It Is Not Too Late, God Is Waiting For You!

All through history, God has used a man or woman to make the difference. At the midnight hour, in the middle of crisis, when all looked lost, someone believed that they could call upon God, be used by Him, face their fears and step out in faith. Usually, the others mocked, reminding them it was too late, or became jealous and asked “who do you think you are?” Never the less, God got the job done through them.  

This week I will take you on a revival journey to show you how one man or woman turned the course of history, even in modern times. However, today I want to start with a few Bible examples. Time after time, God said that He would wipe everyone out because of their sin. Yet, someone interceded, and He turned from His plan for their sake. The prophecies foretold of judgment and exile but God expected them to preach, pray, and repent to change it, or at least to delay it.  

We have several Biblical examples but I only have time and room for a few. When God was going to destroy the earth, Noah obeyed, built an ark in a day where they had never seen rain, and was mocked for it. His family was saved and we are here as a result. Moses’ parents refused to obey the law and would not allow their son to be killed. They hid him in a basket in the Nile, infested with crocodiles, and believed he would be preserved. He not only was spared, but delivered Israel against all odds. He would not quit, no matter how many times Pharaoh told him “NO.” When God was going to destroy Sodom and Gomorrah (for the same sins that America is full of), Abraham interceded 6 times and said in Gen 18:23 “…Wilt thou also destroy the righteous with the wicked?” That was persistence. Gen 19: 29 “And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Abraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when he overthrew the cities in the which Lot dwelt.” Wouldn’t you like to have God remember you? Moses interceded for Israel until God changed His mind and did not destroy them. When no one in Israel would fight Goliath, (including the king), a young boy named David said in 1 Samuel 17 “ Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied. 46 This day will the Lord deliver thee into mine hand; and I will smite thee, and take thine head from thee; and I will give the carcasses of the host of the Philistines this day unto the fowls of the air, and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel. 47 And all this assembly shall know that the Lord saveth not with sword and spear: for the battle is the Lord's, and he will give you into our hands.”  It made all the difference. A woman prophetess named Deborah rescued Israel when all the men were too afraid.  Gideon delivered Israel from the hand of the Midianites when it looked impossible. Joseph would not get bitter or give up, in spite of betrayal, being lied about, prison, false accusations, and being forgotten. As a result, two nations were delivered and spared. Samson single-handedly defeated armies. Every time that someone stood in the gap for a nation, against all odds, God heard, and God answered.  

Remember when Joshua asked God to stop the sun for an hour? Couldn’t God have done that on His own? No, he uses people to proclaim His will and His word on the earth. Yet, at Joshua’s request, it was done. We must ask God for another spiritual hour to bring in the harvest and to protect our children and grand children.  

I keep hearing and seeing people talking about God being in control of everything.  Actually, this may surprise you, but He’s not. We are…His church, His hands, feet, and mouth. If God is in control of this earth and everything that happens in it, He is not doing a very good job. Do you think He’s the one controlling children dying of starvation, people being wiped out in floods and tornadoes, horrible wars, and the rape of an innocent child?  If He’s in control, we need another god. However, He’s not. When Adam & Eve sinned, they gave up their authority in  this  earth to satan, the god who lives in the atmosphere of this earth. Someday that will be different, but for now, it is the reality. God has been getting His Word and will back into the earth through men. That’s why He sent Jesus, sent the Holy Spirit, and gave us the keys of the kingdom. When he hands you the keys, and you say, “no, you’re in control God. I’m giving them back to you.” He says, “no, I’ve given them to you.” We go back and forth and the devil reaches up and says, “I guess I’ll take them, thank you.”  

We are not waiting for God to turn this nation around. He is waiting for us.  He has asked us to pray, told us how to pray, given us the keys of the kingdom, the power of attorney in His name, and told us that “whatsoever we bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatsoever we loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” We have been given the great commission and are told to win the lost. Our hands are not tied, by any means. We must give those hands to God and let Him use them. This is no time to become ostriches and bury our heads in the sand. Neither is it a time to roll over in bed with the covers over our eyes and say, “it’s too late and too terrible.” Rise up man or woman of God! This is our destiny. We were chosen for such a time as this. God has saved the best for the last. In relay races, a smart coach saves his best runners for the last lap. Guess what? God has saved you for the last lap of the race. You and I, with his help, can do it.  

Many would say, “you can’t change prophesy. These are the last days and The Bible already tell us that these things would happen. His return is near and there is nothing we can do about it.” I beg your pardon. Yes, these are the last days. Yes, the Bible prophesies that wickedness will get worse and they will call good, evil, and vice versa. That part is true. However, we can do much to delay the judgement and reap the harvest.  

First of all, we can, and must, win the lost, at any cost. We must use anything available to us to get the job done. We must pray! He told us in 2 Chron. 7:14 “ If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from their wicked ways; then will I hear from heaven, and will forgive their sin, and will heal their land.” We can do some serious damage to the enemy’s kingdom. We can give our time, effort, and finances. Every time that we see a major shift in politics, the law, and supreme court decisions, we find out that people gave great amounts of money to  make it happen. Billions of dollars go through the hands of the lobbyists every year. Yet, the church has bought into the lie that we are not supposed to have anything. We are to be poor and proud of it. We labor to have one more youth car wash, stale bake sale, or garage sale to try to send someone to youth camp. We won’t get it done like that. We have to believe God wants to prosper us to establish His covenant. We must give like our lives depend on it (quite frankly, they do). We must be willing to be stretched beyond our comfort zone to do what is uncomfortable for the greater cause. The church has been asleep and must wake up, before it is too late. We can give to ministries that are making a difference and to politicians who are willing to lay everything down to stand up for what is right. We can vote, not according to party or family tradition, but according to the Word of God. We can visit congressmen, and fight at a grass roots level. We can use social media to wake up our friends and family, instead of playing some farm or candy game on face book. Pastors and ministers need to have some back-bone and realize that these things must be preached from the pulpit. If we don’t wake up the people, who will? We are to be watchmen on the wall, heralding what is happening, and about to come. We can wake up and realize that the American dream was only that, a dream, until men and women payed the price to cause it to become reality. Then, we fell asleep again and dreamed on, while it was stolen from under our churchy noses. We must shun sin ourselves and hate it the way God does. We love sinners but hate sin. This problem lies at the feet of the sleeping church. We have compromised on every side. We all must repent for any part we have played in lethargy, compromise, sin, lukewarmness, and backsliding. We have preachers committing adultery, drinking, taking drugs, getting involved in homosexuality, and looking at pornography. No wonder the unchurched do not know any better. Many have preached a shallow message that challenges no one, in order to be the latest “whose who in the charismatic zoo.” Shallow preachers preaching to people with itching ears has produced a greasy grace, and watered-down version of the true gospel. We hear, “God loves you, just as you are.” No, He doesn’t. He loves you, but not what you are in. He saves people to deliver them from sin, not to encourage them to stay in it. Loving people is telling them the truth, not what they want to hear.  

RISE UP AND LET’S DO IT!