With chaos, fear, and hatred breaking out in our country, many are left searching for answers and the church of Jesus Christ has them. We have....
My heart has been heavy the past few days like many other Americans. After the death of Philando Castile and Alton Sterling, who were both shot by police during altercations, the nation has been in an uproar. Protestors have filled the streets in many cities along with five cops being shot and killed in Dallas by a sniper who evidently was looking for some sort of revenge for the death of Castile and Sterling. With chaos, fear, and hatred breaking out in our country, many are left searching for answers and the church of Jesus Christ has them. We have the answers.
1.) Bible:
It is time for us to be proactive in our study and teaching of God’s word. Every problem in our world can be traced back to an absence of God. The only way to gain knowledge and understanding of God is to read His word and ask Holy Spirit to give us understanding. Since humanity was created in God’s likeness and image we really don’t know who we are until we get an understanding of who God is first. Apart from having this understanding, we are all a product of our jacked up environments. The reason people lie, cheat, steal, kill, gossip, hate others, and are selfish is because we were trained to be this way by the corrupt system of the world which is ruled by Satan. The bible says this about our nature without Jesus being a part of it.
And you He made alive, who were dead in trespasses and sins, 2 in which you once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience, 3 among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, just as the others. Ephesians 2:1-3
Everyone who has not put their faith in Jesus and who have not been born of the Spirit of God are lost. Those who have not experienced salvation have not been given Christ’s nature and operate in the Spirit of this world, the spirit of the devil, working in and through them; desiring only to fulfill the lust of their flesh. There is no hope without Jesus. Unless a person is born again and have the nature of Jesus, which is the Spirit of love, working in and through them; they have no hope. People always end up a product of their environment when God is absent from their lives.
2.) Love:
Love has to be the foundation of who we are at our core. The bible tells us that God is love (1 John 4:8). God is love and has shared His love with us by giving up His son Jesus to die on a cross for our sins so we could be forgiven and made righteous by grace through faith. It is only after we receive God’s love that we can give love.
Most people can’t give love because they don’t have it to give. They don’t have God who is love. So, to give love to others, means to give God to others. Love is more than an emotion or feeling. It is a Spirit. So what does God or Love look like? 1 Corinthians 13 tells us that Love is selfless, patient, forgiving, kind, endures all things, is hopeful, rejoices in the truth, and will never fail. Love is the most powerful force in the universe and has the ability to overcome the darkest form of evil known to mankind. Love is what changes lives when given and draws people to a loving God. It is time for us to not only hear of God’s love only but rather live in it so we can offer it to those who are lost and hurting. Love can and will turn our nation around. Love can and will turn our nation back to Jesus.
3.) Talk:
We must start talking and praying together in unity. According to Ephesians we do have an enemy but our enemy is not flesh and blood. This means our enemy is not that family member who owes us money, or the co-worker who has been spreading lies about us. Our enemy is not white, black, or polka dot. Our enemy is a spirit, the devil, who works through people to destroy lives. We must understand this so we can stop fighting each other and start fighting our real enemy. The devil knows a house divided can’t stand (Matthew 12:25). This is why he does his best to spread his lies from one person to the next in hope to cause division. After all, he is the father of lies.
“Assuredly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.
“Again I say[c] to you that if two of you agree on earth concerning anything that they ask, it will be done for them by My Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.” Mathew 18:18-20
God has given us, the church, His power and His authority to use on earth to bring about His purposes and defeat the works of the devil. In Mathew 18 Jesus tells us when we pray together in His name we can ask ANYTHING and God will do it for us. This means you can have what your heart desires if you can find someone to believe with you in prayer. Look at the power of unity! There is absolutely nothing impossible when two people get in agreement and pray to God in the name of Jesus. This is why the devil hates unity and seeks to divide us. I declare he is a defeated liar and the church of Jesus Christ is growing in unity like never before.
What America needs is some BLT. Church, let us dedicate our lives to the study and teaching of God’s word. May we live in God’s love and share it with everyone we come in contact with including the people who treat us bad. May we Join hands together in the Spirit of unity and pray for each other and the world we live in. When we do this we will see people by the thousands turn to Christ and receive salvation. We will see people experience God’s goodness and receive His love and plan for their lives. Will you join me in offering America a large BLT starting today?!
B. Burnam