About Andrew Schank

Andrew Schank is an Independent Baptist Missionary/Pastor who loves to blog about spiritual matters! His main ministry website is http://www.togetherinthegap.com. Andrew is also a contributing author to two other blogs/websites including http://linked2leadership.com and http://www.ifbkjv.com. Pastor Schank's Church website is http://www.greatcommissionbaptist.org

The Lonely Side Of Ministry: Undesirable, But Fruitful!

Andrew SchankThe following post is taken from Great Commission Baptist Church of Blair, Nebraska‘s website. This church is where the owner of this website, Andrew Schank is the pastor.

Ministry, like South African diamonds, has many wonderful and unique facets to it. When an experienced jeweler holds a diamond up to the light and examines its core with a magnifying eyepiece, hard cold reality is unabridged. He or she sees the diamond for what it is. What may have seemed beautiful at a distance is sometimes not so pretty up close and personal. Continue reading

Brokenness!

Pastor Andrew SchankBefore one can be mightily used of the Lord, they must be B.R.O.K.E.N.! It is when we are stripped of ourselves that we can be the canvas upon which God can paint a divinely inspired mosaic. The raw material from which God creates a great servant is one who is first broken. We see this illustrated on our own kitchen counters. Bread is made from wheat, but the kernels have to be stripped of its skin and then ground into powder. This flour is used along with other ingredients to make the dough. When placed into the oven, the bread comes forth. Our lives as believers are no different! Continue reading

The Depths Of Sin – An Unpopular Subject That Fewer Pastors Are Proclaiming

The world’s greatest dilemma and man’s biggest problem is SIN! Though people face cruel diseases, harsh climates, great famines, and tough economic times, SIN is man’s biggest issue. In fact, the SIN of man is the cause our problems in the first place. You would think with the ever increasing number of murders and other capitol crimes worldwide that people would cry out against SIN. Sad to say this does not happen. Great attention, however, is given to the grievous results of SIN rather than to the root cause and Biblical remedy for this awful plight mankind is planted in.

Take a moment and consider the following thoughts on the subject: “The Depths of Sin!” May God take these truths and engrave them in your soul with His finger. May we, who preach God’s Word, proclaim this for all men to hear so they will be warned of the dangers of sin’s dark depths!

From The Miry Clay To The Solid Rock

(Psalms 40:2) “He brought me up also out of an horrible pit, out of the miry clay, and set my feet upon a rock, and established my goings.”  (KJV)

Sin is described as miry clay in this verse. The clay being described here is not easily navigated through and will certainly entrench someone before they realize it. Once free, the sticky clay will adhere to clothing and shoes. It will leave footprints where you step. Sin acts in the same way!

The Psalmist is glad that he was lifted from this horrible clay pit! We who know Christ feel the same way. Our Lord Jesus delivered us from the deep clay pits to the sure foundation of the elevated ROCK!

One should always remember that, though Christ has performed the great role as Savior, for those who repent and accept Him, sin is still like the miry clay! It WILL catch hold of you and mar your testimony and bring defeat when dabbled in.

From Condemnation To Salvation

(Romans 8:1) “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.”  (KJV)

How sweet these words are to a sinner in the depths of his sin. Feeling the awful weight of his sin and rebellion against God, “No Condemnation!” is a welcomed sentence. The weight and guilt builds up as the Holy Ghost convicts the sinner of his desperate need. This is partially done through the preaching about sin and it’s destructive ambition.

If the sinner does not hear the message of condemnation, however, then he cannot fully embrace what God can do for him. Focusing most of the attention on what God has done for the sinner is great, but if someone does not see themselves as a lost sinner, then they will not see the need to repent. As a result, they will not want to be saved!

From Cords Of Sin To Cleansing From Sin

(Proverbs 5:22) “His own iniquities shall take the wicked himself, and he shall be holden with the cords of his sins.”  (KJV)

From this verse we see a description of what sin can and will do to a sinner. As one would use ropes to secure and fasten various commodities when shipping or for placing into storage, so sin grips a sinner. When sin is entertained, it will wrap it’s finger like ropes around your soul and hold on till Christ breaks them asunder.

I am glad that not only will Christ break the chains of sin from off of the sinner, but He will also cleanse the stains of sin away! (1 John 1:9 & Isaiah 1:18) Once held and bound, now free and clean. WOW! What a difference Jesus can make in a sinner’s life!

Conclusion

The words of the songwriter echo in my soul as I muse upon this topic. It goes like this:

“Sin will take you farther than you want to go, slowly, but wholly taking control. Sin will leave you longer than you want to stay. Sin will cost you far more than you want to pay”

Sin is dangerous and is nothing to play around with. Nobody has ever come away from it without it’s prominent scars! It can take a person down into the lowest of gutters and can make people do things that animals do not even consider participating in.

Pastor, why do so many quit warning people about sin? Why have so many generalized the subject and stopped calling sin by it’s Biblical name? If there was ever a time to proclaim and preach against specific sin, it is now!

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