How the Church Hinders the Kingdom of God - Part X

This is the last in a series of sermon notes based on a series of sermons by my pastor, Kevin Bockus.

X. Accepting the Unacceptable

In olden days a glimpse of stocking
Was looked on as something shocking,
But now, everyone knows,
Anything Goes.

Matthew 13:24-25

Introduction:

The story was related about the two men who made an agreement with each other, that the one could kill and eat the other. As horrific as that incident was, many people defended the action because they were “two consenting adults.”

What was once unacceptable is now acceptable.

The church is not just quiet when it comes to these things, but has become comatose.

An anecdote was told about a couple in a church who seemed to be very devout Christians. When the pastor called on them, as could be expected, there was a Bible on the coffee table and a wall plaque attesting to their faith. They talk about thing that would be expected to be of interest to Christians. But as the pastor sits on the sofa, in a shelf just 3 feet from him are the family’s collection of movies. A quick glance shows him that most of them are what would be called “hard ‘R’” rated movies.

Let’s look at thinkgs the church needs to do in order to avoid accepting the unacceptable.

We need to wake up.

Matthew 13:24-25

We learn two things about the enemy:

• He’s calculating
• He’s conniving
Somebody needs to sound the alarm!

We need to speak up.

We cannot depend on the media to sound warnings for us.

Good things happen when God’s people speak up.

There was a boycott on Pepsi for donating money to a Gay & Lesbian organization. The boycott is no longer on. Why? Because Pepsi listened, and stopped supporting this organization.

Ephesians 4:15 – speaking the truth in love
We speak up because of love, not because we want to look “holier than thou.”

We need to shape up.

We must make sure that what we do matches our witness.

If you would feeling uncomfortable watching something on television, or a movie, if Jesus were sitting beside you watching, then you need to cease watching that type of thing.

II Timothy 2:16-23 – verse 21 “keeps himself pure”

Conclusion:

Don’t say,”I’m just one person; I can’t do anything.”

The most powerful alliance in the world is the Lord and His people.

Stop accepting the unacceptable!