Accommodation vs Transformation

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CURRENT RADIO SERIES Songs of Encouragement   CURRENT TV SERIES Songs of Encouragement

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work. --2 Timothy 3:16-17 Nearly a generation ago, Francis Schaeffer, the great biblical apologist and philosopher said, “Here is the great evangelical disaster: the failure of the evangelical world to stand for Truth as Truth! What does this mean to you and me? I’ll tell you. Dr. Schaeffer was saying that believers were failing to stand upon God’s Word as the ultimate source of Truth. This disaster continues today and it’s called “accommodation.” The evangelical Church has accommodated the spirit of the age, and this accommodation is pervasive throughout the Church. Rather than championing the Scripture to transform the world, the Church has turned to other sources and resources. Maybe it’s happened in your church. Somewhere along the way the choice was made to switch things up in order to reach a specific crowd, or to express an opinion, or to follow a trend. But in those actions we’ve accommodated the world rather than tending to the transformation of the world through the Scriptures. Rather than changing the world, many find themselves changed by the world! Resolve this issue for yourself today. As a Christ-follower, make certain you are grounded in the life-changing Truth of Jesus Christ, which is the Word of God. RATHER THAN CHANGING THE WORLD, MANY FIND THEMSELVES CHANGED BY THE WORLD!

Keep Looking Up

by Dr. Paul Chappell

“If ye then be risen with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ sitteth on the right hand of God. Set your affection on things above, not on things on the earth. For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God. When Christ, who is our life, shall appear, then shall ye also appear with him in glory.”
Colossians 3:1–4

The evangelist D. L. Moody told a story about an elderly Christian lady who was noted in her church for her cheerful spirit, even though illness had confined her to her bed. One day two friends went to visit the rundown building where she lived in the attic. One of them remarked on the darkness and dirt of the second floor, but the other said, “It’s better higher up.” By the time they reached the third landing, the woman said, “Things look even worse here.” But her friend simply repeated, “It’s better higher up.” When they finally reached the room, they found a smiling woman in the bed. The room was tiny and cramped, and one of the visitors said, “It must be very difficult for you to be here like this.” The woman in the bed replied, “It’s better higher up!”
The Lord does not promise us a life without problems when we become His children. Instead He promises grace, peace, and strength for every challenge. He does care about our struggles and burdens, but His focus (as ours should be) is primarily on the eternal. The Apostle Paul, who experienced great persecution and suffering wrote, “For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, worketh for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory” (2 Corinthians 4:17). Our task is to keep our focus on what really matters, and keep looking up. If our hearts are fixed on Heaven, the burdens of life will be lessened.
 

Today’s Growth Principle: 

A Christian who is focused on Heaven will not be discouraged by the circumstances of life.