PRODIGAL SUN
Let your light so shine before men, that
they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. (Matthew
5:16)
A month ago you were being encouraged to
enjoy the Fall weather with it’s beautiful colors and seasonal temperatures
. For the most part the brilliant colors have given way to various browns
and tans. The winds and rain are doing their part to strip the leaves now in
nature’s cycle. It was quite the surprise to awake this morning to a
covering of snow! It’s easy, and funny (to me at least) to imagine the
grumbling going on as others awake to the white blanket covering everything.
It may be a little more challenging to enjoy this, but let’s choose to do it
anyway!
It is November 1st and obviously
the Prodigal is late going out for the first time ever. Something weird
happened with this computer. I had saved the content of at least the first
page and was about halfway complete on the second when there was a sort of
large caste letter flash and all disappeared including the saved page in
documents. Something similiar happened once before but I was able to
retrieve the content. Not so this time.
In 2 Timothy 4:1-4 we read a letter from
Paul to Timothy which is as applicable today as then, possibly even more so
due to our access to all forms of communication and media. Paul writes, “I
charge you therefore before God and the Lord Jesus Christ, who will judge
the living and the dead at His appearing and His Kingdom: 2. Preach the
Word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort with
all longsuffering and teaching. 3 For the time will come when they will not
endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires, because they have
itching ears, they will heap up for themselves teachers; 4 and they will
turn their ears away from the truth, and be turned aside unto fables. But
you be watchful in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an
evangelist, fulfill your ministry.”
Then in Paul’s letter to the Ephesians in
Chapter 5:8-11 it reads, “For you were once darkness, but now you are light
in the Lord. Walk as children of light. 9. For the fruit of the Spirit is in
all goodness, righteousness, and truth, 10. finding out what is acceptable
to the Lord. 11. And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of
darkness, but rather expose them.”
We see that admonition to expose the
unfruitful works of darkness at work today. In verse 12 of that same passage
there is an interesting clarification saying “it is shameful even to speak
of those things which are done by them in secret.” Ananias and Sapphira are
two I remember who tried to do something in secret. (Acts 5:1-10)
They lied, then died for pretending to be something/someone they were
not. According to Romans 2:5 what they ‘treasured up’ is wrath in the day of
wrath.
This brings us to our central theme –
exposing the unfruitful works of darkness.
For quite sometime I’ve been aware of
various individuals exposing the falsehoods of a number of people I’ll call
televangelists. One person or organization actually had a top 50 of the most
dangerous celebrity teachers/preachers.
Why they were so classed rang with truth. A number of these
false--------?’s were from other countries but America had, by far, the
greatest percentage.
Paul warned the Ephesian elders in Acts
20:27-30 of these men. The scriptures read as follows: 27. For I have not
shunned to declare to you the whole counsel of God. 28. Therefore take heed
to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you
overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own
blood. 29. For I know this, that after my departure savage wolves will come
in among you, not sparing the flock. 30. Also, from among yourselves men
will rise up, speaking perverse things, to draw away disciples after
themselves.
We are living in a time when this warning is
even more relevant, the danger intensified due to the media exposure
available, and a church structure that has grown increasingly lukewarm
during the past seventy plus years. The loss of the Bible’s relevance
in the school curriculum, with it’s exposure of truth, has been the greatest
handicap that could be imagined for our children who are now the leaders of
family, churches, (if they attend) and government.
We all need to be accountable to one another
and if someone believes we are walking on thin ice scripturally or naturally
we need to listen and prayerfully consider in the Light of God’s Word.
Probably we should skip prayer if the ice is over deep water, or at least do
it while moving towards shore!
There was one issue that troubled me as I
listened to certain men or groups discussing others’ works of darkness. That
was when I began to see spirits arising that had the appearance of
self-righteousness and even mocking attitudes. It was even more evident when
they did so because their personal doctrines didn’t believe a certain way.
One very influential person says God does
not speak to anyone except through the scriptures. Think it would be more
accurate to believe nothing you hear from God will ever contradict what the
Bible says. I personally don’t know of any Christian that has not heard from
God in one of His manifestations, especially the Holy Spirit. Can’t rule out
an angel though, but I surely wouldn’t try to contact one! Something you
don’t want may well show up. Satan would like nothing better than to
establish a tie to you.
Running out of space so will close with a
passage from Ephesians 4:11-13 “And He Himself gave some to be apostles,
some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, for the work
of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, till we all come to
the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect
man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ...” Those
ministries according to Scripture will be until we all reach the measure of
the fullness of Christ. Because the gifts are misused doesn’t cancel them.
BLESSINGS!
kenhayesfleming9@gmail.com
www.wbcis.com
(814) 687-3707