Two Greatest Problems Facing The Church

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Two Greatest Problems Facing The Church

• I dont know and I dont care
• Ignorance and Apathy
• Millions make no effort to serve God
• They pose no great threat to the church
• The great problem Christians in name only (the
  indifferent)
• Destroy themselves, family, and church

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Indifference

• Indifference in not different, thus no
  difference
• Unconcern
• Disinterest
• Apathy
• Coldness

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I Indifference Makes Haste Slowly

• Rv.24, three facts
• Once they were strong
• Their spiritual marriage is now on the rocks
• If they do not correct it soon, they will lose
  everything

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Rv.31

• A Christian (or congregation) seldom realizes
  what is happening until it is too late
• Je.713, 25, (first order of business)
• Mt.633, first (above all, especially priority)
• Mt.2238
• 2 Co.85 ( Mt.6 and 22)

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II Indifference Is Serious

• Indifference is apostasy in baby steps
• 1. Attendance Indifference gives priority to
  something of lesser importance. Mt.225
• Lk.416 / Hb.1024-25 . . . 23
• 2. Study To spiritual life what eating is to
  physical life. Jn.434 1 Pt.125
• 3. Prayer Concern kindles prayer. Ep.618

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4. Giving 2 Co.97

• Temple two chests for alms
• 5. Fruit Lk.814-15, the loser and the winner.
  What made the difference?
• 6. Grudge Lv.1918, opposite of love

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Indifference Eternal Condemnation

• Lk.1920-26
• While others worked, this man coasted
• He loses his reward. He is
• wicked (22)
• wasteful (23)
• woeful (24-27)
• Lk.2010, not only bore no fruit but actively
  opposed their Lord

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III What Causes Indifference?

• 1. Worldliness. Mt.633
• Some try to share God w. everything else
• Ja.44
• 2. Sin. Mt.2412
• Brutality of Jews and Romans, false prophets, the
  betrayal of Christians by Christians turns
  passion into apathy
• Nothing is more contagious than sin. It
  afflicted the entire Laodicean church

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3. Ignorance

• Ga.110
• Some think the assembly is designed to please,
  not edify
• Some inconsistently reject the social gospel
  concept but are disappointed w. book, chapter,
  and verse preaching
• We have nothing else to offer nothing else can
  save

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• Ga.220
• Some think a local church consists of two groups
  they and we
• They do the work
• We let them
• Jg.4-5 (23)
• Am.61-3

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Ga.327

• Put on Christ To become so possessed of the
  mind of Christ as in thought, feeling, and action
  to resemble him and, as it were, reproduce the
  life he lived (Th.)
• Ga.419

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Ro. 1314

• Put on (v.12)
• We first put on Christ in baptism
• We continually renew that life
• Same exhortation as Ro.122
• Recreating the image of Christ in us
• He is the original we are the reproduction

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• Ep.424
• Putting off is only half the job
• Some want the new relationship while keeping the
  old behavior
• 25-32 explain
• Col.310
• As the first man was created in His image, so is
  the new man
• In practical terms 12-14

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IV The Cure For Indifference

• 1. Confess it
• Cant cure it by ignoring it
• If you are indifferent, admit it (Rv.315)
• Ask Lord for forgiveness, Ja.516
• 2. Repent of it
• Ja.417
• Ac.822

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3. Do something about it

• Ja.122-24
• Mk.619
• Herod is a warning to us
• If hearing the gospel does not change our nature,
  it has done little or nothing for us

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4. Love

• Indifference is the opposite of concern concern
  leads to zeal
• Love will find a way indifference will find an
  excuse
• In the place that I come from, society was
  composed of three simple categories the killers,
  the victims, and the bystanders Elie Wiesel