Making a Differencewith Pastor Phil Erickson

Aug 21st Guest Post by Pastor Ted Stahl “OUCH!”

Today’s Reading – Jeremiah 32 – 34

God said in Jeremiah 33:6 Behold, I will bring it health and cure, and I will cure them, and will reveal unto them the abundance of peace and truth.

How are you feeling today? Are you in good spirits? Are you in good health? Are you bothered by evil thoughts? Do your eyes wonder towards things that they shouldn’t?

Judah and Israel were sick. Their sickness was sin: they had turned from the One True Living God to worship little ‘g’ gods made by the hands of man. But God had the cure: they would go into captivity in Babylon for 70 years; then God would bring them back home. It seems that sometimes chastisement is the cure. God chastises those He loves. Some did not want to go thru this: they fought against the captivity, against the Chaldeans, and the results are in verse 5. Even for the Christian, the wages of sin is still death. Hebrews 12: 5-7 say…

Hebrews 12:5 And ye have forgotten the exhortation which speaketh unto you as unto children, My son, despise not thou the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when thou art rebuked of Him: (v 6) For whom the Lord loveth he chastenith, and scourage every son whom He receiveth. (v 7) If ye endure chastening, God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he whom the father chasteneth not?

So, how are you feeling today? Are you enduring? Are you drawing closer to God. Are you sinking in despair due to ecconomic woes? Are you trusting God? Romans 14:23 reminds us: “…for whatsoever is not of faith is sin.”

Have faith. The chastening of the Lord is only for a season. Keep serving the Lord. Keep giving Him your tithe, and what you promised to give Him. As with Israel and Judah, our going home is imminent.

Aug 20th No More Soulwinning?

Today’s Reading – Jeremiah 30 – 31

But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more. (Jeremiah 31:33 & 34)

The context of today’s reading in the Book of Jeremiah is the Millennial Reign of Christ on the earth which is yet future. The Millennium will begin with an event that we call the Rapture, where Christ will come down in the clouds and shall gather His Bride, the Church, and take us to Heaven. Immediately following the Rapture there will be a seven year period known as Jacob’s Trouble (or The Tribulation Period). This will be a horrible time of judgment on the earth, but God will get the attention of the nation of Israel and they will turn their hearts back to Him. They will realize that they were wrong about the Lord Jesus Christ, and they will receive Him as their Messiah. At the end of this Tribulation Period Christ will return to set up His Kingdom upon the earth. Everybody that lives on the earth at this time and is old enough to understand will be saved: they will all know the Lord. God says in the verses above that during this time we won’t have to convince our neighbors to know the Lord, because they will all know Him.

I can’t imagine living in a place where everyone is saved. I can’t fathom not having a burden to reach the people around me with the Gospel of Christ. There will be no lost people on the earth. However, we are not there yet. Today there are still myriads of people who do not know the Lord, and it is our responsibility to reach them. We are to take the message of Christ to all of our neighbors, near and far. Sometimes it gets frustrating living in a world where the vast majority of people are lost in their sin, but that will all soon end. For now, we need to be busy, very busy, winning the lost around us; and giving to missionaries who will take the message of Christ to those that are out of our reach.

When was the last time you talked to your neighbor about “knowing the Lord”? Someday soon, you will no longer have that opportunity. Get busy!

Aug 19th Keep Looking

Today’s Reading – Jeremiah 26 – 29

And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall search for me with all your heart. (Jeremiah 29:13)

Jeremiah 29 is written to the captives that had been taken away from Jerusalem in the first wave to Babylon. Jeremiah is writing to them from Jerusalem, and is encouraging them to not lose heart; and to not quit following the Lord. No doubt, they were a discouraged people: they had been uprooted from the place that God had given their fathers; and they had been carried away into a strange land with strange gods and peculiar customs. They probably thought that God was finished with them; and that it was all over for them. Jeremiah reminds them that God is not done with them, and that their time spent in Babylon is only for a season. He exhorts them to make the best of it in the land of captivity: to marry, build houses, and plant orchards and vineyards so that they would not decrease during their stay there.

I have gone through seasons where it seems that God has abandoned me: times when it feels like I am miles away from God. I am encouraged by passages like this that remind me that God will never leave me nor forsake me; and even though it seems like He doesn’t care at times, I know He does. I will try to follow the exhortation of God through Jeremiah: keep searching for me with your whole heart, and eventually, I will find Him. I know that God hasn’t moved away. It is my heart that has positioned itself elsewhere; but when I search for God with all my heart, bringing my heart back to Him, He will once again reveal Himself to me and place me in that spiritual land of Canaan known as the will of God.

Aug 18th Who Can You Trust?

Today’s Reading – Jeremiah 23 – 25

Thus saith the LORD of hosts, Hearken not unto the words of the prophets that prophesy unto you: they make you vain: they speak a vision of their own heart, and not out of the mouth of the LORD. (Jeremiah 23:16)

Jeremiah delivers a scathing rebuke to the leadership of Judah in chapter 23; speaking out against the pastors, the prophets, and the priests. Apparently the religious leaders of that day had completely corrupt. Not only were they living contrary to the will of God, but they were also telling the people things that were completely untrue. The people were certainly in a predicament. How could they know what to do? They trusted that what these leaders were telling them was the truth. Remember, in this time period God used prophets to speak for Him. They would deliver messages to the people that God had given them. The only way that the people could know them to be true prophets is to see that what they predicted came to pass. Here in this passage the false prophets are preaching “peace and safety”, but Jeremiah was preaching impending judgment. The people did not know who they could trust.

Today it is much different. We live in a period of time where God has given us His complete Word of God. We have the Bible, and the Bible is complete, containing everything that God wants us to know for today. We do not have to trust men to deliver the Word to us: we have it. Now, don’t misunderstand: there are still plenty of false prophets out there; and there are still plenty of pastors who are corrupt and immoral. But God has not left us without a way to judge whether these men are truly His. He gave us His Word; and His Word is written in such a way that even the simplest of men and women can understand it (with the help of the Holy Spirit).

I guess the answer to my title question, “Who can you trust?” is this: Trust God. Put your trust in His Word. Men will always let you down. Even good men are human: they make mistakes; they are in the flesh at times; they have weaknesses. Don’t be guilty of putting the pastors and teachers of God on a pedestal: even the best of men are men at best. We can know that the men that are preaching and the men and women that teach the Word today are true only if their words (and their lives) are in agreement with the principles found in the Word of God.

Now a word to those of us who teach and preach the Word of God. God will hold us accountable for what we teach. We had better be sure that we understand that the position that God has given us is an awesome responsibility and privilege; and we had better be very careful that what we are teaching and the lives that we live are consistent with the Word of God.

Aug 17th A Burning Fire

Today’s Passage – Jeremiah 18 – 22

For since I spake, I cried out, I cried violence and spoil; because the word of the LORD was made a reproach unto me, and a derision, daily. Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name. But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay. (Jeremiah 20:8 & 9)

In chapter 20 of today’s passage we read about Jeremiah being put in jail for preaching exactly what God had told him to preach. Jeremiah was not a popular guy. He was the voice of God at a time when the entire nation of Judah had slipped back into idolatry and immorality, and was content to stay there. As he continued to preach the message of imminent judgment due to the people’s lack of repentance, he became the enemy of all the people. They all thought he was crazy, perhaps a little “over the top”; too zealous, a radical. One thing is for sure, they were certainly not receiving the message. Jeremiah got sick and tired of preaching this message to deaf ears. After all, he was just as human as I am. I’m sure, every once in a while, he wanted to hear, “that was a good message, preacher”; or “that truth you preached from the Word of God really turned my life around”. He never heard those things. He was mocked and persecuted throughout his ministry, yet he was doing exactly what God had wanted him to do. So, what does he do? He quits. Wouldn’t you? I would not have lasted nearly as long as Jeremiah did. I like to have my ego stroked now and again.

However, Jeremiah could not stay. He could not refrain from preaching. Why? Because God’s Word was in his heart like a burning fire. Eventually the fire inside of him became too hot to keep inside of him and he had to let it out.

As a preacher, there are many times that I want to quit. Trials and tests come along; and, at times, it seems as if nothing is going the way it should go. There are also the critics, who feel it is their purpose in life to point out every flaw in my ministry, every mistake that I make. I begin to remember what life was like as a layman, and sometimes I desire to go back to those days. However, though I often struggle with the idea of quitting, I know that God’s Word is inside of me; and it must come out. As miserable as it may be at times inside the will of God, I know that trying to refrain from preaching and teaching the Word of God would make me more miserable.

I remember when God first called me into the ministry. He made it crystal clear to me that he wanted me to go away to school for training. I didn’t go right away. I decided that I would just stay there in South Toms River with Pastor Rick, work for my dad’s candy company, and serve there as a “lay” youth director for the rest of my life. All that would have been easier. I wouldn’t have to leave a very lucrative income; I wouldn’t have to sell my house;  I wouldn’t have to leave my church; and I would not have to move my family, find a new job and go back to college. However, that was not God’s will for my life. I kind of drifted along out of the will of God for a while; but the more I drifted, the more miserable I became. God’s Word, and His will was in me; and it needed to come out. I finally surrendered to obey God’s will; and relief came.

What has God put inside of you to do for Him? You will never have peace until you surrender your will to His. By the way, the picture up top is of Bob Hamblen. He just underwent major heart surgery. The doctors don’t really want him to preach anymore; but he can’t stop. The Word is burning inside of him, and it must come out.

Aug 16th The Point of No Return

Today’s Passage – Jeremiah 14 – 17

Then the LORD said to me, “Though Moses and Samuel stood before me, yet my heart would not turn toward this people. Send them out of my sight, and let them go! (Jeremiah 15:1)

In the picture on the left, the man is jumping from one rock formation to the next. You will notice that the position of his body would make it impossible for him to change his mind at the last minute. He had reached “the point of no return”.

In our passage we see that the people of God had passed the point of no return. God said that it did not matter if Moses or Samuel came to intercede on their behalf, they had gotten too far away from Him, and judgement was unavoidable. God had warned them and corrected them previously, but to no avail. They would not receive the correction and they did not heed the warnings. They continued to travel down the road eventually leading them to the point of no return. God was about to bring in the Babylonians as a judgment for the backslidings of Judah.

I wonder how far God will allow America to get away from Him until she gets to the point of no return, where nothing can be done to escape  judgment. I wonder how far the Christian can travel down the road of sin before God says, enough is enough. Don’t misunderstand, I am not saying that God will remove a Christian’s salvation if they are genuinely born again; but I am saying that He will eventually get fed up with rebellion, and will be forced to impose severe chastisement in order to rectify the situation. He may even take the offending Christian home to Heaven prematurely.

Let’s not allow our lives to get so out of control that God says we have passed the point of no return. Let’s keep an open heart, listen daily to His admonitions and exhortations from the Word of God; and heed what He says. Let’s yield to the working of the Spirit of God within us and yield to His will for our lives. I want to be used of Him all of my earthly life. I don’t want to be put on a shelf, or worse, face some sort of terrible judgment. I want to bear fruit that remains in my Christian life. I guess I had better stay close to my Saviour and far away from the point of no return.

Aug 15th God Is An Awesome Spot Remover

Today’s Passage – Jeremiah 10 – 13

Can the Ethiopian change his skin, or the leopard his spots? then may ye also do good, that are accustomed to do evil. (Jeremiah 13:23)

The context of this passage, and the Book of Jeremiah as a whole, is the impending judgment that is facing Judah and Jerusalem because of their sin. They had gotten totally out of control: God had sent prophets to them; God had sent judgment to them; but they did not get the message. They were too far gone. God was about to do something very big in and to Jerusalem. The Babylonians were about to invade. It would be perhaps the worst calamity to hit the people of God. However, the good news is that the judgment that would come would be the very thing that would cause the people of God to repent: to change their spots. The people seemed powerless to change on their own; but through the loving hand of judgment from God, the leopard would indeed have his spots changed.

Sometimes, I get so very frustrated with myself, particularly my inability to get victory over some of the recurring sins in my life. I am utterly powerless, it seems, to win the battle. However, I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me; and through the power of the Holy Spirit of God, and through the loving correction of my Heavenly Father, my spots can also be removed. Do you need a spot remover? God can do it. Yield to Him.

Aug 14th Cocktails Tonight – Cathedral Tomorrow

Today’s Passage – Jeremiah 7 – 9

Will ye steal, murder, and commit adultery, and swear falsely, and burn incense unto Baal, and walk after other gods whom ye know not; And come and stand before me in this house, which is called by my name, and say, We are delivered to do all these abominations? (Jeremiah 7:9 & 10)

In this passage God is rebuking the people of Judah for their hypocrisy. Apparently they felt that they could do whatever they wanted to do, live anyway they wanted to live; and then go down to the Temple and participate in some type of religious ceremony or ritual that would make everything OK. These people were far away from God’s principles and commands, but they were trusting in their religion to save them. As I read these verses this morning, I could not help but think about the state of religion today in America. People commit all sorts of sin; ignore the clear teaching of the Word of God, and then come to church thinking that their participation in a ritual will save them. Now don’t misunderstand, I am not saying that going to church is a bad thing for anyone; but I am saying that it is hypocritical to ignore God 99% of the time and then claim Him as your Lord on Sunday. I am also not trying to make the case that there is anyone out there, including myself, that is without sin (and lots of it). We are all sinners, and we all need God’s mercy; but to live completely in rebellion to the will of God without any conviction about it is another thing altogether.

The New Testament speaks about this as well:

This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away. (2 Timothy 3:1 – 5)

True religion; genuine faith will make a difference in your life. The Scripture is clear, “faith without works is dead”; “if any man be in Christ he is a new creature”. If you are truly a child of God on the inside, it will work its way out to your life on the outside.

Aug 13th Catching Men

Today’s Passage – Jeremiah 4 – 6

For among my people are found wicked men: they lay wait, as he that setteth snares; they set a trap, they catch men. (Jeremiah 5:26)

And so was also James, and John, the sons of Zebedee, which were partners with Simon. And Jesus said unto Simon, Fear not; from henceforth thou shalt catch men. (Luke 5:10)

As I was reading through this passage my attention was drawn to the little phrase, “catch men”. I knew that I had heard it before, so I did a little search and found that it was only used one other time in the Bible by the Lord in a conversation with Peter. The Lord told Peter that his life would no longer be about catching fish; but about catching men. The context of the passage in Jeremiah that we are currently reading has to do with the imminent judgement that is facing the southern kingdom of Judah, particularly the city of Jerusalem. There were many reasons for the coming judgement, but, in a nutshell you could say that as a nation they had forsaken God and had become like the heathen nations around them. One of the reasons that this had happened was because the devil was busy, using wicked men and women to lure the people away from a right relationship with God. These wicked people were also catching men.

Let’s fast forward now to present day America. The devil is still very busy: perhaps even busier than back in Jeremiah’s day. He may have changed some of his lures; but he is still using his servants to “catch men”. Now God has given us a commission to “catch men” as well. We are supposed to be very busy going out into the highways and hedges, the streets and the lanes of the city: with the power of the Spirit of God, and with the glorious gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. We are to be busy and bold in communicating the Truth of salvation. The question is: Are you and I more concerned about catching men than the devil’s crowd is? If we would be honest, we would have to admit that the New Testament churches have put soul winning on the back burner; but has Satan let up on his program? I don’t think so. As a result, Satan’s kingdom is advancing while the number of blood washed Christians seems to be shrinking. All because we who have the Truth have abandoned catching men.

Why don’t we get back out there in our community with some gospel tracts in one hand, a New Testament in the other; and start winning people to the Lord. Let’s stop letting Satan catch more men than the people of God. There are plenty of people out there that need to be saved and will be saved if we would simply obey God’s Great Commission.

The fruit of the righteous is a tree of life; and he that winneth souls is wise. (Proverbs 11:30)

Aug 12th God Allows U Turns

Today’s Passage – Jeremiah 1 – 3

They say, If a man put away his wife, and she go from him, and become another man’s, shall he return unto her again? shall not that land be greatly polluted? but thou hast played the harlot with many lovers; yet return again to me, saith the LORD. (Jeremiah 3:1)

Throughout the history of Israel, the people of God have gone through periods where they would fall away from God. Here in this passage the word “backsliding” is used seven times. Here in this passage Jeremiah is pleading with the backsliding people of Israel to come back to the Lord. Our God is awesome! Who else but God would love these people  and keep taking them back, even though they would turn against Him over and over. He never gives up on His children. I must confess that I have a tough time forgiving people in the same way that God has forgiven me. I want to write people off; but God is not like me. He continues to reach out to those who have forsaken Him. Notice what God required of the people in order for them to come back into a right relationship with Him:

Only acknowledge thine iniquity, that thou hast transgressed against the LORD thy God, and hast scattered thy ways to the strangers under every green tree, and ye have not obeyed my voice, saith the LORD. (Jeremiah 3:13)

Turn, O backsliding children, saith the LORD; for I am married unto you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family, and I will bring you to Zion: (Jeremiah 3:14)

God says that if the people would acknowledge their sin, and then turn, He would take them back. Turning means that they would put away all of the things that they were doing that God was displeased with. This is a pretty good definition of repentance, which involves more than just acknowledging.

The people of God today could follow this same simple formula in order to come back to their God. We must acknowledge where we have gone wrong. It may not be some deep sin or rebellion. It may be just apathy, coldness, or laziness. Then we have to confess it to God and turn away from it. God loves us deeply and wants more than anything for us to be in love with Him. If you have “slidden” away from God, return again to the Lord.