pray for those who do evil things. The church is called to be aware of the evil around us and to call upon the Lord to lift the standard of the cross against all evil. We have a duty to call evil what it is so that men may repent of their sin.

It’s also commendable to always be on guard against heresy in the church and to be cautious about anything that is spoken from the pulpits of the churches. Not every shepherd is a true shepherd and we all know that there are hirelings and wolves in sheep’s clothing; false teachers and self-centered preachers who are only there to make a name for themselves or to fleece the sheep of God’s house. 

The Holy Spirit will reveal the true nature and character of the preacher in time; and then it is up to each of us to either stay and swallow the message that is given or seek out another place to hear the truth of the gospel.

Too many people are carried about like a ship in a storm, blowing wherever the wind sends them, listening to every little wind of doctrine; always quickly accepting everything that comes from someone who calls themselves a preacher and who claims to have a message for the church. Too often, these dear folks either find themselves shipwrecked and their faith destroyed, or they live in so much confusion that they don’t know truth from fiction anymore.

We are to prove everything we hear by the Word of God; and not accept everything people try to teach. I thank God that I have learned to be cautious and to examine everything I hear in the light of God’s Word. That’s the only way to keep yourself in the path of Truth.

“And hast borne, and hast patience, and for my name's sake hast laboured, and hast not fainted.” – Revelation 2:3

Jesus says to many that He knows how they have stayed faithful through it all. No matter what has come against you; or how rough the road has been, you’re still here; still holding on; still trusting in the Lord to bring you through. You’re continuing to work and steady as a rock in your service to God and man. These are all such commendable things; things that are expected of every Child of God and of every church.

If the Lord would have stopped there, there would be no need for this message. We could feel like we have finally arrived and that we are doing everything right for a change. That would be great, but Jesus didn’t stop there. There’s more to come and this is where it gets a bit hard to take sometimes, because we often don’t want to hear the words that show where we might be wrong.

“Nevertheless, I have somewhat against thee, because thou hast left thy first love.” – Revelation 2:4

Friends, we never reach perfection, do we? There’s always room for improvement. We aren’t Jesus and we aren’t in Heaven yet. We are still living in this sinful world, and sadly, we often find ourselves being drawn away by our own desires, as we are enticed and yield to temptation. We don’t want it to happen. We don’t plan to let temptation draw us aside. We even try to fight against it. But the fact is, that we all fail at times. It is at this point in our lives that Jesus comes with the words of this message: you have left your first love.

The Lord, through the conviction of the Holy Ghost, is telling us to stop! The Holy Ghost is trying to get us to take a hard look at our lives, to examine our hearts, and notice that we may have allowed the things of this world to draw us away from Him.

It’s easy to be drawn away by the cares of life. The devil knows the weakness of our human flesh, he knows the hardships of life that we face, and he will often use tools to try draw us away from Jesus that seem harmless and innocent at first.

Sometimes it’s a job. After all, we need to support the family, because not to do so would mean that we are worse than an unbeliever. But often we allow that job to become so much of a part of our lives that we no longer have time for the family we are trying to support. But more importantly, we have no time for Jesus.

Sometimes it’s the raising our family. We all want the best for our kids. We want them to have a better life than we have, so we get involved in everything in school, and in a lot of extracurricular activities so that our kids won’t feel left out. But again, we sometimes get so involved with all the sports and activities that we don’t have time for church, we don’t have time to work for the Lord, and we don’t have time to pray or spend time with Jesus.

Sometimes it’s just our desire to enjoy the good life. We all love to enjoy our life and the freedoms that are ours to just do what we love to do the most. There’s nothing wrong with that, until we start enjoying doing our own thing more than we desire the Lord. When having fun keeps you from the house of God, when you become so busy enjoying life that you don’t take time to draw close to Jesus, then you’re headed for a bend in the road that leaves your life in a ditch.

There are times when the temptation takes us even further. After all, when sin enters the picture and we begin to stray from our love for Jesus, we never know how far sin is going to take us, or how long we will be trapped by its power over us.

Jesus looks upon everything that draws us away from our love for Him as idolatry, an act of unfaithfulness, and an act of spiritual adultery. The reason is simple. Anything that takes us away from our love for Jesus and replaces Him as the most important thing in our life, becomes our God. Jesus is no longer the most important thing to us. Something else has taken his place in our hearts. We have become infatuated with sin; and now that sin has become our first love.

There will come a time when we must stop and realize that we might not be as close to Jesus as we should be. We look at the reality of the image in the mirror, with sober judgement, and realize that we’ve allowed too many things to occupy our heart. Maybe it’s not happening right now, or maybe it is, but the fact is that we’ve all been there. We have left our first love and went off chasing after some pot of gold at the end of the rainbow or started grazing in a strange pasture. We kept running after that pot of gold that seemed always just out of sight, or kept enjoying that green grass until one day, like the Prodigal Son, we looked up and realized how far we had gone from the Lord. We left our first love, not because we decided to just leave Jesus behind, but because the things of life just kept slowly pulling us away.

No matter how it happens, we left our first love. We’ve fallen in love with someone or something else, and Jesus is no longer in the center of our heart. Maybe it’s another person; a man or a woman that has taken hold of our heart and our passion for Jesus has been reverted to that person. Another person can become your idol just as much as a statue or anything else.

I thank God that He is longsuffering toward us, even when we are unfaithful, off chasing other ‘gods’, off doing our thing and ignoring Him, Jesus still loves us and is ever reaching out to bring us back. The Holy Ghost never stops wooing the wayward Christian until we come back to our first love. But we must make the choice to repent. We must decide to get back to the altar and seek a closer and stronger relationship with Jesus.

“Remember therefore from whence thou art fallen, and repent, and do the first works; or else I will come unto thee quickly, and will remove thy candlestick out of his place, except thou repent.” – Revelation 2:5

Jesus says, “stop, look at where you are, and remember where you once were! Repent of your wanderings and unfaithfulness, that’s doing your first works again. Any return to the ways of righteousness requires repentance first. Repentance is the starting point for salvation!

No matter how much you love someone, you can’t allow them to continually be unfaithful and try to pretend that life will be good. There’s a constant fight, a constant distrust, and a constant turmoil that will ultimately destroy you. Too many have tried, and none have succeeded. It will always end in disaster.

Jesus will not tolerate sin forever. If we choose to keep running, then at some point, He will just let us go. The Bible warns us that there is a line we cannot cross; a point of no return in our relationship with Jesus; a place where God will say, “That’s it. I’ve gone as far as I will! Now you are given over to your own heart’s desires and to a reprobate mind that will never desire to know God again.” That’s a very dangerous place to be.

“But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.” – Revelation 2:6

This is a strange thought to me. This is a picture of the mindset of a backslidden Christian, someone who is growing cold in the Lord, or who have lost their zeal and fire for God; yet they hate sin; they hate unfaithfulness; they hate the evil of this world that is so opposed to God and the Light of Truth, they hate the sins of the flesh, adultery and physical abuse, yet they find themselves among that number who are counted as unfaithful to their love for Jesus.

You may be reading this today with your love for Jesus growing cold. You may be allowing the things of life to draw you away from really serving God and committing your whole heart to Him. But you still hate sin! You hate the power of sin that destroys people! You hate the fact that so many are unfaithful to both God and to their own families! You hate idolatry in any form! You hate that there is jealousy that drives people apart. You hate that there is so much temptation to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a little while. Mostly though, you hate that you have allowed anything to come between you and Jesus, but it’s there and there’s no denying it. You hate to admit it, but you need to repent.

“He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the tree of life, which is in the midst of the paradise of God.” – Revelation 2:7

This is Jesus’ words to us today, if you are hearing the voice of the Lord. Use your spiritual hearing while you still can. Listen to Jesus while you can still hear Him. Listen to voice of the Spirit as He calls, while you are close enough to hear Him, or there’ll come a day when you can no longer hear.

“Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.” – Acts 2:38