Apathy—But Who Cares?
"And then he [Jesus] told them, 'You are to go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone, everywhere.'"1
On one occasion when I was leading a seminar, I asked the group in attendance the following question: "What do you think the Christian's number one sin or problem is?" One jokester called out from the back of the room, "Apathy! But who cares?"
Funny, yes, but tragically, as the old saying goes: "Many a true word is spoken in jest."
Look at today's world, for example: Our government is spending, spending, spending and borrowing trillions of dollars to do just about anything it wants to do without considering the ultimate consequences, but who cares? Political correctness (which is anything but correct) is destroying us, but who cares? Our country is on an accelerating moral decline, but who cares? Opposition to Christianity is growing more intense, but who cares? Giving in to the demands of Islam and their relentless push to have their Sharia law accepted, and for them to gain more and more power and control in our Western nations, is also steadily but surely increasing, but who cares?
Surely, Satan has blinded the minds of the masses. But what about us; that is, we who call ourselves Christians, what are we doing to make an impact on today's society? In younger days we used to sing with great enthusiasm, "Onward Christian soldiers, marching as to war, with the cross of Jesus going on before…." It's been many years since I have heard this grand old hymn sung anywhere, or similar call to action hymns such as: "Stand up, stand up for Jesus, ye soldiers of the cross…." Perhaps there is a lot of truth in another jokester's words who said, "Like a mighty tortoise moves the church of God, brothers we are treading where we've always trod."
As Edmond Burke so simply yet powerfully stated: "All that is needed for evil to triumph is for good men [and women] to do nothing!" And might I add, "and to remain silent."
Note, too, what Chuck Colson said: "German sociologist Elisabeth Noelle-Neumann coined the phrase "the Spiral of Silence" after witnessing Hitler and his ilk intimidate citizens until they were afraid to speak out against the most horrible evils imaginable: the mass slaughter of human beings."2
So, apathy just may be our greatest sin, our greatest danger, and our greatest enemy.
So what can you and I actually do? For one thing we can pray earnestly for a great spiritual awakening throughout our countries. And in this day of incredible electronic communications, everyone with an email address can become involved in helping to spread the message of Jesus Christâ€"the only hope of our sin-sick world. To help you do this I encourage you to stand with ACTS International in our Global Media Outreach and learn how to be a missionary right from your own homeâ€"and therein have a vital part in worldwide gospel outreach by becoming an ACTS People Power for Jesus Partner. Click HERE or on www.actsweb.org/people_power/. There is no charge. Furthermore, there is no greater opportunity and privilege than to share the message of Jesus Christ so please consider joining with us today so you can be a missionary right from your own home.
Suggested prayer: "Dear God, please deliver me from the sin of apathyâ€"of doing nothing and remaining silent when there is an urgent need to help share the message of Jesus Christ with people across the street and around the world. I am available; please use me to have an active part in what you are doing in the world today by helping to introduce others to Jesus. Thank you for hearing and answering my prayer. Gratefully in Jesus' name, amen."
1. Mark 16:15 (TLB) (NLT).
2. The Chuck Colson Center for Christian Worldview, Feb 29, 2012.
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