(1 Chronicles 12:32) “And of the sons of Issachar, men who understood the times, with
knowledge of what Israel should do, their chiefs were two hundred; and all
their kinsmen were at their command.”
These were some of the mighty men of David – warriors – men with hearts
for God. Men who understood the times. As
Christians- we too, must understand the times that we live in. It is important to have a clear understanding
of the difference between the natural and the spiritual – your new life in
Christ and the way that the world is going.
An example would be the misconception that the United States is a
Christian nation. It is not. Founded on Biblical values – absolutely! But the majority of the people in this
country are not Christians. As such, you
should not be surprised when people do things that are clearly contrary to God’s
revealed will. People who are lost may
do good things, but that does not mean they are acceptable to God because of
their good acts. Read Ephesians 2:8-9.
As you read the
following verses, think about the country you live in. These verses describe the depravity of people
and their propensity to go their own way – denying God and embracing the idea
that they, themselves, are at the center of all things. That they can decide what is right and what
is wrong.
(Romans 1:21-32)
“For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks
to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were
darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the
glory of the immortal God for images made to look like a mortal human being and
birds and animals and reptiles. Therefore God gave them over in the sinful
desires of their hearts to sexual impurity for the degrading of their bodies
with one another. They exchanged the truth about God for a lie, and worshiped
and served created things rather than the Creator—who is forever praised. Amen.
Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. Even their women
exchanged natural sexual relations for unnatural ones. In the same way the men
also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one
another. Men committed shameful acts with other men, and received in themselves
the due penalty for their error. Furthermore, just as they did not think it
worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, so God gave them over to a depraved
mind, so that they do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with
every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy,
murder, strife, deceit and malice. They are gossips, slanderers, God-haters,
insolent, arrogant and boastful; they invent ways of doing evil; they disobey
their parents; they have no understanding, no fidelity, no love, no mercy. Although
they know God’s righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death,
they not only continue do these very things but also approve of those who
practice them.”
My goal here is to
get you thinking and seeing the events and the world from your new nature. To understand the times. The mess you see today, all around you , has
a spiritual root. Paul wrote about it
for our benefit – so we might understand the times with discernment. The problems don’t get better by themselves –
in fact, they get worse. The only thing
that will change the course our culture is on is to change the root – a new
root - that would be Jesus. I coined a
phrase some years back. “The darker the night
– the brighter the light” The darker the
days get around us, the brighter the light of Christ will should shine
through us. Now is not the time to hide
your faith under a bushel – Let it shine – Let it shine – Let it shine. How do you do that? Next time. CHARLEY
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