How Should We Serve The Lord?

Look at this verse again. We read, “For they themselves show of us what manner of entering in we had unto you, and how ye turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God.”

GOD SAVES US FOR TWO REASONS:

(1) He does not want us to perish.

John 3:16 makes that clear. We read, “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.”

The hyper-Calvinist teaches limited atonement - that Christ did not die for everyone.

It is simply amazing how these people can pick a few verses out of the Bible to support their claim, and walk over hundreds of verses that declare Christ died for all.

The fact is, God is not willing that any should perish. NOT ANY!

(2) But there is another reason He saved us. It was for the purpose of TURNING US FROM THE IDOLS WE ONCE SERVED, THAT WE MIGHT SERVE THE TRUE AND LIVING GOD.

It should be obvious to everyone, that we have turned from the idols we once served. Now we serve the true and living God.

WE HAVE TURNED FROM SOMETHING, TO SOMEONE.

Paul tells these Christians that when they came among them, this was something they noticed about them.

But many professing Christians pledge their allegiance to the Lord, the same way some pledge their allegiance to the American flag.

For some, pledging allegiance to the flag is only a meaningless ritual.

When people started burning the American Flag, it generated one of the dumbest debates they ever had in Washington, D.C.. It was the debate over whether or not it should be a criminal offense to desecrate the American flag.

We actually had politicians who felt that it fell under freedom of speech. That is, they felt our constitution gave people the right to desecrate the flag, if they chose to do so.

A politician who takes such a stand, should be immediately disqualified from serving. Why? Because he has proven he/she is not qualified to serve in that high office.

That topic should never be up for debate. That flag stands for things that men and women have given their lives for. How dare anyone to have the audacity to desecrate it?

BUT THERE ARE OTHERS WHO DO NOT BURN IT, BUT THEY STILL DESECRATE IT. HOW?

We have millions who desecrate it by reciting meaningless pledges. They do not mean a thing they say.

And the same thing goes for many Christians. We have people who will go through a meaningless worship service and not mean a thing they are saying.

God saved us FROM SOMETHING, FOR SOMETHING!

After He saves us, He wants us to turn from our idols and serve the true and living God.

But the fact is, all over this country, we have professing Christians who will come to a worship service, but you cannot get them to serve the Lord.

They have all kinds of excuses.

WHAT IS THE PROBLEM?

It is not difficult to get people to say, “I LOVE GOD!”

The problem is one of two things:

(1) The problem could be, THEY DO NOT LOVE GOD enough to serve Him.

(2) The problem could be they really do not know the Lord. If you do not know Him, how can you love him.

Illus: Sometimes we will hear this Hollywood crowd on television, and when they go off the air, they say, “I love you!”

What is wrong with them saying that?

Because these are only words. Before you love anyone you have to know them.

And before a person can love the Lord, they have to know Him personally.

We have a lot of folks who have joined the church, but they really do not know the Lord Jesus personally, and this is why you cannot get them to serve Him.

This is why you cannot get them TO TURN FROM THEIR FORMER GODS, AND SERVE THE TRUE AND LIVING GOD.

People will not SERVE GOD until they really come to KNOW HIM, and to LOVE HIM.

• You are not going to get a person to witness, until he loves the Lord.

• You are not going to get a person to read his Bible, until he loves the Lord.

• You are not going to get a person to tithe, until he loves the Lord.

• You are not going to get a person to attend church regularly, until he loves the Lord.

Listen, they have more excuses than Carter has little liver pills.

When a man loves the Lord, HE WILL TURN FROM HIS IDOLS, AND HE WILL START TO SERVE THE LORD.

I WANT TO ASK YOU SOMETHING, DO YOU LOVE THE LORD JESUS?