GOD HAS BECOME OUR SPARE TIRE!

When Self-Sufficiency Replaces Dependence on God—and Sin Becomes Just Another Mistake

Scriptural Foundation: Revelation 3:17 (KJV)

"Because thou sayest, I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind, and naked:"

WHEN DID WE STOP NEEDING GOD?

There was a time—and some of us are old enough to remember it—when we knew, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that we could not make it without the Lord.

We didn't just sing about needing Him. We needed Him!

We needed Him when we awakened in the morning. We needed Him when we lay down at night. We needed Him when the cupboard was nearly empty, when the bills were due, when our children were sick, and when tomorrow seemed more uncertain than yesterday.

And we didn't apologize for admitting it!

We prayed because we believed prayer made a difference. We worshiped because we knew He was worthy. We served because we understood that our lives belonged to Him.

Church wasn't supposed to be a weekly performance. Worship wasn't supposed to be entertainment. And serving the Lord wasn't supposed to be something we squeezed into our schedules whenever nothing more important demanded our attention.

Our relationship with God was supposed to be real, enduring, personal, and life-changing.

But somewhere along the way, something happened.

We became educated. We became sophisticated. We became financially comfortable. We developed technology that could accomplish in seconds what once required days.

And gradually, almost imperceptibly, we began behaving as though we no longer needed the God who brought us this far.

Oh, we haven't necessarily stopped talking about Him.

We simply stopped depending on Him.

GOD—OUR EMERGENCY SPARE TIRE!

Think about the spare tire in your automobile.

You know it's there. You're glad it's there. You may even check on it occasionally.

But as long as your regular tires are functioning properly, you don't give that spare tire much thought.

You only reach for it when something goes wrong.

And tragically, that is how many people have come to treat Almighty God!

As long as the money is flowing, the children are behaving, the marriage is functioning, the business is profitable, and the doctor says everything looks fine, we can manage without Him.

But let trouble come knocking!

Let the doctor discover something unexpected. Let the bank account run dry. Let a marriage begin falling apart. Let a child wander into danger.

Suddenly, we remember how to pray!

Suddenly, we remember the church!

Suddenly, we remember the God we've ignored for weeks, months, and sometimes years!

And thank God, in His mercy, He still hears the cries of those who sincerely call upon Him.

But beloved, God was never meant to be our spare tire. He is supposed to be the One directing the entire journey!

Proverbs 3:5–6 reminds us to trust in the Lord with all our hearts, rather than leaning upon our own understanding, and to acknowledge Him in all our ways.

Not just in emergencies.

In ALL our ways!

"IN GOD WE TRUST"—OR "IN MYSELF I TRUST"?

We proudly display the words "In God We Trust."

They appear on our currency. We repeat them in speeches. We invoke them during national emergencies.

But I wonder whether the unspoken motto of much of our modern society has become something altogether different:

"In myself I trust. God is simply my handyman."

We want Him to repair what we've broken, restore what we've neglected, rescue what we've endangered, and bless what we've undertaken without ever consulting Him.

We want His protection without His direction.

His provision without His commandments.

His blessings without His correction.

His promises without His conditions.

And His heaven without His holiness.

We want a God who will fix our problems but never confront our behavior.

A God who will comfort us but never convict us.

A God who will forgive us but never require us to repent.

But beloved, the God of the Bible is not our personal handyman!

He is the Creator of heaven and earth.

He is holy!

He is righteous!

He is sovereign!

And whether this generation acknowledges Him or not, He remains God!

Malachi 3:6 declares:

"For I am the LORD, I change not..."

The world may change its standards. Society may redefine its values. Churches may adjust their messages to accommodate popular opinion.

But God has not changed!

THE WORD WE DON'T WANT TO HEAR ANYMORE: SIN!

Now, here is where the message becomes uncomfortable.

And perhaps that discomfort is precisely what we need.

There is a word that seems increasingly unwelcome in many conversations—and, sadly, in some pulpits.

SIN!

There! I said it!

Not a miscalculation.

Not an unfortunate decision.

Not a momentary lapse in judgment.

Not simply a mistake.

SIN!

We have become exceptionally skilled at finding gentler expressions for behavior that Scripture plainly identifies as disobedience to God.

We say:

• "You made a mistake."

• "You failed, but everybody fails."

• "You tried your best."

• "God understands."

• "Your heart was in the right place."

• "Your timing was simply off."

• "Don't worry. You'll get it right next time."

Now, understand me.

There are genuine mistakes. There are failures that do not involve deliberate wrongdoing. There are circumstances in which someone sincerely tries and falls short.

And yes, God knows our weaknesses, understands our struggles, and extends mercy to the repentant.

But when God calls something sin, we have no authority to rename it simply because the original word makes us uncomfortable.

Romans 3:23 declares:

"For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;"

Notice that Scripture does not say all have merely made mistakes.

It says all have SINNED!

And 1 John 1:8 warns:

"If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us."

Beloved, when we refuse to acknowledge sin, we also refuse to acknowledge our need for forgiveness.

And when we refuse to acknowledge our need for forgiveness, we begin convincing ourselves that we can live without a Savior.

That is a dangerous place to be!

WHEN THE PULPIT STOPS CALLING SIN WHAT GOD CALLS SIN

Let me speak for a moment to those of us who have been entrusted with the responsibility of preaching and teaching God's Word.

We are not called to entertain congregations into eternity.

We are not called to build personal kingdoms, accumulate followers, or preach only what people enjoy hearing.

We are called to proclaim the Word of God!

Paul instructed Timothy in 2 Timothy 4:2:

"Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine."

And in the verses that follow, Paul warns of a time when people will not endure sound doctrine but will seek teachers who satisfy their own desires.

Does that sound familiar?

There is a temptation to preach encouragement without correction, prosperity without sacrifice, blessings without obedience, and salvation without repentance.

But a sermon that never challenges the sinner may leave the listener feeling wonderful while remaining spiritually unchanged.

Please understand something.

Preaching against sin is not the opposite of preaching love. When done faithfully and compassionately, it is an expression of love.

A physician who refuses to tell a patient the truth about a dangerous illness is not demonstrating compassion.

And a preacher who refuses to declare the whole counsel of God because someone might become offended is not demonstrating faithfulness.

We must preach grace!

We must preach mercy!

We must preach forgiveness!

We must preach the love of Jesus Christ!

But we must also preach repentance, righteousness, holiness, judgment, and the necessity of being born again.

Because the same Jesus who offers forgiveness also calls sinners to repentance.

THE CHURCH OF LAODICEA—A MIRROR OF OUR TIMES?

Return with me to Revelation 3:17.

The church of Laodicea had developed a dangerously inflated opinion of itself.

It believed it was rich.

It believed it had prospered.

It believed it needed nothing.

But the Lord's assessment was radically different.

He described its true spiritual condition as wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked.

Imagine that!

A congregation could possess material wealth, social influence, impressive facilities, and public recognition—and still be spiritually impoverished.

A church could have beautiful buildings, talented musicians, polished presentations, sophisticated technology, and a calendar filled with activities.

Yet none of those things, by themselves, can establish that God is pleased.

We can have everything that money can purchase and still lack what only God can provide.

That is the danger of spiritual self-sufficiency.

And before we point our fingers at another congregation, another denomination, or another believer, perhaps we should examine ourselves.

Am I still depending upon God?

Do I still hunger for His Word?

Do I still seek His will?

Does sin still grieve my heart?

Is my worship genuine?

Or have I become so comfortable with my religious routine that I no longer recognize my spiritual condition?

The Laodicean warning was not written merely for us to criticize an ancient congregation.

It calls us to examine our own hearts today.

TAKE ME BACK TO THE OLD LANDMARK!

Oh, how I long for us to return to the old landmark!

Not necessarily to an old building.

Not to outdated customs simply because they are old.

Not to a particular musical style, denomination, or religious tradition.

I am talking about returning to the unalterable, unchangeable, holy Word of the living God!

The landmark where prayer was more than a ceremonial opening.

Where worship came from the heart.

Where people didn't have to be entertained into praising the Lord.

Where parents taught their children the Scriptures.

Where the Bible was opened at home and not merely carried to church.

Where repentance wasn't considered an embarrassment.

Where holiness wasn't treated as an outdated concept.

Where the preacher preached the Word even when it challenged the congregation—and the preacher himself.

Where we understood that salvation was not a license to live however we pleased, but the beginning of a transformed life.

Jeremiah 6:16 declares:

"Thus saith the LORD, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls..."

Oh, beloved, those old paths!

A place where we used to pray and call home, both night and day.

A place where tears were not signs of weakness but sometimes expressions of genuine repentance.

A place where we didn't just ask God to bless what we were doing—we first asked whether what we were doing pleased Him.

Take us back, Lord!

Not backward in knowledge, compassion, or understanding.

But back to the foundation from which we should never have departed.

Back to Your Word.

Back to prayer.

Back to genuine worship.

Back to obedience.

Back to holiness.

Back to our first love!

THERE IS STILL HOPE—IF WE WILL REPENT!

Now, I refuse to conclude this message without reminding you of something extraordinarily beautiful.

The same Lord who rebuked the church at Laodicea also extended an invitation.

Revelation 3:19 declares:

"As many as I love, I rebuke and chasten: be zealous therefore, and repent."

Did you catch that?

"As many as I LOVE..."

God's correction is not evidence that He has stopped loving us.

It is evidence that He calls us to return to Him.

And then comes Revelation 3:20:

"Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me."

What a remarkable picture!

The Lord addresses a spiritually complacent church, yet He continues to call for fellowship.

There is still an opportunity to respond.

There is still an invitation to repent.

There is still grace available through Jesus Christ.

But we must stop pretending that everything is spiritually well simply because everything appears materially comfortable.

First John 1:9 reminds us:

"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."

There is forgiveness!

There is restoration!

There is mercy!

But we must be willing to confess what God calls sin rather than excuse it away.

A PERSONAL QUESTION BEFORE YOU GO

I want to leave you with a question.

And please, don't answer too quickly.

If God stopped answering your requests for material blessings tomorrow, would you still love Him, worship Him, serve Him, and trust Him?

If the promotion never came...

If the bank account never increased...

If the circumstances never improved...

If the answer to your prayer was "wait" instead of "yes"...

Would He still be worthy of your praise?

Or has your relationship with Him become dependent upon what He can do for you?

That question reaches far deeper than church attendance, religious vocabulary, or public appearances.

It reaches the heart.

And that is where genuine worship must begin.

MY PRAYER FOR US TODAY

Heavenly Father,

Forgive us for the times we have treated You as an emergency resource rather than the Lord of our lives.

Forgive us for trusting our abilities more than Your wisdom, our resources more than Your provision, and our opinions more than Your Word.

Forgive us for the sins we have excused, the commandments we have neglected, and the truths we have softened simply because they were uncomfortable.

Lord, restore the joy of our salvation.

Give our pastors courage to preach Your Word faithfully, with truth, humility, and love.

Give Your people hearts willing to receive correction.

Teach us to pray again—not merely when trouble comes, but because we love being in Your presence.

Take us back to the old landmark.

Back to the place where Your Word was precious, prayer was essential, obedience was expected, and worship was sincere.

And Father, let that return begin not with somebody else, but with me.

In the mighty name of Jesus Christ,

Amen and Amen!

ONE FINAL THOUGHT

Beloved, we do not need a more convenient God.

We need to return to the God who has never changed.

We do not need a Bible rewritten to accommodate our preferences.

We need hearts transformed by the Bible God has already given us.

And we do not need another generation that knows how to call upon God only when disaster strikes.

We need a generation that knows how to walk with Him every single day!

Remember this:

GOD IS NOT YOUR SPARE TIRE. HE IS YOUR CREATOR, YOUR SAVIOR, YOUR LORD, AND YOUR ONLY HOPE FOR ETERNITY!

The question is not whether God is still God.

The question is whether we are still willing to let Him be Lord of our lives.

Revelation 3:17 | Jeremiah 6:16 | 1 John 1:9

Pilgrim Outreach Ministries International (POMI)

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