Christian Living

---

Larry Lilly's Letter Thursday February 15, 2007

In my lifetime as a Christian I have been witness to a number of movements that seem to have very little long term impact for the glory of Christ and even less for the people ministering and the ones being ministered to.

What am I driving at?

Hang on!

I am driving at the practice of God's children refusing to carry out His plan and instead of flying like eagles, hanging around the hen house with other fowl who understand they have the wings of eagles, but use them as chickens with a wing clipped, the wings becoming mere decorations used to stir up dust. It won't take long watching the chicken yard gathering of Christian leaders to see the similarity; the chickens strutting around more like peacocks, and the leaders strutting around like….

I read the other day that the United States is a mission field, the gist of the article being the great need for churches; a closer reading revealed that the need is for more churches like the one the writer attended ignoring the fact that the specific area to which he referred had churches of every type, enough to service an area twice the size. A survey revealed a number of reasons why churches in the area discussed were not suitable for saints such as the writer. Not one of the reasons was biblical, but merely a preference. One church was ruled out due to pastor's baldness. You know I took umbrage at such a snide remark. The Great Blonde got me calmed down when she pointed out that I am not bald, though I do sport a rather large forehead. Her slightest compliment can still calm the raging beast in me old heart.

That the tendency to 'herd' has been a problem since the days of the church in Jerusalem which suffered so severely from this malady that God scattered the flock to the far flung regions is well attested. The disease is yet among us. We wish to associate with many other lights and consider our efforts to cast shadows on other lights as our main calling.

I talked just last week with a man who is going to the regions beyond to proclaim the unsearchable riches of Christ to the thirsty eared heathen of the region. Wow. Upon questioning I found (I already knew) that the remote heathen infested area to which he was going had in fact several churches similar in faith and practice and each had doctrinal statements to which they adhered fully, which read identical to the one he handed to me. So, why? I had to get out every cross examination tool I learned from asking my children why, to pry out of this modern Knight of the Cross that no pastor in this designated dark region of heathendom had graduated or supported the college from which our courageous warrior held a degree. I was so glad he cleared up this terrible heresy up for me. Shades of 1Corinthians 1:11-13?

"If life were a candle and you had only one opportunity to burn, wouldn't it be better if you burned in the darkness?" Jeff Straub?

Larry Lilly Copyright © 2007 Use with credit

---

PLEASE ENCOURAGE AUTHOR BELOW LEAVE COMMENT ON ARTICLE