The Cry of a Christian Heart
Sunday, January 06, 2019 – 6 pm
By Rev. James May
The most prolific writer of the New Testament was the Apostle Paul as he wrote many letters to the church of his day. How much he thought of the church that would be around in 2019 I don’t know, but the words he was inspired to write are eternal and they reach out to us right now just as powerfully as they did when he wrote them.
Paul had come a long way, from being one who persecuted the church, to being converted on the road to Damascus and being filled with the Holy Ghost prior to stepping out onto the pages of church history as the Apostle to the Gentiles.
But Paul was a Jew who had been trained in the greatest schools of Israel on the Law of Moses. At one place he refers to himself as a Pharisee among the Pharisees, meaning that no one could best him at the knowledge of the Law and how to force men to comply to it. He was a great debater, even at one point taking on the seekers of mysteries among the great thinkers of the Greeks on Mars Hill, where he declared unto them the Lord Jesus Christ as the one they knew only as “The unknown God”.
One thing that Paul had was a heart after God. When he was converted he “got the real thing”. This gospel was no plaything to him. When he gave his heart and soul to Jesus, he did so without reservation, committing his life to the preaching of the gospel at all costs, and counted everything as loss in this world, so that he might comprehend all that he could about Jesus and have a greater revelation of the power of the Holy Spirit.
One man, fully committed and sold out to God, under the anointing of the Holy Ghost, laid the foundation of the church upon the same foundation that Jesus had laid for there is no other foundation that will stand the test of time and eternity. The words that he spoke revealed the very heart and nature of Jesus to a world that was lost and dying in the sin of darkness.
As I look around today, I still see that same world! It’s a lost and dying world, steeped in idolatry and wandering around without eyes to see, ears to hear, and unable to come to the Truth of the gospel which has the power to see men free.
It’s a sad thing to look around you, everywhere you go, into the eyes of people you meet and know that the great majority of them are living without hope of eternal life. The worst part about it is that they don’t know that they are blind and being led astray to fall off of the cliff of life into the pits of the flames. Many go there daily, and there they will remain forever! What a terrible thought, to know that the very people you see in Walmart today may be burning in the pits of hell tomorrow.
As I see this I am reminded of the words that Paul wrote in the Book of Romans as he looked at the spiritual blindness and hopeless darkness which engulfed his own people in Israel. Paul saw them as men walking blind in a deep spiritual darkness; as men grasping for straws of hope but never having a full reassurance and hope of being delivered because the Truth that would give them freedom was completely rejected.
You can sense the sorrow, the concern for their souls and Paul’s heart given to him by Christ, as he spoke about the lost condition of his fellowman.
Romans 10:1 Brethren, my heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel is, that they might be saved.
I want to tell you that this prayer and this heart’s desire should be in every one of us right now!
I know that we are all concerned about lost souls, especially those of our own household. We are concerned about the condition of our nation and of other nations and people around the world. Like Paul, our heart’s cry is Lord, send a mighty revival! Send the Outpouring of the Last Days! Send the wave of reformation one more time! So many are lost, and they need salvation!
May prayer, every day is, “Lord draw people into your kingdom. Help us to be strong and ready to each out to everyone we can.”
Yes, I am concerned about the sick! Yes, I do care about seeing our brothers and sisters in the church being blessed. But nothing is more important than the saving of the lost!
Many times I am moved upon during prayer services to go beyond the prayer for the physical body, to see beyond the true source of that which is bringing death and sickness upon the body, and to seek God to move upon the heart and soul of those who sick.
To see the soul saved, even if the body is not healed, is always the main objective and I believe it should always be first priority! What eternal good is the healing of our diseases if our heart isn’t right with God? Many times it only serves to allow the sinner to live longer to commit more sin! God cleanse our hearts first, then save the body if it’s in your will!
May God give us a heart for reaching the lost and leading them to Christ! That’s the ultimate form of healing. If the heart and soul are made right with God, then that life that is given is eternal! The saving of the soul is the greatest miracle of healing and deliverance that anyone could experience in their life! It’s a supernatural work of the eternal Holy God, who alone has the power to cleanse us from sin and bring us into a right relationship with our Father in Heaven!
What is our heart’s cry to today? Are we crying out for America? Are we crying out for the State of Louisiana? Are we crying out for Ascension Parish? Are we crying out on behalf of our church? Do we not know that our priority is not those things, as important as they are! Our priority is the saving of souls!
The impact that one conversion to Christ can make is immeasurable! That one soul, brought to Christ and changed by the power of God can change the whole picture through God’s power working in them.
I pray for the government and for the church, but my prayer is always focused on that man or woman who sits in the seat of authority, that God will get hold of their hearts and bring them to the point of being saved. May a revival strike our nation that brings congressmen and women, judges and presidents, and every other leader to their knees in repentance and acceptance of Jesus Christ as Lord! They will have to bend their knees at some point, so why not now? And no one is above the power of the Holy Ghost to reach in and stir their hearts. They have the ability to reject him, but God knows how to get their attention!
As I examine the church, I wonder how many among us are going to heaven? How many are truly sold out and on fire for God? How many have fallen on their face in repentance and are seeking God’s presence above all else? I hope that it is all who walk in those doors, but I know in reality that not all are ready.
There are a lot of people who fall into the same category as Israel did when Paul looked out upon the nation and saw their true spiritual condition!
Romans 10:2 For I bear them record that they have a zeal of God, but not according to knowledge.
As Paul looked upon Israel, he saw a people that were searching and were hungry, but they were looking for answers in the wrong places.
Israel thought then, and many still do, that their hope was in obedience to the Law of Moses. The obedience to the Law and creation of “good works” in their lives was the ultimate goal. Like the Rich Young Ruler who went to Jesus by night, they were willing to obey every law, to do whatever was required of them as payment for their sin – except for one thing! That thing was a complete and full commitment to Christ of everything. It requires a sell-out! Like Paul, counting it all as long so that we may know Jesus!
Israel didn’t receive the knowledge of what they had done, and what they had been given. It was inconceivable to them that they could have murdered their own Messiah. They had sought and prayed for the Lord to come for generations, but when he came they rejected him!
In the same manner today men seek for answers to life’s questions; try to find the meaning of life; try to find a way of life that is fulfilling; attempt to search for truth, but never find it – they searched in all the wrong places for the wrong thing.
Nothing of this world can answer those questions. Nothing of the Law could save! Only by having their eyes opened and being given a new revelation of Jesus Christ could their understanding be enlightened enough to accept Jesus as Lord!
All of the zeal in the world cannot save a soul unless that zeal is placed in the right thing. You can love church, but church can’t save you. You can love worship, but worship can’t save you. You can love everything about the religion, but it has no power to save! Only the Lord Jesus Christ and faith in his blood that was shed for your sin, and repentance for sin, and acceptance of Jesus, surrendering your heart and life to him completely can save you!
Romans 10:3 For they being ignorant of God's righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted themselves unto the righteousness of God.
People can have the zeal to do a lot of good things, but as I said before, if their zeal isn’t placed on the righteousness of Christ alone through his shed blood, then that zeal will accomplish little to nothing that is of any real value to the Kingdom of God and will carry no reward in Heaven in the judgment.
Those whose self-driven zeal, or desire to do good things, will find themselves standing before the Righteous Judge and being condemned instead of receiving praise! Too late they will discover that the “good things” of this life, outside of the Righteousness of Christ earn nothing in the mind of God!
• People can have a “good heart” to work in the Medical profession, bringing help and healing as their motto to a hurting world.
• People can have a “good heart” desiring to see justice in the earth through political means or economic means, but where is Christ in their plans and works”
• People can have a “good heart” to help people in every way, and it’s all good in the eyes of man.
• No people on earth have had more of a zeal for obedience to the Law of God than Israel. They have created laws to support the Laws of God in every attempt to not offend those laws. But the offense had already come before they knew the Law, and at the point, the Law could only condemn, or push their sins ahead, until the time that the Messiah would come and wash those sins away.
And if they didn’t accept that a Messiah would come, and they didn’t place their faith in Jesus’ power to fulfill the requirements of the Law in them, then all of their zeal for the Law was of no consequence for it only served to condemn them even more.
Christ must be the focus! Only his righteousness can save both the Jew and Gentile! It’s Jesus’ blood and nothing else!
If any man is counting on his own good heart and the performance of any of those good works for salvation, forget it. Remember that believing in the “good heart” of man is the first problem for the heart of man is inherently evil, filled with pride and selfishness. It is a heart that lies to us consistently and cannot know the truth until it is changed by the power of the Holy Spirit into a new heart after God.
We can never trust the heart of man to bring us to a place of righteousness, for all that we do is nothing but filthy rags in the eyes of the Lord. Unless the cleansing power of the blood of Jesus transforms that heart, its works are always based upon evil purposes in the long run, whether its gaining of earthly wealth, pride in our accomplishments, or the satisfying the desires of the flesh! All of those are based on the “Big Three”; Lust of Flesh, Lust of the Eyes and/or the Pride of Life!
Only the touch of the Fire of the Holy Spirit and the Righteousness of Christ living in us can make any of our works acceptable to the Lord.
That Holy Fire will burn away the chaff of the Big Three and the focus will then be only on doing a work that is pleasing to God regardless of any personal gain or reward. It will be based on our Love for God alone! What we accomplish is secondary to Who we are accomplishing it for! To God be the Glory; not to man!
Romans 10:4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth.
I know I’m preaching to those who already believe, but I feel compelled to repeat it time and again – Our only Righteousness is in Christ who alone is our Righteousness!
He alone is able to save to the uttermost! We cannot count on anything or anyone else! It’s Jesus Christ and him crucified, risen from the dead and ascended into Heaven!
Looking around, my heart cries out for those who are counting on anything else! Men are walking blindly in spiritual darkness, unable to comprehend the true condition of their heart and life; unable to recognize the precarious situation of their eternal soul! They are blinded by their own sin, their own pride and their refusal to believe the Truth of the Gospel which is their only hope.
Every man is doing that which is right in his own eyes and everyone seems convinced that their eternal destiny is already set in Heaven. No one at any funeral ever wants to think that their loved one is in the pits of hell. No matter how ungodly they have lived, everyone wants to say that they are in a “better place”. I don’t want to bring them more grief by reminding them, but they aren’t in a better place. They are in Hell while we try to say good words. Families and friends grieve over their loss, but walk away and soon forget that every one of them will have their turn in that casket.
I’ve stated it many times in ways to try to jar people into reality. Look upon them for the last time, for if you don’t make Heaven your home, then you will see them no more! I often wonder if I’m too soft, but I do know that most wouldn’t hear it anyway! I’d like to tell them the truth, that there are no relationships of love in the pits of the flame. There are no friendly conversations or expressions of care and concern! There’s only suffering, pain, loneliness, and the constant sense of dying but never really dying! And it lasts forever without end! That’s the bald truth of the matter, but men refuse to hear it because it’s too horrible to contemplate!
My desire, and yours I’m sure, is that no man should ever go there!
The message of the gospel must go forth! Lord help us to not be quiet about it! The souls of men are at stake! It grieves me greatly to think of lost souls dying all the time, and yet it is the very thing that spurs me onward in doing what God has called me to do! For if I preach not the gospel and I shirk my duties in the Lord, where would that leave me? I’d be in the same boat as those who reject the Word of God!
All that we do as we work for the Kingdom of God; every prayer we pray; every song we sing; every child we teach; every church service we attend; every sermon I preach; and every work that we do in this life must be based on that one Cry of the Heart of Every Christian!
Our heart's desire and prayer to God for Israel, and for all mankind is, that they might be saved! Let us never get our eyes off of this single purpose in life! Tell people about Jesus! That’s God’s desire and it must be our desire as well!
Let us pray that we never lose that focus! We cannot become so focused inwardly, recommending one another to one another, or patting one another on the back for our faithfulness; edifying one another in Love and forgetting that there are so many who know not that Love of God!
Let us pray that we will always cry out for the lost! Let us never miss one chance to tell a soul about Jesus! Let us not be judge and jury over the lost, but let’s lead them to the Lord who can deliver them! That’s our primary mission after we are Born Again! Thank God for our own salvation, but remember to pass it on!
Amen
