Monthly Archives: September 2012

LEADING GANDHI TO JESUS? One of my favorite excerpts from “The Invested Life”

September 5, 2012 By in Epicenter

Have you ever noticed that God’s ways and God’s plans are so much better than our own? Have you ever seen God do the miraculous when we would have been content for so much less? Part of growing in our faith — part of becoming true disciples of Jesus Christ — is learning to do God’s work in God’s way, and seeing the Lord accomplish even more than we could have ever hoped for, dreamt of, or imagined, according to Ephesians 3:20.

In our new book, The Invested Life: Making Disciples of All Nations One Person At A Time, Dr. T.E. Koshy (the pastor from India who discipled me in college) and I not only explain the “how-to” story of leading people to faith in Jesus Christ and then discipling them so they grow to maturity in their faith. That is a key aspect of the book, but we also go further. We also share testimonies of how we were discipled, and some of the exciting — even miraculous — lessons we learned along the way of how God wants to accomplish so much more in and through each one of us, if only we would let Him. While I believe the American Church has experienced an epic failure of discipleship in recent decades, I have not lost hope. To the contrary, I believe that the Lord wants to do great and mighty things in and through any man, woman or child who is willing to follow Christ wholeheartedly and do God’s work in God’s way. Indeed, I believe there are millions of Americans (and others around the world) hungering to discover the greatness of our great God in a much deeper, much richer, much more powerful way. There are so many hungering and thirsting to know Christ intimately, and to make Him known to others desperate for God’s forgiveness and joy and eternal peace. 

Today, let me share with you one of my favorite excerpts from The Invested Life — a story of how God showing Dr. Koshy that His plans are so much better than our own.

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TESTIMONY: GANDHI by Dr. T.E. Koshy (from page 74 of The Invested Life)

I had great plans to become a high-powered lawyer and reach the educated elite of my country for Christ or to become a foreign correspondent and travel the world, covering the great events shaping our times.

My destiny was not—I was convinced—on the dusty, dirty, poverty-stricken streets of India. It was in receiving a world-class education and walking the halls of power in the world’s most important capitals. In following my ambitions, I would go on to pursue and receive five college and university degrees and travel to Washington, DC, as a journalist, eventually covering President Lyndon B. Johnson at the White House.

But my discipler, Brother Bakht Singh, frequently challenged me. “The only thing God is building in this world is his church,” he would say. “Why write about history when you can make it? Why spend your life reporting about the lives of the rich and famous when you can invest your life helping the humble and the needy meet the God who loves them and gave himself for them? If you have no successor, are you truly a success?” Such were the questions that seemed to ring in my ears.

It took me many years to understand how I was supposed to apply the lessons I was learning from Bakht Singh to the unique plan and purpose God had for my life. For one thing, when it came to being a practicing lawyer or journalist, God made it clear to me his answer was “No.” He wanted me to go to Bible college in England and prepare for the ministry. I struggled with that, but eventually I went in obedience.

While in England, some people connected with InterVarsity Christian Fellowship who knew I’d been discipled by Brother Bakht Singh invited me to embark on a speaking tour through all the major universities of England, including Oxford and Cambridge. I couldn’t believe it.

I arrived at Oxford University to speak to a group of doctoral candidates, most of whom were not Christians. I was assigned a subject to speak on, specifically the uniqueness of Christ and the futility of philosophy. So of course, I brushed up on my reading of all the great philosophers such as Socrates, Aristotle, and Plato. I gathered quotations from all these important people and prepared a twelve-page lecture to present the next day. At midnight, I was on my knees praying, asking the Lord to bless my presentation. After all, I had seen Brother Bakht Singh pray about everything—absolutely everything—and I was seeking to follow his example. But something happened I didn’t expect—and didn’t like.

The Lord said to me very clearly, “Throw that lecture in the dustbin.”

“What? Lord, what do you mean by that?” I asked, stunned. “Then what shall I speak about?”

“Tell them about your experience with me,” the Lord said.

“Lord,” I argued, “I came to know you at ten years old. I was not a murderer. I was not a drug addict. I don’t have exciting stories to tell these people. Lord, don’t you know? These are not Sunday school kids. They are brilliant. This is Oxford University.”

But the Lord said to me, “Listen, who knows better, you or me? If you know better than I do, why are you asking me to bless this lecture that you’ve written? If you want me to bless your talk, then tell them your experiences with me.”

“Lord, you are giving me a very hard task,” I said glumly.

I must confess, that night I had a real hard time with the Lord. Here I was on a speaking tour for him, but I didn’t want to do God’s work God’s way. All night, I wrestled with what God was asking of me, my pride battling against my faith.

The next day I arrived at the lecture hall, and the chairman introduced me—very formally, as they do in England—explaining the subject I was assigned to speak on. Imagine, then, his surprise when I stood and said, a bit sheepishly, “Yes, I was going to speak on that subject. In fact, I prepared this lecture . . .” I held it up because I wanted them to know I could do better than what I was about to do. My ego at work. “But I’m not going to deliver it.”

A hush settled over the crowd. My stomach was tied up in knots.

“As I was praying last night, the Lord asked me to tell you about my experiences with Jesus. Perhaps some of you may not like it,” I said, having little doubt about that.

I was already seeing my Waterloo, my downfall and humiliation. Okay, I thought. These fellows will never invite me back to Oxford. This is the end of it. But yes, Lord, I will obey (however begrudgingly). I continued speaking. “So I prayed and asked the Lord, ‘What do you want me to speak on?’ He said, ‘Christ the Savior, Christ the Sovereign, Christ the Sufficiency, Christ the Strength, Christ the Supplier, Christ the Security, and Christ the Soon-Coming King. He gave me the outline last night while I was on my knees.” Then I shared from my heart how the Lord had become real to me in each of these seven ways. After speaking, I just wanted to hide myself.

When it was over, the audience clapped in their traditional, formal way. The chairman of the lecture said, very politely, “Well, thank you, Mr. Koshy, for coming and enlightening us. Now, if any of you would like to talk to him about anything further, he will be available.”

Where’s the door? I thought. I was sure nobody would stay.

But no one left. To my utter astonishment, not a single student left the lecture hall. Instead, each and every one of them formed a line to ask me questions. Many teared up as they shook my hand, barely controlling their emotions, and said, “Come back again; we want to hear more of this kind of lecture.” I couldn’t believe my eyes or ears.

Then I noticed one Indian—the only other Indian in the entire room—standing at the end of this long line of students waiting to talk with me. I knew this young man had to be somebody important, to have the education and wealth and influence to be here at Oxford University. I desperately wanted to meet him and talk with him. I was afraid the long line would discourage him and he might leave. But I couldn’t exactly walk away from everyone else and go directly to this Indian. What could I do?

I began praying in my heart that the Lord would constrain this fellow to stay so I could meet him, and the Lord answered my prayers. Though it took more than half an hour before his turn came, this young Indian man came and grabbed me by the hand and said, “Sir, I want to thank you for coming and speaking on your experiences with Jesus. Ever since I came to Oxford, I have been going to churches to hear about Jesus Christ. All I have been hearing have been philosophical discourses, far removed from the realities of God.”

Inside, as I listened to this enthusiastic, grateful student, I felt ashamed. For that was exactly what I was going to tell this audience. That was exactly what I had prepared. A philosophical discourse.

“But today you came,” he continued. “You spoke to us from your heart about your own personal experiences with Jesus. Perhaps many may not agree with you. But no man can refute what you said.”

“What is your name?” I asked him eagerly.

“My name is Ramchandran,” he said.

“What is your last name?” I pressed.

“Please don’t ask me that,” he replied. “The moment people hear my last name they behave as though I have no first name. I am sick and tired of that. So please don’t ask me.”

I asked him again, but he resisted.

“Please,” I implored him. “Please.”

He hesitated, but then he lowered his voice and said, “If you insist, it is Gandhi.”

I was stunned, not knowing what to say.

“You are Mahatma Gandhi’s grandson?”

“That is what I told you. See, now you are talking about Mahatma Gandhi. Now you are not interested in me.”

I was speechless.

Here was one of the grandsons of the renowned Mahatma Gandhi, the father of India, who had led the nonviolent revolution for freedom from the British and sought, though unsuccessfully, to create a sense of harmony and unity between Hindus and Muslims. And Mahatma Gandhi was this young man’s father’s father. His mother’s father was the last governor-general of India, who took the reins of power for India back from the British via Lord Mountbatten in 1947, when India became an independent country. Here I was speaking with—indeed, sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ with—a grandson of two of the most influential Indians of all time.

I immediately assured him that I was most definitely interested in him personally, and we continued chatting for some time. Unfortunately, however, it got late. I had to get back to my college. So I thanked Ramchandran Gandhi, and we parted ways. The secretary of the organization who invited me began driving me back to my room. He was a blue-eyed young Englishman. It was raining. I still remember that night, for as he was driving, he broke down crying.

“The moment when you got up and said that you were changing the subject and you were going to speak on your experiences with Jesus, I said to myself that I wished we had not invited you.

“But,” he quickly added, trying to hold back his tears, “that message was for me. I am a Christian. I was backsliding. That message challenged my heart.” He started weeping so hard he had to pull the car to the side of the road. Then he controlled himself, continued driving, and dropped me off at the railway station.

Some time later I received a letter from Oxford.

Will you consider coming and spending three months with us to give more lectures?

That encounter provided a formative lesson for me.

As true disciples of Jesus Christ, we must always be willing to do God’s work in God’s way. We must be willing to go where he sends us and say what he tells us to say. We must always be ready to share our faith—always ready for “divine appointments”—because we never know who is listening.

Here I had wanted to become a great lawyer or journalist to reach the influential elites of India for Jesus. I had argued with the Lord when he said no to my own plans and strategies.

But what happened? The Lord Jesus himself took me thousands of miles away from India, to Bible college in England of all places, on a speaking tour to Oxford, just to meet and share the gospel with the grandson of Gandhi.

Our God is an awesome God.

He works in mysterious ways. The question is, will we let him work that way in our lives? Or will we rebel, thinking we know better?

Some years later, I was passing through Delhi. I picked up the phone and called the home of Dr. Gandhi. His wife answered.

“Is Dr. Gandhi available?” I asked.

“Yes,” she said. “Who is this?”

I explained who I was and said that we once met at Oxford. Suddenly the young man was on the line. “Dr. Gandhi, you may not remember me. My name is Koshy.”

This was thirteen years later. But you know what he said? “Are you the Koshy who came to Oxford and spoke on the subject of the uniqueness of Jesus Christ and your personal experience with him?”

“You mean you still remember that?” I asked, amazed.

“How can I ever forget it? Do you have time to have a meal with me?”

The next day he came and picked me up and took me to a restaurant in New Delhi. We had lunch. What he said humbled me. “Jesus Christ is God’s ultimate incarnation. He alone could identify with the sufferings of the masses.” The more we talked, the more amazed I grew, for the grandson of Mahatma Gandhi had become a believer in Jesus Christ.

In time I would obey the Lord’s voice and Brother Bakht Singh’s advice. By God’s grace I was married, became a pastor, became the evangelical chaplain at Syracuse University in upstate New York, planted a church, and launched International Friendship Evangelism, a ministry to international students in the United States and around the world. My passport would be filled with many stamps, but for God’s glory, not my own.

For about eight months every school year at Syracuse University, my wife, Indira, and I, along with our ministry team, build bridges of relationships cross-culturally with students from all over the world. We host “friendship lunches” and other meals for them. We teach them conversational English. We invite them to picnics and other outings to help them make friends. We teach them about the love of Jesus Christ. We invite them to receive Christ as their personal Savior and Lord. And we disciple them one-on-one and in small groups, equipping them to go back to their home countries and reach their families, friends, and countrymen for Christ.

Then, for about three or four months of the year, my colleagues and I travel around the world, responding to requests from former students that we visit them, help them establish new churches, discover and share the joy of biblical worship, and teach them how to disciple others and train up new leaders. It has not been the life I envisioned for myself some four decades ago. No, it has been far more satisfying and, I pray, far more useful.

>> Help The Joshua Fund care for the poor and needy in Israel, teach the Word of God in the epicenter, educate and mobilize Christians around the world to bless poor and needy Israelis, train pastors and ministry leaders in Egypt, strengthen the believers in Syria, and prepare for a possible major new war in the epicenter — please prayerfully consider a generous, tax deductible financial contribution to The Joshua Fund.

ISRAELI LEADERS DENOUNCE ANTI-CHRISTIAN GRAFFITI AT MONASTERY

September 4, 2012 By in Epicenter

“The entrance door to a century-old monastery near Jerusalem was burned away and anti-Christian graffiti was sprayed on the walls Tuesday, in what Israeli police said appeared to be a nationalistic attack,” CNN reports. “The phrase ‘Jesus is a monkey’ was painted on the walls of Latrun Monastery in large orange letters….Families were evacuated from the outposts over the weekend by Israeli government forces. The Rev. Louis Wahbeh, of the 19th century monastery, told CNN that he was shocked that anyone would plan and carry out such an attack. ‘This is a direct insult to our belief,’ he said. ‘We can’t understand how such people can get to this low level of not respecting others, have no ethical background and don’t have any human values.'” Israeli leaders are to be commended for denouncing these “heinous” anti-Christian attacks. The Prime Minister’s Office issued the following statement: “Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke with Public Security Minister Yitzhak Aharonovitch and was updated on the actions being taken by the Israel Police to apprehend those who desecrated the Latrun Monastery. ‘Those responsible for this reprehensible act need to be punished severely. Freedom of religion and freedom of worship are among the most basic foundations of the State of Israel,’ the Prime Minister said.”

“AN EPIC FAILURE OF DISCIPLESHIP”: We need to rediscover The Invested Life

September 4, 2012 By in Epicenter

Every Christian needs to be able to answer two simple questions: 1) Who is investing in you? and 2) In whom are you investing?

In the Great Commission found in Matthew 28:18-20, our Lord Jesus Christ commanded us to go and “make disciples of all nations,” beginning with our own. Sadly, the American Church is experiencing an epic failure of discipleship. Most older believers are not spiritually investing in the lives of younger believers. We are failing to model and transmit Biblical truth and Christ-like character and a passion for evangelism and discipleship to the next generations. Thus the American Church is weak and failing and in desperate need of revival. Thus our nation is increasingly at risk not simply of decline but outright collapse, as I write about in Implosion.

In many ways, my new book with Dr. T.E. Koshy — The Invested Life: Making Disciples of All Nations One Person At A Time — is a corollary or a companion to Implosion. Put it another way, Implosion describes the sickness. The Invested Life describes the cure.

For more details, and/or to see the webcast of the eulogy I gave at Dr. Koshy’s funeral this past weekend describing his heart for discipleship, how he discipled me, and why we wrote this book together, please click here.

IMPLOSION UPDATE: DEBT PASSES $16 TRILLION; Feds spend $41,210 every second more than it takes in

September 4, 2012 By in Epicenter

(Source: Weekly Standard, based on Senate Budget Committe data)

“The Treasury Department said Tuesday that the federal government has now  officially topped $16 trillion in debt,” reports the Washington Times. “The announcement, which came just an hour before Democrats gaveled in their  convention in Charlotte, N.C., to renominate President Obama for another four-year term, immediately boosted the government’s grim fiscal picture back to  the fore of the national debate. Debt has risen at a meteoric pace under Mr. Obama — in less than four years  in office he has already eclipsed President George W. Bush’s eight years.” Meanwhile, a U.S. News & World Report story in August revealed that the federal government is spending some $41,210 every second more than it takes in in revenue. As I write in Implosion, this is absolutely unsustainable. Will anyone stop this madness before it’s too late?

TROUBLING DEVELOPMENT: RIFT BETWEEN WHITE HOUSE & ISRAEL GROWING AS THREAT OF WAR RISES

September 4, 2012 By in Epicenter

In recent days, anyone watching U.S.-Israel relations has seen a very troubling development: the already serious rift between the current White House and Israel is growing. The relationship between President Obama and Prime Minister Netanyahu has been strained for nearly four years. But as the threat of war between Israel and Iran this fall continues to rise, the Obama administration seems to be intentionally signaling a growing distance from the Netanyahu government.

Consider these examples: The White House is downscaling U.S. participation in long-planned joint military exercises in October. The Obama administration is sending private messages to Iran saying the U.S. won’t back an Israeli strike as long as Iran doesn’t strike U.S. interests (suggesting that the State of Israel isn’t an American interest). The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs told reporters in London that the U.S. doesn’t want to be “complicit” in an Israeli first strike. “Complicit” is a criminal word, implying an Israeli act of self-defense could be illegal, yet America’s top military official used the word anyway. What’s more, the Democratic National Committee this week has even removed pro-Israel elements used in previous DNC platforms — such as asserting Jerusalem is the official capital of Israel and shouldn’t be divided; remaining committed to maintaining Israel’s qualitative military advantage over its neighbors; and describing Hamas as a terrorist organization that should be negotiated with — out of its official 2012 platform, something that could only be done with the direct support of the President and his senior advisors.

These developments add to a troubling trend which is making Israeli officials and citizens feel more alone against the Iran nuclear threat than ever before. Will war erupt this fall? That remains to be seen. But U.S.-Israeli relations have rarely been this strained on the eve of major Mideast hostilities. Please pray for the Lord to change the heart of President Obama and his advisors, and that they would change course and truly and publicly stand firmly with Israel, our most faithful ally in all of the epicenter. As we read in Genesis 12:1-3, God promises to bless those who bless Israel, and curse those who curse Israel. With America facing a growing risk of economic and moral implosion, now is certainly not the time to turn our backs on Israel.

>> Help The Joshua Fund care for the poor and needy in Israel, teach the Word of God in the epicenter, educate and mobilize Christians around the world to bless poor and needy Israelis, train pastors and ministry leaders in Egypt, strengthen the believers in Syria, and prepare for a possible major new war in the epicenter — please prayerfully consider a generous, tax deductible financial contribution to The Joshua Fund.

A EULOGY FOR DR. T.E. KOSHY, THE MAN WHO INVESTED IN ME AND IN SO MANY OTHERS: Countering the epic failure of the American church, the failure to “make disciples”

September 4, 2012 By in Epicenter

UPDATED: (Syracuse, New York ) — Every Christian needs to be able to answer two simple questions: 1) Who is investing in you? and 2) Who are you investing in? In the Great Commission found in Matthew 28:18-20, our Lord Jesus Christ commanded us to go and “make disciples of all nations,” beginning with our own. Sadly, the American Church is experiencing an epic failure of discipleship. Most older believers are not spiritually investing in the lives of younger believers. We are failing to model and transmit Biblical truth and Christ-like character and a passion for evangelism and discipleship to the next generations. Thus the American Church is weak and failing and in desperate need of revival. Thus our nation is increasingly at risk not simply of decline but outright collapse, as I write about in Implosion.

This weekend, my family and I and several young people we have discipled had the joy of attending the memorial service and burial of Dr. T. E. Koshy. Dr. Koshy is the man who discipled me — the man who invested in me spiritually — at Syracuse University when I studied there as an undergraduate, and in the years since. Dr. Koshy got it. He understand the power and purpose of Biblical discipleship. Koshy understood that making healthy, devout, faithful disciples is the only way the Church grows and matures over the long haul. It is not enough just to make Christians. We must make true followers of Christ who are fully committed to obeying all that Christ taught His original disciples. Koshy understood the importance of spiritually investing in others, because a great man of God once invested heavily into him. It changed him. It marked him. It made him committed not just to eternal life (John 3:16), and the abundant life (John 10:10), but also to the invested life (Matthew 25:14-30).

Here is the link to the webcast of the memorial service, which was held at North Syracuse Baptist Church. There were many wonderful, moving tributes to this dear man of God, this great friend and disciple-maker. You’ll learn so much listening to them all. I was honored to deliver the eulogy towards the end of the service. My remarks run about 40 minutes or so and begin at 1:57:54 into the program. I shared some personal memories of the man who was more like the Apostle Paul than any person I have ever known, including the amusing story of how we first met, how he invested in me, as well as some anecdotes from the preaching tours we did through Israel, India, and Iraq.

In addition, I shared about the final project that we worked on together, a book that has just been released called, The Invested Life: Making Disciples Of All Nations One Person At A Time. What is this book about? Why did we write it? Why is discipleship so important? What made Dr. Koshy so remarkably qualified to speak to this topic? I share the answers to these questions during this message and why the concept of spiritual investing became so special and personal and urgent for me. I do hope you’ll take some time to watch and listen, and to read this new book and share it with others.

Sadly, much of the American Church seems to have forgotten Christ’s “Great Commission.” Most American believers don’t really know what a disciple is, or how to make one, nor have they ever made one. Yet our Lord Jesus commanded us to “make disciples of all nations” — it was one of His most important commandments to His followers just before He returned to the Father. We desperately need to rediscover the lost art of making disciples. Dr. Koshy understood this deeply. He taught my wife and me, and now, through this message and this new book, we are seeking to pass along what we have learned over the years.  In many ways, this book is a corollary or a companion to Implosion. Or, to put it another way, Implosion describes the sickness. The Invested Life describes the cure.

Who is investing in you? Who are you investing in? Do you have answers to these vital questions? May the Lord bless you richly as you considered these eternal truths and how to apply them in your own life and ministry. And may the Church in America and around the world urgently rediscover the centrality of discipleship before we must stand before our Lord Jesus and be held to account.

SERMON: REDISCOVERING THE POWER AND PURPOSE OF BIBLE PROPHECY — Part 2

September 4, 2012 By in Epicenter

(Honolulu, Hawaii) — I had the joy and honor of teaching for two nights at a conference here in Honolulu on the importance of Bible prophecy. To recap, here are my notes for Part 1. Now, here are my notes for Part 2.

REDISCOVERING THE POWER AND PURPOSE OF BIBLE PROPHECY — PART 2

* Tonight, I want to build on the first message and make four key points.

* First, the Bible is not shy about describing itself as the Word of the all-mighty, all-seeing, all-knowing God of the universe. Here are a few examples:

  • The Lord said through the Hebrew prophet Isaiah, “Behold, the former things have come to pass, now I declare new things; before they spring forth I proclaim them to you.” (Isaiah 42:9)
  • The Lord also said through the prophet Isaiah, “Thus says the Lord, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, the Lord of hosts: ‘I am the first and I am the last, And there is no God besides Me. ‘Who is like Me? Let him proclaim and declare it; Yes, let him recount it to Me in order, from the time that I established the ancient nation. And let them declare to them the things that are coming And the events that are going to take place.” (Isaiah 44:6-7)
  • The Lord also said through the prophet Isaiah, “Remember the former things long past, for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is no one like Me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things which have not been done, saying, ‘My purpose will be established, and I will accomplish all My good pleasure.'” (Isaiah 46:9-10)
  • The Apostle Peter wrote, “But know this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture is a matter of one’s own interpretation, for no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke from God.” (2 Peter 1:20-21)
  • The Lord Jesus Christ said, “I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.”  (Revelation 22:13)

The God of the Bible is not like any other being. He sees all. He knows all. He remembers all. He is the beginning and the end. He is the Alpha and the Omega. He doesn’t guess or “predict” what will happen in the future; He knows what will happen. Remarkably, He chooses to tell us key events in advance so that we realize how great our God is. 

* Second, fulfilled prophecies are one of the most important and powerful ways we know that God’s Word is true. In the Old Testament, for example, we see many prophecies fulfilled. For example, God told the Hebrew prophet Jeremiah that the Jewish people would be in exile in Babylon for 70 years and then would be released to return to Israel, and that’s exactly what happened. The Lord also told the prophet Isaiah the exact name of the Persian king who would be instrumental in the Jewish people being set free from Babylonian captivity. That name was “Cyrus” and that was, in fact, the name of the Persian king who helped the Jews go back home. What’s more, in the Old Testament, the Lord gave us dozens of clues about who the Messiah would be and what He would do. Here are a few of them:

  • The prophet Micah told us the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem Ephratah (Micah 5:2).
  • The Hebrew prophet Isaiah told us that the Messiah would be born of a virgin (Isaiah 7:14).
  • The prophet Isaiah told us that the Messiah would be born as a human male child, a son, but would also be called “mighty God” (Isaiah 9:6).
  • The prophet Isaiah told us that the Messiah would be a live and minister in the Galilee region of Israel (Isaiah 9:1-2)
  • The prophet Zechariah told us the Messiah would enter Jerusalem riding on a donkey (Zechariah 9:9)
  • The prophet Isaiah told us that the Messiah would heal people — “He Himself took our infirmities and carried away our diseases” (Isaiah 53:4)
  • King David prophesied that the Messiah would be surrounded by an evil band of men who would beat and torture him, would divide his clothing and cast lots for them, and would pierce his hands and feet and leave him “in the dust of death,” that is, kill him (Psalm 22)
  • The prophet Daniel made it clear that the Messiah would come to “finish the transgression, to make an end of sin, to make atonement for inquity, to bring in everlasting righteousness” but to do so he would need to be “cut off” [killed] before Jersualem was destroyed and the Temple was destroyed in 70 A.D. (Daniel 9:24-26)
  • The prophet Isaiah described the Messiah as a suffering Servant who would be beaten, tortured, mocked, pierced, and ultimately killed as a guilt offering for the sins of mankind (Isaiah 52:13 through Isaiah 53)
  • The prophet Isaiah also made it clear that the Messiah would also rise from the dead — “He was pierced through for our transgressions, He was crusheed for our iniquities; the chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, and by His scourging we are healed….His grave was assigned with wicked men, yet He was with a rich man in His death….But the Lord was pleased to crush Him, putting Him to grief; if He would render Himself as a guilt offering He will see His offspring, He will prolong His days, and the good pleasure of the Lord will prosper in His hand.” (Isaiah 53:5,9,10)
  • Through the prophet Jonah and the prophet Hosea, we were told God would raise the Messiah after three days in the grave (Jonah was in the belly of the fish for three days before he was returned to the earth; in Hosea 6:2 we read, “He will raise us up on the third day that we may live before Him.”)

Remarkably, the Lord Jesus Christ fulfilled all of these prophecies. In fact, in Luke 24:25-27 we read: “And He [Jesus] said to them [several of His disciples whom He saw after His resurrection], ‘O foolish men and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary for the Messiah to suffer these things and to enter into His glory?’ Then beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.”

Just as remarkable, the Lord God chooses to declare to us through the Bible — both in the Old Testament and the New Testament — some of the key events that will happen in key countries in the “last days” before the Second Coming of the Messiah. He gives us advance warning of the “signs” that will indicate we are living the “last days.” The question is will we pay attention to His Word, will we and obey His commands?

* Third, many countries are specifically mentioned in End Times Bible prophecy — but America is not one of them. Israel is the epicenter of God’s plan and purpose in the last days. Other countries mentioned in Bible prophecy are Russia, Iran, Syria, Lebanon, Turkey, Libya, Sudan, the revived Roman empire, and several others. The United States, however, is never mentioned directly or specifically in the Bible. In my recent book, Implosion, I go into this in greater detail. But the bottom line is that even though America is the wealthiest and most powerful nation on the face of the earth in the history of mankind, the Bible does not describe a specific role for us in the last days. Something, therefore, apparently happens to neutralize us or paralyze from played a key role in the events that lead to the return of Christ.

This could involve a financial collapse of the country, or a series of terrible natural disasters, or a series of terrible wars or terrorist attacks, or various other scenarios. While we don’t know exactly how America is neutralized, we can already see many very disturbing trends in our country that could lead to God removing His hand of favor and mercy from our country, or outright judging and punishing us. Among these are the fact that we have committed more than 53 million abortions since 1973. Violent crime has exploded by more than 460 percent since 1960. There is a terrible murder wave going on in our country today, even in small towns. Tens of millions of Americans are living in various types of sexual sins, including pornography, fornication, adulterous affairs, and homosexuality, to name just a few of the sins the Bible warns individuals and nations not to engage in. What’s more, we are addicted to spending money we don’t have. We’re about to hit $16 trillion in federal debt, and Washington is currently spending about $42,210 more every second than it receives in revenue.

These trends are terrible, and they are unsustainable. If we don’t turn around — if we don’t repent and ask Christ to forgive our sins and give us a Third Great Awakening — I believe our nation is going to implode economically and morally. This should drive us to our knees in prayer, fasting and repentance — but will it?

* Fourth, one of the reasons America is facing implosion is the epic failure of the Church to make disciples in obedience to Matthew 28:18-20. There are over 340,000 church congregations in America. These are all supposed to be spiritual “lighthouses” in the darkness, helping people find safety and refuge in Christ. But in many of our congregations, the light is dimming, or has been altogether extinguished. The Church is America is not leading the way. Too many pastors and ministry leaders are asleep. We desperately need to wake up and get back to a healthy, holy walk with Christ. And one of the biggest failures of the Church is failing to make healthy disciples who can spiritually reproduce and make other healthy disciples. Older, wiser followers of Jesus Christ in America are systematically failing to invest in the lives of younger believers and carefully transmit Christ-like character, values and disciplines from one generation to the next. American Christianity is weak and failing and in desperate need of revival because we are not obeying Jesus Christ’s Great Commission found in Matthew 28:18-20. Some are, but most are not making disciples of all nations (beginning with our own), or baptizing these disciples, or teaching these disciples to obey “everything” Christ taught us, or remembering that Christ promised to be with us always, even to the very end of the age.

Just twenty-four hours before I delivered this message, the man who discipled me — my pastor from college, Dr. T.E. Koshy — went home to be with the Lord after a terrible illness that lasted nearly ten months. I shared with the conference attendees a bit about my relationship with Koshy, and why we had written a new book together, The Invested Life: Making Disciples Of All Nations One Person At A Time. It’s a very practical, “how-to” type book. It shares a bit about the man who discipled Dr. Koshy, and how Koshy and his wife invested in Lynn and me, and how we have invested in the lives of younger believers. It answers many practical questions about the centrality of discipleship and how Jesus and Paul made disciples. Implosion describes the multiple crises facing America and the Church. The Invested Life describes the cure. I hope you will find them both helpful.

>> Help The Joshua Fund care for the poor and needy in Israel, teach the Word of God in the epicenter, educate and mobilize Christians around the world to bless poor and needy Israelis, train pastors and ministry leaders in Egypt, strengthen the believers in Syria, and prepare for a possible major new war in the epicenter — please prayerfully consider a generous, tax deductible financial contribution to The Joshua Fund.

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