Apathy
I saw a bumper sticker recently that said:
“Fight Apathy, or don’t: who cares?”
Does it matter? What difference does it make? Well, in the church and in the lives of believers it makes all the difference in the world. We can’t afford to be apathetic because apathy is in direct disobedience to the will of God and the example of Christ.
Apathy Leads to Apostasy
It’s been the experience of humanity from ancient days. Apathy leading to apostasy. Let’s quickly define these terms and look at a Scripture proof of my thought here.
Apathy: a state of indifference, or the suppression of emotions such as concern, excitement,motivation and passion. An apathetic individual has an absence of interest in or concern about emotional, social, or physical life. (Wikipedia)
Apostasy: a giving up of a religious faith or a previous loyalty (Merriam Webster)
The less people care the more likely they are to turn from God. Consider this passage from the book of Judges.
Judges 2:10-13
10 That whole generation was also gathered to their ancestors. After them another generation rose up who did not know the Lord or the works He had done for Israel. 11 The Israelites did what was evil in the Lord’s sight. They worshiped the Baals 12 and abandoned the Lord, the God of their fathers, who had brought them out of Egypt. They went after other gods from the surrounding peoples and bowed down to them. They infuriated the Lord, 13 for they abandoned Him and worshiped Baal and the Ashtoreths.
Soon after the death of Joshua, who had lead the people of Israel in amazing victories as they took possession of the promised land, the people forsook their faith and turned to their own concerns. They stopped caring (Apathy) and turned from God (Apostasy).
Turning away from God like this takes us to another level where we determine without any basis what is right and what is wrong. We choose based on our own desires. If you read the last few chapters of Judges you see how this apostasy leads to horrific acts of rebellion. The final chapters of Judges recounts the internal war among the people caused by these grievous actions.
The Answer for Apathy
Kay Arthur, founder of Precepts Ministries International, has this to say about the condition of apathy and apostasy of our nation:
“We as a nation have turned away from the Truth of His Word. Unfaithfulness is our scarlet letter, emblazoned on our foreheads. You see it not only in our relationships, our business practices, and our duties to God and His Word, but also in the chambers of our lawmakers. Our nation has been unfaithful to the God whose name is chiseled on our monuments and engraved on our currency.”
The answer is the same today as it has always been. The LORD spoke to Solomon at the dedication of the temple and declared that the recipe for returning to the Lord and experiencing His blessings was…
2 Chronicles 7:14
14 and My people who are called by My name humble themselves, pray and seek My face, and turn from their evil ways, then I will hear from heaven, forgive their sin, and heal their land.
- In humility recognize that we can’t go on like this.
- Pray and call out to the Lord…He waits for us to come to him.
- Seek Him…turn from the things that have captivated us
- Turn from sin…recognize that we’ve strayed and repent and return
Wake Up America!!
Throughout the Scriptures you see the divine wake-up calls of God. Many of these events in the Bible are occurring today. Storms…Earthquakes…Floods…Famine. These recent events flood our news networks. The Secular Humanist will tell us that these events are just random occurrences that have no cause. But, what if God is trying to get our attention. This has been His pattern in the past. I challenge you to personally consider and apply 2 Chronicles 7.14 in your life right now.
Fight apathy…for real. Get concerned and get involved. There is too much at stake not to care. The souls of your family, neighbors, coworkers and friends hang in the balance.
We Care Because He Cares!
bigdbentley 