Desert Religion (4/23/12)

Shalom,

Please begin by reading Heb 3:12-19.

A number of years ago a man decided to put a gambling casino in the middle of the desert. The place only contained a gas station and a small grocery store. From this very small beginning, and with the help of legalized gambling in Nevada, Las Vegas has become an extremely popular vacation spot. It's a shame that gambling is the key to their success.

If you evaluate the amazing growth of Las Vegas, you very quickly see the human desire for bigger and more. The desire for gambling brought many people in, and the addition of entertainment increased its appeal. The desire for bigger and more spectacular forms of entertainment brought more and more people in. Hotels grew and expanded, and the city became very prosperous. They've even added "family" entertainment so the parents don't have to feel so bad about their gambling.

The flashiest and most exciting adult playground, at least from the world's perspective, was built in the middle of a desert. A place no one would have previously desired to visit, let alone live in, now has millions of visitors every year. Catering to human desires and weaknesses turns out to be very good for business.

Much of today's Church resides in the desert, in the wilderness of human compromise. The Jews left Egypt for the Promised Land and roamed the desert for 40 years because of their sin. They could have been in the Promised Land within weeks or months, but they grumbled and complained and never truly grasped the vision of Yahweh. Sadly, many Christians have settled for activity in the desert instead of entering the Promised Land of an ever-increasing depth of relationship with our Lord and Master. Too many churchgoers have settled for a religious experience instead of seeking the Lord with all their heart and entering into a beautiful and beneficial deeply intimate relationship with their heavenly Father.

We're proud of our denominational systems and precious buildings. We proclaim the glory of our programs and choirs and worship bands. It seems our ability to entertain and appeal to people's emotions is more desired than to teach them the truth of a more intimate relationship with Jesus. These desert things keep us occupied and somewhat satisfied for a while, but eventually their spiritual dryness leaves us searching for something more. Instead of asking and seeking and knocking to get more of our Lord, we choose to live in the desert in the midst of our false comfort.

Many immature Christians are very impressed and contented with this kind of church. The desert is their home, and they don't know there's anything else to be experienced. All the glitter eventually becomes old and stale. Disillusionment sets in, and the lack of substance leaves them dessicated. They're actually so dry a good wind would easily knock them over, but they believe they're in the place they belong. But Jesus said we're supposed to have rivers of living water pouring out of us if we would regularly partake of the Holy Spirit (John 7:38).

Heb 3:19 points out the very clear problem the Jews who died in the wilderness without entering the Promised Land had. "We see that they were not able to enter, because of their unbelief." The word for unbelief could be anti-faith or unfaith. The implication is a stubborn refusal to believe or act in accordance with Yahweh's will or purpose. They denied Yahweh's truth. They stubbornly insisted on doing things their way. We continue to see this kind of behavior in churches throughout the world today. We proclaim that we're believers, followers of Jesus, yet many won't obey his commands and live in accordance with his Word.

A whole generation, except for Joshua and Caleb, rejected Yahweh's direction and guidance. After denying that Yahweh could give them the Promised Land, they tried to take it in their own strength. Similarly, we have many doctrines and denominational systems which rely more on human intellect and wisdom than on the direct guidance of the Holy Spirit. Some even go so far as to deny that the Holy Spirit is even active anymore. How can followers of Jesus claim that the one sent to lead them into all truth is no longer active? Because they've also denied Yahweh's truth.

The Jews who died in the wilderness failed to enter Yahweh's Sabbath-Rest. True rest isn't about not doing things on a particular "set-aside" day. It's about getting into the presence of our Lord and enjoying the benefits of this kind of closeness with him. We're warned not to let "sin's deceitfulness" draw us away from his blessed presence. We're not Yahweh's chosen people because of any special designation we claim. We're his Chosen because we choose to follow him, obeying his commands and listening to the Spirit's voice for guidance.

When we substitute rituals or religious activities for rest, we're leaving our Lord Jesus out of what we're doing. Sabbath-Rest is only available through a solid relationship with our Savior. Heb 4:11 exhorts us, "Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall by following their example of disobedience." Israel's failure, their disobedience, should serve as a very clear warning to us not to duplicate their sin. A life of solid obedience to the voice of our Lord is necessary for a true believer. Notice that putting forth an effort is required. There's no coasting or riding in on the coattails of Jesus. We must be dedicated and committed to putting forth a good individual effort.

We're supposed to show diligence in trying to enter Yahweh's rest. He never forces it on us, we must enter of our own accord. The faith it takes to get to this wonderful place of rest is diligent, it puts forth a strong personal effort. True faith isn't passive, it's actually very aggressive. It takes a good, concerted effort to continue to rely on and trust in and cling to Jesus. We're also to encourage each other so we don't end up with unbelieving hearts. This is strong language. We'd prefer to think we have doubts or insecurities, not unbelief. But unbelief is a serious sin, because according to Yahweh its root is an evil heart.

Unbelief isn't the inability to understand, but it's the unwillingness to trust Yahweh and his Word. It's a matter of our wills, not our intelligence. Unbelief is a rejection of Yahweh's truth because we'd rather believe something else. There are some spiritual things that unbelievers can't figure out because of their unspiritual minds (1Cor 2:14). But we're talking about willful disobedience, the stubborn refusal to believe or act in accordance with Yahweh's will and purpose. Unbelief is choosing to believe something else even after we've seen Yahweh's truth.

We can truly and fully believe Yahweh, yet occasionally be troubled by doubts. We can doubt and still desire to see Yahweh's promises come to pass. It's just that our faith is weak and struggling. Unbelief isn't weak faith, it actually sets itself up in opposition to faith. Remember, it's an act of our will. We all have moments of doubt because of our human weakness, but to choose unbelief means we prefer something over our Lord's truth.

C. H. Spurgeon once said: "The great sin of not believing in the Lord Jesus Christ is often spoken of very lightly and in a very trifling spirit, as though it were scarcely any sin at all. Yet, according to the whole tenor of the Scriptures, unbelief is the calling of God a liar, and what can be worse?"

When we fully trust in the finished work of Jesus we can enter his Sabbath-Rest. We're urged by our Lord to move forward aggressively, to fight to lay hold of all that our Father has prepared for us. This is even more important than taking a Sabbath Day. This is moving into a position of maturity in our faith and belief. This is moving beyond the childish teachings of rituals and learning to adapt our personal lives to our Lord's presence and activity. This is living each day in Sabbath-Rest, consciously working to draw closer and closer to our Lord each and every day.

Don't live in the desert. Don't let your religion be desert-based. Ask your Lord if the traditions you participate in are hindering your spiritual growth. Ask the Holy Spirit to help you discern what truly matters concerning your spiritual walk. Let him direct your daily devotions, not your printed materials. Come out of the emptiness of desert religion. Move away from any artificial spirituality. Check yourself out. Trust that the Holy Spirit will reveal to you any deficiencies that need to be dealt with. And ensure that you obediently move in the way you're directed to by your Lord.

We all need to evaluate where we are "in Christ." We all need to be helping each other keep moving and growing spiritually. "Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as you did in the rebellion." Unbelief is rebellion, actively working against Yahweh's Kingdom. It will leave you dying of thirst for a lack of living water. Come to the Jesus oasis and enjoy the cleansing and refreshing of the "washing with water through the Word" (Eph 5:26).

Blessings & Peace, Mike