Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"
Jesus did NOT say, "Come to church, or come to a Christian college, all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and it will give you rest." I am sure He would be happy if that would give you "rest unto your souls," but often you meet stress and heartache there just as you do out in the cold world. Sometimes we can find ourselves, as Jesus said, "sheep among wolves" in a religious setting.
What Jesus DID say was, "Come unto ME, ... take My yoke upon you, and learn of ME, and ye shall find rest unto your souls" (Matt. 11:28-30; 10:16). No matter what the pressure may be that you find in church or in college, there is a path from where you are at this moment direct to the throne of grace where Jesus is "nigh at hand" to give you peace of heart in the midst of storms. He is an expert in enduring heartache in "church." The pagan world "outside" gave Him no persecution except (at the end) when the "church" of that day instigated it. When He said, "They that hate Me without a cause are more in number than the hairs on Mine head," "they" were church people. "I am become a stranger unto My brethren, ... I became a proverb unto them. ... They that sit in the gate speak against Me" (Psalm 69:4-12). They were Abraham's descendants, not pagans!
To all who suffer pain in church "fellowship" Jesus urges, "Come unto Me." But let's be sure: He does NOT say "come out of church fellowship"! No! In the midst of His suffering, Jesus was invited to leave "Israel" and go to Greece and find "rest of soul," but He refused. He would stay in fellowship with God's professed people, no matter how painful it might be, and bear His cross there (John 12:20-28).
In these last days there is lukewarmness in the church, there can even be "apostasy IN the church." Leaving the church is not the solution. The basic idea of the Bible truth of the Day of Atonement is the "cleansing of the sanctuary," not destroying it. "Come unto Me," says Jesus; and the closer you come to Him the more your heart and your life will be bound up in fellowship with Him and you will realize that the honor or the vindication of His name is bound up with the repentance of His church. He must win the heart of His church or "the marriage of the Lamb" can never come (Rev. 19:7, 8). Stay in the church; bear your cross "with Him." Cooperate with Him; let Him use you as one of His agents to help somebody else who is "weary and heavy laden." Help the church get "ready" for the wedding.
Be sure to check your e-mail for "Dial Daily Bread" again tomorrow.
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Daily Bread - Readings about life and the Word of God.
