Lessons for Today from the Revelation Churches

Lessons for today from the Revelation churches that the top will discuss today on the Christian world view radio program were the mission is to sharpen the biblical worldview of Christians and to share the good news that all people can be reconciled to God. Faith in Jesus Christ.

I'm David with the host of the program and our website is the Christian world you.or will thank you for joining us this weekend for another edition of the Christian real views.

We talk about lessons for today from the Revelation churches and elastic on the program if you heard it pastor John MacArthur joined us to discuss Christ's call to reform the church. That's also the title of his new book with the subtitle of timeless demands from the Lord to his people. This is based on the messages or letters that Christ gave to seven churches in Asia minor, which is modern day Turkey late in the first century recorded in the final book of the Bible and the book of Revelation. In chapters 1 through three of Revelation, MacArthur talked about these churches being illustrative of churches throughout history and two of the seven. These churches were remaining faithful but the other five were in various stages of decline in compromise in his MacArthur said, quote these messages should be a one on the list of any pastor who wants to know what his church should be and what his church should avoid.

These are the words of the Lord to his church unquote and will play the more that soundbite to open the program here coming up in a minute. So with that degree of significance in mind that these messages that Christ gave the churches are important, very important for the church today this weekend on the Christian world or were going to examine what Christ messages actually were to each of these churches.

Last week we talked more about some of the modern issues. The current issues facing the church organ go back and do each of these churches today on the program and what the church today in individual Christians. By the way, should be learning and applying from Christ messages to these Revelation churches now Revelation was was written toward the end of the. The first century A.D. around 94 to 96 A.D. apostle John wrote it, he is old at this time he has been exiled to a small island called Patmos, which is 50 miles out to sea in the Aegean Sea to the southwest of the town of Bethel Ephesus which is one of the churches that that he wrote to and by the way he had been arrested in Ephesus and then exiled to Patmos where he had been there recently and so Revelation. These first three chapters are these letters from Christ to these churches.

Christ told them to John and John gave them to the churches in Revelation goes on to be a series of visions that John gets from from God, from Christ about the future history of the world so incredibly important book. Lots of eschatology the end times in Revelation is a challenging book to interpret but the overall narrative. The overall theme of the book is that God is the one who is going to control is controlling history in the end he is victorious over all the forces that have come against them throughout history someone play that opening soundbite in case you missed the program last week. John MacArthur set up some background as to Revelation.

In these letters to the churches all play that soundbite and will get into more of the actual messages to the churches. Here's John MacArthur order so unique about the seven letters to the churches in Revelation 2 and three is to help people talk about what was the purpose of those were those real churches. Of course they were real churches. Although cities were real cities in Asia minor factor letter.

The sequence of the letters follow the postal route and in the ancient realm of Asia minor. There were real churches in real places, but there illustrative of churches through all of history and and so they transcend just their local identification and that's that's why they've been placed in in the book of Revelation to be a last really a last call to the church from the Lord of the church that would extend all the way through history until his return as you get past the letter. Then you get in the part of Revelation or talk about is coming so up until he comes. These are the words of the Lord to his church and we know that because he says at the close of those led him who has ears to hear what the Lord says to the churches though we know it's a transcendent message and though there were two churches, the church at Smyrna and the church in Philadelphia that was good church and they were churches that didn't have a fatal flaw. They don't get a warning, they get a commendation. They work big by no means were they mega churches.

They didn't have famous pastors.

We only know the pastors were. But what they were faithful faithful to the Lord faithful to his word and the other five churches were in some some element of decline to the degree that the Lord literally pronounce judgment on them and they get worse as they go. It starts out with Ephesus having left its first love and the Lord says if you don't return Yama, wipe, wipe you out, blow out your candle. I'm going to judge you and that that's what started there that they left their first love and then you see the church as it apartments and by attire and they tolerate sin and they love the things of the world and then you go all the way to Sardis and you get a church that form but it's dead and then you get the lay of the sea, which is the church that the Lord vomits out of his mouth so there is a progression from a church losing its first love to, to being a church the Lord vomits out of his mouth. The these things should be a number one on the list of any pastor who wants to know what his church should be and what his church should avoid. These are the universal, timeless letters of the Lord of the church's church I'm I'm actually pretty amazed how many pastors in this contemporary climate look for direction for their quote unquote churches everywhere but in those seven letters and their so powerful so confrontive, so on one hand encouraging and on the other hand, threatening that they they should make any pastor tremble to do everything we can to be sure that he avoids those things that the Lord condemns in his church and they settle into a place of obedience and blessing, but it's it's it's not popular on the book has just come out. Christ called to reform the church and I start by talking about. Have you ever been to a church that repented of you ever heard of a church that repented that's not something that anybody really heard of but that's what the Lord says repent or else reset it over and over to these churches repent, repent, repent churches don't repent, but they sure done. This is a call for all pastors in all churches to take a look at the book of Revelation and consider what the Lord festers church was John MacArthur from our interview last week and I played it again just to get some background as we look into these seven churches today, but also just to make the point, how to use a modern word how relevant this topic is for today and here we have Jesus Christ giving a you could call it maybe a performance review from a term from the business world of the seven churches. How are they doing and what he said to them back then are the kinds of things that we need to hear for the church today so we can adjust so we can repent and return so we can analyze what's going on.

The church today and see how it compares with what Christ would say to the church today so that without as a background Revelation starts out by saying the revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his bondservant. So God gave this revelation to Christ to show to his bondservant. The things much must which must soon take place. And he sent and communicated it by his angel to his bondservant John, who testified to the word of God into the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw the nurses verse three there's a blessing for reading Revelation. Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and he'd the things which are written in it for the time is near, and Revelation starts out with this blessing for those who read and heed Revelation and it probably noticed if you read the book at the end is also a curse for anyone who would change any of it, or by extension, anything in Scripture.

So that's what bookends the. The book of Revelation. In Revelation also offers these soaring, awe-inspiring, amazing descriptions of Christ to get gets into one of them in the very next section of the first chapter. Revelation 1 verse four John to the seven churches. Here he goes. Is Mr. writing to the seven churches.

The message from Christ to the seven churches that are in Asia again this is this is Asia minor, modern-day Turkey. The western side of of Turkey today.

Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come from the seven spirits who are before his throne that I believe that the retina reference to the Holy Spirit and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To him, Christ who loves us and released us from our sins by his blood and he has made us to be a kingdom of priests to his God and father to him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever.

Amen. Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn over him because they rejected him.

So it is to be. Amen. I am the Alpha and the Omega, says the Lord God who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty. In this verse is forthright again.

These soaring off some descriptions of Christ in his sovereignty, his kingship, his rule, he is the beginning and the end he he was and is and is to come. There's all kinds of these throughout the book of relevant Revelation and when you read that and when you grasp that you have a more elevated view of who Christ is and then he gets to as he read a few more verses from the first part of Revelation that gets into the setting in verse John Estes about it in the first chapter is John's about to address these churches. Verse nine, G.I. John, your brother and fellow partaker partaker in the tribulation and kingdom and perseverance which are in Jesus, was on the island called Patmos because of the word of God and the testimony of Jesus. He was exiled.

There I was in the spirit of the Lord's day, Sunday, and I heard behind me a loud voice like the sound of a trumpet, saying, write in a book what you see and send it to the seven churches.

Here's the seven churches to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamum and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea that these are seven churches that MacArthur was saying in very close proximity to each other.

If you can kind of imagine the letter and the lowercase and or maybe a horseshoe. And this is it starts in the lower left with with the emphasis in you as you move them to the north and left side to get to Smyrna and further north to get the Pergamum mess us to hook around the top of the back south to Thyatira, then further down the right side, to Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea and he addresses the church in that order. The relatively close to each other and they're all living in a very secular immoral society. Much more than our own, and part of the Roman empire worshiping Greek and Roman god. That's the culture of these letters to the churches will come back and go go to them one by one. After this on the Christian worldview. Social justice is the gospel issue.

This is become the mantra of many evangelicals rectifying perceived inequities of race, gender and sexuality, poverty, immigration, amongst others, is considered a top priority.

But what exactly is social justice is working for social justice. A biblical mandate and application of the gospel.

Caleb Eisner has written an insightful booklet entitled social justice.

How good intentions undermined justice in gospel. Also included in this revised 44 page booklet is a copy of the just-released statement on social justice in the gospel.

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Thank you for your support, your name to the Christian world you radio program. I'm David with the host in our web is the Christian worldview.or and that we just posted our annual print letter on the website and we also set it out in our weekly email yesterday, so what you like to see that you're not on the print letter mailing list you be, by the way, for those who are, you will be receiving that probably just shortly after Thanksgiving week and but if you'd like to see it before them.

You can go on to website the Christian review.org or take a look at the weekly email from yesterday. It's linked right and there's got a resource catalog and whole end of the your letter and lots of folks appreciate getting at the end there.

Hope you enjoy the letter this year will today in the program were talking about lessons for today from the Revelation churches and were going to go church by church and see what the specific messages are Christ messages to those churches in Revelation.

The first three chapters and try to apply or take for what analyze the church today through the lens of Christ letters to these Revelation churches of these churches. By the way, are our actual churches and they exemplify churches throughout history. Some folks have interpreted these as being representative of certain errors of time or actual churches, from the time of their written essay. The rise of the Roman Catholic Church. The rise, the Roman Empire or Laodicea is the evangelical church in America. I don't think we can draw that strong of a conclusion.

There are certainly parallels to what churches have faced throughout history similarities.

For sure as to what the release Revelation churches were facing in the way they were analyzed or examined by Christ, but I think it's better to look at them as just exemplifying what all churches are the kinds of problems. The kinds of temptations that are going to be faced by every church, from the time that this book was written. Now the interesting thing is that the apostle John who wrote these messages from Christ to the churches. Had she ministered probably to all of the seven churches that they weren't very far from where he was exiled on this island of Patmos and none of these churches were were large and I'm just a guess. You, the probably all were just under 100 people in each church. So these are small churches in in towns throughout modern day Western Turkey. These churches were somewhat or actually quite healthy in the mid 60s A.D. again this was written the late 90s, a diesel 30 3540 years earlier. These churches were healthy when the apostle Paul was going on his missionary journeys and visiting this this region so just consider how quickly as we read these messages and how far, at least five of these churches had gone astray in under 50 years, another as they gone from being solid sound churches as you read the letters requesting that some of them had just gone the way way way off. So one of the lessons years to never think we should never think that things are going to continue as they always have been, whether it's in our own church or whether it's in the country.

Things are constantly in flux. We live in a fallen world.

Satan is at work. Sin and temptation are always knocking at the door. And so, just very quickly. These churches for at least five of them had gone from being solid to un-sound and just under 40 or 50 years. So the question is what is Christ's message to these churches and by extension, what is his message to us today because these messages should cause more than just a reflection on some moment in history. For those churches. They should cause self reflection on her own church today also self reflection her own and own personal lives as well. So here are the seven churches against Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamum fire Tyra, Sardis, Philadelphia, Laodicea was the seven churches, two of them only received commendations praise from Christ that was Smyrna.

The persecuted church in Philadelphia, the faithful church. The other five receive some receive some commendations but most of them receive warnings about their off track and the need to repent some of them receive no can't commendations at all, as all at all is will will get into so the first one was Ephesus which is known as the Loveless church. John writes this message of Christ to this church miscarried a little snippet to each church. Revelation 2 verses two and three in verse seven I know your deeds, Christ says in your toil and your perseverance, and that you cannot tolerate evil men, and you put to test those who call themselves apostles, and they are not, and you found them to be false and you have perseverance and have endured for my namesake and have not grown weary. Yet this you do have that you hate the deeds of the Nicollet attends, which I also hate. So the commendations here that the praises that this church in Ephesus which is the one again. That that John got XL from he was arrested in XL from this particular church. The city the he they get commended for their their perseverance that they are intolerant of false teachers and teaching don't give them any time they want to rid their church of false teachers and teaching. They hated the deeds of the Nicollet attends now who are the Nicollet attends what looked in the little study on who the Nicollet attends and study Bible says the Nicollet attends not carry the whole things they were followers of someone I'm not surprisingly, Nicholas.

They were involved in immorality and assaulted the church with sensual temptations. Clement of Alexandria says quote they abandoned themselves to pleasure like goats, leading a life of self-indulgence. Unquote.

So the Nicollet does teaching says they perverted grace and replaced liberty with license and so they were known for their their license. Another words there, their sexual immorality. The sensuous lifestyle basically saying you know we can live the body can we can do with the body with what we want to do with the body that is in effect anything else that is the error of the Nicollet attends and that had become something that was affecting all these churches, but the Ephesus church hated that they were commended for pushing back against this this entry of sexual immorality. This heresy of sexual morality into the church with any says in revelations two, four, but I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Therefore, remember from where you have fallen in repent and do the deeds you did at first.

Or else I am coming to you and will remove your lampstand out of its place unless you repent so there's accommodation for persevering for being intolerant. There's a good kind of intolerance here of false teachers and teaching that they hated the sensual heresy of the Nicollet attends, but they had lost their first love for Christ and this is a huge warning here to to leave your first love for Christ and become they were they were sound in their teaching sound in their orthodoxy, but they had cut. It was a cold dead orthodoxy. Another is your putting in the time they're keeping the rules there paying attention to what Scripture says but there's a cold relationship.

A dead relationship with Christ is in the lesson here is that we as Christians can can go through the motions and have correct doctrine and.are eyes and cross our teas and so forth. But we can not have a a vibrant love for the source of our faith are the object of our faith, which is which is Christ is sort of like a child who is told to do something by his parents and just does it out of wrote obedience but shows no love for the parents at all.

No parent is happy with that. When a child just obey. Just because he has to and just goes to the motions with with no love for the parent at all and this is exactly what happened in the church of Ephesus.

They were praised for their perseverance and their intolerance of false teaching and in teachers they hated the sexual deeds of the Nicollet attends, but it was a cold and dead orthodoxy without that primary quality of a love for Christ church number two Smyrna again, moving from lower left up that horseshoe. Now we go to Smyrna which is known as the persecuted church. Again, this is one of two churches that received only praise no warnings, Revelation 29. The messages I know your tribulation and your poverty but you are rich and the blasphemy by those who say they are Jews and are not but are a synagogue of Satan. Do not fear what you are about to suffer. Behold, the devil is about to cast some of you into prison, so that you will be tested, and you will have tribulation for 10 days. Be faithful unto death, and I will give you the crown of life. That's Christ's message to the church in the town of Smyrna know this church only received commendations no negatives at all. This church was marked by tribulation, and poverty, probably literal poverty, but Christ reminds and that you may be poor in wealth, but you are rich spiritually they were marked by persecution from Jews. The a local synagogue was couldn't stand that this church was proclaiming Christ, and that was a huge problem as it is for many Jews today who do not believe in Christ, they they resist.

They resented the fact that Christ is presented as their Messiah in the world. Savior and there is the persecution was covering from Todd's own chosen people and is this is a lesson here that Christians will should love the Jews there. God's chosen people.

There's a future significance for the Jews, God chose to bring his son Jesus Christ through the Jewish people. And yet when they are God rejecting as any people is God rejecting they can be the greatest persecutors of those who follow Christ. Okay we made it through two churches Ephesus and Smyrna will get to the next five after this break on the Christian world of you as we discussed lessons for today from the Revelation churches, I'm David Wheaton listing the Christian world of you and is DVD, the death of discernment. Mike Hendren uses this apt analogy from AW to listen red cells are like faith. They carry life-giving oxygen to every part of the body white cells. On the other hand, are discernment they counsel upon dead and toxic matter and carry it out of the body. Each member in the body of Christ is white blood cell, we need to identify doctrinal error and make sure it gets out of the body. That's the only way the body of Christ can remain strong. The death of discernment DVD contains two messages by Mike Hendren. You can order it for donation of any amount to the Christian worldview. None of the tale is $15 plus shipping.

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Your email and mailing address will never be shipped and you can unsubscribe at any time: one AAA 646-2233 or visit the Christian.back on the Christian review radio program. I'm David Wheaton your health and or website is the Christian real viewed.org been able to partake in listening to some of our new element called T CWS in the Christian world you short takes and these are just bite-size audio highlights of the previous to the most recent program and repulsing these in the podcast of your podcast serves prescribers re-do that easily get the podcast in your smart phone. You'll hear the short takes every withdrawal is always about you know 1 to 3 minutes in length, and I were also posting on our website and also were getting into more social media world were trying to win a lot of people are. There were try to use it for good things and repulsing the short takes on social media and Facebook and twitter as well so if you're users of those platforms.

Be sure to start visiting the Christian review pages on our social media sites today on the program were talking about lessons for today from the Revelation churches, Christ messages to these churches. How relevant is today. What were they facing back then, the same kind of things slightly different forms. But it's really the same as what we face in the church today and will be getting to that a little later in the program.

We got over the first two churches Ephesus and Smyrna.

Let's get out of the third church were to go through all of these and then draw some lessons that we should applying to the church today what would Christ be staying with evangelical church in America today will get to that today in the program so Pergamum as we go up this horseshoe from the left side over to the right rest on the left side of it is known as the compromising church in this town and you could go into the context of each town we want time for that today if you ever study this but Pergamum was the third town up in this in this a postal route and the commendation the church really receives from Christ is in Revelation 213.

He says I know where you dwell, where Satan's throne is and you hold fast my name, and did not deny my faith even in the days of anti-pass, my witness, my faithful one, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells. In other words, there is strong opposition in this there is persecution here in Pergamum in this region and the antipasto is likely the pastor of this church who was murdered.

So even in the midst of this persecution, Christ commands the church in Pergamum for not denying the faith not not saying all we don't believe that running but holding fast to the faith that the high commendation.

But then he says in Revelation 214, but I have a few things against you.

Hear the warnings because you have there some who hold the teaching of bail him who kept teaching the bailiwick to put a stumbling block before the sons of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols and to commit acts of immorality. So also you have some who in the same way hold the teaching of the Nicollet.

It considers that group again. Therefore repent or else I am coming to you quickly, and I will make war against them with the sword of my mouth know what is the teaching of bail my humor back in the Old Testament in Numbers chapter 22. The did the teaching of bail him was that as the Israelites were coming into the land as they left Egypt they were encountering all these nations as they came up to start conquering the land and one of them was the people of Moab and the king of Moab name was bailiwick and he was the king and he was concerned that the Israelites were going to take over their region in and destroy them. And so another instead of trying to fight them directly, at least at the beginning what he did was he hired a so-called prophet to try to get this prophet named bail him to curse the people of Israel.

He felt the bail him how these powers, and if he could get bail him to curse the people of Israel, then they wouldn't be able to overtake the land of Moab and so he was trying to been been bail him eventually didn't want to do this, but eventually he did and the way he did.

It was he tried to get the people of Israel to compromise to intermarry to intermingle with the ungodly culture of these ungodly nations that Israel was going to be taking over so he tried to have them marry those who would not be equally yoked to those who didn't believe in that the God of Scripture and the God of the universe.

They believed in different gods and he knew this would have a compromising effect on the people of Israel and they would not be the. The strong force that they were intended to be that is the error of bail him trying to get people to compromise with the world.

It's worldliness. And so, in this church in Pergamum. You have you have the idea of the errors are that they were following their becoming worldly.

They were compromising with the world.

They were denying her faith with their becoming worldly and secondly they were involved in this.

This teaching, or error of the Nicollet attends. While they were involved in sexual immorality as well as does this sound familiar at all to the church today. Worldliness and immorality will get more into that, let's move onto the next church which is Thyatira going on our can get to the top of the horseshoe in western Turkey my Asia minor.

They were commended in Revelation 219 for their love and their faith and their perseverance sees Christ as the church I know your deeds and your faith in your love and your faith in service and your perseverance, and that your deeds of late are greater then. At first, so here's again commendation Lord commends them.

Your you you love your faith in your persevering in the midst of this difficult culture this Roman Empire.

That's increment incredibly secular and makes our country, our culture today look Christian compared to how ungodly it was back then.

Open worship of idols and so forth. But then he gets into the warning. Revelation 220 but I have this against you, Christ says that you tolerate the woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, and she teaches and leads my bond servants astray so that they commit acts of immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols. I gave her time to repent, and she does not want to repent of her immorality. Behold, I will throw her on a bed of sickness, and those who commit adultery with her into great tribulation, unless they repent of her deeds, I will kill her children with pestilence, and all the churches will know that I am he who searches the minds and the hearts and I will give to each one of you according to your deeds. But I say to you, the rest who are in Thyatira, who do not hold this teaching, who have not known the deep things of Satan, as they call them. I place no other burden on you. Nevertheless, what you have, hold fast until I come again. Here's another another error of this church, the teaching of Jezebel. This could have been a literal woman in this particular church or could been referring back to the Jezebel of the Old Testament was full of immorality and rebellion against against God. And so this church was was tolerating again. They were tolerating it. Immorality was similar to the error of the Nicollet it and so what do you see repeating over and over again in the warnings to these churches it's immorality is sensuality, it's worldliness it's compromise. These are the things that Christ is repeatedly warning against with get on to the fifth church Sardis member is MacArthur saying the be the evaluations, the letters get increasingly more dire as we go on to these churches, except for the two that smeared in Philadelphia, the only two that don't get any docket any warnings because their remaining faithful so Sardis is the next city down in this horseshoe now are more on the eastern side.

The right side, if you will of the horseshoe Revelation 31 says I know your deeds, he says the Sardis Christ says that you have a name that you are alive, but you are dead wake up and strengthen the things that remain, which are which were about to die for.

Have not found your deeds completed in the sight of my God.

So remember what you have received and heard and keep it and repent that word repent comes up over and over and over again. Therefore, if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come to you but you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their garments and they will walk with me in white, for they are worthy. Here's the warning here to the church in Sardis you're a social club with no spiritual life. You're full of un-regenerate unsaved people in the only comment commendation here is a slight one to a few people who haven't compromise. In other words, even limits of this totally dead lifeless church there still a remnant and in this church is that as I read this looks like the mainline denominations of today. Yeah, they have activities they have a so-called church but there's nothing there about Christ and the gospel in sound teaching and holding sanctification in these kinds of things. It's basically a social club amongst those who are unregenerate now. Yes, within those churches is probably like there were in Sardis a few regenerate people but they're the exception rather than the rule and again the church should be made up of fully regenerate people. The true church, the true church of Christ without buildings is the body of believers truly regenerate people with get to the 61 before this final break of the day.

This is the second church Philadelphia that received only good only commendations from Christ and no warnings of Philadelphia is the faithful church were Christ as I know your deeds. Behold, I have put before you an open door, which no one can shut, because you have a little power, and have kept my word and have not denied my name.

Behold, I will cause those of the synagogue of Satan. Again, this is Jewish presence in the area persecuting these Christian churches who say that they are Jews and are not, but they lie, I will make them come and bow down at your feet and make them know that I have loved you, because you have kept my word of my perseverance. I will also keep you from the hour of testing, that hour which is about to come upon the whole world to test those who dwell on the earth. Here's the combination. What is this church marked by their mark by keeping obeying and shearing to God's word in persevering in suffering.

That's quite something to be commended about so I hope you're seeing some repeating patterns here.

What are people were these churches commended for keeping God's word persevering, what are they warned about worldliness, sensuality, false teaching. When we come back we have one more church to go Laodicea with talk about that shirt and some follow-up after that right here in the Christian world view here is my kindred fee, kneeling his DVD and apostasy will see how apostasy is the result of Satan's relentless attacks on the church will also look at four steps that characterize a churches drift into apostasy, then will look at the history of the church, a chronological development of the Roman Catholic religion and its drift into apostasy and lastly and most importantly, what are you and I to do in the midst of this great apostasy on the growing ecumenical movement.

The DVD is titled Roman Catholicism's drift into apostasy and contains two messages, you can order it for a donation of any amount to the Christian world you normal retail is $15 plus shipping. Go to that Christian world.or or call one 846-2233 or write to Box 401, Excelsior, MN 55331.

Social justice is a gospel issue.

This is become the mantra of many evangelicals rectifying perceived inequities of race, gender and sexuality, poverty, immigration, amongst others, is considered a top priority. But what exactly is social justice is working for social justice. The biblical mandate and application of the gospel Kalb Eisner has written an insightful booklet entitled social justice.

How good intentions undermine justice in gospel. Also included in this revised 44 page booklet is a copy of the just-released statement on social justice in the gospel.

You can order the social justice booklet or donation of any amount to the Christian will go to the Christian world.or call one AAA 46 2233 or write to Box 401 Excelsior, MN 55331 final segment of the day here in the Christian real view radio program. I'm David Wheaton. Our website is the Christian real viewed.org just a reminder that we just released her annual print letters can be mailed almost probably very soon after Thanksgiving weekend, but we have a posted online in case you don't get it. Want to see the early go to the website or look in yesterday's T CWA weekly email and we have some featured resources, resource catalog, so to speak, the modified one shrunk down one in the printer with ample resources on their none of space.

So if you want to get someone a meaningful gift for Christmas just highly encourage you to go into the Christian real viewed.org store and that you can peruse all the different items.

They are in and find something books and DVDs in children's resources and lots of other things there and then the store and the Christian real viewed.org okay one more church today as we talk about lessons for today from the Revelation churches in the final church gets the strongest warning to repent NASA Laodicea. This is the lukewarm church. Revelation 3 says I know your deeds.

Christ says this that you are neither cold nor hot. I wish that you were cold or hot.

So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold. I will spit you out of my mouth and just as an aside, or serve an interesting background on this that Laodicea was known for, there didn't have a good water supply did to bring their water from their place in the water to those who visit the cities was, lukewarm and tasted bad. People spit it out of their mouth because they want use to it. So there's a parallel there. That is interesting because you say, this church says I am rich and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing, and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked, I advise you to buy from me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich and white garments so that you may clothe yourself that the shame of your nakedness will not be revealed, and I sell ISAF to anoint your eyes so that you may see those whom I love, I reprove and discipline. Therefore be zealous and repent. Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with me. He who overcomes I will grant to him to sit with me on my throne, as I also overcame and sat down with my father on his throne. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches and that's the way these first three chapters of Revelation conclude with this.

She wasn't here, let him hear what the Spirit is saying to these churches and also I did read the one part about the overcome each of these letters ends with a reference to him who overcomes, and that there is this this idea of being over comers. The idea of being a true believer in over comers. Not a sinless, perfect Christian is someone who faces it's a believer who faces the world and through the power of the resources God gives us a genuine saving faith, the power of the indwelling Holy Spirit the power of the word of God overcomes the world, and if he falls for a time.

The overcome her gets back up repents and gets back on track through the power of these spiritual resources God gives us this is the only church Laodicea it with no commendations.

It's wealthy and money. It doesn't see itself as having really any needs because it has everything it needs at all it wants her are being being fulfilled. Yet, Christ said it's wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked. So to summarize here. Just notice that none of these churches. None of the seven churches is praise for their amazing growth. Their incredible programs for the whole family that prays for their their music, their impact on that, the city where they live their net prays for the relevance to nonbelievers. Are you making your church really relevant to the outside world. The net prays for their social justice, or even serving the poor were not even prays for evangelism or missions you think these would be the things that Christ would be praising what work he did have commendations you think he would mention some of those things and look at what you've grown what you look at your great music that attracts people from your city look at the relevance the way you set up your church to be relevant to the outside world. Look at that look at the what you do evangelism and admissions.

Strangely enough, there's not even a word mentioned about that instead it's all about your faithfulness to God's word are commended for that. The ones that were there perseverance in the midst of suffering.

Overall, a love for Christ. The object of our faith love for one another and then is not forget this last one personal holiness or sanctification, that there there set apart from the way the world lives. That's what these churches are commended for no we often wrongly assume that because they a church today is big and has multiple campuses, and the pastor is on radio and television, and he speaks that these really popular conferences and that people around him, and people in the community are being engaged will therefore it must be a good church and that is absolutely not Christ message.that does not mean anything as to whether it's a good church. Christ is what marks a good church and strong Christians are faithfulness to God's word not being tolerant of false teaching perseverance in suffering a love for Christ above all in one another in personal holiness and sanctification.

That's what Christ praises. But here's what the modern evangelical church is is known for its known for being above all attraction. How can we attract the outside world. What can the growth strategies do we have, how can you be friendly to those quote unquote seeking from the outside hike. We make our music relevant. How can arm our messages meet felt needs of people in their marriage or parenting. Are there problems or how can we have programs that meet every need of a family so everyone can go to their own place when they go to a church how can we be like the world to attract the world because ultimately want to quote share the gospel with them that that's the justification for the whole attraction will method that we want to share the gospel with them so as to become more like them will there is a big warning for this is that when the church has done this.

They've compromise with the world. They become more like the world, the sin of the world has become involved in the church. Think about the error of bailing the compromise with the world. This is really the DNA of the of the modern evangelical movement. It's it's a non-separatist tick of the world philosophy that we we don't want to be separate from the world and we should be totally separate from the world, but we should be separated from worldliness and ungodliness.

But that's not the way the modern evangelical movement sees it. We need to be close to the world. We can partake in the things of the world because we need to be attraction alter the world to want them to come to us.

Think about this. The issue even of divorce how the church overlooked divorce and adultery and then living together before marriage and now what we see.

The next stage of homosexual homosexuality is being entered into being the gay Christian movement is starting to come in the church as well not think there would be commendations today for the evangelical church. There is a remnant for sure within it is a generous church.

It is a church focused on evangelism and missions, but we must remain faithful, so we get commendations of Christ, we should be looking to these letters to say what did Christ say to these churches. What would he be saying to us today how we can apply that thanks listing the Christian world view. Have a good Thanksgiving.

Everyone will talk to you next week. Think biblically and live accordingly. We hope today's broadcast turned your heart toward God's word and his son to order a CD copy of today's program or sign up for our free weekly email or to find out how you can be reconciled to God through Jesus Christ go to our website the Christian world.org, call us toll-free at one Tripoli 646-2233. The Christian worldview is a weekly one-hour radio program that is furnished by the overcome foundation and is supported by listeners and sponsors request one of our current resources with your donation of any amount go to the Christian world.org or call us toll-free at one Tripoli 8646 2233.2 us Box 401, Excelsior, MN 55331 that's Box 401, Excelsior, MN 55331. Thanks for listening to the Christian world you until next time think biblically and live according