Daily Devotions
Malnourished Churches
Reading for March 3rd: Deuteronomy 30-32
"...when all Israel comes to appear before the LORD your God at the place that he will choose, you shall read this law before all Israel in their hearing. Assemble the people, men, women, and little ones, and the sojourner within your towns, that they may hear and learn to fear the LORD your God, and be careful to do all the words of this law..."
Deuteronomy 31:11-12
Many churches are malnourished. They are not being fed. They're filled with lots of jokes. They hear lots of stories. They hear lots of worldly wisdom on how to live a better life. But they're not filled with the Word of God.
Authoritative, positive preaching from the Word is rare. Many churches are hearing a lot of "I think" and "I believe" and "so and so says." They aren't hearing book, chapter, and verse. They don't hear anyone say "open your Bibles to..."
We're suffering for it. We really are. We've got to do something. I'm speaking to church leaders in this devotion. We've got to step up and give our people the Word of God!
May I give a few suggestions?
Study the Bible. Get your sermons from there. Don't just "Google" the latest problem you're dealing with and preach whatever sounds good. God's Word has the answers to all important questions. Let God's Word dictate the message you speak.
Fill your sermons with Scripture. This is what God's people need, not just a few verses here and there. They desperately need nourishment from God's Word! When is the last time you read an entire book to your congregation? What about a chapter (with no comment)? Am I crazy? Is this silly? Isn't this what we need? Should we be content with bite sized nuggets of truth? Don't we need more than that?
Emphasize the public reading of Scripture (1 Tim 4:13). There is no more sacred part of the public worship. I know how important the Lord's Supper is but consider the fact that this is the only (and I repeat ONLY) time in the service where God is given a chance to speak to the congregation directly. Let's not skip over this or treat it casually.
Father, more than anything today, we need to hear your voice. Speak to us through your Word and may we listen intently to what you have to say.
