Eric Ludy Sermon Podcast: Church at Ellerslie

The Devil is very good at what he does. He is amazing at the art of compromising the Christian. And yet, as good as our enemy is at seducing and sabotaging us, God is even more skilled at making Christians overcomes. If we allow our God’s Truth to be our guide, victory is assured over the snazzy speedboats of the Devil.

The European landscape has experienced many battles, but no country has endured the trauma of war like the small country of Belgium. And in Belgium, it is arguable that the city of Liege has taken the brunt of it. Likewise, the landscape of Scripture has endured many controversies. But the little passage of Hebrews 6:4-6 has experienced more than maybe any other. This small little portion of Scripture forces the question of God's judgment versus His mercy. Is He a God who is seeking any opportunity to cut us off or every opportunity to save us?

In 1911 one of the worst fires in U.S. history took place in the Asch Building in New York City. The doors were locked on the 8th floor, so everyone on the 8th, 9th, and 10th floor of the building were stuck. One man, the foreman of the building, had the key, but he ran to save his own life. May we not be as the foreman in the Asch Building, holding the solution for the salvation of others, but choosing to utilize our precious key merely for our own escape.

Many Christians are seasoned veterans at whooping at their televisions when their team scores that winning touchdown. But few Christians these days are adept at whooping heavenward when God does His God-thing and saves the day down here on earth. We seem to leap and dance at nonsensical things that matter little in light of eternity and yet sparingly supply God the ardent appreciation He truly deserves. What would happen if we flipped this thing around and began to celebrate the goodness, the faithfulness, and the victory of God as we ought?

Thirteen years ago, almost to the day, Eric delivered this message. It proved to be one of the most important messages in the formation of Ellerslie training and the Ellerslie church. With the Alumni in town this past week, Ellerslie has been strolling down Memory Lane. So, it seemed fitting to continue traversing Memory Lane all the way through Sunday morning. This is a fresh delivery of a life-impacting classic!

The Alumni Summit is finally here, and Ellerslie alumni, the world over, have arrived on campus. This week is always one of the most precious of the year and this particular year is sort of a retro-week at Ellerslie, where we go back to the first year of Ellerslie training and bring out of the mothballs some of the great classic messages that marked our beginnings. So, to kick off all the retro-fun, Eric dug in the sermon archives and yanked out this beauty. It's about Napoleon, yes. But more, it’s a profound meditation on the way a true King ought to be crowned—Jesus style. 

In sword fighting, striking with the ricasso part of the blade would be deemed a novice maneuver and one sure to find little to no effect in stopping ones enemy. In fact, it may prove the last swing that novice swordsman ever swings. As believers, we are commissioned to wield a sword. But, what if we aren’t very good at it. After all, when you first pick up the Sword of the Spirit, excellence in handling isn’t usually found instantaneously. There is training needed. So, what about the meantime? Are we to be buzzard food while we get our spiritual swordsmanship in order? Good thing to note, in the Kingdom of Heaven, our success doesn’t lean on our own personal perfection, it rests on our wonderful Savior’s perfection. If you are going to win this battle with the powers of darkness, you must know that the ricasso portion of your blade can devastate your enemy just like the sharpened blade can, if you swing it with childlike faith.

Being a Christian leader exposes you to things—things that are not always pleasant. But how one responds to these “unpleasant things” is key to the power and impact of the ministry. Jesus’ ministry was marked by gentleness. And it was with gentleness that Jesus responded to the unpleasant things in His own ministry while here. And, likewise, gentleness ought to be the response of every Christian leader that claims to be a follower of our great Leader, Jesus Christ. But, the idea of “gentleness” is often misunderstood today and sometimes even left out as an important and essential attribute of the Christian life, leaving many Christians bereft of a true understanding of both its function and its true power. Let’s remedy that. 

Water behaves in a bewildering fashion—in a way that is radically different than human behavior. It always goes to the lowest spot. Even if that spot is stinky, it will go there. Even if that spot is unseen, it will set its course for that hidden spot. And though this behavior is different than our instinctive human behavior, it is the precise way that God behaves. And it is God’s desire to plant this same “water-like” behavior in us, His Church. Because those caught in “The Low Spot” hold a special place in His Father’s heart and He desires His Church to go to find them there.

[TECHNICAL NOTE: This audio was initially unusable due to an error that occurred during its original capture. After some intense audio rescue work, it is still imperfect, but it is surprisingly "decent" in its current form. We hope that the imperfections of this particular sermon do not hinder you from enjoying its powerful content.]

The time has come for the Church to stop, consider, refresh, and re-approach this battle. Our old methods for American Christianity are rusty and must be swapped out for freshly oiled Heavenly weaponry. There is a better way to fight this fight, to win this war, and to see a generation awaken to the power of the Gospel. And that is by doing it God’s way. But, to do this Church thing God’s way, we can’t be ruled by political faction, petty contentions, or partisan denominationalism. We need to freshly humble ourselves, forsake our old stodgy ways, and expect God to do a new thing in our midst. This “new thing” won’t violate God’s Word. Rather, it will be perfectly congruent with it. But it very well may violate our American religiosity. And that may make it difficult for some to swallow. God has an answer for this hour. Let’s listen. He is wanting to lead us to victory.