My friend Peter Hammond asked Dr. D. James Kennedy a couple questions before he passed away in Sept of 2007. Mr. Kennedy was the founder of the Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, where he was senior pastor from 1960 until his death in 2007.
Here's the insightful dialogue with Peter Hammond and James Kennedy: -- One of the questions I wanted to ask him, to see his reaction was “Dr. Kennedy, I hear that you are still involved, every week, in door-to-door evangelism. I am surprised that you have the time, considering your radio, TV, writing and preaching ministry.” Dr. Kennedy responded to me with intensity: “Peter, that’s the most important thing I do! All these ministries around me… I doubt that many of them will endure long after I am gone, but Evangelism Explosion – this ministry of multiplication, reaching the lost, bringing them to Christ and training them to reach others also – this is far more important than all my radio, TV and writing ministries.” On one occasion as I was admiring the magnificent architecture of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church, Dr. Kennedy chided me: “Don’t be too impressed by externals, Peter,” he said. “I wish I could tell you that all the members of my congregation were saved, but I cannot. I cannot even tell you that all of my staff are saved. I cannot even tell you that all of my pastors and elders are saved. In fact just recently one of our ministers was converted! I will not tell you how many Presbyterian, congregations he had already served before being brought to Christ.”
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One of the most important tasks we can do is reaching the lost. I pray that God will encourage you in to continue to keep pressing on in the race. Don't give up and don't loose heart. Keep reaching out to the lost, keep passing out tracts, keep going door to door, keep witnessing to your family members, keep knocking on your neighborhood doors, keep making disciples. It is my prayer that you will be strengthened with all power according to His glorious might to fulfill and continue to carry out these tasks and that in doing so I pray you will be refreshed by the Lord. I find that each time I pour out my heart in evangelism I'm filled up. It's a strange concept but it happens. Each time I give of myself to reach a sinner I NEVER regret it! Our race in this life will be over in a blink of an eye. Remember what we do for Christ will last. Put off sin. Make war with besetting sins that can so easily entangle us. Don't forget that we will soon be with the Lord where we will have pleasures forevermore. Keep pressing on, the finish line will be here before you know it.
"Always keep a short account with God. Never let unconfessed sin sit as stagnant water in your soul. Talk often with God about those sins that “so easily beset”--wandering eyes, secret envy, hidden conceit, unbridled appetite, etc. - Ray Comfort
"Thus shall I praise You while I've breath, To sing Your love to me, And welcome even the night of death, To wake and be with Thee." - Taken from "The Lights and Shadows of Spiritual Life" by Octavius Winslow
10 comments:
One of my Weblogs, the one written to and about Christians, has occasional "examine yourself" warnings because of what you described — church people who think they are right with God, but are off the mark. I believe people like that are the first ones to "cop an attitude" of self-righteousness and interfere with Christian work. I had been away from the faith for about fifteen years, and one of the reasons I left was false Christians in the churches (the other reasons I left are not important right now, what is important is that Jesus is my Lord).
Thank you for this post Trish. God bless you.
God bless you, too Jameka.
I should have added that Dr. Kennedy made a strong impression on me years ago, and I always admired his work.
I never met him but I can't wait to meet him in Heaven with all the other saints of God. What an incredible time it will be!
P.S. I'm glad you are saved and that you are living for Christ, Stormbringer. God bless you, friend.
If I keep "hanging around" with you, Tony, Ray, J. Warner Wallace, Charles Stanley, William Lane Craig, Alistair Begg, "Johnny Mac" and others, I hope to keep growing and learning. Only been "back" a year this Easter.
Keep sticking around. God will keep you till the end.
Johnny Mac ?? : )
Maybe I shouldn't use Johnny Mac for John MacArthur because I don't know if he likes the term himself. I've heard others use it, so it's not original.
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