Commited To Commitment

Illus: Dr. Odell Belger talks about a young man that frequently calls him in his office because he is absolutely miserable in life and desperately trying to find out what is missing in his Christian life.

Dr. Belger has given him passages of scriptures that could change his life drastically, but before the seed of God’s Word is planted in his heart he allows the devil to steal it from him and he continues to have this same problem.

He will continue to have these problems until he allows God’s Word to be rooted in his heart.

People like this are searching for someone to tell them SOME PROFOUND SECRET TO TELL THEM HOW THEY ARE SUPPOSE TO FUNCTION AS A CHRISTIAN OTHER THAN THE WORD OF GOD.

A lot of people are like this!!!

Illus: In one of Warren Wiersbe's books, he recalls a time in his boyhood when he was sitting in a grade school assembly program listening to an aged doctor who promised to tell the secret of his long, healthy life.

Wiersbe writes that this doctor had been the physician to one of the Presidents of the United States, and he was extremely interested to find his secret to a long life of success and excellence.

He said, "All of us sat there with great expectation, hoping to learn the secret of a long life.”

At the climax of his address, the doctor told us the secret, “drink eight glasses of water a day!"

Needless to say they expected to hear SOMETHING MORE PROFOUND!!!

But there are people we can turn to for guidance that know the Word of God and they can help us in living the Christian life.

Illus: Dr. J. Gerald Harris tells the story he had the privilege to have a conversation with Miss Bertha Smith on one occasion.

• Bertha Smith was a missionary to China and endured great persecution during the days before the Second World War. She was a great woman of God; a great woman of prayer.

• Dr. Harris said I was thankful for the opportunity to talk with her, to pick her brain and to find out the secret to her success and excellence and power in the Christian life.

• She lived and ministered into her 99th year.

I asked her, "Miss Bertha, what is the secret to your long life and powerful ministry?"

Three things:

She responded by saying…

1) "I pray three hours a day,

2) I Walk three miles a day,

3) And never eat anything that tastes good!"

As we seek counsel from God’s Word we can certainly find guidance.

• From time to time, most of us have begun to eat something that was set before us, and before we took our first bite, not the second or third, we noticed something was missing, and we said, “Someone forgot to add the salt!”

• As you read the first chapter of the book of Acts dealing with the New Testament church, not the second or third, but the first chapter, as we compare the New Testament church to the modern church today, we are aware that something is missing in the church today.

WHAT IS MISSING IN TODAY’S CHURCH?

As we compare the New Testament church with today’s church, we cannot help but notice IN ALMOT IN NEON LIGHTS that the missing ingredient is COMMITMENT.

When I speak of commitment, I am talking about A NON-NEGOTIABLE SURRENDER TO THE LORDSHIP OF CHRIST, AND TO THE AUTHORITY OF THE SCRIPTURES.

This type of commitment is missing in today’s church.

But COMMITMENT is not only missing in the church, it seems to be missing also in other places in our society,

Such as:

(1) IN THE DATING OF OUR YOUNG PEOPLE

That is young people 13 or 14 years of age say they are going steady.

Define:” Going steady meant that a young man and a young girl agreed they would take themselves out of circulation, and devote their time and attention to one person.

Illus: A young person going steady has become accepted in our society.

It has not always been acceptable!

Older folks in this congregation can remember when whether it was good or bad for the youth of this nation to be going steady with each other was discussed at great lengths whether it was good or bad.

WHY DID SOME PARENTS THINK THIS WAS NOT SOMETHING THAT YOUNG PEOPLE SHOULD DO?

1) Some felt that “Going Steady” is too much like an engagement period. The only difference is that no date has been set for a wedding.

2) Some felt that “Going Steady” would lead to intimacy

3) Some felt that “Going Steady” is not good because they are playing around with the word “Commitment,” and they are not old enough to appreciate this word yet.