STARVING THE FLESH
WAKE UP!

In 1775, the British troops intended to board boats and under cover of darkness slip across the river and attack Concord and Lexington. But someone was awake and alert—Paul Revere! Away he sped on horseback, sounding the alarm, “The regulars are coming out!” meaning that the regular British army was on the march. The colonial militia turned back the Redcoats. It was a critical moment in America’s march to freedom.

We are in such a critical hour today. The battle we face is spiritual in nature and against the forces of hell. I want to be a spiritual Paul Revere, calling you to wake up! That’s what another Paul, the Apostle said in Romans 13:11, “And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed.”

He says, “knowing the time” that is, to have spiritual perception. When I was a teenager, the pop music group, Chicago had a hit song that asked the question, “Does anybody really know what time it is? Does anybody really care?” Well, we better know and we better care that, “now it is high time to awake out of sleep!”

There was an old farm couple, that went to sleep one night and something went wrong with the grandfather clock. It chimed thirteen! The old fellow yelled, “Get up Martha, it’s later than it’s ever been before!” It is! That’s what Paul says, “for now is our salvation nearer than when we first believed.”

He’s talking about the consummation of salvation—when we all get to heaven. I believe things are winding up in this world and what we do for Christ is an urgent matter! But even if Christ doesn’t return in our lifetime, we have a limited allotment of days and we can’t afford to be sleeping when we out to be serving! We’ve snuggled down in our padded pews and the devil has sung us a lullaby of deception.

I heard of a man called on to pray at the end of the service. He was a shy guy and he panicked. It seemed an eternity and he couldn’t say a word—just petrified. His wife whispered, “Just pray something” and he said, “Now, I lay me down to sleep.” Apparently the church has got that prayer down pat!

Wake up!