Luke 18:8, John 14:6, Acts 4:12, Romans 5:6-11

Summary: Belief in God is fading from all parts of society. The idea of faith is all but ignored. Jesus told us it would be this way before He returns. Is your faith in the Lord in the same shape as the world?

” Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on the earth?” (Luke 18:8, NASB).

This question should be a clear signal for anyone with “eyes to see” that any idea of some last-minute “national revival,” which many well-meaning brethren would like to have us believe, is not a likely scenario for our country. We see the rapid deterioration of all that is noble and sacred both here in America and the world. Our Lord warned us that the Last Days would be nothing but a display of rank deterioration, and the “church” would be enveloped in it as well (2 Timothy 4:1-5). Jesus’s question is a reference to what is apparent to His remnant but also a question concerning the issue of faith and how God defines it.

How does faith in Him even come into being in our lives? Where do we start? Well, let’s take a moment to stop and think about something that far too many people would rather avoid, deny, or ponder, but Jesus Himself pointed out.

We can have everything that the world says will give us happiness and satisfaction. We can be surrounded by “good thoughts,” “self-esteem,” and a host of mantras by contemporary gurus and other so-called guides in life, but none of it gets us any closer to peace of mind and soul (Matthew 16:26; Mark 8:36).

Our nature, no matter how we want to deny it, is not of any good when it comes to making ourselves “right with God” in our own power. Scripture makes this abundantly clear (Isaiah 53:6, 64:6; Romans 3:23). That’s a fact, and you know it, like it or not. Scripture points this out as a sign of God’s concern for you and the offer of salvation He freely gives to anyone who calls upon Him (Isaiah 55:6; Matthew 11:28-30; John 10:28-30; Romans 10:9-10; Revelation 22:17).

To reject, avoid, or ridicule the offer of salvation He graciously provides is nothing less than spitting in His Holy presence and arrogantly telling Him that what He has done on our behalf is not needed nor necessary for consideration, and is of no value to you. This is the ultimate case of insanity leading to the final horrendous destiny of anyone who turns away from His love, mercy, and forgiveness (Ezekiel 18:23, 32; Matthew 25:41; Revelation 20:11-15).

Another reason Jesus questioned the lack of faith on the earth is that the preaching of redemption through the cross has been minimized, downplayed, ignored, or denied altogether by the apostate church that has taken up the causes and trends of the world, pathetically chasing the winds of popularity to look relevant and appeasing to people and groups who want the church to accept them without letting the power of Jesus Christ transform them from captives of sin into citizens of the kingdom of heaven. The harsh brutality and horror of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ provide the only means by which our sins are forgiven. The cross reconciles the holiness of God with fallen humanity.

From the foundation of time, the Lord Jesus Christ was the Chosen vessel Who would pay our sin debt and its penalty. As God incarnate, who is sinless, perfect, and filled with the Holy Spirit, was the final sacrifice for sin, an act that was never to be repeated (Hebrews 7:25). He paid our debt because we could not (John 19:30, 20:30-31; 1 Timothy 1:12-17). As John Newton, the former slave trader turned minister who wrote the immortal hymn, “Amazing Grace,” said, “I am a great sinner, but Christ is a Great Savior.”

Where does faith in God first find us? First, it is the Lord who finds us. He is the Good Shepherd who looks high and low for every lost lamb not in the fold (Luke 15:1-7). He finds us battered and bruised, scared, hungry, and cold. He finds us when we are ashamed of our sins and don’t want Him to look for us at all. Yet He does and does do willingly. When He finds us, there is rejoicing in heaven, and we are His from that time on, never to be forsaken or to fend for ourselves ever again (Hebrews13:5). The way Jesus finds faith on the earth is by placing our faith in Him (Romans 10:9-10).

Someone needed to read this message today. Whoever you are, heed the word of the Lord and come to Him as a child in faith and trust. He loves you. What more needs to be said?

donaldwhitchard@gmail.com

www.realitycityreverend.com

www.youtube.com/@realitycityreview

 

I was going over the manuscript of my book for the third (the third draft, as writers say) and final time and was drinking a glass of Pepsi Cola (which was sitting a little too close to my laptop.) I don’t have to tell you what happened – but I will. Just as I finished and was ready to celebrate, I reached over for a pen lying on my desk; my hand swiped the glass I was drinking from, and cola splashed all over the keyboard.

Whaaa!!! – With years of hard work hanging in the balance, I jumped up and sopped up what I could with a towel, but in an instant, the damage had been done.

While taking the laptop to a computer repair expert, I had to remind myself that the word of God says, “All things work together to those who love God and are the called according to His purpose.” Something I had learned a long time ago, so I didn’t panic or even pray; nevertheless, I was perplexed – what good can come of something like this? Although, it was my fault for being so careless that I didn’t expect God to rectify what had happened – but He did! – and in an unexpected way. What a God we serve!

John, the repairman, said the keyboard was “fried” and so I would have to buy a new keyboard or a buy a new laptop. I didn’t care about that – one way or another. I was only concerned about my manuscript!

But, thank God, I just happened to have the presence of mind to take along a zip drive – just in case I could retrieve my just-finished manuscript from my now-destroyed laptop. Just to be on the safe side, I asked him to retrieve my manuscript – if he could – (I wasn’t about to try this chancy operation myself.) He did it. Plus, John lent me a keyboard to use to extract whatever else I could from my damaged laptop.

While still there, a little old lady came sauntering up to me with a blank look in her eyes and looked me straight in the face as if she knew me or was trying to recognize me. After a moment, she moved on to do something else. As the repairman and I talked at his store counter, the woman came back again to stare at me from less than two feet away. Suddenly she put her hand out and rubbed my shoulder as her questioning stare softened. (It appeared to be a recognition of some kind.) I asked the owner, “Does she belong to you?”

“Yes, she’s my wife.”

I said nothing (I mean, what do you say to someone in those dire straits?), thinking, “poor soul”; she obviously has dementia.

Now, I had to buy a new laptop (an Eleven – whatever that means) – and it is a wonderful tool with all the bells and whistles. It is much better than the 10-year-old one that I had. Looking back, I can honestly say that if I hadn’t destroyed the old one I had, I wouldn’t have bought another much better one.

A full week passed before I remembered that I still had the repairman’s keyboard in my possession. Yikes! I had better take the keyboard back to that gracious man.

I arrived thinking about what I could say to the man to excuse myself for keeping it awhile longer than expected. I needn’t have worried about such a trivial thing. And as he approached me at the sales counter, he remembered me immediately. I explained my tardiness, and he, being a gentleman, acquiesced.

I have an innate instinct to recognize Jewish people immediately, especially after having ministered to and befriended several of them while living in Miami. (Some even invited me into their homes.)

In any case, the proprietor was cordial until I asked him if he was a Christian. He, of course, said, “No, I’m a Jew.”

I said, “I had many Jewish friends in Miami, where I lived for a time. Those were the days when a person could smoke while they had coffee and kibbitz at the Dunkin Donuts shop. We used to gather there for conversation like some still do in Europe.”

The repairman perked up and began to feel at ease, especially after I told him about meeting and befriending the son of a rabbi who had a synagogue in upstate New York. Bo was an adopted child who said he was adopted only to make the rabbi look good, as he and his wife could not conceive a child of their own; and he hated his father.

Nevertheless, the Netanyahu’s lived next door and attended his father’s synagogue. Johnny (Yoni) was a best friend and playmate. Benjamin was his younger brother. (Yes, that Benjamin Netanyahu.) Johnny was killed when the Israeli Special forces confronted the hostage takers at Entebbe in 1976.

Now, the repairman really perked up, and I continued, “Did you know that Bebe’s father, Benzoin, was a professor at Cornell University, a prolific writer of world history, and wrote The History of Sephardic Jews?”

Looking surprised, he replied, “I didn’t know that.”

I continued to say, “I went to the library in Miami to find the book, and sure enough, the ten-pound volume was as thick as a grown man’s forearm.” The man was impressed with my intimate knowledge of these historical Jewish facts.

Then, I hit him with the capper. “Through that book, I can trace my roots back to the first Jew in the New World – a Spanish Jew (Sephardim) who traveled with Christopher Columbus (whose real mane was Cristóbal Colón, just so you know), and this man was a linguist who was brought along – thinking that he might be useful in interpreting the languages the explorers might encounter in India.

By now, I had connected with John and asked how his wife was doing. “God forbid you should ever have to go through something like this.” I could see the resignation and weariness in his face. Then I said, “John, I’d like to pray for you and your wife.” He couldn’t resist even if he wanted to – his eyes glistening over.

Putting a hand on his drooped shoulder and with his wet eyes closed, I made the prayer short and sweet. “Dear Heavenly Father, please comfort John’s wife and give John the peace and comfort he deserves as well – I ask it in Jesus’s Holy name, Amen.”

I reached into my wallet and gave him my card – with the three places where I could be found and told him to call me anytime.

YBIC

Jim Towers

Write me at jt.filmmaker@yahoo.com or visit me at www.propheticsignsandwonders.com or www.dropzonedelta.com.