Now the whole earth had one language and one speech. And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar, and they dwelt there.

Then they said to one another, “Come let us make bricks and bake them thoroughly.” They had bricks for stone, and they had asphalt for mortar. And they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower whose top is in the heavens; let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be scattered abroad over the face of the earth.”

But the Lord came down to see the city and the tower which the sons of men had built. And the Lord said, “Indeed the people are one and they all have one language, and this is what they begin to do; now nothing that they propose to do will be withheld from them. Come, let Us go down and there confuse their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.”

So the Lord scattered them abroad from there over the face of the all the earth, and they ceased building the city. Therefore its name is called Babel, because there the Lord confused the language of all the earth; and from there the Lord scattered them abroad over the face of the earth.

Genesis 11:1-9 NKJV

The building of the Tower was an unparalleled time of communication and technology. A time when not doing God’s will, filling the earth with God’s glory, was popular. The majority chose to do things the it wanted to. Even those with a godly heritage embracing anything other than what God wanted.

Unparalleled? Perhaps that time so many generations ago is similar to what is happening right now in America. I have been thinking about all the confusion that is going on in our nation. How foolish we must be appearing in the eyes of other nations around the world.

When God came down and looked at what was going on at Babel, He confused the language of the people. I have a feeling in my heart that God is looking down on America and all her sin and is sending a spirit of confusion on our nation. What does this mean for us as Christians? What does it for us as pastors? I believe we need to be in prayer, not only for our nation, but also for the Church. All the events that are happening are pointing to the soon return of our Lord. It seems as His coming gets closer there is more pressure on the True Church. Our people need to deeply know the Lord so that regardless of what may happen before the Lord calls us to Himself, we are ready always to give a reason for the hope that is in us. We need to fearlessly stand up against the adversary, for the worst he can do is kill the body. This is a time for great trust in our God and reliance upon Him.

I pray that we as spiritual leaders will search our hearts so that nothing stands between God and us. In this day of confused leadership, we must stand as “examples to the flock” (1 Peter 5:3). As the people we minister to see us sensitive before God, so they will follow us and they will search their hearts and draw closer to God.

PR

The word paraklesis has some rich meaning in the New Testament (see “parakaleo,” Theological Dictionary of the New Testament (Abridged in One Volume), G. Bromiley, ed. (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1985), especially p. 781). When it relates to the proclamation of salvation, exhorting men to be saved, it implies speaking in the name of God and in the power of the Spirit. In the sense that it is used here, paraklesis is exhortation and admonition. Paraklesis is an urgent entreaty that is neither critical nor polemical, but serious and has been infused with the power of the Spirit. With this in mind, this column is intended to bring a word of encouragement to pastors, ministers and all those in Christian leadership.

Do we want the Holy Spirit in our homes? I was listening to a message preached by an evangelist that held services at Trinity Assembly of God in Mt. Morris, Michigan. As he was preaching about our desire to have the Holy Spirit in our homes, the Holy Spirit quickened a few thoughts in my heart that I would like to share with you.

There was a woman whose husband had died and left a debt. She and her two sons were not able to pay off the debt. As was the legal custom of the day, her sons were to be made slaves and they would have to work until the debt was paid in full. The story is found in 2 Kings 4:1-7. This woman poured out her heart to Elisha. Elisha told her to borrow as many vessels as possible. She was instructed to have her sons go out and gather in as many as they could find. The word from the Lord was to shut the door.

PR

The word paraklesis has some rich meaning in the New Testament (see “parakaleo,” Theological Dictionary of the New Testament (Abridged in One Volume), G. Bromiley, ed. (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1985), especially p. 781). When it relates to the proclamation of salvation, exhorting men to be saved, it implies speaking in the name of God and in the power of the Spirit. In the sense that it is used here, paraklesis is exhortation and admonition. Paraklesis is an urgent entreaty that is neither critical nor polemical, but serious and has been infused with the power of the Spirit. With this in mind, this column is intended to bring a word of encouragement to pastors, ministers and all those in Christian leadership.

“And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed. The night is far spent; the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light. Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not is strife and envy. But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts” ( Romans 13:11-14 NKJV)

Paul emphasizes to the believers at Rome that they must have a high standard of moral conduct. The reason: Jesus is coming soon. Paul lived with the view and hope of the soon return of the Lord. He challenges his readers to do the same.

I have been thinking about what Paul was saying to believers in AD 56, and asking myself what would he would be saying today, 1,944 years later? Here we are at the dawn of a new millenium. Christ’s coming is 1,944 years closer than it was in AD 56. I believe he would be looking at the spiritual sleepiness that is present in many believers and congregations, even many ministers of the gospel.

We need to cultivate an appropriate view of awakeness. The soldier who sleeps at his post will bring his own death. He could be court martialed, or if the enemy attacked while he was sleeping he would be killed. In ancient Rome, a soldier who slept on duty would be executed on the spot. We praise God that Jesus already took that judgement for us. We do not have to live in fear of failure. We are in a battle, however. If we desire to be effective, we must be spiritually awake.

The attack that seems to be the most severe for us is the attack that Satan makes on the mind. He wants to lure us asleep. When our mind gets dull then works of darkness will prey upon us. When we have not gotten the proper amount of rest, we become targets of giving into temptations.

So then, Paul gives us the antidote. “Let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light” (Romans 13:12 NKJV). The way we dispel the darkness in a room is to turn the light switch on. The darkness disappears when the light comes on. Paul is saying to us, put on the “armor of light” to “cast off the works of darkness.” Putting on the armor is putting on the Lord Jesus Christ. Putting on the Lord Jesus Christ will make us sensitive to guarding the appetites of the flesh. The command is not to make any provision for the flesh. If we are submitting to the Lordship of Jesus Christ, how are we going to be comfortable making provision (fostering sensual desires) for the flesh?

Editor Note: This issue introduces an on-going word of exhortation from Pastor C. J. Halquist. He has served as a pastor for over 35 years in the Assemblies of God, serving the last 16 years at Central Assembly of God in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Pastor Halquist has been ministering to other shepherds and those preparing for ministry for many years. He has earned a reputation of being a pastor’s pastor in his own fellowship and beyond. Please welcome the fatherly wisdom of this Senior pastor.

Character. Character? That topic crops up now and then. Some say character is not very important. Frederica Matthewes-Green, in The Real Issue, says she believes that character really does matter. Politicians, businessmen, and even pastors can be “successful” without character. However, we know that Biblical leadership is defined as being an example. This means that it is the holy imperative of every leader to demonstrate godly character in all of life and conduct.

Nevertheless, I have noticed trends in the years that I have pastored that run contrary to this Biblical mandate. It seems that whenever a national or political leader has been caught in a moral failure, there has been a wave of similar failures to follow in the lives of many all around us. Of course, moral failure is not just sexual immorality, for it is the “little things” that destroy the integrity of men and women. As a pastor, I have tried to stop such trends from creeping into the church by preaching squarely on the issue of integrity. Still, there are those that get caught up with this renewed attitude of “Well, if he can get away with it … so can I.”

The question I lay before you is this: Have you lowered your standards? Has the degeneration of virtue in our society had an affect on your own character? Satan is on the attack. He is trying to destroy any and all of God’s leaders if he can. He knows our undoing starts when we fall in areas that at first are not seen by anyone but ourselves. Our character is demonstrated by what we do when we think no one else is looking. Or another way of saying it, the real me is found when I am all alone. What this means is if our faithfulness in little matters is faltering, it is only a matter of time before that which is greater will be consumed in our faithlessness.

You do not have to be a sociologist to see that our culture is starving for real leaders. Our congregations are looking for quality character that exemplifies Jesus Christ. In the tough times that the people in the pew are facing, we need to show them that it is possible to stand up for what is right. We must be men and women of character. We must be standing in the Faithfulness of Jesus Himself.