Dr. Steve Farrar: Pilgrims were fascinating people. They were committed to Jesus Christ. They believed in the word of God. Because of their faith in Christ, they were persecuted. They were in exile in Holland for 12 years, and then the opportunity came for them to go to this new land. They didn't know what awaited them. Over 300 of them got into this little ship. They went below deck and they stayed there for 11 weeks. There were 300 of them crammed into an area the size of a volleyball court.
When they arrived on the shores of this country, they didn't have seed. They didn't have tools. They didn't have pension plans. They had nothing. All they had were the clothes on their back and this book. They took the principles of this book and they began to pour a foundation for a great nation. America has been blessed by God because of the foundation that America was built on. The most influential book in the minds of the pilgrims was not the Quran. The most influential book in the minds of the pilgrims was not the writings of Buddha or Lao Tzu. The most influential book was the word of God.
Roger Marsh: That was a clip of our featured guest on today's classic addition of Family Talk, Dr. Steve Farrar. Steve Farrar was the founder and chairman of Men's Leadership Ministries. He was the author of numerous bestselling books, including Point Man, Battle Ready, and Standing Tall. He held a master's degree from Western Seminary in Portland, Oregon, and earned his doctorate from Dallas Theological Seminary.
On February 19th, 2022, Steve Farrar went home to be with the Lord. He has survived by his wife, Mary, their three grown children, and several grandchildren. Steve Farrar used to say that, "For the believer, the last breath is the best breath," and his legacy lives on through the ministry of Men's Leadership Ministries. To learn more about Steve Farrar, please visit drjamesdobson.org/familytalk.
Now over the years, Dr. Dobson has featured several of Steve's dynamic, passionate presentations here on family talk. Dr. Dobson was especially impressed with Steve because he practiced what he preached. Steve Farrar had a deep loyal love for his own family and a commitment to lead them with integrity. Dr. Tim Clinton also knew Steve Farrar and considers him a pioneer and unrivaled influence in shaping the hearts of men and helping them to anchor their lives in their relationship with God.
On today's Family Talk program, you're going to hear the second half of a presentation by Dr. Steve Farrar that was actually recorded over 20 years ago, but you wouldn't be able to tell just by listening to it because the principles shared are still so relevant even today. Now, if you listen to yesterday's broadcast, you heard Dr. Steve Farrar talk about how moral relativism has, and continues to, corrode our society. If you missed it, just go to drjamesdobson.org/familytalk to enjoy the entire two part conversation in full. Well, let's pick up right now where we left off last time, right here on Family Talk.
Dr. Steve Farrar: Want to tell you something, gentlemen. America has crossed the moral line. You've heard of the rise and fall of great nations. America is in a moral free fall right now. A few years ago, the motto of this conference was "Raise the standard." The motto of modern day America is "Lower the standard," and on a daily basis, we continue to lower the standard. America has crossed the line, but we still look so powerful. We still look so prosperous. I want to tell you what America is like.
America is like a cruise ship going through the Caribbean, knifing through the waters. That cruise ship is a picture of power. It's a picture of affluence, but there's a problem. And the problem is this: even though there's music coming off the ship and the orchestra is playing, and even though there are people walking the decks in their beautiful clothes and Rolex watches, and even though there are people around the swimming pool, and even though there are tables of sumptuous food, there's a problem on that powerful ship. There's a problem on that affluent ship. And the problem is this: the engines don't work and the boilers are broken.
You say, "Well, how in the world is it moving?" It's moving off the momentum of the past America is living off the spiritual capital of the past, but it's coming to a halt. Our Visa card's to the limit, and God's going to bring judgment on this nation. I'm sorry to tell you that. I really am sorry, but it's the fact of the matter, gentlemen. Now, here's something we need to understand. I want you to get this. We need to understand as leaders that America's best days are behind us.
Now, that's not popular. It's just the fact of the matter. We're in decline. We need to understand that we are sinking, and we are sinking quickly. We need to understand that it's over in this nation. Now, how else can I encourage you? What I'm trying to say, you guys, is that it's hopeless.
Listen, if you think the Republican Party is going to fix what's wrong with this nation, you better get another party, because the problems are too deep. If you think the Democrats are going to fix it, you better get another party. If you think any politician's going to fix it, I'm not saying don't be involved. I'm saying don't put your hope there, because our problems are so deep and so complex, only the Lord Jesus Christ can fix what's wrong with this nation.
So is there any hope? Is there any hope at all? Now, I don't want to depress you guys. You say, "Farrar, you're a pessimist." Man, I can't believe this. I'm not a pessimist. I'm a realist. And I'm an optimist. I don't like being around pessimists. I don't like being around guys that are negative. You've met guys like that. It's like the guy who said, "I was going to read a book on positive thinking, but then I thought, what good will that do?"
But gentlemen, we have to understand where we are. We have to understand that it is over for this nation unless God breaks through. And we need Him to break through. And gentlemen, here's what we need to have happen. We need God to send a revival to this nation. Now, I want to explain this. I want you to hear me. I'm not talking about revival services. Many of us have been to revival services. Nothing wrong with a revival service. Church will have a few nights of meetings. Bring in some guy from out of town.
Revival services aren't going to cut it. Revival services aren't going to fix what's wrong with this nation. We need revival. You say, "What's the difference between revival and revival services?" Revival services are the work of man. Revival is the work of God. God just suddenly decides He's going to show up. And when He shows up, things get fixed and they get fixed in a hurry. But you can't manufacture revival. You can't plan revival. You can't do anything on your own to make revival come, because it's a sovereign act of God.
We've had two great awakenings in this nation. There was one in the 1700s, there was one in the 1800s. To give you an example of what happens when there's genuine revival, a ship would leave England headed for Boston Harbor. When they left England, none of the crew were Christians. They were just basic pagan unbelievers. But when they pulled in the Boston, all of them had yielded their lives to Jesus Christ. What happened? There was no preacher. The spirit of God just descended. Conviction came upon them. They all gave their lives to Christ. Now, that's revival.
You see, the difference between revival and revival services is an issue of power. Revival services and revival, it's like comparing a AA battery to nuclear energy. We need the power of God to come down and change this nation. The last time that happened, guys, was 1857. You guys still with me? Are you? Hear me out. Let's do a little quick history. The last time there was a worldwide revival was 1857. Let me tell you what happened in 1857. The philosopher Hegel said, "History teaches us that men never learn from history."
We need to learn from history, because history is His story. He owns history, and He owns the future. I look back to history. The last time God broke through and did a massive work of His power that went around the world was 1857. What was happening in America in 1857? Economically, America was doing great. The railroads were going west. They were going to connect this nation. We talk about the internet and the information highway. See, they were talking about the railroads. "Man, if we can connect this nation and get it together, economically, there's no stopping us." People are making money, hand over fist in 1857.
What was the moral issue? In 1857? Slavery was the moral issue. The Supreme Court in the Dred Scott decision had decided and ruled that black people were not human beings. That's what the Supreme Court said. They said, "Black people are just like a chair or a table. They're just things. You can sell them. You can move it around. You can split them up." That's not what the Bible says, but that's what the Supreme Court said.
Let me say a word about the Supreme Court. They're not. Now, don't misunderstand me. Don't misunderstand me. You get out your Bible. You read Romans 13. We're under their authority, and they've been established by God. That's what the Scripture teaches, but let's not forget who they are. They're the Supreme Court of the United States. One day, every one of those justices will make an appearance at the Supreme Court before the lion of Judah, won't they?
They decided black folks weren't human beings. Back in 1857, some people got so upset by that and they were so outraged by slavery, you know what they did? You remember a guy named John Brown? John Brown went around the country shooting people that had slaves. He murdered them in the name of Christ. Isn't that interesting? Just as they were economically prosperous, so we're economically prosperous.
What's the moral issue in America right now? Moral issue is abortion. People that support partial birth abortion, where you take a full term baby, jam scissors in the back of their head, put a catheter in there and suck their brains out, don't you tell me you're a Christian. That's a stench in the nostrils of a Holy God.
The last time there was a revival was 1857. What's interesting to me? Not only do we have abortion going on in this nation, but we have people that are so upset by abortion, they go around and shoot doctors that do abortions. Many of them say they're pro-life. Many of them say they're Christians. If you shoot a doctor that does abortions, you are not pro-life. You are pro-choice. You have made the same choice that the doctor made in taking the life of the baby. You're no different than the doctor, and your crime is as abhorrent as his crime in the eyes of God. So don't tell me you're a Christian. If you're going to be pro-life, be pro-life, and don't shoot a doctor.
Roger Marsh: You're listening to Dr. James Dobson's Family Talk. I'm Roger Marsh breaking in to let you know that we've reached the midpoint of today's program, a program we've titled "Being Men of God in a Lost Culture." Family Talk is a listener supported ministry. Go to drjamesdobson.org to find out more and to learn more about today's guest. And now, let's go back to today's classic presentation featuring the late Dr. Steve Farrar, right here on Family Talk.
Dr. Steve Farrar: God sent revival in 1857. There was a guy by the name of Jeremiah Lanphier. He lived in New York City. He saw all the prosperity. He saw all the wealth. Something troubled his spirit, because he knew something was wrong. He knew that we weren't pleasing God as a nation, and he wanted to see this nation saved, and he knew it was hopeless apart from Christ. The best he could come up with, he said, "Let's get some men together and pray."
He printed up hand bills, posted him around New York City, invited some men to join him for prayer one lunch hour a week. The first lunch hour meeting, he showed up, he was all by himself. Few guys trickled in. By the end of the meeting, there were six guys there. Not a great start to change the world. The next week, 12 guys showed up. The next week, 20 guys showed up. The next week, a few more showed up. 90 days later, in New York City, there were 10,000 men every day meeting for prayer at lunch hour, asking God to send revival to this nation.
And you know what God did? God sent revival. When I look at the revival of 1857, three things happened. The first thing that happened was this: there was a movement of prayer. Last time God sent revival, there was a great movement of prayer. When you've got men meeting every day, thousands of men, and that spread from New York, to Baltimore, to Cleveland, to Chicago. It went all over the country. Guys are meeting for prayer every day. God turned this nation around. Begin the work in me.
They had a movement of prayer. You know what? We've got a movement of prayer. We've got pastors all over America meeting together, praying, asking God to send revival. We've got Christian leaders that are fasting. We've got thousands of Christian leaders that have gone on 40 day fasts. That's serious. That's playing hardball. Saying, "God, would you send revival to this nation?" We got prayer groups all over America asking God to send revival. We haven't seen a movement like this since 1857, so I'm starting to get some hope. I'm starting to get encouraged, because the last time there was a revival, they had a movement of prayer. We got a movement of prayer.
What was the second thing they had? They had a movement of men. God wants men to be responsible. And when God's getting ready to do a work, He gets His men together. I'm starting to get encouraged, because God's doing a work among men. We're not here for a football game. We're here to honor Jesus Christ, and I'm getting encouraged.
You say, "Steve, what was the third thing?" Man, I'm getting excited now. I'm getting pumped now, because man, the last time there was a revival, there was a movement of prayer. There was a movement of men. "What was the other thing, Steve, that they had that we don't have?" There was an economic collapse. Sorry to mention it, but that's what happened. Why was there an economic collapse?
Well, guys, when people have a lot of material things, when people have good incomes, when people are making money in the stock market, when people are investing in amazon.com, when they're investing in yahoo.com and making money hand over fist, you know what? You've got people in your family that you've been praying for to come to know Christ. You've got friends, you've been praying to come to know Christ, but they have no need of Jesus Christ because they're just too cotton picking comfortable.
That's the way it was in 1857. But let God do something. Let God just pull one card out of this house of cards that we call the American economy, and let it come down. And you know what? Let's see how many people might suddenly have a need of Jesus Christ who right now have no need of Jesus Christ, because they have too much.
Am I saying that God's going to send an economic collapse? I'm not a prophet, but I'm going to tell you something. I've read the prophets. And as David Wilkerson has pointed out, the last stage before God sends judgment to a nation, the last stage is financial prosperity. All the way through the Scripture. You know what happened in 1857? God started working in the hearts of men all over America. He started reviving them. They started following Christ with their whole heart. They started getting their finances in order.
In 1857, Christians started doing that. When the bank panics came in 1857, many of the Christians were ready. They were able to minister to those who were wiped out overnight, and hundreds of thousands came to know Jesus Christ. If that's what it takes to bring hundreds of thousands to Jesus Christ, if that's what it takes to bring this nation to Christ, if it takes an economic collapse, you know what I say? I say, bring it on. Bring it on, because God will take care of His people. He's promised to take care of us.
Whenever judgment comes upon a nation, God has a remnant. He takes care of His people. He provides for His people. We don't have to fear, guys. Jesus said, "Don't be anxious about what you're going to eat. Don't be anxious about what you're going to wear. Your Father knows that you need all these things, so seek ye, third, the kingdom of God." That's not what He said. What'd He say? "Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added unto you." I got a question for you. What's first in your life?
Yeah. That's fine. Listen, I want you to answer that in the quietness of your heart. What's first in your life? Do you love Him? As Deuteronomy six says, "You shall love the Lord, your God. With 40 percent of your heart, 30 percent of your soul." You should love him with all your heart, all your soul.
Listen guys, God's not going to put up with this nation much longer. He's going to intervene. Revival may come. We pray that it comes. At some point, judgment's going to come. So what's it going to be? I don't know. I'm praying for revival. You're praying for revival. But what if judgment comes? Let me say something to you if judgment comes. Let me give you two things to do if judgment is coming. And it is coming.
If the judgment of God is coming, get in the Ark. Get in the Ark. Jesus is the Ark. As Noah got in the Ark, you get into Jesus Christ. Number two, if judgment is coming, put the blood over the doorpost of your house and get under the blood. Now, let me make something real clear to you. God has promised to take care of His people, but you've got to decide. You see, the theme of this whole weekend has been as for me in my house, we will serve the Lord. Choose ye this day, whom you will serve.
See if you're going to get in the Ark, you got to get all the way in the Ark. It doesn't count getting halfway in the Ark. Half in, half out. If you're going to get in the Ark, you all get in the Ark. You take everything. You give Him your life. You take your finances in the Ark. You give it to Him. You take pornography, you take addiction, you take your temper. You take it all and get in the Ark where it's safe in Jesus Christ because there's forgiveness there.
But you don't hold it out. You don't segment your life. You give it all to Him with your whole heart. If judgment's coming, you get under the blood. You don't have one foot in and one foot out. What I'm saying, guys, is either follow Christ or don't follow Him, but make up your mind what you're going to do. Your children, your grandchildren need you to make up your mind and to chart a course so that God can send revival to this nation. That's where we are right now.
Don't answer me out loud. But here's the question. Are you following Him with your whole heart? Is He absolutely first in your life? Is there any area of your life that you have not submitted to Him? You want to submit every area of your life to Jesus Christ, because He's looking at your heart, and if you'll give Him every area of your heart, you know what God will do? Even as the nation deteriorates, even as the nation erodes, God will bless you and your family.
Even as the foundations are being destroyed, you can be a Nehemiah and be rebuilding the walls on your family and your community. God's looking for some men that are going to follow Him with their whole hearts. And you know what, guys? If we'll follow Him with our whole hearts, give Him everything we've got, give it all to Him, our strengths, our weaknesses, our fears, our failures, our mistakes, if we give it all to Him, you know what He'll do? He'll bless us beyond our wildest dreams.
Say, "How do you know that Steve?" Because the eyes of the Lord roam to and fro about the Earth, looking for those whose hearts are fully His, that He may strongly support them. You know what, guys? Let's be those men.
Roger Marsh: An emphatic challenge for men to fully devote their lives to God as we conclude this two day classic presentation from the late Dr. Steve Farrar here on Family Talk. Dr. Farrar was a respected colleague of both Dr. Dobson and Dr. Tim Clinton. His vision for building up godly men was sparked while completing his doctorate at Dallas Theological Seminary. Steve based his dissertation on his own research of 1000 Christian men.
He learned that men who wanted to be godly leaders in their homes were discouraged and woefully unprepared to do so. It was a stark revelation that acted as the impetus for Steve's book, Point Man. Steve's ministry has had a tremendous impact on men and families all over the world and his legacy lives on right now through Men's Leadership Ministries. In fact, Steve's book, Point Man, reached the 500,000 copy mark and sales upon its initial release.
To listen to any of today's or yesterday's programs that you might have missed, be sure to visit DrJamesDobson.org/familytalk. We'll also have a link there to Steve Farrar Ministries and the updated and revised version of Steve's seminal book, Point Man: How a Man Can Lead His Family. This revised version was updated by Steve, and then published posthumously. Again, visit DrJamesDobson.org/familytalk, and you'll find a link to the book and also Steve Farrar's Men's Leadership Ministry, and today's and yesterday's two part programs there, as well. That's drjamesdobson.org/familytalk.
Or give us a call anytime, day or night. (877) 732-6825. Remember, if you'd prefer, you can always contact us through the US Mail. Dr. Dobson loves getting letters and cards from our listeners, and we make sure that every note and every card and every letter is read. Our ministry mailing address is The Dr. James Dobson Family Institute. PO Box 39000 Colorado Springs, Colorado. The zip code 80949. Again, our ministry mailing address is The Dr. James Dobson Family Institute. PO Box 39000, Colorado Springs, Colorado. The zip code, 80949, and we look forward to hearing from you.
Thanks again for listening to Family Talk today and every day. We hope you'll join us again next time. And until then, may God continue to richly bless you and your family.
Announcer: This has been a presentation of the Dr. James Dobson Family Institute.
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