Faith Must Fight to Ignite
To be clear, I’m not talking about physical warfare but spiritual warfare. The same Gospel that brings peace with God brings war with sin. We must be prayed up in order to be built up, live in the Word so we don’t live in fear, and worship to drive out worry.
We cannot usher in utopia while things continue to decline, but God calls us to fight, not flee. He calls us to step out in faith rather than run like cowards because our faith ignites faith in others.
Are we igniting fear, or are we promoting strong faith in the midst of adversity? Worry comes when we put fear over faith.
The Best Way to Please God
Walking in faith trains spiritual muscles for spiritual battles. We don’t always know the exact course we are to take with absolute certainty, but faith provides hope for the journey. “The Lord never builds a bridge of faith except under the feet of the faith-filled traveler. If He builds the bridge ahead, it would not be a bridge of faith.” (Streams in the Desert)
Hebrews 11:6 reminds us that without faith it is impossible to please God and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him. When God calls, faith answers.
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The Creator made His plan obvious. Jesus said that since the beginning of creation, God created them male and female so that they would be joined together and become one flesh (Mark 10:6-8). Jesus adds, “Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate” (Verse 9). We can see from God’s original design that males and females are to be joined together. Yes, there are only two genders, not an infinite number. As many today struggle with what is called “gender confusion” or “gender dysphoria,” we can lovingly remind them of this biblical truth: God is not the author of confusion but of peace (1 Cor 14:33).

Reflecting on why some celebrate Pride Month, and my appearance on Fox News in debating a pastor who supports homosexuality, I decided to re-release these points:
1. Tolerance is simply putting up with differences, but love embraces regardless of differences. In the past, I had the privilege of visiting a male prostitute in North Hollywood… I had received a call from his sister, telling me that he was suicidal. I drove there the next day and spent two hours with him, sharing my own prodigal story and telling him about God’s love and the hope we have in Christ.
When I left, he seemed built up and encouraged, but within a month, I received a call telling me that he had died in his sleep. Before his death, he told his family he had been reading my books. Tolerance would not have motivated me to drive three hours round trip, but love did!
2. Challenging those we disagree with is often a characteristic of love, not hate. Parents confront, challenge, and admonish daily. Do they hate their children?
When people disagree, do they always hate each other? Of course not. The reason challenges against the LGBTQ agenda are labeled “hate speech” is to silence the messenger. Those who support the LGBTQ movement  wouldn’t get very far if they said, “We know that many Christians love us, but we don’t like their advice.”
3. The Creator made His plan obvious. Jesus said that since the beginning of creation, God created them male and female so that they would be joined together and become one flesh (Mark 10:6-8). Jesus adds, “Therefore what God has joined together, let not man separate” (Verse 9). We can see from God’s original design that males and females are to be joined together. Yes, there are only two genders, not an infinite number.
As many today struggle with what is called “gender confusion” or “gender dysphoria,” we can lovingly remind them of this biblical truth: God is not the author of confusion but of peace (1 Cor 14:33).
4. There is no Scriptural support for homosexuality or transgenderism. Some argue, “The Bible is not an ethical textbook—culture changes, and so does the Bible.” Not so.
Not a single moral law that God has ever given is obsolete.
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We should have compassion for those who struggle with same-sex attraction and gender confusion because we all struggle with sin, but at the same time, we should not condone or excuse this type of sin any more than we condone or excuse any other sin. I’m convinced that the majority of American churches seek to please the masses rather than convict. Judgment is never mentioned, repentance is rarely sought, and sin is often excused. They want to build a church rather than break a heart, be politically correct rather than biblically correct, and coddle and comfort rather than stir and convict. This leaves people confused and deceived because they are taught to live a form of Christianity void of repentance …void of truth. 

The celebration of Pride Month in our culture has become an opportunity to attack Christianity and say that it is a religion of hate. To say that authentic Christians hate or fear homosexuals or the trans community demonstrates a gross misunderstanding of Christianity.
One of the marks of true Christianity is the ability to relate to people on their level and to show genuine love and concern for them.
Speaking the Truth in Love
I have nothing but compassion for anyone who is trapped in sexual sin. The Bible is crystal clear on sexual sin, including homosexuality. Christians who strongly believe that the Bible reveals God’s will regarding sexual behavior also strongly believe in God’s love and forgiveness through Jesus Christ. To “confront in love” simply comes from a desire to honor God by loving and caring for others.
Unfortunately, Christians who choose to uphold the Word of God are now labeled as judgmental, bigoted, and intolerant. But how can we warn if we won’t confront, correct if we won’t challenge, and contend if we won’t question?
Sexual Sin and the Moral Law
Jesus confirmed that the moral laws in the Old Testament about murder, stealing, lying, and sexual immorality are still valid. For example, Leviticus 20:13 states, “If a man lies with a male as he lies with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination.” To suggest that this verse or others like it are invalid today is to engage in the dangerous practice of redefining or deleting what God has said. Homosexuality will always be an “abomination” in God’s sight.
Jesus condemned “all” sexual activity outside of marriage between a man and woman when He said, “Out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications” (Matthew 15:19). The word “fornication” in Greek is porneia; this is where our word “pornography” comes from. Jesus was saying that all sexual activity outside of marriage between a man and a woman is harmful and immoral.
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Seeking the presence of God encourages the filling of the Spirit that pushes out the deeds of the flesh. Don’t miss that, it’s key: What flows in, flows out. Arguments, complaining and gossip all happen when we’re filled with work more than we are filled with worship. You can once again refuel the fire of the Spirit by taking time today to repent of a cold and callous heart. Let His presence become your pursuit. The more you seek Him the more you’ll find Him.

Although God is everywhere, or what theologians call omnipresent, there is a marked difference between a believer who is dry spiritually and dead inside compared to one who is full of passion, desire and fire.
The corridors of church history are filled with stories of Christians being spiritually dead but then coming alive.
What changed? What happened? In short, they pursued God like never before. They abandoned their idols, repented of their lukewarmness and sought God — His presence was their pursuit. When you seek God, you will find Him. (Jer. 29:13)
Are You Thirsty?
The pursuit of God is what holds everything together — from finding peace and joy to overcoming the enemy and finishing strong. Sadly, many believers do not finish well because their pursuit of God gets pushed to the side.
Seeking the presence of God must be your all-consuming passion. Moses cried, “Show me Your glory!” Joshua lingered in the tent with the presence of God (Ex. 33:11); Isaiah said that he saw the King (Isa. 6:5); and the Disciples waited in the upper room for His presence. (Acts 1:13)
These were life-changing moments, and you can have one as well. Are you thirsty? It all begins here: “Let anyone who is thirsty come to Me and drink.” (John 7:37)
The Cost of Intimacy
Mark 14:3 tells us that Jesus was at Bethany reclining at a table when a woman with an alabaster flask of very costly ointment broke the flask and poured it over His head. It is here, and in many other places in Scripture, that we realize that intimacy has a cost.
God must be a priority even when we don’t feel like pursuing Him. Pursuing His presence doesn’t always mean that we feel His presence. That’s why Hebrews 11:6 is so important: “He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” Your perseverance will eventually be rewarded.
No Accident
We also read in Mark 14:4-5 that there were some present in Bethany who scolded her with these words, “Why was the ointment wasted like that? For this ointment could have been sold for more than three hundred denarii and given to the poor.”
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Before there is a battle cry there must be a heart cry. Before we fight, we must repent. Sadly, many Christians are angry but still arrogant, wound-up but not worshippers, haughty but not holy. What’s it going to take to finally break us? More perversion? More violence? More depravity? Wake up church!

A battle cry is used to summon armies to war. A loud, unified shout could intimidate the strongest of enemies. Confidence in battle often tilts the scale toward victory, whereas timidity, fear, and cowardliness will surely lead to defeat.
In these dreadful times, don’t be shamed into silence. Follow Isaiah’s lead and raise your voice like a trumpet — awake and arise! (58:1; 60:1).
Can We Handle the Truth?
America today is a lot like Israel in Isaiah’s time. He painted a very vivid picture of Israel’s depravity: “You sons of the sorceress, you offspring of the adulterer and the harlot!” (57:3).
The love of the occult, magic, and divination has never been greater, nor has sexual perversion. The stench has surely reached the nostrils of God.
Isaiah lamented that they inflamed themselves “with gods under every green tree, slaying the children in the valleys, under the clefts of the rocks” (57:5).
They slaughtered their children on the altar of pleasure. Sound familiar? Did you know that rape or the loss of life of the mother is not the driving force behind abortion? The main driving force is failure to take responsibility for sexual sin. 
Blatant Sin Demands a Strong Rebuke
Many today would no doubt chide Isaiah for his apparent lack of grace and love. But God showed tremendous grace, mercy, and love while dealing with Israel. Even today, He is patient and long-suffering with us.
Although many of the prophetic books are not always in chronological order, we find in Isaiah 55 that everyone who thirsts could come to the waters and drink freely, and that those who  seek the Lord  will find Him. What an incredible promise!
In Isaiah 56, we are encouraged to seek righteousness. He then switches gears and talks about blind watchmen who cannot bark and warn the people. God loved His people so much that he would send prophetic voices to warn them. Are you listening today?
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When Isaiah was rocked and shaken by his complete unworthiness, he finally broke down and repented. Full surrender is the only way to recapture the power of the Spirit. Like Isaiah, we’ve been bought with a price, and we must surrender to our King’s will.

A desire to truly experience God runs deep within our veins. However, for most Christians, experiencing God is either elusive and frightening or impossible and improbable. But to the thirsty pilgrim, God’s presence is a wellspring of life. Do we fight for it, or let it fade away? Do we contend for a deeper walk with God, or complain about our life? Do we pursue God like never before, or postpone intimacy?
Psalm 85:6 is the prayer that unlocks the power: “Oh God, we are desperate for more of you. Will you revive us again so that we can rejoice and experience your power and presence in our lives” (paraphrase).
Filling an Empty Vessel
In Ephesians 5:8, Paul tells us to “be filled with the Spirit.” The filling of the Spirit is God’s work, but we must submit by emptying our vessel. There can be many subsequent fillings of the Spirit (cf. Acts 4:8 and Acts 13:9). However, you can’t fill something that is already full — full of self. We must repent of pride and renounce arrogance.
Isaiah 6 offers an incredible glimpse into this dynamic power and the possibility of truly experiencing God.
Isaiah describes the day that his wonderful experience took place. It was in the year that King Uzziah died. He would never forget that day, and you too will never forget the day when God radically fills you with His Spirit, or when you return to Him and experience the joy of your salvation again. It’s a true spiritual explosion.
Holy Ground Shakes
Isaiah said that he “saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple” (6:1). What a wonderful picture of His majesty and His power. The size of the train on a robe would often match the authority of the king. God’s train filled the entire temple. What an awesome sight to behold! No better words could have been chosen — God Almighty rules and reigns.
Isaiah also saw amazing six-winged creatures known as seraphim. Their cry should be our cry as well when we truly experience God: “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory!”
It’s not by chance that moral purity encompasses the rhythm of their soul. Of all the attributes of God, holiness is mentioned more frequently than the others. Even the posts of the door of the temple responded to the cry of holiness. So powerful was the declaration that the entire entrance was shaken by the voices who cried, “Holy, holy, holy.” Let those words sink in!
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