Wednesday, September 20, 2006

The Frog in the Freezer-Spiritual Deadness


By Pastor Paul W. Martin

I heard of a couple yesterday that recently began attending my friend’s church. They have been Christians for many years, but the congregation they were members of had been on a slow descent toward worldliness.

After their first Sunday visiting this pastor’s church, they waited at the back to speak with him. “We had forgotten what it was like to hear the Word,” they said. “We didn’t know how starved we were for it!”

They have transferred their membership.

People speak of cold-blooded frogs getting boiled to death in a pot since they cannot “feel” the temperature increasing. I tend to think a lot of poor sheep are getting frozen to death in spiritually dead churches.

They do not feel the slow decline from a God-ward focus in worship to man-centered experiences. They seem to only slightly notice more anecdotal sermons and less of the Word. They become numb to the silliness going on in people’s lives since so much sin is not dealt with by the leaders. And as all this progresses, their souls become cooler and deader to the things of God.

I have written other places on what I think you should do if that is you, but the experience of this couple made me want to ask every person in my church and every person that attends another church this question – is God there? Can you sense something of the weight of His glory? Do these people pray like it matters?

O, for more of Him! Don’t get frozen...

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