Singing On A Strong Foundation

Singing On A Strong Foundation

Text: Ezra 3:10,11

10 And when the builders laid the foundation of the temple of the LORD, they set the priests in their apparel with trumpets, and the Levites the sons of Asaph with cymbals, to praise the LORD, after the ordinance of David king of Israel.

11 And they sang together by course in praising and giving thanks unto the LORD; because he is good, for his mercy endureth for ever toward Israel. And all the people shouted with a great shout, when they praised the LORD, because the foundation of the house of the LORD was laid.

On the average Sunday morning, all around America and all over this world, men and women, boys and girls, arise from their beds and begin the process of getting ready to go to church. Can I get a witness? If they are exceptional brothers and sisters in Jesus Christ, they will probably get out of their bed and go straight down on their knees is prayer, thanking GOD for allowing them to see a brand knew day. And because they are exceptional, they will even continue their devotion to the LORD by reading some scripture and meditating on the Word of GOD. These exceptional Christians will do all of this BEFORE continuing their activities of the day. Do I have any exceptional Christians in here?

On the other hand, above average Christians will get up and jump right into their morning routine. But somewhere within their routine, they will realize that they haven’t had a talk with the LORD. And they will stop in the middle of what they’re doing even if they are in the shower and they will have a little talk with Jesus. Oh I wish I had some help up in here.

Because they are above average, and NOT exceptional, they will not take the time in the morning to pick up God’s Word, and will usually prefer finding something to eat, rather than finding nourishment from God’s Word. Oh I know that we have some above average Christians in here. Can I get a witness?

And then you get down to the average Christian brother and sister. They are the ones that get up out of their beds in the morning and don’t even think enough about the Lord to say “Thank You Jesus.” They are the ones who sit down at the breakfast table to eat, and they eat heartily, without ever stopping to say “Thank You Lord.” They are the ones who will drive all of the way to church, and come inside the church, and then they get loud in their so-called praise, trying to make sure everybody sees how good they can praise God. Oh you know how they do?

They come to church and they put on a show. They become nothing more than entertainment, because everybody already knows how they’re going to act when they show up. Am I right about it?

But my brother and sisters, it’s sad to say, that many of us come to church looking to be entertained. We come to church looking to be entertained by the choir. We just can’t wait until the choir sings our song. And when they sing our song, that’s when we get to entertaining ourselves. Can I get a witness?

We come to church to be entertained by the deacons. We know who’s going to pray, how they’re going to pray, and what they’re going to say while they’re praying. Because we’ve been listening to our deacons and stewards pray that same old prayer for I don’t know how many years, saying a whole lot of something that doesn’t mean much of anything when it comes to the Kingdom of God. Am I right about it?

So then, what do we do? We leave church and get on the telephone and talk about all we got to see at the church, and we get our laugh on because we’ve been thoroughly entertained. Can I get a witness?

And it’s sad to say, but we even look to the preacher, in his designer robe or ghetto zoot suit, to provide us with a certain amount of entertainment that will make us feel good for the moment. Oh yes, we love it when the preacher gets to running all over the pulpit hollering and screaming in his pretty singing voice, and kicking his legs all up in the air. But then about 30 minutes after service, you can’t tell anybody what the preacher talked about to save your own life.

But my brother and sisters, I came to let you know today that if all you are coming to church for is entertainment, then you might as well stay home, because just like those who won’t come to church to praise GOD, you are going to burn in hell. Can I get a witness?