Preserving God's Standards - Part 6 — Zac Poonen

Taking Responsibility for Personal Sin

You know, when you don't have the courage to acknowledge your fault, you'll be like Aaron. When you don't have the humility to say, I was wrong, it was my mistake, I compromised. You end up like Aaron.

David's Willingness to Confess His Sin

Useless to God, useless to man. How different was David, who did something worse than that. Committed adultery and killed the woman's husband and married her. But the wonderful thing about him was, he says, Lord, it's my fault.

David Accepts the Blame

When a prophet came to him and said, you're the man. He said, yes, I'm the man. In a million believers, you may find one like that. Every Tom, Dick and Harry will justify themselves. Say, no, no, no, no, this, that, the other.

That's what made David, who was a much greater criminal than any of us sitting here. A man after God's own heart. Because he was willing to take the blame immediately. I want to give you a little bit of advice.

Judging Yourself Instead of Blaming Others

To judge yourself means, you never, never, never hesitate to take the blame. Lord, it's my fault. Don't blame your brother, don't blame your wife, don't blame your husband. Don't blame your parents, don't blame your children.

Say, Lord, it's me. You'll be a man after God's own heart. You'll be a woman after God's own heart. Otherwise, you'll be like Aaron. What I want to say is that, how quickly people can drift. 40 days was enough.

Israel's Drift After Joshua's Death

There's a verse in the book of Judges, where it says, in the book of Judges, we read about how it happened with the Israelites, after Joshua died. Verse 10 of chapter 2, all the generation, that is Joshua's generation died.

And there arose another generation, that did not know the work of the Lord. Because it says here in verse 7, the people served the Lord, all the days of Joshua. And the elders who had seen the wonderful work of the Lord.

And then Joshua died. And then arose another generation, that went astray. Joshua preserved them. He was dead. Gone. And you read the book of Judges, it says everybody did what was right in their own eyes, and there was nobody to control them.

Elijah's Faithfulness Amid Israel's Idolatry

It's the same story throughout scripture. You read in the time of Elijah. There were 7 ,000 people, it says, the Lord Himself told Elijah, in 1 Kings 19. There are 7 ,000 people in Israel, Elijah, who have not bowed the knee to Baal.

1 Kings 19 verse 18. Don't think everybody is idolaters. There are 7 ,000 people in Israel, still who are not idolaters. But, none of those 7 ,000 people, could turn Israel back to God. For that, God could use only one man, Elijah.

You know why? Because he lived before God's face. He was not afraid of a king, he was not afraid of anybody. He lived before God's face. It's the same in the New Testament. Paul says in Acts chapter 10, Acts 20 rather, when he calls the elders in Ephesus together, he says, I've been with you for 3 years, and now I'm going away, he says, I've preached to you, 2 ,000 sermons, day and night for 3 years, he says all that there, in Acts 20 verse 17 to 38.

Paul's Warning About Wolves Entering the Church

And he says, I know what's going to happen, verse 29, after I leave. I know what's going to happen. As soon as I'm gone, vicious wolves are going to show up, and rip this flock. In other words, he says, the world is going to come right in.

Those wolves would not dare to step in, as long as Paul was there. But they're just waiting for Paul to go. And they will twist the words of Scripture, and seduce disciples into following them, instead of following Jesus.

So he said, I plead with you, stay awake. Keep up your guard. Remember, for 3 years, I kept on telling you, pouring out my heart with you, one after another. What can I do now? I can't stay with you forever.

I'm turning you over to God. I pray that He'll preserve you. You know, my friends, I was not, verse 35, I was not interested in your money. I worked with my own hands, supported myself, verse 33, 34. And I showed you by an example.

And he prayed with them. But you know what happened in the church in Ephesus, that church, exactly what Paul said happened. They didn't care for him. They said, we're okay. And they drifted. This has been the history of Christianity.

A Charge to the Next Generation

I say this, so that you will take to heart, Lord, you are another generation from me, most of you. The generation I grew up in is growing old and moving on. Many of you sitting here, I'm speaking to the young people here.

You, young men and young women, there's a charge God is putting upon your shoulders. I don't know how many of you are willing to take it and say, Lord, in my generation, I want to be a flaming fire for you to preserve the standards of your word, to lift up Jesus, draw people to Him.

Repentance Overcomes Past Failure

And don't say, oh, God can't use me. God picks up people whose lives have been messed up with sin, if they really repent. I mean, He could turn Mary Magdalene into a saint. He could turn the chief of sinners, Saul of Tarsus, into the mightiest apostle of all.

So don't think your fast failures can hinder you. And don't think of your limitations because it's got to be the power of the Holy Spirit. Seek for the power of the Holy Spirit and He can make you and your generation a flaming witness for God.

Preserving the Testimony of Jesus Christ

I believe God needs such people to preserve His testimony. I'm not talking about preserving CFC. I have no interest in preserving CFC. Zero interest. I have an interest in preserving the testimony of Jesus Christ in India.

Whatever name it's called, I don't care. But preserving the name, the testimony of Christ in India. And you, my brother, sister, you and the younger generation, have a responsibility for that. I hope you'll take it.

Following God's Word Without Compromise

I hope you'll take a challenge from the Lord today and say, Lord, I want to take my Christian life seriously. Never mind if other people around you don't. Forget about whether they are running according to the rules.

Forget about their track. You took care of your track. Say, Lord, I'm going to be ready to take the blame. I'm going to be ready to judge myself. I'm going to be ready to follow Your Word. I'm going to hold up the highest standards even if everybody around me is a backslider.

I'm going to follow You. Let's bow our heads for a moment.