Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Running "Code 3" For Christ

I have enjoyed the newsletters by my friend M.C. Williams from the Centurion Law Enforcement Ministry. I have re-posted a recent study from his newsletter and I would recommend that you subscribe to it.

In the pleasant-sounding but wholly unbiblical and anonymously-written poem, The Last Inspection, the warrior (police officer, soldier...) stands before the Lord and is invited into heaven based on his service -- his works if you will -- as a cop or member of the armed forces. With National Police Week coming to a close, I am reminded once again that time is short and -- accordingly -- I'll be lovingly blunt: the message of this poem is a lie from the pit of hell!

Many will of course cry foul by this statement but the lives and eternal fate of our brother/sister servant-warriors are at stake! Understanding that what I say only matters if it lines up with God's position as expressed in His wholly sufficient and inerrant word, I'll let my Lord speak for Himself on this matter:

(1) Jesus said, I am the way, the truth, and the the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me (John 14:6): Christ is the ONLY way.

(2) We are saved by grace and not by works (Ephesians 2:8-10): we CAN'T "earn" our way into heaven by our works.

Many will claim,


* "I'm basically a good person, so I'll go to heaven."

* "All cops (military, firefighters, etc.) will go to heaven."

* "God won't send me to hell just because I don't live by the Bible. Times have changed!"

* "Only really bad people like child molesters and murderers go to hell."

* And my all-time fav, "A LOVING God would never send any one to hell..."

These are all common rationalizations, but the truth is that they are all lies. Satan, the ruler of this world, wants you to believe the lie and he is working overtime to put out that false premise. Satan is a deceiver and often disguises himself as someone good -- 2 Corinthians 11:14 says that "...Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light" - to the point of blinding those who do not have a firm foundation in God's inerrant word. "The god (small "g") of this age (Satan) has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God" (2 Corinthians 4:4).

Need more? Take the "Good Person Test" and let me know how you do based on God's standard (the only one that really matters)!

Bottom line? "Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved"(Acts 4:12).

Most people "believe" in God -- even Satan does. But to receive salvation, we must turn to Him, repent (biblically defined from the Greek as "a change of mind that results in a change of action") from our sin, and enter into a life-saving/life-changing relationship with Jesus Christ -- literally trusting Him with everything we have and everything we do (including our salvation). Yes, our service as LEO's and combat military personnel matters -- but ONLY AFTER we are in a right-relationship with God in Christ!

Folks - make no mistake - HELL IS REAL! We MUST have a "Code 3" (running hot with lights and siren) sense of urgency in sharing this truth even if it is not popular to do so -- the consequences for failing to do so are untenable!

Like many of you, I've spent my adult life being up close and personal with evil and death on a daily basis. On both a professional and personal level, I lost 166 brother and sister officers in the line-of-duty in the US in 2011 alone (not including over 300 additional suicides), and every single one is real to me. Each time a fellow warrior, a friend or a family member goes down, I ask the same questions: Did they know Christ as Savior? Were they saved? If not, did anyone share the love of Jesus and His Plan of Salvation with them? If not, why not?

In Matthew 28:18-20, Jesus reveals what is referred to as the "THE GREAT COMMISSION" -- a command and NOT a suggestion to go and share Him with others.



How are we to respond? I'm not necessarily suggesting that we all have to be like Ray Comfort or Tony Miano and go preach on a street corner (nothing at all wrong with that...) but we are in fact called to LIVE and share our faith. We are called to step out, be bold, and be HIS 100%, 24-7.


(1) God will give you the strength and power to respond to our marching orders! Acts 1: 8


(2) Warren Wiersbe said that sharing Christ with others is "...not something that we do for the Lord, but rather something He does through us by the power of the Holy Spirit."


(3) LIVE your faith and walk in obedience. That is the greatest witness we can have on others. A cop (or anyone) living righteously for Christ will draw officers to Him!

(4) Pass on these newsletters! Invite a colleague to church and a FCPO Bible study! Be the servant-leaders at home and work that God has commanded you to be!

This life is FINITE. Save for those believers still living at the rapture, this life WILL end and there are no second chances once that happens. Let's have a "Code 3" sense of urgency in sharing Christ with others but be sure you are right with Him first -- then LIVE your faith in a way that draws others to Him through you.


Finally, many would rather run into a burning building or take on an enraged gunman than "witness" (share Christ) with others. Is your testimony and witness suffering from fear? Are you fearfully letting others take a free-will choice to spend eternity in the fires of hell when God is ready to rescue them if you'll but tell them about Him? The Lord repeatedly says that we are not to walk in fear but in victory. To that end, let me leave you with a repeat of Eric Ludy's "The Ancient War Cry." That ought to get you fired up -- now to it!!



1 comment:

MC Williams said...

Thanks Brother - I'm humbled.
BTW, I have no idea if my comments are coming through...just making best guess.