Mark 16:15 And He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.
16 "He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.
17 "And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues;
18 "they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover."
19 ¶ So then, after the Lord had spoken to them, He was received up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God.
20 And they went out and preached everywhere, the Lord working with them and confirming the word through the accompanying signs. Amen. NKJV
It’s a good day for America and the world when we get one of our most notorious enemies. Our intelligence and military forces do themselves proud every day but once in a while they get a chance to pull off an operation that is big enough that we hear about it and can celebrate it. The negative always gets reported but we don’t often hear about the small victories that go on every day in Afghanistan and Iraq. Schools are built and infrastructure improved and rebuilt. Girls allowed to go to school for the first time where there were no schools. Positive relationships are formed with the common people every day through interaction with our soldiers.
It’s a shame when we have to have one of those good days due to the death of another human being, but it’s part of war and the way of this world. We are completely justified in defending ourselves in whatever way is necessary against someone who will plot and carry out the cold-blooded murder of innocent people and we should feel good about bring them to justice. As Christians though, it also brings a little bit of sadness.
I watched as people rejoiced in the streets waving flags and chanting “USA” jubilantly and it was refreshing to see so many excited and celebrating their patriotism. The representatives of those who lost family and friends on 9/11 were somewhat more subdued. I’m sure it stirs up a lot of mixed emotions for them. Like seeing someone convicted for a crime against your family, it brings feelings of satisfaction, and closure. There is gladness that there is some small amount of equity in this world but also the empty realization that it really doesn’t right the wrong.
The truth of the matter is that our brave troops and even the perfect system of justice only treat the symptom and not the disease. Osama Bin Laden is dead and unfortunately for him his 72 virgins are 72 demons and his paradise is an eternal lake of fire. I don’t know why they buried him at sea, my first thought was that he should be brought back to the US and be buried in a pig farm as an example to other religious zealots that would mess with the United States. I found it an empty victory when they hanged Saddam Hussein (who I always called Sad’n Insane) because it just seemed too easy, but he too is finding his eternity to be much different than he expected.
Unfortunately these are just examples of the way the world system of justice works. It’s reactionary instead of proactive. If we want to make a real difference in the world we have to treat the disease instead of the symptoms. I’m not in any way taking away from the tremendous job our military and civil servants do every day protecting our loved ones and way of life. Nothing makes me prouder than to hear of them pulling off an operation like these Navy Seals did or our police and firefighters do every day. I just wish the Church operated with as much fervor and efficiency. There are ministries, however, that do have a significant effect every day and sometimes could be compared with such an operation. Teen Challenge, founded by the recently passed David Wilkerson, has had a very significant effect on gangs and misdirected young people the world over. It took a man with a vision to jump off the faith diving board into an empty pool to see God add the water on the way down. It’s not an easy thing to do and we’re not all called to be Wilkersons, or Oral Roberts, or Billy Grahams. We are all called to do our part though.
It is important that we budget our resources toward some of these ministries that do reach out to the world in ways that we cannot within our own callings. Giving to our local church is our first responsibility but we need to always be aware of the need for support of ministries that are treating the disease of a fallen, sinful, misdirected world. There are a number of ministries that are worthy of our support so we have to seek God’s direction for where he wants us to lend a hand.
One of my favorites is Kenneth Copeland Ministries, not only because I have gained so much over the years from them, but because they give into other ministries all over the world and provide support toward humanitarian needs everywhere. Through financial support and networking with their partners they have been able to make a great difference in Haiti since the earthquake and have made ministry possible in many places where it wasn’t possible before.
Jesus said in Matt. 10:41 "He who receives a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet's reward. And he who receives a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man's reward.” This means that if we support a prophet, a ministry, we take part in the whole work of that ministry and God sees it as if we were doing it ourselves. We see the results of our giving at our church every week so it’s easy to give there and get instant gratification and that’s a good thing. When we give to other ministries, however little it is, we are linking ourselves with the results of that ministry’s work all over the world, treating the disease of false religion, hatred, demon possession and every other destructive work of the devil. When James Robison’s group digs a well or provides food for people in Africa it gives them an opportunity to bring the message of hope and truth to a multitude of adults and children who are being deceived into believing there is no hope. When we support that effort we are credited with the work ourselves.
KCM has verified responses from over 6 million people over the years that have received Christ as a direct result of their ministry and I have a part in that. KCM supports Reinhard Bonke and Christ for all Nations in his evangelistic efforts all over the world and they have received responses from over 60 million people, since the year 2000, who have made first-time decisions to follow Christ. My support of KCM means I have a part of that reward too. Now, I’m really not concerned with my reward because it all goes back to the feet of Jesus anyway, but, I will never touch that many people in my lifetime unless I link myself to someone else. As I support these ministries who are the front-line troops in the Body of Christ, I have an effect on the world I could not have otherwise. In this way I am able to go unto all the world as well as influencing those around me.
I’m glad we’re making progress in the war on terror, but I pray that the Church will take up the sword of the spirit and the rest of the armor (Eph 6:10-18) and start making similar progress in turning hateful hearts to Jesus before the bullets and bombs are necessary. Many Muslims the world over are tuning to Christ and for every one of them there are uncounted others who are also influenced. Children who don’t grow up hating America and Israel but grow up loving Christ and His people have an immeasurable effect on this world as a whole and they deserve a chance to know the truth.
