By Apprising Ministries special correspondent Justin Edwards of airō

One only has to take a brief survey of the American church landscape to clearly see how far gone is the visible church. Whether it’s messages of health, wealth, and prosperity, purpose-driven mania, or man-centered foolishness, or churches saturated with liberalism, postmodernism, or paganism, the church visible is fatally ill. This country boasts 85% of its population wearing the Christian label, yet by simply looking at the ever-increasing moral decay of American culture and government one can see how laughable this statistic is. No, it is not funny, but what else can one do but ridicule such an absurd attempt to brand this nation as a Christian nation. This nation is everything but Christian – it is idolatrous, it is wicked, and it will be severely judged by the righteousness of the Lord Jesus Christ.

The following is the promotional video for the upcoming “Fear of God” conference hosted by Sermonindex at First Baptist Church of Lilburn, Georgia October 21-22. The free 2-day conference is themed by the title, “Has the church lost the fear of the Lord”, and will welcome to the pulpit Paul Washer, Carter Conlon, Keith Daniel, Al Whittinghill, Roger Ellsworth and David Ravenhill. To date, there are thirty five American churches and fifteen churches outside the U.S. that will be streaming the conference live to their congregants.

From the website,

We are praying for hundreds of local churches across all denominations to be involved with this free simulcast event. May God speak to us by His truth clearly and plainly and use this event to start a movement of true revival in North America.

Has the church indeed lost the fear of the Lord?

After man fell in the Garden of Eden, centuries went by to the point that

The LORD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. And the LORD was sorry that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him to his heart. – Genesis 6:5-6

He then destroyed every living thing upon the earth except for Noah and his family and the animals that boarded the ark. After the flood, God recreated the earth in a strikingly similar manner as the first Genesis account, then man repopulated the earth until the present time. It has been 4,300 years since this flood, and dare we say the Lord is seeing once again “the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every intention of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually.”

This is a sign that the Lord is returning soon (Matthew 24:36-39). When He comes to judge the world in righteousness, it will not be by flood, however. Jesus Christ is coming personally in flaming fire to kill and destroy those who do not obey the Gospel (2 Thessalonians 1:8-10; 2 Peter 3:7). During these times that seem to be as the days of Noah, we must be as Noah, who by faith,

…being warned by God concerning events as yet unseen, in reverent fear constructed an ark for the saving of his household. By this he condemned the world and became an heir of the righteousness that comes by faith. – Hebrews 11:7

Are we walking in reverent fear of God? Are we constructing corporate and personal ministries, as though Gospel arks, to save those around us? Do we truly understand the righteous judgment that is coming to this earth when hundreds of people pass by us each day without a word of warning?

Is it not high-time to do away with the wasteful and fruitless church programs and activities that do nothing more than entertain the church when our time, energy, and financial resources should be going toward proclaiming the Gospel in our backyards and to the ends of the earth? Is it not time to fall on our faces in reverent fear before God to worship Him in spirit and in truth, doing away with the blasphemous forms of worship so prevalent in the modern church?

How about you, dear reader, who may be living as an enemy of the cross – must you examine yourself as to whether you are even in the faith (2 Corinthians 13:5)? Are you believing the lie that your “sinner’s prayer”, profession of faith, or alter call confession has saved you when you blaspheme Christ by indulging in your sin? Are you deceiving yourself that God has forgiven you despite no repentance? No, dear reader, God commands you to repent from your idols toward Him in loving obedience that you would lose your very life for Him. You either serve Christ or you don’t. He is either acknowledged as your Lord or He will be your Judge.

Of the true child of God, the Apostle Paul exhorts in 2 Corinthians 7:1:

Since we have these promises, beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from every defilement of body and spirit, bringing holiness to completion in the fear of God.

The time now is for repentance and returning to a reverent fear of God. It is time for the church to turn from her idols and for individuals to turn from their love of sin. If you desire revival in your heart, in your home, and in your church, please clear your calendar for October 21-22. Ask your church to host the free simulcast event, or you can watch for free online. If you live close enough, you can also travel to Lilburn, Georgia to listen to these godly servants of the Lord in person. Finally, if you live in the Charlotte area, you can contact me if you would like to join us as we have planned a men’s fellowship retreat to travel to Lilburn. There may be 1 or 2 spots left on the van, or you can carpool with others. Contact me for details. Details about the conference can be found here: SermonIndex.net Live Simulcast Conference

There is joy in the Lord for the adopted son and daughter of God, but fearful expectation of judgment for the rebellious and illegitimate. Let us remember why we exist – to glorify God and enjoy Him forever. Let us be stirred to zealousness and depart from iniquity, that Christ would be formed in us as we seek to love and obey Him with all of our hearts.

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See also:

ON THE FEAR OF GOD

ROB BELL DEFENDING LOVE WINS MYTHOLOGY

DARK DAYS AHEAD