An Online Devotional from Pastor Chad Carter

W e ' r e m o r e t h a n j u s t a C h u r c h . . . W e ' r e a F A M I L Y !

What's the Lord Saying

Concerning the Body?

Pastor Chad Carter

I recently received an email from an evangelist in Ohio. He

asked me a pointed question which caused me to pause for

a moment and ponder. I took a short 'selah.'

He asked, "What do you feel the Lord is saying to you, my

brother, concerning the body?"

His question is one that my spirit has been in turmoil about

for some time. I took his question as an opportunity to

concisely articulate what I believe God feels concerning the

subject. Here was my response to my evangelist friend:

What the Lord is saying to me concerning the Body is that many within the Body are gradually detaching themselves from the Head. They are becoming more acquainted with the darkness they are called to dispel than the Light of Life which they are called to shine.

God has been speaking to me that the chaos of society and the downward spiral of this generation is a direct representation of the way things have been progressing in the Spirit for the last few years.

I believe as the Church goes, so goes the nation and the world. What we see playing out in front of our eyes in America and beyond - political unrest, social upheaval, moral degradation, economic collapse, marital confusion, disregard for life - exists because of what is happening in the spiritual realm.

The compromise and chaos of the physical world around us is merely reflecting the compromise and confusion of the modern day Church. It is a reflection of the powerlessness of a people who are supposed to be holding the keys of the Kingdom and using them to evangelize the world into subjection to its King.

The Word says that men love darkness rather than light, and it's becoming abundantly more evident, even in the Church. Adultery, fornication, giving and taking in marriage, abominations, drunkenness, deception, fraud, heresy... it's all becoming so accepted. God's heart is sickened by the shape of the Church.

Most days I feel like Jeremiah, the weeping prophet. All I can do is mourn the state of the Church. Where are the Elijahs who call sin what it is? Where are the Elijahs who hold the controlling Jezebels and her emasculated Ahabs accountable for their sin and perversion? Where are the Elijahs who call down fire and rain from heaven? I know they are out there. But where are they? It seems that what is accepted and promoted on the majority of Christian television are those who are steeped in false doctrine and heresy. It is sad. It is alarming. There is an alarm sounding in Zion, and instead of rising to attention, the Church keeps hitting the snooze button.

I believe the Lord will not return until the Gospel of the Kingdom is preached in all the world as a witness to all nations. I believe there will be millions born again before His coming, and there will be millions that go in the rapture. I am encouraged by that.

The Gospel of the Kingdom is joyous! The principles of the Kingdom are joyous! The promises of God's Word are joyous! The backslidden state of the church, however, is heart-wrenching.

There is a famine in our land for the hearing of the Word of God. ...the TRUE Word of God. May the Lord help the United States. May the Lord help the Church.

It may not be the traditional "bless-me" message that Americans have grown accustomed to demanding and ingesting, but it is truly what I sense in the Spirit.

I forwarded these sentiments on to my evangelist friend and went about my business wondering what I might receive from him in response. I went through my day - made calls and sent emails, wrote letters and typed notes, had a meeting and moderated a mid-week service - wondering if my comments stepped on his toes and offended him as they would have those whom my comments applied to.

His response? Here's a little of it:

"…Pastor, you are right. There are so many things I see in the Body that break my

heart. ... There must be a shaking in the Body, Pastor. No, it's not a popular message

but we are required to preach the truth. ... We have grown too comfortable and we

need to realize the depths of what God is calling for in this hour. People only want to

hear what pleases them. … The Church has lost its power because we have not

pressed in to know Him. … People don't want to hear it will cost them something. We

need a demonstration of the power of the Gospel in this hour. … Good word, my

brother – our thoughts are the same."

Praise God. It's not the response I was expecting to hear. But it sure was the right response. 

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FAMILY HARVEST CHURCH

PASTOR CHAD CARTER

P.O. Box 512

Salem, IN 47167

Phone: 812-883-2523

Fax: 812-883-0621