Union Baptist Church

1/30/11

We live in an interesting time. There is a distinct struggle between good and evil but also the relevance and meaning of our past, present and future. The political discourse is but a symptom of a larger and in my opinion, a much more serious problem. We have to look no further than our own backyard. Southern Baptists along with other main stream protestant denominations have historically been known for evangelism and mission work both domestically and internationally.

While the efforts continue today it is no longer on the scale that we have seen in past generations. It has become a very serious matter. I need only to site the fact that in other countries where the gospel is flourishing and the church is growing they are now sending missionaries to our shores to reach the lost where in many the places the churches are in decline. What happened?

The message Paul has for the church in Corinth continues from last week and provides us a part of the reason the church seems to be struggling and is endangered of becoming extinct in our time. Unfortunately, I wanted to say irrelevant verses extinct but I believe we see this attitude more often than we care to admit. We see it in our communities and in our families and in particular the lives of our children and grandchildren. We should take seriously there question: “Why do I need to go to church?”