BACK TO THE BASICS
by Todd W. White, Pastor of South Heights Baptist Church, Sapulpa, Oklahoma.
"Back to the Basics!" is the cry so often heard in the world today. Whether it be in reference to school curricula, family values, or business practices, there is definitely a move in some circles away from the liberal, nauseating practices of recent history back to a more civilized BASIC way of doing things.
In the church, it is no different. We need to get "Back to the Basics" in so many areas. Far too long Christians have been satisfied with the simplicity and stagnation that arises out of a complacent following of programs that died long ago (but no one has the intestinal fortitude to bury).
There is more to being a church than having people attend church services. There is more to being a church than blindly following a program because "that’s the way we’ve always done it." There is more to being a church than giving money. There is more to being a church than placing a sign out on the street and saying, "Ya’ll come!"
Sadly, most churches and church members plod along week after week, year after year, stuck in the deepest of ruts, all the time wondering, "Why don’t people want what we have?" and "Why doesn’t God send us new members?"
The answer is simple: WE are the reason why the people around us don’t want what we have! Christ and the church have made such little difference in our lives that those around us don’t SEE any point in trying it out!
If we, by our DAILY LIVES, would allow the light of Christ to shine to others (Matt. 5:16), people would beat the doors of the church down trying to get what we have!
"Well, how do we DO we let our light shine?"
So glad you asked.
HOW TO LET YOUR LIGHT SHINE TO THOSE AROUND YOU
1. MAKE CERTAIN YOU ARE REALLY SAVED. There are countless millions on the church rolls in this country who are PROFESSING but not POSSESSING CHRISTIANS. They have walked an aisle, prayed a prayer, gotten wet, and "presto-chango," they were
proclaimed, "A Christian."
Many of these folks try the Christian "bit" for a while, but soon drop out because it is "too narrow" or "too hard" or "cramps" their lifestyle. However, if you ask them if they are going to go to Heaven when they die, they will answer emphatically, "YES!"
Not so. James, the brother of our Lord, said that though we are not saved by faith PLUS works, we ARE saved by a faith THAT WORKS (James 2:14-26). Friend, if you have a faith that does not cause you to work for Jesus Christ, you have a dead faith, and a dead faith can’t save anybody - YOU’RE LOST!
2. HAVE A SCHEDULED TIME EVERY DAY WHEN YOU READ YOUR BIBLE AND PRAY. There are so few today who have the inner strength to discipline themselves to read the Word of God and pray on a consistent, DAILY basis. This lack of intake of the Scriptures and prayer life is the basis for the personal failure of most believers to live a victorious Christian life, as well as for their familiy’s and church’s failure to be what they
ought to be. Somebody said -
"A chain is only as strong as its’ weakest link."
Are YOU the weak link in your family, spiritually?
Are YOU the weak link in the lives of your neighbors?
Are YOU the weak link in your church?
"A chain is only as strong as its’ weakest link."
Lack of spiritual food (reading and studying the Bible daily) and lack of communication with the Heavenly Father (daily prayer) will make you - and all those with whom you have contact - weak.
If you are not currently reading the Bible and praying on a daily basis, contact me and I will be glad to show you how.
3. ATTEND CHURCH REGULARLY. There are times when a person cannot attend church (illness, job conflicts, etc.), but the vast majority of those who skip church do so because, quite frankly, they don’t want to be there!
What happens when a believer fails to attend church? Well, he -
A. SINS AGAINST GOD, WHO COMMANDS US NOT TO SKIP CHURCH (Heb. 10:25).
B. FAILS TO RECEIVE THE SPIRITUAL STRENGTH HE NEEDS BY FELLOWSHIPPING WITH OTHER CHRISTIANS.
C. ISOLATES HIMSELF FROM THOSE HE NEEDS MOST IN TIMES OF TROUBLE - GODLY BELIEVERS.
4. FIND OUT WHAT YOUR SPIRITUAL GIFT IS, AND BEGIN USING IT. In order to be useful to God, a person must know what tools the Father has given him in order to work for Him. The Lord saves every person for a PURPOSE, and we will never be satisfied or useful to God until we are busy fulfilling our God-given task here on earth. (See Eph. 4:11; Rom. 12:6-8; I Cor. 12).
5. BEGIN TITHING. One of the greatest ways in which a believer can prove the existence of God to himself and those around him is by putting God to the test through tithing. The Word of God is very clear on this subject, and we have discussed it before, but suffice to say that there is no HUMAN explanation that can be given for the ways in which God blesses His children when they are obedient in the area of tithing.
The child of God who tithes has an irrefutable testimony to the reality of power of God.
6. BECOME A WITNESS WHERE YOU ARE. By making a concentrated effort to be the best witness for Jesus Christ that you can possibly be, the individual Christian has a far greater opportunity of winning those in his circle of influence than a pastor or other church
member has (See Acts 1:8).
By watching YOU - their loved one, neighbor, or friend - they will SEE with their own eyes whether what you SAY has changed your life really works or not! When you purpose to live a Christ-like life WHERE YOU ARE, you open the doors to the hearts of people no one else can possibly hope to reach.
7. HELP OTHERS WHO ARE IN NEED. When we reach out to those who are hurting in this world, many have needs in addition to salvation. Not only do they need Christ as their Saviour, they also need food, medical attention, clothes, housing, and so much more.
When we, as a church family, reach out to meet the needs of the whole man - spirit, mind, and body - we are doing what Jesus did when He healed the sick. We are doing what He did when He fed the 4,000 in Matthew 14. Anyone can stand on a streetcorner or in a pulpit and PROCLAIM Jesus Christ - but to TAKE Him to where the lost and hurting are, that is the way it is supposed to be!
DARE TO BE DIFFERENT - TAKE THE MESSAGE OF JESUS CHRIST TO THOSE AROUND YOU THIS WEEK!
