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- Peoria, IL | |
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- Platte City, MO |
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- North Omaha |
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Immorality God’s people are called to be morally and sexually pure (2 Co 11:2; Titus 2:5; 1 Pet 3:2). The word “pure” biblically when referring to sexuality means to be free from all that which is lewd, and related to lust. Sexual purity involves refraining from all acts and thoughts that incite desire outside one’s marriage covenant or one’s virginity before marriage. Purity involves controlling one’s own body “in a way that is holy and honorable” (1 Th. 4:4) and is the opposite of “passionate lust” (1 Th. 4:5). The Bible clearly regards adultery, sexual intercourse before marriage, forbidden sensual activity short of intercourse, homosexuality and lesbianism, and degrading passions as grave sins in God’s sight, since they are transgressions of God’s moral law and wisdom. These sins intrude upon the covenant of marriage and defile the participants. These sins are not only condemned in Scripture, but also place one outside God’s kingdom unless repented of and turned from (Ro 1:24-32; 1 Co 6:9-10; Gal 5:19-21). Our culture and society is pursuing behavior and lifestyles that are clearly condemned by God and in clear violation of His moral law and wisdom. Alternative sexual lifestyles to those revealed by God in scripture are vigorously promoted by Hollywood, TV and news networks, authors, artists, public schools, universities, the courts, and even many churches. This new “liberated lifestyle” has produced legal abortion and an epidemic of sexually transmitted diseases, moral chaos, and is leading our nation down the road to moral suicide. Bloodshed God makes it clear in His Word that He will “hide His eyes” from us when we pray because our “hands are full of blood”(Isa. 1:15). Violence and bloodshed are primary reasons for God’s presence remaining at a distance from His people. The shedding of innocent blood defiles the land and cries out for justice. Our human institutions cannot deliver us from the impact of such serious sin on society. God looks for righteousness and justice in His people. When He sees bloodshed and hears cries of distress, He waits for His people to respond in righteous intercession and mediation before He can respond in restoration and transformation. Judgment and devastation are the inevitable consequences of the land being full of bloodshed and the city being full of violence and injustice. "Prepare chains, because the land is full of bloodshed and the city is full of violence. (Ezek 7:23) Day 15 - What is Repentance? “Search me, O God, . . . See if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”(Psa 139:23-24 ) Repentance is a free decision, made possible by God’s enabling grace, to confess and turn from sin as we hear and believe the gospel (Acts 11:21). The definition of “saving faith” as “mere trust” in Jesus as Savior is wholly inadequate in the light of God’s demand for repentance. Defining saving faith without including a radical break with sin dangerously distorts the Biblical view of repentance. The repentance that God’s grace makes possible through the cross involves grief, a genuine regret for sin, and a decisive turning away from sin. Biblical repentance honestly confesses sin, renounces and turns from sin, and turns to God through the Lord Jesus. Saving faith is a repentant faith! Prayer Points:
Day 16 – Holy Desperation! As the deer pants for water…so my soul thirsts for God, for the living God. (Ps. 42:1-2a) We need holy desperation for the presence and ministry of Jesus to move out of our complacent, satisfied existence. Desperation is the underlying fuel that ignites our hearts. If we aren’t longing for Jesus, our ministry activities will be routine and hollow. To be desperate means to be without hope in our current condition, knowing that in our own power we don’t have the necessary resources required to change things. We must become desperate enough to change our lifestyle and priorities, our time commitments and resources. Everything else must be a secondary activity to the desperate pursuit of God in our midst. The cry of desperation pierces through religious veneer and rhetoric; the very act of crying out to God wakes up the human heart. We are people in desperate need of the manifest presence of Jesus in our midst! Prayer Points:
Day 17 - Fire of Repentance Repent, then, and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord. (Acts 3:19) Repentance, like sin, is first a heart issue. Until we are willing to face the Holy Spirit’s probing of our own heart, a revival of repentance will not happen on a larger scale. Corporate confession of sin is often the point when revival fire is ignited. Repentance, along with prayer and faith, is integral to God fulfilling His promises. Repentance is not a negative emotion! It is a posture of humility and submission to God and His Word. It is an alignment of our heart with God’s heart and with His promises. A humble, prayerful, desperate seeking of God with sincere repentance is a posture and action that God will not ignore. May God grant us the gift of repentance, fresh faith, and fresh breakthrough from heaven as we turn away from sin and return to Jesus. Prayer Points:
Day 18 - Loss of Our First Love? “Nevertheless I have this against you, that you have left your first love. Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works…” (Rev 2:3) Anything that competes with our love for Jesus can become a substitute for our affections and worship. In His letter to the Church at Ephesus in Rev. 2, Jesus wasn’t rebuking them for simply diminished passion. He told them if they didn’t return to their “first works” (intimacy, prayer), He would remove their “lampstand” or place of influence. Most believers spend more time watching television in one day than in all spiritual pursuits combined for an entire week! The Church is in danger of continuing to give token devotion to God on Sundays, while assimilating to our culture’s idolatry during the week. Where are we spending our time, our money and our affections?
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Day 19 – Idolatry “Son of man, do you see what they are doing, the great abominations that the house of Israel commits here, to drive Me away from My sanctuary” (Ezekiel 8:4) Judah’s temple leaders were actually worshipping the sun god inside God’s temple! The Lord turned away from them because of their idolatry and said He would not hear them. God withdrew His glory first from the temple and then from the city. He held the people of God responsible for His presence withdrawing from the city. Idolatry always causes the Lord’s presence to withdraw. In Ezekiel 8-11, God’s presence left the temple because of the leaders’ idolatry. This isn’t an example of a lack of God’s presence, but rather God deliberately choosing to withdraw because of their idolatry! Paul says in 2 Corinthians 6:16-17, “And what agreement has the temple of God with idols? For you are the temple of the living God…Therefore ‘come out from among them and be separate,’ says the Lord. ‘Do not touch what is unclean. And I will receive you.’”
Day 20 – Immorality And I gave her time to repent for her sexual immorality, and she did not repent. Indeed I will cast her into a sick bed, and those who commit adultery with her into great tribulation, unless they repent of their deeds. (Rev. 2:21) The Church in recent years has been riddled with accusations of immorality among leaders. Hardly a week goes by that we don’t hear a charge of sexual abuse, corruption or moral failure among members of the clergy. The Lord is exposing our sin, just as the prophet Hosea warned: “I will uncover her lewdness in the sight of her lovers…” Hosea (2:10) The immorality in the Church has weakened our authority to speak about issues like morality, honesty and trust. Why should the world believe our message? Churches are either ignoring their basic tenets of faith or simply rewriting them to suit their compromised position on morality. Jesus gives us a sober warning! He makes clear that there are serious consequences for the church that condones immorality. He warns the unrepentant church of the consequences of sickness and tribulation! Prayer Points:
By swearing and lying, killing and stealing and committing adultery, they break all restraint, with bloodshed upon bloodshed. Therefore the land will mourn…(Hosea 4:2) Violence and bloodshed are primary reasons for God’s presence remaining at a distance from His people. The shedding of innocent blood defiles the land and cries out for justice. Our human institutions cannot deliver us from the impact of sin on society. We are living in communities that are “mourning,” and the families who dwell in them are wasting away because of our sin. We are living in the consequences of our broken covenant with God. In the vacuum of His presence, the enemy has filled our land with every evil practice and brought destruction and death. A large percentage of our entertainment dollars is spent on watching the occult, sexual immorality, or violence and bloodshed. More and more we are entertained by what is becoming reality in society itself. We may protest societal immorality or violence, while simultaneously spending our time and money being entertained by them! Surely Jesus would say to us, as he did to the Pharisees, “Woe to you….”. Prayer Points:
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