"TERROR - TERROR - TERROR"

   December 7, 1941 – December 7, 2004, World War Two - Sixty three years today.

War-war-war and wars take lives.  Today I am reminded of many events that took lives - thousands of lives - dates that stand out in my mind as if it were today.  I will try to be brief - to mention a few:

     World war Two, "Let's Remember Pearl Harbor," December 7, 1941-1945;  Oklahoma City Bombing Federal Building, April 19, 1995;  World Trade Center demolished by terrorist,  September 11, 2001.  I read just recently that 6,000 people die in the United States each day.

       This date will always stand out in my mind, May 7, 1950; the

  Sunday evening four of us were saved and united with the Hopewell

  Cumberland Presbyterian Church - fifty four years; and praise God we

  Christians can sing: "It is Finished, the Battle is Over;" but there's the very first part of it - that part where it says, "There's a line that's been drawn through the ages. On that line stands an old rugged cross."  I can't really speak for anyone else who reads this but me - but I have a tendency to think about the cross and the wonderful things that happened there and the victory that God won over the devil there at the cross, and we have a tendency to think of that as an historical event. But the fact of the matter is that that battle is still raging right now, even though it's done, even though it's finished. The reason that it's raging is because it's raging in the hearts of the people that are not Christians - yes, this war continues - Satan does not let up.

Terror - Terror - Terror.

We see and hear it each day.

  Thanks be to God for the Promise of the Spirit (Joel 2: 28-29), the "I will" promises here.  Joel had a message for the people of Judah.  He looked beyond the locust and famine; and he saw a army of gentile nations attacking Jerusalem, and he used the Locusts to illustrate the ultimate judgment; "The Day of the Lord."  All of us who name the name of Jesus must move out of "Comfort Zone" and realize ".. it shall come to pass afterward.." - the last days (Acts 2:17);  and not overlook the fact that all of these words were spoken by Jehovah Himself, as the "I wills" proves.

  If you've ever listened to the fans at some sporting event, you   know some of them are the ultimate experts at what their team is doing wrong and what they should be doing. It has been said more than once: "Hey! Why don't you get out of the stands and get in the game!"

  Is Jesus trying to say something like that to many of us today?

  There are millions of believers who are willing to go to church, give to Jesus' causes, and cheer for the ones that are on the field - oh yes, and sometimes criticize from the stands how the players are playing. But Jesus doesn't need any more fans - He needs players to join Him in winning some victories; some lives for the cause that He gave His life for!

  Moses', in Numbers 32:6 is a wakeup call for complacent Christians today. He said, "Shall your countrymen go to war while you sit here?"

  Man, I can almost hear Jesus saying that to us today. "Should persecuted Christians and struggling missionaries take all the risks and fight all the battles to reach the lost - while we sit here?" Or, in other words, "Get out of the stands and get in the game!"

  Later, Moses said that if they failed to leave their "Comfort Zone" and go with their brothers into the combat zone, they should "be sure your sin will find you out." (Numbers 32:23)  Today, the battle isn't for the land or the oil in Iraq, but it's for lives - people who will spend eternity in either heaven or hell. It is people all around us and half a world away. Jesus' Great Commission to get out His Gospel cannot be delegated to a few missionaries. The Great Commission is always first person singular! Jesus intends for the cost and the risk of rescuing a dying world to be equally shared by all those who belong to Him! The Son of God sacrificed everything for it, and many have, over the years - including this past year - sacrificed their lives for it. And many others have given their whole lives to this greatest cause in the universe.

  So who are we to just sit in the stands, simply cheering and even jeering? So many of our brothers and sisters have gone to war, how can we sit here and ask them to make all the sacrifices? There's a war to win for Jesus Christ! It's time to get out of "Our Comfort Zone" and join our Savior in the combat zone!

   ><)))>   In "HIS" Service

  Bro. Roy