I went to church at Five Points again this morning. BOY DO I LIKE THE PASTOR!!
I don't think I would look any further for a church if I were living here, not much danger of that happening.
All four of the messages I've heard him deliver have centered around we, as individual Christians, need to do what God call us to do. If each of us does our jobs, as individuals, the "Christian Team" will flourish. We need to focus far less on "the other guy" and more on ourselves.
He provided the "special music" today. They played a 26 year old recording of him singing "People Need the Lord". I don't know if he sings any more, he has not during the services I've attended, but man he sure could sing back then.
Today's message was titled, "Diagnosis of America". He preached while decked out in surgeon scrubs, he even had a hair net over his shaved head. The basis of his message was taken from Hosea and Amos. The passages came from the Message Bible.
He commented that he wondered if present day America was much different that Israel when the nation continuously fell away from God. The following is God thoughts about Israel's condition at the time.
Hosea 13:1 and following - God once let loose against Ephraim a terrifying sentence against Israel: Caught and convicted in the lewd sex-worship of Baal - they died!
2 And now they're back in the sin business again, manufacturing god-images they can use, religion customized to taste.
Professionals see to it: Anything you want in a god you can get. Can you believe it? They sacrifice live babies to these dead gods - kill living babies and kiss golden calves!
3 And now there's nothing left to these people: hollow men, desiccated women, like scraps of paper blown down the street, like smoke in a gusty wind.
6 I took care of you, took care of all your needs, gave you everything you needed, you were spoiled. You thought you didn't need me.
American has been one of the most prosperous nations of all time. Name some other place where people flock to as they have flocked to the opportunity provided here.
Now we are falling. We Christians have been so besieged by all the smut that we have become numb. It is almost as though we have been given a shot of spiritual novacaine. ( The following are my comments. We accept people shacking up as normal. We accept men refusing to pay child support as normal. We accept nearly half of all babies being born out of wedlock. We accept that we taxpayers have to foot the bill for over 40% of all births in the nation.)
He mentioned some of the reasons for the fall of the Roman empire; i.e. total moral decline, a heavy tax burden to pay for an ever government, etc. We have similar issues in America.
He then moved Amos 6:1 and following: Woe to you who think you live on easy street in Zion, who think Mount Samaria is the good life. You assume you're at the top of the heap, voted the number-one best place to live, (he replaced Zion and Mount Samaria with locations in Texas)
2 Well, wake up and look around, get off your pedestal. Take a look at Calneh. Go and visit Great Hamath. Look in on Gath of the Philistines. Doesn't that take you off your high horse? Compared to them, you're not much are you?
3 Woe to you who are rushing headlong to disaster! Catastrophe is just around the corner!
4 Woe to those who live in luxury and expect everyone else to serve them!
5 Woe to those who live only for today, indifferent to the fate of others! Woe to the playboys, the playgirls, who think life is a party held just for them!
6 Woe to those addicted to feeling good-life without pain! Those obsessed with looking good-life without wrinkles! They could not care less about their country going to ruin.
He is quite down on the massive growth of government and its intervention in our lives. Government is not the solution, it is the problem (I think that is a Reagan quote).
As usual he ended with an up note. He mentioned God sending Jonah to Ninevah to warn it of God's upcoming wrath. Those in Ninevah repented and the city was spared. We in America have the same opportunity.
Time to get out and "fold up my tent". I'm taking the motor home over to the Freightliner place near Bryan tomorrow, for some maintenance. I want to have it all folded up and the car hooked to it so I can leave the camp no later than 7:30.
Good night to all. May God bless you and yours.
PS. I didn't proof read this. Please forgive my typo's, etc.
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