Last Days Church 5

Today on Truth Matters with Dr. Cheryl Davis, she completes the Last Days Church series and examines the spiritual condition of the Western Church, especially in America.

In Genesis 21, 10 through 11, and she said to Abraham, Get rid of the slave woman and her son, for that slave woman's son will never share in the inheritance with my son Isaac. The church itself is in this place. We are holding on to our Ishmael. In the church, our Ishmaels can be things, people, jobs, feelings, inappropriate relationships, immoral behaviors that are oppressing us, keeping us bound up in sin that goes unconfessed and separates us from God and keeps us from our destiny in Him.

It is pastors that are leading churches because they are educated and it is a job, not a calling or anointing or a spiritual gift. These Ishmaels rob us of our power, rendering us ineffective. We must cast them out of our lives and our churches because they are draining the very power out of us.

I'm going to say that one more time. We must cast these Ishmaels out of our lives and our churches because they are draining the very power out of us. But for Abraham, it was hard. He struggled because it was his son.

It was of his own flesh. For you, it may be your job, your best friend, your persona, your financial security, your identity, and even an idol in your life. What are those Ishmaels that you're holding onto that is keeping you from a whole and authentic walk with God? This is the price that Abraham had to pay for the promise. The Bible says that God's promises are yes and amen unto the glory of God by us in 1 Corinthians 1 and 20, but they are not free or without effort.

They come with a price. Think about it. Mary in Luke 1 was overshadowed by the power of the Holy Spirit to give birth to the promised Messiah, but was almost put away quietly by Joseph. But then she had to witness her promise crucified on a cross approximately 30 years later. Elizabeth was pregnant with John the Baptist and endued with God's power in the womb for him to be the forerunner of Christ, later to be beheaded by Herodias. The Israelites were promised a deliverer, but experienced 400 years of bondage before that deliverer came. David was anointed king, but spent years of his life running for his life from Saul before he walked into his destiny. Joseph was given a dream, but left dead by his brothers, sold into slavery, forgotten in prison, but later came into his destiny at the appointed time. For Abraham, it cost him something that he loved and treasured, his first son. Abraham was obedient in the end, but with a cost. Isaac was the promise. He represents God's light and eternal salvation through the Messiah, Jesus Christ, while Ishmael represents an incomplete covenant, the natural way that will never completely atone for the sin of man. We will only inherit eternal life through the reconciliation of Isaac. Light and darkness cannot exist in the same vessel.

The light will drive out the darkness. Abraham had to make room for the promise. Otherwise, if he held on to Ishmael, he would rob God of his glory.

Therefore, Abraham had to cast him out. The church today is robbing God of his glory. We are an imitation of what God intends for us to be. We are weak and vulnerable to the attack of the enemy because we are holding on to our own will and asking God to bless our detours and our deportations from his will. Some of us are living in outright sin and leading churches. We cannot get a hold of God for ourselves, much less lead a congregation to repentance. We have a false sense of security because we outwardly appear like we have salvation compared to our neighbor. We cannot get a hold of God for ourselves, much less lead a congregation to repentance. We have a false sense of security because we outwardly appear like we have salvation compared to our neighbor. But inwardly, we are like dead man's bones. Our standard for comparison is in Christ and Christ alone. We are ineffective because we look no different from the world.

Therefore, why does the world need more of the same? The Lord is calling us to repent as a church and return to our first love. Will you cast out your Ishmael today? This has been Truth Matters with medical doctor Cheryl Davis. Next week, Dr. Davis continues her teaching of Abraham and Sarah in a new series called Desperate Housewives. Please join us for this insightful look at what can happen when we get outside of God's will.

The series starts on Sunday, November 17th. Please join us. If you would like to contact Dr. Davis, please email her at Cheryl Davis at projecttruthmatters.com or write truthmatters at P.O. Box 159, St. Paul's, North Carolina 28384. Dr. Davis would appreciate hearing from you. Truth Matters is a production of The Truth Project.