“…who will go for Us?” Isaiah 6:8

In a vision, Isaiah responded to God’s call to deliver His message to Israel. Likewise, the church has been commissioned to take the Good News of redemption in Jesus Christ to the world (Matthew 28:19-20). 

The twenty-first century has taken a toll on the Church’s ability to do that. 

The Gallup polling organization reported in March this year that American church membership fell to 47% in 2020, the lowest since Gallup began tracking the statistic in 1937. Church membership was 70% at the turn of the century. 

Source: Answers Magazine Vol. 15, No. 4 (Oct-Dec, 2020), p. 27.

“…come away… rest a while.” Mark 6:31

Jesus gave us an example. This summer might be a great time to practice it. When Jesus faced the crucial task of choosing His twelve apostles, Luke records that He retreated alone to a mountain to pray (6:12). When the ministry later attracted such a crowd that “they could not even eat a meal,” Jesus said to His disciples, “Come with Me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest” (6:31). When the 5,000 whom He had just fed pressed in on Him, He dismissed them and “went up on a mountainside by Himself to pray” (Matthew 14:23). Finally, when He faced imminent arrest, suffering, and death, He went to the Garden of Gethsemane – “withdrew from them…knelt down and began to pray” (Luke 22:39-41). 

Take time this summer to rest and refresh your spirit in His presence (Psalm 16:11).

By Dr. Don Bierle, FaithSearch President

In the previous two parts of this series on faith, I explained that a faith which will not become extinct is based on evidence, is reasonable, and has Jesus Christ as its object. 

Here I want to explore the dynamic nature of faith which results in a transformed life and a certain eternal destiny. Jesus said, “I came that they might have life, and might have it abundantly” (John 10:10).  He also said that  “…apart from Me you can do nothing” (John 15:5). Obviously, the power capable of transforming our lives must not be “natural,” that is, a result of human endeavor.