An ocean divides but prayers unite the two

Yesterday at Golgotha in Moscow, Russia, during the Sunday School hour, I visited one of the ladies' classes to share how my mother's Sunday class in America was praying for them, especially for Olga has she continues to write the Bible study lessons for the English class.

Every Sunday it is evident that the ladies at Golgotha are thrilled to be in church and learning more about the Lord. They are really studying God's Word with a strong passion. We read from Philippians how every time we pray we thank God for you with joy (Phil. 1:3-4). I mentioned that I never fully understood this verse until I became a missionary and lived in Bryansk, Russia, years ago when times were tough. And I just knew that family and friends back home were praying for me. I learned another lesson, too. When you are going through tough times, you should focus on others and pray for them with joy. I began praying for those around me and my problems seemed to disappear.

Yesterday the ladies at Golgotha were so pleased to hear that other ladies in America are praying for them. I even asked for a specific prayer request sheet. They handed me one immediately. I will translate this list and pass it on to the ladies' class at Southside Baptist Church in McRae, Georgia. Though an ocean divides the two countries geographically, the prayers bring them together in heart. I live in Russia as one of your missionaries, and I thank the Lord that I have an opportunity to pass on your thoughts to other brothers and sisters in Christ for encouragement. So, yesterday, dear ladies--you who trained me in the Lord--of Southside, I was your voice; I hope I made you proud.

Earnestly Request Mercy

How we should be ashamed and repent! Do we see our ugliness? Are we begging for mercy? We should seek forgiveness with a strong passion, because our sins are being spelled out to us letter by letter and verse by verse.

If we study Ezekiel 36 in order to comprehend what is actually taking place, we notice evidence of God’s grace. In verse 32 God says that He is not showing mercy for their sake. This is a clear picture of a loving God. All throughout this book, the Sovereign Lord calls the children of Israel to listen to His Words. The phrase often repeated is: “Hear the word of the Lord.” This is a command.

Time after time they were given the opportunity to heed the warning. However, Israel sinned over and over again, and God continually called for them to repent just as He calls for us to turn from our sinful—fleshly—ways. He wants to cleanse us from our ugliness (verse 25). He will give us a “new heart” and a “new spirit” (verse 26). God will take away our hard, unclean, dirty, black, sinful nature and bring us into a “land” where He will be our God (verse 28). By His grace we are called His own.

We have seen God’s wrath and judgment throughout the entire book. God provides a summary for us in this section. Multiple times He has spoken of His intent, fiery and jealous anger, but now He had pity on the children of Israel yet again. They are reminded, though, in verse 32 to “be ashamed” and sorrowful for their actions.

All we have to do is a complete turn around entrusting ourselves to Him. Fear God, repent, submit to His Sovereignty, experience His love and receive His blessings. It is that easy. With a repentant heart, we see our filthiness before Him just as the children of Israel did.

After reading this chapter, I was convinced even more than before that God’s love is only understood after we comprehend His wrath and vice verse. They must be explained together. Interestingly it may be wiser not to use the phrase “we must have a balance” in teaching these two attributes; we must simply teach both, not one without the other. If our true desire is to know Him, we cannot pick and choose what we want to accept. That is why often these days the Word is being “adapted” to fit a way of lifestyle to make everyone feel comfortable (See earlier post, 5-13-09).

And I realize once again that we must watch out, because dangers are present yet hidden all around us. Be careful for there are false prophets in disguise everywhere (Matthew 7:15). Buck and I were discussing Romans 3:10-18. He said that we see the “ultimate end of a group of people who have replaced the righteousness of God with their own creation”. Unfortunately there is no fear of God. They do not know peace and their mouths utter words of death (verses 14; 17-18). The sad part is Satan is slowly luring people into a level of comfort unaware. Subtle untrue, negative lies and statements have briefly been fed from some media savvy government officials, “pastors”, writers of “fiction”, family and friends to diminish our levels of tolerance for the Truth. Just as with the children of Israel, we have allowed other beliefs, bad theology and idols in our midst.

What can we do? Pay attention and do not let anything be a substitute for God’s Word. And may we not be guilty of the same sins as Israel! God please have mercy on us for we are sinners. Save us from our sins. We ask for forgiveness. God promises that He will “save you from all your uncleannesses” (verse 29). And He will pour out His blessings (verses 29-30; 37-38). Praise God because of Jesus’ sacrificial death on the cross, we are cleansed as “white as snow” (Isaiah 1:18).
-The Chosen Path, L. Burch, 2009

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Preaching and teaching is rarely confrontational or exegetical anymore; it is conversational.

Do we really understand the wrath of God we read about in the Old Testament? How is that same wrath displayed in the New Testament? The answer has to be found in Jesus’ sacrificial death on the cross. This is a topic we generally do not want to think about. Maybe it is because we do not understand it. If the truth be known, maybe it is because we do not want to picture such a loving God in this manner. God cannot tolerate sin. I have been reading in the book of Ezekiel lately, and we read multiple times about the Sovereign Lord bringing judgment on the nations. God will judge each according to his own deeds (Ezekiel 33:20). This is Truth just as much as the fact that God is Love (1 John 4:16). He sent His own Son to die such a cruel death because of our sins. He is our only way to the Father. Jesus is our mediator.

I am really concerned about my home country right now. America looks drastically different than it did 11 years ago. I have been removed from the scenes for this extended period of time. My dad said the other day that maybe I can see things better because I have been taken out of the picture. I remember how things were, and I recognize how much things have changed. I realize that times change and people change, but God’s Word never changes. It is as if people have been snoozing and are not aware of what is taking place around them. It is a shame that things have to get so bad before anyone pays attention. It is time to wake up. Not all, but I am afraid many, have lost sight of this fact and do not want to think about the wrath of God. They only want to focus on the topic of love.

Today it seems that the Word needs to be “adapted” to fit a way of lifestyle or way of thinking just to make everyone happy. This is very dangerous. We cannot adapt the Word to satisfy us; the Word should be the standard that we live by. I made some conclusions about these concerns. In the general population of spiritual teachers and speakers, preaching and teaching is rarely confrontational or exegetical anymore; it is conversational. That is, rarely do preachers critically explain; they comfortably pacify these days.

We attempt to whitewash our faults instead of expose them for repair. Have you ever whitewashed a fence or the side or your house? The fact is that this thin coat just touches up the ugly spots. It is time to fix the damaged spots and put on a fresh coat of paint. Call black “black” and white “white”; do not compromise and call it grey. Therefore, call sin “sin”.

The Word says:
* “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” (1 John 1:8)
* “But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto holiness, and the end everlasting life. For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Romans 6:22-23)

We need to beware of false teaching and doctrines and hold ourselves accountable to God’s Word.
* “Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.” (Matthew 7:15)
* “But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies…And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of. And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not.” (2 Peter 2: 1-3)
* “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12)

We can rejoice in the fact that the Father knows us, loves us and calls us “the sons of God”, and remember that He understands that the world does not know us, “because it knew him not” (1 John 3:1). It is time to stand up and not be ashamed anymore. Let’s hold to the Book and teach verse by verse. This is not a time to converse or discover the Truth. I would venture to say the dangers of the emerging church, for example, can be equated with the belief of evolution. Everything and everyone gradually evolves from what already exists. The Gospel Message no longer needs to be compromised. There is only one way that leads to repentance and one way that leads to life and one way that leads to truth—Jesus (John 14:6).
-The Chosen Path, L. Burch, 2009

Russian Evangelical Christian Movement

This was a wonderful conference with the purpose to unite all Evangelical Christian churches who share common conservative Baptistic doctrine and evangelistic spirit. This conference was a celebration of 100 years of Russian Evangelical Christian Movement, founded by Prokhanov with a view to win souls. Buck was able to attend and was even picked up for a few seconds on Russian TV.
*the title above will direct you to the link

back to the basics

In the past 11 years, the world has changed drastically. The areas of the world in most need of the Gospel are not the same either. I would even say that America now is in just as much need of the Gospel as many other countries. Buck was just sharing with me that Africa and some Latin American countries have more Christians than any other part of the world. There has also been a decline in membership of our Southern Baptist Churches in America and an increase in the interest of other religions like Islam, Buddhism and so forth. We are even noticing on the mission field that there has been a huge shift in missions and international needs.

There are still small pockets of unreached peoples, but in general Russia is not a pioneer field. We are still assured that the doors of Russia were opened for this specific time in history, and I will always be grateful that I am here to serve. Though, the question still remains in my mind, one in which I feel we must constantly revisit: What parts of the world have limited access to the Gospel? I would add another question today: Where do I fit in in this equation to bring change to the world?

These have always been underlining goals, but I am more convinced than ever before that I (we) need to get back to the basics, that is, abiding in Him (John 15). Only through that can we know for sure what we are to “do” for Him on a day-to-day basis and where we are to serve. We are promised in John 15:5: “I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.” And again we are told in verse 4 and 11 that the branch cannot bear fruit if it does not abide in the source—the vine—of its joy; our joy which is to remain full.

I have dreams of what I want to be involved in, what I want to do and how I want to serve the Lord with my family, but no dream or act can surpass my desire to first remain in Him. This requires time. A time deemed as valuable, and a time that I ache to spend with Him. If Christians are going to “impact the world”, a phrase often used in our Baptist arena, we have to abide in Him. That constitutes more than just an initial repentance; it requires a commitment to a personal ongoing relationship-building with the Father. A great place to start is the beginning. If we are not careful, we venture to fulfill our own ideas and accomplish our own agenda, though, often achieving great things for Him; unfortunately, we have somewhat left our first love (Revelation 2: 4).

If we could give or do anything for the Lord, it would be to abide in Him. The fruit will automatically be produced, because the source distributes the nutrients needed for fostering fruit. This growth begins in me first. I came to the conclusion earlier in my meanderings that prayer was the key to make a difference. The next step was to allow the Master Artist to actually paint the strokes. Here we are honestly submitting to Him. Maybe it is the how or the means by which we can persevere, but we have to abide in Him.

If the Christians of America, Russia or any other country are going to make a stand for Him, we must return to our first love. God will assure us that we are just where He wants us and lead us to fit into the equation to bring change to the world. Otherwise, we are never going to be able to regain our position as a people that “stand up” for Christ. There is a danger when a person distances oneself from the Source. The Bible says: “If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire and they are burned.” (verse 6)

Abide.
-The Chosen Path, L. Burch, 2009