Wake Up!
Today’s Verse:
Awake to righteousness, and sin not; for some have not the knowledge of God: I speak this to your shame. ~1 Corinthians 15:34
Have you ever fallen asleep on public transportation, and then awakened to the fact that you missed where you were supposed to get off? Falling asleep at the wrong place and time can be embarrassing. Paul gives a stern admonition to us about falling asleep spiritually when we need to be awake.
We see the alarm.
“Awake to righteousness.” Paul was not sounding an alarm clock to a physical awakening, but rather a spiritual awakening. The moral scruples and practices of the Corinthian believers had come to a state of apathy, indifference, and unconcern. It did not bother them that sin in their city and in their homes was making advances. Let us be careful of getting used to reading, seeing and hearing sin. Let us be careful of losing our cutting edge when it comes to right living and doing right. The drift towards blatant wicked behavior in our society is accelerating. What used to be abnormal is considered normal. What used to be called sin is reclassified as a lifestyle. Can you hear the alarm? Awake to righteousness!
We see the absence.
“For some have not the knowledge of God.” When the church at Corinth got started, it was a vibrant soulwinning station. Sinners were being saved and lives underwent a transformation. When indifference and apathy set in, their soul consciousness for the salvation of sinners diminished. There was an absence of souls being saved. Paul had to remind them that a large majority of their city still needed to hear the gospel and to be won to Christ. If there is one motivation to be fervent for the Lord, it is the fact that we have unsaved family and friends who “have not the knowledge of God.” Be an avid witness for Jesus. Be involved in organized soulwinning at church.
We see the atrocity.
“I speak this to your shame.” The name of Christ is soiled by our lack of involvement and inattention to living for Him. The testimony of our life and of the church we attend is become suspect to the unsaved. If Christians are living scandalous lives, the unsaved want nothing to do with us or the gospel that can save them. The devil blinds the minds of them that believe not to think that all Christians are phonies. It is a shame to speak of things done in secret. It’s a shame to live a double life.
We see the action.
“Awake to righteousness, and sin not; for some have not the knowledge of God.” Be a man of righteous character and integrity. Don’t be silent when it comes to righteous living. Second, take a stand against sin by stopping sin in your life. Flee youthful lusts. Withdraw from friendships that are leading you astray. Walk with godly people. Don’t walk in the counsel of the ungodly. Don’t sit in the seat of the scornful. Tear down and destroy idols in your life. Crucify pride in your life. Third, be a conscientious witness for the Lord. Carry gospel tracts with you that you will give out to people. Look for witnessing opportunities. There must be action after there is an awakening.
Can you hear the alarm? Let us awaken and remain vigilant with our lives.
Have an awakened God Morning!
Bible Reading Schedule: Exodus 39-40