To Christians the world is divided into two groups of people; the righteous and the sinners. Christians see it as their duty to convert the world by preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. We see a world full of sinners steeped in sin. But has anyone ever thought to ask the question, 'Why do sinners sin'. I know the story of the fall of Adam comes to mind but the word of God sheds some interesting light on the question of sin.
Why do sinners sin?
Romans 5:18a
So then as through one transgression there resulted condemnation to all men,
Romans 5:19a
For as through the one mans disobedience the many were MADE sinners,
Paul is literally telling you that you are a sinner because you were BORN THAT WAY. There was no point at which you CHOSE to be a sinner. SIN IS NOT A CHOICE FOR THE SINNER. Consider:
2 Corinthians 4:3-4
And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing, in whose case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
Here Paul tells us that the unbelievingly (this included EVERYONE at some point) are BLINDED by Satan. This is interesting because the sinner here is OBVIOUSLY a victim of his condition. Asking the sinner to stop sinning is therefore like demanding that a blind man see light. But let us see what else is stated:
2 Corinthians 3:14-16
But their minds were hardened; for until this very day at the reading of the old covenant the same veil remains unlifted, because it is removed in Christ. But TO THIS DAY whenever Moses is read, a veil lies over their heart; but whenever a person turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away.
Here Paul is describing the state of the Jews. He says that their hearts were hardened and it remains so to this day. What else does the word say about the condition of the sinner:
Ephesians 4:18
... being darkened in their understanding, excluded from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the hardness of their heart;
Alright we know that the heart of the sinner is hardened. What else:
Romans 8:7
...because the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so,
Did you read that? Paul says that the sinner (remember that he is BORN this way) is NOT EVEN ABLE TO SUBJECT HIMSELF TO THE LAW OF GOD.
1 Corinthians 2:14
But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.
God tells us that a natural man CANNOT understand the things of the spirit. We think that if they would just be attentive during an alter call then they would understand, but God says NO.
How did they get this way?
Remember a few verse back when we read about the Jews being veiled? Here we see WHY:
Romans 11:25
For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery—so that you will not be wise in your own estimation—that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in;
God here tells us that he hardened the hearts of the Jews for a particular reason. You ask, well doesn't the sinner harden his OWN heart and in this way he is the cause of his own condition? My answer to you is a question. If God locks you in a box can you some how get out?
Romans 11:32
For God has bound all men over to disobedience so that he may have mercy on them all.
This word bound is the Greek word sugkleiō which means to 'enclose in a net'. Here we see that GOD imprisons the WHOLE of mankind to disobedience. See it here again:
Galatians 3:22
But the Scripture has shut up everyone under sin, so that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.
We can therefore conclude from these things that a sinner can no more stop sinning than a blind man can avoid a ditch!
Can a sinner turn to God by his own power?
This is a pertinent question because since sinners are bound to sin can the sinner turn to God on his own? Consider:
2 Corinthians 4:6-7
For God, who said, Light shall shine out of darkness, is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Christ. But we have this treasure in earthen vessels, so that the surpassing greatness of the power will be of God and not from ourselves;
Hello, these verses tell us that it is GOD who turns the sinner and NOT the sinner himself, Here again:
Colossians 1:21-22
And although you were formerly alienated and hostile in mind, engaged in evil deeds, yet He has now reconciled you in His fleshly body through death, in order to present you before Him holy and blameless and beyond reproach—
Do you see the activity of the sinner ANYWHERE in the above verse? God is doing the reconciling and HE is the one presenting you holy and blameless and beyond reproach.
John 6:44
No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up on the last day.
Jesus is saying here that NO ONE, again, NO ONE can come to him(Jesus) UNLESS God draws him. Not the sinner's will but GOD's will.
John 6:45
It is written in the prophets, And they shall all be taught of God. Everyone who has heard and learned FROM the Father, comes to Me.
Again we see that only those who has learned FROM the Father comes to Jesus. It is the Father's choice and NOT the sinner.
2 Timothy 2:25
...with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth,
IF PERHAPS, wow!!!! Again it is God who turns the sinner and NOT the sinner himself. This is confirmed by:
Acts 16:14
A woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple fabrics, a worshiper of God, was listening; and the LORD OPENED HER HEART TO RESPOND to the things spoken by Paul.
Who opened her heart? God. Do you believe this:
Acts 13:48
When the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord; and as many as had been APPOINTED to eternal life believed.
Have you ever wondered why salvation is called a gift, it is because it is given BY God.
But why would God subject the sinner to sin?
Romans 9:18-23
So then He has mercy on whom He desires, and He hardens whom He desires. You will say to me then, Why does He still find fault? For who resists His will? On the contrary, who are you, O man, who answers back to God? The thing molded will not say to the molder, Why did you make me like this, will it? Or does not the potter have a right over the clay, to make from the same lump one vessel for honorable use and another for common use? What if God, although willing to demonstrate His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction? And He did so to make known the riches of His glory upon vessels of mercy, which He prepared beforehand for glory,
GOD SUPPLIES HIS OWN EXPLANATION.
Saturday, August 13, 2011
Friday, August 12, 2011
I swear!
James 5:12
But above all, my brethren, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath; but your yes is to be yes, and your no, no, so that you may not fall under judgment.
This is an interesting passage of scripture that tells us how we should conduct ourselves as believer. James tells us that we are FORBIDDEN to swear. He rather cautions us to simply let our Yes be Yes and our No be No. But do you know WHY he says this? He got this command from Jesus who said:
Matthew 5:34-35
But I say to you, make no oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, or by the earth, for it is the footstool of His feet, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.
Making oaths and swearing was a very powerful thing during this time that carried huge implications. When one made an oath it was binding. One could only make oaths if one had power to perform these oaths. Consider Jesus' next statement:
Matthew 5:36
Nor shall you make an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black.
Making oaths and swearing had to do with power to perform the oath. When one said 'I swear' one was ALSO declaring that 'I HAVE THE POWER TO PERFORM' what I am swearing to. This is evident in verse 36 above where Jesus said 'do not swear by your head because you DO NOT HAVE THE POWER to make one hair black or white'. Jesus is telling you NOT to swear because you cannot perform anything or cause anything to happen.
Consider our frivolous declarations when a man tells his intended, 'I swear to love you for the rest of my life', and on the night before they marry he fornicates with a stripper. He might have had good intentions with his oath and may have sincerely believed his words BUT HE HAD NO POWER TO ENSURE THAT WHAT HE SWORE TO COULD BE PERFORMED. This is why Jesus tells us to just say Yes or No, because beyond that is evil.
Consider this:
Isaiah 45:23a
I have sworn by Myself, The word has gone forth from My mouth in righteousness And will not turn back,
God speaks! The only one with the power to perform, declares. In this verse he tells us that he has sworn by himself. Now why is that? It's because he is the ONLY one with power. But why would God take such an over the top stance, you see when God swears it is a measure BEYOND his normal speech. Since God will always have what he says, for him to swear in addition to speaking is akin to him killing a mosquito by tying it to a lit stick of dynamite. Therefore, whatever God is swearing to do MUST be of huge importance for God to intensify his words in such a manner. Before we examine what he swears to, let us examine the context of his words:
Isaiah 45:22
Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth; For I am God, and there is no other.
God is talking about saving all the people of the earth. He then swears by himself. But what does he swear to accomplish?
...That to me every knee will bow, every tongue will swear allegiance.
In this rare instance on this occasion of occasions we have the God of heaven who created all with his mouth, SWEARING that every human being will swear allegiance to HIM. Will God do this? He says that:
...the word has gone forth from my mouth...
Where do we see this happening?:
John 3:17
For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.
Here is the word of God going forth from his mouth and what is it's purpose? TO SAVE THE WORLD! And what does the Word of God (Jesus) say of his task:
John 4:34
Jesus said to them, My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to accomplish His work.
GOD SWEARS, DO YOU BELIEVE HIM?
But above all, my brethren, do not swear, either by heaven or by earth or with any other oath; but your yes is to be yes, and your no, no, so that you may not fall under judgment.
This is an interesting passage of scripture that tells us how we should conduct ourselves as believer. James tells us that we are FORBIDDEN to swear. He rather cautions us to simply let our Yes be Yes and our No be No. But do you know WHY he says this? He got this command from Jesus who said:
Matthew 5:34-35
But I say to you, make no oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, or by the earth, for it is the footstool of His feet, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King.
Making oaths and swearing was a very powerful thing during this time that carried huge implications. When one made an oath it was binding. One could only make oaths if one had power to perform these oaths. Consider Jesus' next statement:
Matthew 5:36
Nor shall you make an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black.
Making oaths and swearing had to do with power to perform the oath. When one said 'I swear' one was ALSO declaring that 'I HAVE THE POWER TO PERFORM' what I am swearing to. This is evident in verse 36 above where Jesus said 'do not swear by your head because you DO NOT HAVE THE POWER to make one hair black or white'. Jesus is telling you NOT to swear because you cannot perform anything or cause anything to happen.
Consider our frivolous declarations when a man tells his intended, 'I swear to love you for the rest of my life', and on the night before they marry he fornicates with a stripper. He might have had good intentions with his oath and may have sincerely believed his words BUT HE HAD NO POWER TO ENSURE THAT WHAT HE SWORE TO COULD BE PERFORMED. This is why Jesus tells us to just say Yes or No, because beyond that is evil.
Consider this:
Isaiah 45:23a
I have sworn by Myself, The word has gone forth from My mouth in righteousness And will not turn back,
God speaks! The only one with the power to perform, declares. In this verse he tells us that he has sworn by himself. Now why is that? It's because he is the ONLY one with power. But why would God take such an over the top stance, you see when God swears it is a measure BEYOND his normal speech. Since God will always have what he says, for him to swear in addition to speaking is akin to him killing a mosquito by tying it to a lit stick of dynamite. Therefore, whatever God is swearing to do MUST be of huge importance for God to intensify his words in such a manner. Before we examine what he swears to, let us examine the context of his words:
Isaiah 45:22
Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth; For I am God, and there is no other.
God is talking about saving all the people of the earth. He then swears by himself. But what does he swear to accomplish?
...That to me every knee will bow, every tongue will swear allegiance.
In this rare instance on this occasion of occasions we have the God of heaven who created all with his mouth, SWEARING that every human being will swear allegiance to HIM. Will God do this? He says that:
...the word has gone forth from my mouth...
Where do we see this happening?:
John 3:17
For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.
Here is the word of God going forth from his mouth and what is it's purpose? TO SAVE THE WORLD! And what does the Word of God (Jesus) say of his task:
John 4:34
Jesus said to them, My food is to do the will of Him who sent Me and to accomplish His work.
GOD SWEARS, DO YOU BELIEVE HIM?
Thursday, August 11, 2011
To fulfill scripture
Mark 14:49
Every day I was with you in the temple teaching, and you did not seize Me; but this has taken place to fulfill the Scriptures.
I used to think that in regards to prophecy that the bible writers prophesied what they saw in the future, and that prophecy foretold events as they happen in the future. This verse tells us differently, in that, it tells us that events happen TO fulfill what was prophesied. Jesus said that his arrest and the circumstances surrounding it occurred SO THAT the scriptures could be fulfilled. This is not unlike ANY declaration of the bible. Jesus says to the disciples:
Mark 14:7
7 For you always have the poor with you, and whenever you wish you can do good to them; but you do not always have Me.
With a single word Jesus GUARANTEES that as long as this age continues poverty will ALWAYS plague the earth. The fact that the world continues to plague with poverty is BECAUSE the words of Jesus MUST be fulfilled. Again Jesus says:
Matthew 7:14
14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
Here we see that Jesus is prophesying about the amount of people who will come to the kingdom of God. Look around you and you can see that true Christians are in the lowest minority. There are only a FEW who find it; not because it is hard to find but BECAUSE Jesus said that 'ONLY A FEW FIND IT'. So the reality has to match to fulfill the word spoken by Jesus.
The interesting fact about these verses is that they are negative. These negative words spoken by Jesus has framed our reality today. We have poverty everywhere, and we preach a gospel that only a FEW will come to believe. The real kick in the head is that since reality happens TO fulfill scripture then WHY didn't Jesus just speak positive words. If Jesus had declared to the disciples that upon my death and resurrection poverty will end the world over then God would have made the world line up to this prophecy; instead we have a world always on the brink.
It easy to forget that Jesus IS the Word of God. This is not just some title but it is the actual description of WHO/WHAT Jesus is. Jesus was who God used to create the world:
John 1:3
All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.
This confirms the words of Jesus in Mark 14. John tells us that ALL THINGS CAME INTO BEING THROUGH HIM AND APART FROM HIM NOTHING COMES INTO BEING. This verse is the most powerful in ALL of the scriptures, because it tells you that apart from Jesus NOTHING comes into being. All things therefore that occur (comes into being) are BY Jesus. If we see wars arising on the earth it is ONLY because of Jesus that they come into being. If we see men hating one another it is ONLY because it is declared in the word of GOD i.e. Jesus. NOTHING MANIFESTS (comes into being) IN THIS WORLD APART FROM JESUS. Not the beautiful flower or bramble bush; not the softest breeze or the category 5 hurricane; not your best day ever or your worst day ever. NOTHING comes into being apart from Jesus.
Our existence is a story spoken by God and created by Jesus. All that occurs in this story has be spoken before the world came into being. ALL that we do, in fact, ALL that anybody does was determined before Adam took his first breath. ALL we are doing is living out the pattern of life that has been declared for us. We cannot at ANY time make a turn to the left or the right, all we can do is travel the path that has been written for us from the foundation of the world. To those whom God has chosen they will come to him and walk in righteousness, but to those who were not they are destined to make this world as dark as it can be so that the light of God could shine throughout the darkness.
John 1:4-5
In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.
Every day I was with you in the temple teaching, and you did not seize Me; but this has taken place to fulfill the Scriptures.
I used to think that in regards to prophecy that the bible writers prophesied what they saw in the future, and that prophecy foretold events as they happen in the future. This verse tells us differently, in that, it tells us that events happen TO fulfill what was prophesied. Jesus said that his arrest and the circumstances surrounding it occurred SO THAT the scriptures could be fulfilled. This is not unlike ANY declaration of the bible. Jesus says to the disciples:
Mark 14:7
7 For you always have the poor with you, and whenever you wish you can do good to them; but you do not always have Me.
With a single word Jesus GUARANTEES that as long as this age continues poverty will ALWAYS plague the earth. The fact that the world continues to plague with poverty is BECAUSE the words of Jesus MUST be fulfilled. Again Jesus says:
Matthew 7:14
14 But small is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only a few find it.
Here we see that Jesus is prophesying about the amount of people who will come to the kingdom of God. Look around you and you can see that true Christians are in the lowest minority. There are only a FEW who find it; not because it is hard to find but BECAUSE Jesus said that 'ONLY A FEW FIND IT'. So the reality has to match to fulfill the word spoken by Jesus.
The interesting fact about these verses is that they are negative. These negative words spoken by Jesus has framed our reality today. We have poverty everywhere, and we preach a gospel that only a FEW will come to believe. The real kick in the head is that since reality happens TO fulfill scripture then WHY didn't Jesus just speak positive words. If Jesus had declared to the disciples that upon my death and resurrection poverty will end the world over then God would have made the world line up to this prophecy; instead we have a world always on the brink.
It easy to forget that Jesus IS the Word of God. This is not just some title but it is the actual description of WHO/WHAT Jesus is. Jesus was who God used to create the world:
John 1:3
All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.
This confirms the words of Jesus in Mark 14. John tells us that ALL THINGS CAME INTO BEING THROUGH HIM AND APART FROM HIM NOTHING COMES INTO BEING. This verse is the most powerful in ALL of the scriptures, because it tells you that apart from Jesus NOTHING comes into being. All things therefore that occur (comes into being) are BY Jesus. If we see wars arising on the earth it is ONLY because of Jesus that they come into being. If we see men hating one another it is ONLY because it is declared in the word of GOD i.e. Jesus. NOTHING MANIFESTS (comes into being) IN THIS WORLD APART FROM JESUS. Not the beautiful flower or bramble bush; not the softest breeze or the category 5 hurricane; not your best day ever or your worst day ever. NOTHING comes into being apart from Jesus.
Our existence is a story spoken by God and created by Jesus. All that occurs in this story has be spoken before the world came into being. ALL that we do, in fact, ALL that anybody does was determined before Adam took his first breath. ALL we are doing is living out the pattern of life that has been declared for us. We cannot at ANY time make a turn to the left or the right, all we can do is travel the path that has been written for us from the foundation of the world. To those whom God has chosen they will come to him and walk in righteousness, but to those who were not they are destined to make this world as dark as it can be so that the light of God could shine throughout the darkness.
John 1:4-5
In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.
Tuesday, August 9, 2011
Salted with fire.
Mark 9:49
49 For everyone will be salted with fire.
This is one of the more enigmatic passages of scriptures in the four gospel. Seven little words, these particular seven, uttered by Jesus turns Christendom on it's head. In order to proceed with understanding this verse we MUST begin by defining each of the words:
For Everyone; this is the Greek word 'PAS' which means ALL, EVERYBODY
Will be salted; this is the Greek word 'halizō' which means TO MAKE SALTY, it's literal meaning is to CAUSE something to taste salty
With fire; this is the Greek word 'pur' which means to BURN, BURNING
Jesus is telling us that EVERYONE is made SALTY with fire. Now what is most important to our understanding is what Jesus says in very next verse:
Salt is GOOD...
With seven words Jesus tells us that everyone will me MADE salty with fire and then says to us SALT is good. So if everyone will be made salty with fire and SALT is GOOD then EVERYONE will be MADE GOOD. This may not seem outrageous to many UNTIL we realize who is this EVERYBODY he is talking about.
Identifying the EVERYBODY.
The everybody that Jesus is speaking of in the above verse represents 2 groups of people. Those who come to God through Jesus and everybody else; so in effect this everybody that Jesus is talking about is EVERYBODY. Consider the verses that precede verse 49:
Mark 9:43
If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life crippled, than, having your two hands, to go into hell, into the unquenchable fire,
Mark 9:45
45 If your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame, than, having your two feet, to be cast into hell,
Mark 9:47
47 If your eye causes you to stumble, throw it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, than, having two eyes, to be cast into hell,
We can see the division of the two groups of everybody in these preceding verse:
Verse 43- those who enter life and those who go to the unquenchable fire
Verse 45- those who enter life and those who are cast into hell (Gehenna)
Verse 47- those who enter the kingdom of God and those who are cast into hell (Gehenna)
Now Jesus says to us that EVERYONE is made GOOD (salty) by fire. FIRE therefore has a purpose of making EVERYONE good even the believer! That may come as a shock to you until you realize what Jesus says.
WHAT IS THIS FIRE.
In verse 43 Jesus describes a scenario; he says that if your hand cause you to stumble CUT IT OFF. In verse 45 he says if your foot causes you to stumble CUT IT OFF. In verse 47 he says if your eye causes you to stumble THROW IT OUT. This is parabolic language that Jesus uses to convey to us the harshness that we who are believers must undertake in order to be fit for the kingdom of God. Each of these scenarios, if one were to do them literally, would involve immense pain and suffering. To the believer we understand then that Jesus is telling us that our path is filled with pain, suffering and tribulation. To the believer THIS IS YOUR FIRE. This is the fire that God uses to salt us. But Jesus did not just say that ONLY the believers are salted but EVERYONE.
So what is the fire to the world? Everybody else receives their 'salting with fire' after death. It is the salting the believer receives in life that makes us obedient to God. To those who do not receive him now they too will be salted ( made good) by fire. And when their purification is complete then will be fulfilled the scripture:
Isaiah 45:23
I have sworn by Myself, The word has gone forth from My mouth in righteousness And will not turn back, That to Me EVERY knee will bow, EVERY tongue will swear allegiance.
AND
Philippians 2:10-11
That at the name of Jesus EVERY knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that EVERY tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
So we see that BECAUSE everyone will be MADE good by FIRE then EVERY tongue will swear allegiance to GOD and EVERY knee shall bow to JESUS and EVERY tongue will confess JESUS is Lord.
SALT IS GOOD.
MEAT NOT MILK.
49 For everyone will be salted with fire.
This is one of the more enigmatic passages of scriptures in the four gospel. Seven little words, these particular seven, uttered by Jesus turns Christendom on it's head. In order to proceed with understanding this verse we MUST begin by defining each of the words:
For Everyone; this is the Greek word 'PAS' which means ALL, EVERYBODY
Will be salted; this is the Greek word 'halizō' which means TO MAKE SALTY, it's literal meaning is to CAUSE something to taste salty
With fire; this is the Greek word 'pur' which means to BURN, BURNING
Jesus is telling us that EVERYONE is made SALTY with fire. Now what is most important to our understanding is what Jesus says in very next verse:
Salt is GOOD...
With seven words Jesus tells us that everyone will me MADE salty with fire and then says to us SALT is good. So if everyone will be made salty with fire and SALT is GOOD then EVERYONE will be MADE GOOD. This may not seem outrageous to many UNTIL we realize who is this EVERYBODY he is talking about.
Identifying the EVERYBODY.
The everybody that Jesus is speaking of in the above verse represents 2 groups of people. Those who come to God through Jesus and everybody else; so in effect this everybody that Jesus is talking about is EVERYBODY. Consider the verses that precede verse 49:
Mark 9:43
If your hand causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life crippled, than, having your two hands, to go into hell, into the unquenchable fire,
Mark 9:45
45 If your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life lame, than, having your two feet, to be cast into hell,
Mark 9:47
47 If your eye causes you to stumble, throw it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, than, having two eyes, to be cast into hell,
We can see the division of the two groups of everybody in these preceding verse:
Verse 43- those who enter life and those who go to the unquenchable fire
Verse 45- those who enter life and those who are cast into hell (Gehenna)
Verse 47- those who enter the kingdom of God and those who are cast into hell (Gehenna)
Now Jesus says to us that EVERYONE is made GOOD (salty) by fire. FIRE therefore has a purpose of making EVERYONE good even the believer! That may come as a shock to you until you realize what Jesus says.
WHAT IS THIS FIRE.
In verse 43 Jesus describes a scenario; he says that if your hand cause you to stumble CUT IT OFF. In verse 45 he says if your foot causes you to stumble CUT IT OFF. In verse 47 he says if your eye causes you to stumble THROW IT OUT. This is parabolic language that Jesus uses to convey to us the harshness that we who are believers must undertake in order to be fit for the kingdom of God. Each of these scenarios, if one were to do them literally, would involve immense pain and suffering. To the believer we understand then that Jesus is telling us that our path is filled with pain, suffering and tribulation. To the believer THIS IS YOUR FIRE. This is the fire that God uses to salt us. But Jesus did not just say that ONLY the believers are salted but EVERYONE.
So what is the fire to the world? Everybody else receives their 'salting with fire' after death. It is the salting the believer receives in life that makes us obedient to God. To those who do not receive him now they too will be salted ( made good) by fire. And when their purification is complete then will be fulfilled the scripture:
Isaiah 45:23
I have sworn by Myself, The word has gone forth from My mouth in righteousness And will not turn back, That to Me EVERY knee will bow, EVERY tongue will swear allegiance.
AND
Philippians 2:10-11
That at the name of Jesus EVERY knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; And that EVERY tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
So we see that BECAUSE everyone will be MADE good by FIRE then EVERY tongue will swear allegiance to GOD and EVERY knee shall bow to JESUS and EVERY tongue will confess JESUS is Lord.
SALT IS GOOD.
MEAT NOT MILK.
Monday, August 8, 2011
What are we hoping to accomplish?
But realize this, that in the last days perilous times
will come. For men will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant,
revilers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy, unloving, irreconcilable,
malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous,
reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God, 2 Timothy
3:1-4
You may not realize it
but these verses are a prophecy that Paul gives to the church of the last
days. In that these words prophesy the
future it is very important that we understand them in that context. Each word tells us of the condition of the
world just before the end comes. PERILOUSNESS
is the overarching theme of the last days.
The root definition of the word ‘perilous’ is VIOLENCE. Paul's prophecy tells us that the last days
will be filled with violence. Paul's
prophecy continues by saying that mankind will be identified by the following
characteristics:
unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without
self-control, brutal, haters of good, treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers
of pleasure rather than lovers of God,
This prophecy comes
through Paul from God. It tells us what
is to come. My question to you may seem
preposterous but bear with me:
Why do Christians pray to
God and expect him to perform what he WILL not perform?
Paul's prophecy is the
foundation for ALL the increases we see in crime in particular and social
degradation in general the world over.
God is telling us that in the last days all these bad things will
happen. He DID NOT SAY that some great revival will break out to make
the world embrace him, NO, he says that VIOLENCE will consume the world. Okay, since this is so, why do we pray to God
for him to stop crime? Why do we fast and pray to God for a decrease in the
murder rate? I see in churches every week
where some 'word-filled' preacher is binding the spirit of violence and
pleading the blood against the spirit of murder. Such NONSENSE, such HOGWASH! We all agree that we are living in the last
days, and since Paul prophesied that this is what will occur in the last days
WHY ARE WE PRAYING AGAINST THE WORD OF GOD!!!
What do we suppose? Do we suppose
that God will hear us and stop crime and violence? Okay, let's suppose that we pray and pray
hard and God brings an end to murder, violence, homosexuality, treacherousness
and the like; what would that mean? That
would make this prophecy of Paul a LIE.
Is God in the habit of making himself a liar? How about praying for more love in the
world? This seems like a GOOD request,
it seems like the Christian thing to pray for:
Because lawlessness is increased, MOST peoples love
will grow cold. Matthew 24:12
Here again, we can find
ourselves praying for some good thing that God WILL NOT PERFORM.
So am I advocating that
we not pray? No, what I am saying is
that we not pray for what God will not perform.
In fact we are obligated to
pray for HIS will to be done on earth, but we make a foolish assumption
if we believe that the will of God is only roses and honey. We are so consumed with the concept that the
world could be better if we evangelize more, pray more and give more. Mix this with a MISAPPLICATION of the passage
that talks about 'if my people who are called by my name will humble and
pray...' and you end up with a deluded
mess! These ideas arise out of the
concept that God needs us to do and act on this earth. We need to realize that it is God who is in
COMPLETE control of this earth and that even in its current state it is EXACTLY
as God would have it. So what should be
our prayer, not that God would stop the murderer but that God would grant light
to those he has chosen and that they would continue to walk in the light of his
word. Then can we be the fulfillment of:
For God, who said, Light shall shine out of darkness,
is the One who has shone in our hearts to give the Light of the knowledge of
the glory of God in the face of Christ. 2 Corinthians 4:6
The church is NOT
called to eliminate darkness but to be:
…a lamp shining in a DARK PLACE… 2 Peter 1:19
Fruit is the proof.
Mark 4:20
20 And those are the ones on whom seed was sown on the good soil; and they hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold.
This verse comes from Jesus' parable commonly known as 'the sower'. This verse is typically used to induce Christians to part with their cash usually around offering time. Some preacher would bombastically declare that 'if you give into good ground, ie MY CHURCH, God has promised to give you back thirty, sixty or one hundredfold'. This promise they extract from this verse on the sower. This is a CORRUPTION of this verse of scripture! This is no surprise because when your heart is steeped in greed EVERY scripture has something to do with money. The parable of the sower has NOTHING to do with money; it cannot be spiritually applied to getting wealth NOR is it applicable on ANY level to wealth acquisition. Consider the words of Jesus:
Mark 4:14
14 The sower sows the word.
Luke 8:11
11 Now the parable is this: the seed is the word of God.
Jesus says at the beginning of his explanation of the parable that the seed being sown in this parable represents the word of God. What preachers are in a habit of doing is going through the scriptures and finding passages and taking these passages out of their context (though they swear the heavens down that they don't) and applying them beyond the scope of the intention. I can see how someone reading the passage of the sower can come to the conclusion that this parable speaks of a promise for money since 'seed' in their minds ALWAYS represents money. Such a conclusion would indeed have some validity IF NOT FOR THE FACT that Jesus interpreted his own parable. He did not leave it up to us to assume what he was talking about, he clearly says that the seed is the word of GOD. I belabor this point because it is only in understanding this that one can truly grasp the meaning of the parable. You will see that your understanding of this parable would be completely different if you see the seed as the word of God RATHER than money in an offering plate.
Jesus begins by saying a sower sows the word of God. He then proceeds by describing four sets of ground. Again, with the corruption in place, that the seed has something to do with money, the ground that Jesus talks about all of a sudden becomes churches or ministries that are teaching the word of God. This sounds good UNTIL you hear Jesus' interpretation of HIS OWN PARABLE:
Mark 4:15a
15 Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is sown.
The ground in the parable has nothing to do with some ministry! Jesus said that it represents types of people and their interaction with the seed. Listen, if Jesus says that this is what it means how are we able to give it some OTHER meaning? This is no slight misstep on their part because the true meaning of this parable is essential for your righteousness.
Now since the seed is the word of God and NOT money, and the soil is types of people and their interaction with the seed and NOT your local church or some television ministry, we can now see the purer truth to this word. The seed is the word of God spoken through Jesus, and as it comes in contact with the people who hear it they ALL have one of four different types of experiences. The focus of this study is the experience of the last group called by Jesus 'good soil'.
Mark 4:8
8 Other seeds fell into the good soil, and as they grew up and increased, they yielded a crop and produced thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold.
Now Jesus' interpretation...
Mark 4:20
20 And those are the ones on whom seed was sown on the good soil; and they hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold.
Those of us who are called by God fall into the last category in this parable, the good soil. The end result of this group is that they bear fruit in varying degrees (30,60 and 100). But what is fruit? The fruit obviously is the most important part since that is what seperates this group from all the other. Following Jesus' interpretation fruit is the RESULT of the seed sown. And since the seed sown IS the word of God then the fruit must be the physical manifestation of that word. So Jesus says to you:
Luke 6:27-29
27 But I say to you who hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. 29 Whoever hits you on the cheek, offer him the other also; and whoever takes away your coat, do not withhold your shirt from him either.
This is the seed sown, now IF you are good ground you will bring forth the harvest of this word. So when an enemy is identified in your life what is your response (fruit)? Your response should be to love them. When someone curses you or mistreats you what is your response (fruit)? To bless them. Whenever someone hits you on one cheek or steals your coat what is your response (fruit)? To offer the other cheek and to not withhold your shirt. Your fruit would be completely different if you are NOT good soil. This is why Jesus said:
Matthew 7:20
20 Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.
Jesus expects fruit from the word sown on good ground.
John 15:8
8 Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.
John 15:16
16 Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.
The only way that we bear fruit is through complete obedience to the words that Jesus spoke. When it grows in our hearts it becomes our life
I encourage you to:
Matthew 3:8
8 Therefore bear fruit in keeping with repentance;
After all the fruit IS the proof.
20 And those are the ones on whom seed was sown on the good soil; and they hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold.
This verse comes from Jesus' parable commonly known as 'the sower'. This verse is typically used to induce Christians to part with their cash usually around offering time. Some preacher would bombastically declare that 'if you give into good ground, ie MY CHURCH, God has promised to give you back thirty, sixty or one hundredfold'. This promise they extract from this verse on the sower. This is a CORRUPTION of this verse of scripture! This is no surprise because when your heart is steeped in greed EVERY scripture has something to do with money. The parable of the sower has NOTHING to do with money; it cannot be spiritually applied to getting wealth NOR is it applicable on ANY level to wealth acquisition. Consider the words of Jesus:
Mark 4:14
14 The sower sows the word.
Luke 8:11
11 Now the parable is this: the seed is the word of God.
Jesus says at the beginning of his explanation of the parable that the seed being sown in this parable represents the word of God. What preachers are in a habit of doing is going through the scriptures and finding passages and taking these passages out of their context (though they swear the heavens down that they don't) and applying them beyond the scope of the intention. I can see how someone reading the passage of the sower can come to the conclusion that this parable speaks of a promise for money since 'seed' in their minds ALWAYS represents money. Such a conclusion would indeed have some validity IF NOT FOR THE FACT that Jesus interpreted his own parable. He did not leave it up to us to assume what he was talking about, he clearly says that the seed is the word of GOD. I belabor this point because it is only in understanding this that one can truly grasp the meaning of the parable. You will see that your understanding of this parable would be completely different if you see the seed as the word of God RATHER than money in an offering plate.
Jesus begins by saying a sower sows the word of God. He then proceeds by describing four sets of ground. Again, with the corruption in place, that the seed has something to do with money, the ground that Jesus talks about all of a sudden becomes churches or ministries that are teaching the word of God. This sounds good UNTIL you hear Jesus' interpretation of HIS OWN PARABLE:
Mark 4:15a
15 Some people are like seed along the path, where the word is sown.
The ground in the parable has nothing to do with some ministry! Jesus said that it represents types of people and their interaction with the seed. Listen, if Jesus says that this is what it means how are we able to give it some OTHER meaning? This is no slight misstep on their part because the true meaning of this parable is essential for your righteousness.
Now since the seed is the word of God and NOT money, and the soil is types of people and their interaction with the seed and NOT your local church or some television ministry, we can now see the purer truth to this word. The seed is the word of God spoken through Jesus, and as it comes in contact with the people who hear it they ALL have one of four different types of experiences. The focus of this study is the experience of the last group called by Jesus 'good soil'.
Mark 4:8
8 Other seeds fell into the good soil, and as they grew up and increased, they yielded a crop and produced thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold.
Now Jesus' interpretation...
Mark 4:20
20 And those are the ones on whom seed was sown on the good soil; and they hear the word and accept it and bear fruit, thirty, sixty, and a hundredfold.
Those of us who are called by God fall into the last category in this parable, the good soil. The end result of this group is that they bear fruit in varying degrees (30,60 and 100). But what is fruit? The fruit obviously is the most important part since that is what seperates this group from all the other. Following Jesus' interpretation fruit is the RESULT of the seed sown. And since the seed sown IS the word of God then the fruit must be the physical manifestation of that word. So Jesus says to you:
Luke 6:27-29
27 But I say to you who hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. 29 Whoever hits you on the cheek, offer him the other also; and whoever takes away your coat, do not withhold your shirt from him either.
This is the seed sown, now IF you are good ground you will bring forth the harvest of this word. So when an enemy is identified in your life what is your response (fruit)? Your response should be to love them. When someone curses you or mistreats you what is your response (fruit)? To bless them. Whenever someone hits you on one cheek or steals your coat what is your response (fruit)? To offer the other cheek and to not withhold your shirt. Your fruit would be completely different if you are NOT good soil. This is why Jesus said:
Matthew 7:20
20 Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.
Jesus expects fruit from the word sown on good ground.
John 15:8
8 Herein is my Father glorified, that ye bear much fruit; so shall ye be my disciples.
John 15:16
16 Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you.
The only way that we bear fruit is through complete obedience to the words that Jesus spoke. When it grows in our hearts it becomes our life
I encourage you to:
Matthew 3:8
8 Therefore bear fruit in keeping with repentance;
After all the fruit IS the proof.
The myth of control: Contemplating death.
One of the most
deceptive concepts held in the minds of men is the concept of control. It is common for people to hold to the idea
that they at least have some modicum of control over their lives. This deception arises out of the myth of free
will, and it leads us to believe that somehow we can control certain aspects of
our lives. I laugh at these notions and
I am sure that God does too. Consider
some of the aspects of life over which we think we have control:
·
Where we live
·
Who we marry
·
How many children we will have
·
Retirement
The futility of these
notions is bad enough but one of the most ridiculous of these is the idea that
we have ANY control over our own death.
I begin by asking a question:
COULD YOU CONTROL YOUR OWN BIRTH?
This may seem a
ridiculous question to which you would likely answer 'of course not'. And you would be right; so what makes you
think that you have control over the day you DIE. We THINK that if we diet, exercise, get
enough sleep and drink enough water that somehow this hodgepodge of activity
has SOMETHING
to do with how long we live. Ah the vanity
of our human thoughts! All these things
listed are touted as being essential to good health and necessary for long
life. I can tell you with ALL certainty
that these things do not have ANYTHING to do with the length of our sojourn
here on earth.
I laugh when from time
to time some centenarian that has achieved the elusive age of 100 talks about
their steady diet of pork fat and cigars. Why do these stories attract attention? It is because we are supposed to ONLY be able
to achieve this status by exercising five times a week, but here we have this
walking chimney living longer that Florence Joyner.
Some thank God that
they are not in some war-torn region or a land besieged by famine; yet even in
these regions people continue to live well into their eighties and nineties in
the midst of slaughter, terror and poverty.
But if you STILL
believe that YOU can, with ANYTHING you do, stave off death consider this:
Since
his days are determined, the number of his months is with You; And HIS LIMITS
YOU HAVE SET SO THAT HE CANNOT PASS. Job 14:5
For
what does he care about the family he leaves behind when his ALLOTTED MONTHS come
to an end? Job 21:21
Look at some key words
in the above verses: DETERMINED, LIMITS, ALLOTTED. These verses and in
particular these words in their context show that it is GOD who DETERMINES how
long we live and he will not give his glory over to celery. More proof:
…your
eyes saw my unformed body. All the DAYS ORDAINED for me were written in your
book before one of them came to be. Psalms 139:16
This verse is AMAZING
as it tells us that ALL are days are ORDAINED before you were even born! This means that God set a day for your birth
AND a day for your death. HE ORDAINED
THEM!! And again,
…and He made from one man every nation of mankind to
live on all the face of the earth, having DETERMINED THEIR APPOINTED TIMES and
the boundaries of their habitation. Acts 17:26
Here the scriptures
show us that God has determined our appointed times. The key verse in this study is the one we
began with and that is Job 14:5 where God tells us that the days are set and He
says that we CANNOT pass them. Well now
isn't that a kick in the head! Let this
not be a discouragement to healthy living but let it serve to kill our illusion
of control.
These verses are
important to understand because death is indeed harsh and something that we can
never get used to but even if it is at the hand of a gunman or a blockage in
the heart know that:
See now
that I, even I, am he, and there is no god with me: I kill, and I make alive; I
wound, and I heal: neither is there any that can deliver out of my hand. Deuteronomy
32:39
God is in control of
EVERYTHING!!!!!
An experience of trouble.
I have an iPad, which I love, in fact it has become indispensable to me for capturing my thoughts and insights. I am, like most of my generation, addicted to technology so naturally I quickly bought the iPad as soon as it became available. About two months after I purchased this wonder of technology I sat down with it intending to do some research, as I clicked it's button to turn it on the screen remained black and I got no response. I clicked the power button again and again with no response. At this point I began to have a sinking feeling in my gut as I knew something was wrong with my precious pad. My mind began racing as I wondered what was wrong. I had paid a princely sum for the device but I had NOT bought the much touted insurance option that would allow me to get a free replacement in the event that I received damage to my pad. Added to these thoughts was the realization that I live in the Bahamas and the closest Apple store was in Miami. The feeling of doom was further compounded when I went to my now neglected laptop in an effort to do a search on the potential causes of the problem. All I could find was a woman describing the exact same problem that i was having. With the devastating conclusion that her newly acquired iPad was a lemon and she chalked it up as a loss. Now I did not want to have this same experience so I continued looking, but to no avail, for a possible solution. Hours turned into days as I soon fell into despair. Was I ever to get my iPad to work again????
Well into the third day of my ordeal I had a thought to go to a local computer store to see if they could fix it. Armed with limited expectations I went to the store. Expecting that if he could not help me I would have to wait for a trip to the USA to get it fixed. I told the attendant about the problem with the pad and he calmly took it from my hopeful hands and laid it on the counter. He touch TWO buttons and to my sheer delight the IPad came to life. He told me that all it needed was a soft reset that ANYONE could have done the same. I smiled because in my panic I remembered reading about this in the operating manual but it had escaped my mind. This act of the computer repairman ENDED my days of anguish; my EXPERIENCE of trouble you can say. But what happened later is the reason why I write.
Several months after this ordeal my sister, who had gotten an iPad after I got mine, called me one day. I heard anguish in her voice as she began to say that HER IPAD HAD A BLACK SCREEN AND WOULD NOT TURN ON. I quickly had a mental recall and I was able to CALMLY tell her the procedure to restore it's functionality. She followed my instructions and true to form her iPad came back to life and joy filled her soul. What you must appreciate is that MY EXPERIENCE OF TROULE THAT LASTED FOR DAYS GAVE ME THE ANSWER TO END HER EXPERIENCE IN MINUTES. Now the similarities of the situation were the same in that she felt the same anguish I felt and the despair that accompanies it, what was different was the length of time of her experience. The duration of her trouble was considerably shortened BECAUSE of the experience I endured. This is not unlike Jesus' statement,
John 16:33
I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.
Jesus says to us that we too MUST have experiences of trouble but not to worry he has already OVERCOME the world. As we learn of him we too are able to overcome.
I have heard the ludicrous conclusion that the trouble we go through is not for us but it so that we can comfort someone else. This is ridiculous BECAUSE trouble teaches us and while others can benefit from our experience it is NECESSARY that we ALL experience trouble because IT IS ONLY WHEN WE ARE WEAK THAT HE IS STRONG!
Well into the third day of my ordeal I had a thought to go to a local computer store to see if they could fix it. Armed with limited expectations I went to the store. Expecting that if he could not help me I would have to wait for a trip to the USA to get it fixed. I told the attendant about the problem with the pad and he calmly took it from my hopeful hands and laid it on the counter. He touch TWO buttons and to my sheer delight the IPad came to life. He told me that all it needed was a soft reset that ANYONE could have done the same. I smiled because in my panic I remembered reading about this in the operating manual but it had escaped my mind. This act of the computer repairman ENDED my days of anguish; my EXPERIENCE of trouble you can say. But what happened later is the reason why I write.
Several months after this ordeal my sister, who had gotten an iPad after I got mine, called me one day. I heard anguish in her voice as she began to say that HER IPAD HAD A BLACK SCREEN AND WOULD NOT TURN ON. I quickly had a mental recall and I was able to CALMLY tell her the procedure to restore it's functionality. She followed my instructions and true to form her iPad came back to life and joy filled her soul. What you must appreciate is that MY EXPERIENCE OF TROULE THAT LASTED FOR DAYS GAVE ME THE ANSWER TO END HER EXPERIENCE IN MINUTES. Now the similarities of the situation were the same in that she felt the same anguish I felt and the despair that accompanies it, what was different was the length of time of her experience. The duration of her trouble was considerably shortened BECAUSE of the experience I endured. This is not unlike Jesus' statement,
John 16:33
I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world.
Jesus says to us that we too MUST have experiences of trouble but not to worry he has already OVERCOME the world. As we learn of him we too are able to overcome.
I have heard the ludicrous conclusion that the trouble we go through is not for us but it so that we can comfort someone else. This is ridiculous BECAUSE trouble teaches us and while others can benefit from our experience it is NECESSARY that we ALL experience trouble because IT IS ONLY WHEN WE ARE WEAK THAT HE IS STRONG!
Why can't we understand the bible?
The average Christian today, if they would be honest with themselves, would tell you that they really do not understand the bible. They could have been saved for decades and they may still not have the confidence of TRULY understanding the bible. But why is it that if you read a book every day you still cannot grasp the meaning of what it's talking about? If I asked you what is 2+4 everybody would confidently answer 6. You would be confident in your answer because of some very simple rules:
The number 2 ALWAYS means 2
The number 4 ALWAYS means 4
The + sign ALWAYS means to add
And 2+4 WILL ALWAYS EQUAL 6
You can comfortably come to the answer because the answer NEVER changes. The answer is the same if you went to grade school, high school or college. The answer doesn't change if you are a doctor, lawyer or theologian. The answer is the same if you live in Zimbabwe, Japan or The Bahamas.
Okay let's look at sentence structures. If I said to you:
John walked up the hill.
The average person would be able to understand the sentence. They would be able to tell who walked, where he went, and which direction did he go. These things are simple to understand.
Now transport to your local church and ask your typical SPIRIT FILLED Christian the question, 'What is the gospel that Jesus preached?'and even though they might have been in church for decades they STILL would NOT give the answer JESUS would give.
So why can't we understand the bible? It is because of a very simple reason. We cannot understand the bible because we are TAUGHT that we cannot understand the bible. By whom are we taught that we cannot understand the bible? We are taught that we cannot understand the word of God by our pastors. WHAT!!!?? You may think this utter rubbish as you exclaim that our pastors teach us HOW to understand the word of God. Well do they really? Have you ever heard your pastor teach and say:
Let me tell you what that verse REALLY means...
Okay, this verse doesn't really mean...
You use to think this verse meant...
These may seem to be invitations to a higher understanding of the word of God, but what is really happening is
1- you conclude that the word of God is ALWAYS changing
2- that indirectly the pastor is causing you to rethink what the text is PLAINLYsaying.
YOU CAN NEVER HAVE CONFIDENCE IN UNDERSTANDING SOMETHING THAT CHANGES.
Unlike 2+2 it seems as though there is ALWAYS some deeper understanding that you do not know. This in fact keeps the pastor in his job, because we keep going back to learn some new thing that will help us on our Christian journey.
RETHINKING THE PLAIN TEXT
Since they teach us that the plain text does not mean the plain text we develop the mindset that in order to understand I must go to this pastor (who for the most part really don't know any more than you) to understand this word.
These two factors cause you to lack confidence in YOUR ability to know the word of God.
The problem with this is that the pastor will claim that he is fulfilling some mandate to teach God's people. He gets that from the following:
Ephesians 4:11
11And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
This is true, but what is the purpose of these offices:
Ephesians 4:12-14
12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: 13 Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: 14 That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;
The PLAIN text of this verse tells us that their job is to MATURE the saints. Well let me ask you this $2 million dollar question: are you matured? HOW CAN YOU BE IF YOU STILL CANNOT UNDERSTAND THE WORD OF GOD, HOW CAN YOU BE IF YOU STILL SEE YOUR SELF AS A BAPTIST, METHODIST, PENTECOSTAL, EVANGELICAL, OR ONE OF THE OTHER 42,000 denominations in the world? (By the way that fact that there are 42,000 denominations of the Christianity in the world is proof positive that we are 'carried away by every wind of doctrine by the sleight of men.'
Jesus spoke for 3 years and in that time he taught the disciples ALL they needed to know. ( PLEASE NOTE THAT WHEN HE LEFT HE TOLD OF THE SPIRIT TO COME AND HE SAID THAT HE WOULD TEACH THEM ONLY WHAT HE ALREADY TAUGHT THEM) How is it that we can be decades in church and STLL learning? THAT IS NOT MATURITY? If this was in the worlds system we would go to school for a masters degree and we would never graduate; 40 years later we would STILL be working on our masters degree. A MATURE TREE NO LONGER NEEDS TO BE FERTILIZED!!! Yet every Sunday we go to hear the word of GOD so that we can grow. A tree needs to be fertilized (which is the job of the pastors and others) UNTIL the tree reaches maturity? By the way do you know when a tree reaches maturity? A TREE IS MATURE WHEN IT CONSISTENTLY BRINGS FORTH FRUIT? Notice I did not say a crop this year and none for the next two years, but consistently. What is this fruit:
Matthew 13:23
23 But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and UNDERSTANDETH it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.
Luke 6:46
46And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?
When we understand the word of God we begin to DO what Jesus said and this DOING is what becomes our fruits of righteousness.
BUT you CANNOT mature if there is CONSTANTLY something you do not know!! This is what happens when we go to church; we are EVER learning and NEVER maturing.
Consider the beauty of God's prescription:
He gives us pastors, apostles etc to MATURE us. Once we would have reached maturity we would bear fruits of obedience to JESUS and this fruit is what the world would see. These mature people would then meet together TO ENCOURAGE one another since the job of the pastor WOULD BE COMPLETE to them and he would either become ONE within the group or move on to find OTHER IMMATURE christians to which he could begin the process of maturing.
MEAT NOT MILK!
The number 2 ALWAYS means 2
The number 4 ALWAYS means 4
The + sign ALWAYS means to add
And 2+4 WILL ALWAYS EQUAL 6
You can comfortably come to the answer because the answer NEVER changes. The answer is the same if you went to grade school, high school or college. The answer doesn't change if you are a doctor, lawyer or theologian. The answer is the same if you live in Zimbabwe, Japan or The Bahamas.
Okay let's look at sentence structures. If I said to you:
John walked up the hill.
The average person would be able to understand the sentence. They would be able to tell who walked, where he went, and which direction did he go. These things are simple to understand.
Now transport to your local church and ask your typical SPIRIT FILLED Christian the question, 'What is the gospel that Jesus preached?'and even though they might have been in church for decades they STILL would NOT give the answer JESUS would give.
So why can't we understand the bible? It is because of a very simple reason. We cannot understand the bible because we are TAUGHT that we cannot understand the bible. By whom are we taught that we cannot understand the bible? We are taught that we cannot understand the word of God by our pastors. WHAT!!!?? You may think this utter rubbish as you exclaim that our pastors teach us HOW to understand the word of God. Well do they really? Have you ever heard your pastor teach and say:
Let me tell you what that verse REALLY means...
Okay, this verse doesn't really mean...
You use to think this verse meant...
These may seem to be invitations to a higher understanding of the word of God, but what is really happening is
1- you conclude that the word of God is ALWAYS changing
2- that indirectly the pastor is causing you to rethink what the text is PLAINLYsaying.
YOU CAN NEVER HAVE CONFIDENCE IN UNDERSTANDING SOMETHING THAT CHANGES.
Unlike 2+2 it seems as though there is ALWAYS some deeper understanding that you do not know. This in fact keeps the pastor in his job, because we keep going back to learn some new thing that will help us on our Christian journey.
RETHINKING THE PLAIN TEXT
Since they teach us that the plain text does not mean the plain text we develop the mindset that in order to understand I must go to this pastor (who for the most part really don't know any more than you) to understand this word.
These two factors cause you to lack confidence in YOUR ability to know the word of God.
The problem with this is that the pastor will claim that he is fulfilling some mandate to teach God's people. He gets that from the following:
Ephesians 4:11
11And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers;
This is true, but what is the purpose of these offices:
Ephesians 4:12-14
12 For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: 13 Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: 14 That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive;
The PLAIN text of this verse tells us that their job is to MATURE the saints. Well let me ask you this $2 million dollar question: are you matured? HOW CAN YOU BE IF YOU STILL CANNOT UNDERSTAND THE WORD OF GOD, HOW CAN YOU BE IF YOU STILL SEE YOUR SELF AS A BAPTIST, METHODIST, PENTECOSTAL, EVANGELICAL, OR ONE OF THE OTHER 42,000 denominations in the world? (By the way that fact that there are 42,000 denominations of the Christianity in the world is proof positive that we are 'carried away by every wind of doctrine by the sleight of men.'
Jesus spoke for 3 years and in that time he taught the disciples ALL they needed to know. ( PLEASE NOTE THAT WHEN HE LEFT HE TOLD OF THE SPIRIT TO COME AND HE SAID THAT HE WOULD TEACH THEM ONLY WHAT HE ALREADY TAUGHT THEM) How is it that we can be decades in church and STLL learning? THAT IS NOT MATURITY? If this was in the worlds system we would go to school for a masters degree and we would never graduate; 40 years later we would STILL be working on our masters degree. A MATURE TREE NO LONGER NEEDS TO BE FERTILIZED!!! Yet every Sunday we go to hear the word of GOD so that we can grow. A tree needs to be fertilized (which is the job of the pastors and others) UNTIL the tree reaches maturity? By the way do you know when a tree reaches maturity? A TREE IS MATURE WHEN IT CONSISTENTLY BRINGS FORTH FRUIT? Notice I did not say a crop this year and none for the next two years, but consistently. What is this fruit:
Matthew 13:23
23 But he that received seed into the good ground is he that heareth the word, and UNDERSTANDETH it; which also beareth fruit, and bringeth forth, some an hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.
Luke 6:46
46And why call ye me, Lord, Lord, and do not the things which I say?
When we understand the word of God we begin to DO what Jesus said and this DOING is what becomes our fruits of righteousness.
BUT you CANNOT mature if there is CONSTANTLY something you do not know!! This is what happens when we go to church; we are EVER learning and NEVER maturing.
Consider the beauty of God's prescription:
He gives us pastors, apostles etc to MATURE us. Once we would have reached maturity we would bear fruits of obedience to JESUS and this fruit is what the world would see. These mature people would then meet together TO ENCOURAGE one another since the job of the pastor WOULD BE COMPLETE to them and he would either become ONE within the group or move on to find OTHER IMMATURE christians to which he could begin the process of maturing.
MEAT NOT MILK!
Ears to hear.
Jesus was the ultimate evangelist. In fact Jesus was UNLIKE any evangelist we know of. He used a style of preaching the word of God that has been lost to us for centuries. Jesus' style of evangelizing, to put it bluntly, was to BEAT AROUND THE BUSH. BAHAMIANS understand this phraseology to mean a person who does not get straight to the point but skirts around a particular issue, or a person who does not come out and say plainly what they mean. JESUS WAS MASTER AT THIS. His evangelistic style of choice was to use PARABLES. Now of late Christians have taken to define a parable as a earthly story with a heavenly meaning, but that is not entirely true because parables were used longed before Jesus came to the earth. Parables can be more properly defined as:
A statement or comment that conveys a meaning INDIRECTLY by the use of comparison or analogy.
When preaching the gospel to the crowds JESUS NEVER TOOK THE DIRECT APPROACH. In fact his disciples asked him one day, 'Why do you ALWAYS speak to the CROWD in parables'. They came to see this because it was his custom to preach to the crowd in parables and when he and the disciples were alone he would plainly tell them the meaning of the parable. Again I say that this is REMARKABLE. Preaching the gospel today is so IN YOUR FACE! We feel the need to GET THE MESSAGE ACROSS to these no good sinners. In fact being bold is defined today by how fearless one can be when confronting some soul with the word of GOD in a NO NONSENSE hooting and hollering, spiting and kicking fashion. But our example, Jesus, came along and throws out a story with some CRYPTIC meaning and he called THAT preaching. No man Jesus, you need to to TAKE IT TO THEM IN NO UNCERTAIN TERMS. This makes me wonder 'who is truly our teacher'.
What is even MORE remarkable than Jesus' use of indirectly preaching the gospel is what he would say to those he preached to afterwards. The phrase was:
Matthew 11:15
15He who has ears to hear,let him hear.
Mark 4:9
9 And He was saying, He who has ears to hear,let him hear.
Mark 4:23
23If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.
Luke 8:8
"Other seed fell into the good soil, and grew up, and produced a crop a hundred times as great." As He said these things, He would call out, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear."
This last verse is interesting because it shows that Jesus would make this statement often during his parables. But is this some cryptic code with some supernatural ingredient to make the people understand? No, it SIMPLY means just what it says. Jesus was making his appeal in parable, but the understanding of the parable was ONLY given TO A FEW. Notice it does not say that the meaning of the parable is given to those who could figure it out , or those who study hard or those who understand the Greek text, no, the understanding of the parable was given to those who ALREADY had ears to hear. Hear is this understanding put simply:
Jesus came to earth with a message called the gospel of the kingdom. That message was INTENDED to be heard by all but it was NOT INTENDED to be understood by all. Jesus spoke the message in a parable form so as to NOT make it's meaning clear to all, but ONLY to the few who GOD HAD CHOSEN to understand and believe the message. Upon hearing the parable those who were in the crowd who God had chosen would understand.
Jesus did not use any soft music neither did he have the singers sing 'just as I am without one plea' just one more time. His method was simple: use parables, and whoever God WANTED to come to him WOULD come to him and to the rest the parable would become a testimony against them.
A statement or comment that conveys a meaning INDIRECTLY by the use of comparison or analogy.
When preaching the gospel to the crowds JESUS NEVER TOOK THE DIRECT APPROACH. In fact his disciples asked him one day, 'Why do you ALWAYS speak to the CROWD in parables'. They came to see this because it was his custom to preach to the crowd in parables and when he and the disciples were alone he would plainly tell them the meaning of the parable. Again I say that this is REMARKABLE. Preaching the gospel today is so IN YOUR FACE! We feel the need to GET THE MESSAGE ACROSS to these no good sinners. In fact being bold is defined today by how fearless one can be when confronting some soul with the word of GOD in a NO NONSENSE hooting and hollering, spiting and kicking fashion. But our example, Jesus, came along and throws out a story with some CRYPTIC meaning and he called THAT preaching. No man Jesus, you need to to TAKE IT TO THEM IN NO UNCERTAIN TERMS. This makes me wonder 'who is truly our teacher'.
What is even MORE remarkable than Jesus' use of indirectly preaching the gospel is what he would say to those he preached to afterwards. The phrase was:
Matthew 11:15
15He who has ears to hear,let him hear.
Mark 4:9
9 And He was saying, He who has ears to hear,let him hear.
Mark 4:23
23If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear.
Luke 8:8
"Other seed fell into the good soil, and grew up, and produced a crop a hundred times as great." As He said these things, He would call out, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear."
This last verse is interesting because it shows that Jesus would make this statement often during his parables. But is this some cryptic code with some supernatural ingredient to make the people understand? No, it SIMPLY means just what it says. Jesus was making his appeal in parable, but the understanding of the parable was ONLY given TO A FEW. Notice it does not say that the meaning of the parable is given to those who could figure it out , or those who study hard or those who understand the Greek text, no, the understanding of the parable was given to those who ALREADY had ears to hear. Hear is this understanding put simply:
Jesus came to earth with a message called the gospel of the kingdom. That message was INTENDED to be heard by all but it was NOT INTENDED to be understood by all. Jesus spoke the message in a parable form so as to NOT make it's meaning clear to all, but ONLY to the few who GOD HAD CHOSEN to understand and believe the message. Upon hearing the parable those who were in the crowd who God had chosen would understand.
Jesus did not use any soft music neither did he have the singers sing 'just as I am without one plea' just one more time. His method was simple: use parables, and whoever God WANTED to come to him WOULD come to him and to the rest the parable would become a testimony against them.
God's factory and the goal of maturity.
John 14:30
30 I will not speak with you much longer, for the prince of this world is coming. He has no hold on me,
These words were spoken by Jesus shortly before his arrest. He had come to the end of his earthly ministry and was now about to fulfill the Father's requirement of death. He makes this statement to his disciples and it turns out that this statement gives the greatest insight into the function of the devil and his importance in our own maturity.
The first encounter we know that Jesus had with the devil is when he was tempted. It was this process that shows us how God matures us. Consider what the scripture says regarding Jesus' temptation:
Matthew 4:1
Then Jesus was led by the spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil.
The scripture EXPLICITLY says the it was the Spirit of God that led Jesus into the desert for one single purpose- to be tempted by the devil. This is essential to understand because it is exactly the same with us. God from time to time will lead us to be tempted by the devil. This insight let's us know how God operates in the lives of the believer, but also know that BEFORE the test God caused the following:
Luke 2:52
52 And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.
We can learn from these scriptures that God's way of development is to fill us with wisdom and submit us to Satan's temptation to test for weakness. Temptation is a testing for weakness and this is what Satan was doing to Jesus; he was looking for a weak spot to which he could use to cause Jesus to sin. James share insight on this truth:
James 1:13-15
13 When tempted, no one should say, God is tempting me. For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; 14 but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. 15 Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.
This verse shows what Jesus was talking about when he said that Satan 'has no hold on me'. You are tempted when your OWN evil desire is awakened. Each of us has sins that easily besets us, and this is WHY believers fall from time to time. These sins are within each one of us and they constitute our 'own evil desire'. They represent the hold that Satan has on us. If you struggle with lying then that is the hold to which you are held by Satan. Jesus had no such evil desires so he could declare that the devil had no hold on him.
So now we can see the process of salvation and why the bible declares the we are 'being saved'. When we come to God he teaches us of Jesus (learn of me he says). This learning targets those areas in us that easily beset us, and once we receive the word we are handed over to Satan to be tested. This process continues until the believer is no longer overcome with the fault but overcomes victoriously the sin. Satan is therefore essential because God uses him to test us for weakness. The more we are exposed to the temptation and because of our assimilation of the word of God the less we are susceptible to that particular sin until finally we mature to the point where we are no longer taken by the sin. The end result of Gods process is:
Ephesians 5:26-27
26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, 27 That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.
So my friends I say as Peter:
2 Peter 3:14
14 So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him.
30 I will not speak with you much longer, for the prince of this world is coming. He has no hold on me,
These words were spoken by Jesus shortly before his arrest. He had come to the end of his earthly ministry and was now about to fulfill the Father's requirement of death. He makes this statement to his disciples and it turns out that this statement gives the greatest insight into the function of the devil and his importance in our own maturity.
The first encounter we know that Jesus had with the devil is when he was tempted. It was this process that shows us how God matures us. Consider what the scripture says regarding Jesus' temptation:
Matthew 4:1
Then Jesus was led by the spirit into the desert to be tempted by the devil.
The scripture EXPLICITLY says the it was the Spirit of God that led Jesus into the desert for one single purpose- to be tempted by the devil. This is essential to understand because it is exactly the same with us. God from time to time will lead us to be tempted by the devil. This insight let's us know how God operates in the lives of the believer, but also know that BEFORE the test God caused the following:
Luke 2:52
52 And Jesus grew in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men.
We can learn from these scriptures that God's way of development is to fill us with wisdom and submit us to Satan's temptation to test for weakness. Temptation is a testing for weakness and this is what Satan was doing to Jesus; he was looking for a weak spot to which he could use to cause Jesus to sin. James share insight on this truth:
James 1:13-15
13 When tempted, no one should say, God is tempting me. For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; 14 but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. 15 Then, after desire has conceived, it gives birth to sin; and sin, when it is full-grown, gives birth to death.
This verse shows what Jesus was talking about when he said that Satan 'has no hold on me'. You are tempted when your OWN evil desire is awakened. Each of us has sins that easily besets us, and this is WHY believers fall from time to time. These sins are within each one of us and they constitute our 'own evil desire'. They represent the hold that Satan has on us. If you struggle with lying then that is the hold to which you are held by Satan. Jesus had no such evil desires so he could declare that the devil had no hold on him.
So now we can see the process of salvation and why the bible declares the we are 'being saved'. When we come to God he teaches us of Jesus (learn of me he says). This learning targets those areas in us that easily beset us, and once we receive the word we are handed over to Satan to be tested. This process continues until the believer is no longer overcome with the fault but overcomes victoriously the sin. Satan is therefore essential because God uses him to test us for weakness. The more we are exposed to the temptation and because of our assimilation of the word of God the less we are susceptible to that particular sin until finally we mature to the point where we are no longer taken by the sin. The end result of Gods process is:
Ephesians 5:26-27
26 That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, 27 That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.
So my friends I say as Peter:
2 Peter 3:14
14 So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him.
Revisiting the Great Commission
Matthew 28:19-20
19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.
Matthew 28:19-20
19 Go therefore and make disciples ofall the nations,baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo,I am with youalways, even tothe end of the age.
It is generally accepted that the above verse is the great commission that Jesus gives to all who come to him. Since this is a command of Jesus it is very important that we seek to understand the fulness of this statement so that we can claim compliance with it's tenets. There are several components to this statement:
1-Go and make disciple from out of every nation on the earth,
2-Baptize these disciples in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit
3- Teach these disciples to observe all that I commanded you.
These three components make up the great commission, but I humbly submit that the church has taken upon itself to ADD a fourth tenet to this list. The fourth tenet we add is:
4-Teach the WORLD to observe all that I commanded you.
This may seem a harmless addition but I assure you it is not. The progression of the commission is to first make disciples OUT OF every nation, and it was to THESE disciples that we were to TEACH TO OBSERVE all that Jesus commanded. I tell you today that MOST of the church's efforts are towards teaching the WORLD to observe the commands of Jesus. This is what we do when we lobby governments to MAKE LAWS to stop gambling, or to outlaw homosexuality, or to INSTILL CHRISTIAN PRINCIPLES IN THE CONSTITUTION. Jesus told us to make disciples out of every nation and he NEVER promised us that we would be able to establish Christian nations. How therefore have we taken it upon or self to seek to please God by doing something he NEVR told us to do. We are ONLY to teach the disciples to observe, NOT the world. The world has the gospel preached to it AS A TESTIMONY, but the disciples of Christ are to be taught to observe them.
We must stop this utter nonsense of trying to get UNSAVED people to live like RIGHTEOUS people. TEACH THE DISCIPLES TO OBSERVE ALL THAT HE HAS TAUGHT but preach the gospel to the world.
So again Jesus' command is simple:
Go all over the world preaching the gospel, SOME who hear the word of the gospel will believe and be saved. Now those who believe AND ONLY those who believe teach THEM to observe all that I commanded you.
NO promise of a Christian nation here!
THIS SHOULD BE MILK BUT O SOME IT WIL BE MEAT.
19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.
Matthew 28:19-20
19 Go therefore and make disciples ofall the nations,baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo,I am with youalways, even tothe end of the age.
It is generally accepted that the above verse is the great commission that Jesus gives to all who come to him. Since this is a command of Jesus it is very important that we seek to understand the fulness of this statement so that we can claim compliance with it's tenets. There are several components to this statement:
1-Go and make disciple from out of every nation on the earth,
2-Baptize these disciples in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit
3- Teach these disciples to observe all that I commanded you.
These three components make up the great commission, but I humbly submit that the church has taken upon itself to ADD a fourth tenet to this list. The fourth tenet we add is:
4-Teach the WORLD to observe all that I commanded you.
This may seem a harmless addition but I assure you it is not. The progression of the commission is to first make disciples OUT OF every nation, and it was to THESE disciples that we were to TEACH TO OBSERVE all that Jesus commanded. I tell you today that MOST of the church's efforts are towards teaching the WORLD to observe the commands of Jesus. This is what we do when we lobby governments to MAKE LAWS to stop gambling, or to outlaw homosexuality, or to INSTILL CHRISTIAN PRINCIPLES IN THE CONSTITUTION. Jesus told us to make disciples out of every nation and he NEVER promised us that we would be able to establish Christian nations. How therefore have we taken it upon or self to seek to please God by doing something he NEVR told us to do. We are ONLY to teach the disciples to observe, NOT the world. The world has the gospel preached to it AS A TESTIMONY, but the disciples of Christ are to be taught to observe them.
We must stop this utter nonsense of trying to get UNSAVED people to live like RIGHTEOUS people. TEACH THE DISCIPLES TO OBSERVE ALL THAT HE HAS TAUGHT but preach the gospel to the world.
So again Jesus' command is simple:
Go all over the world preaching the gospel, SOME who hear the word of the gospel will believe and be saved. Now those who believe AND ONLY those who believe teach THEM to observe all that I commanded you.
NO promise of a Christian nation here!
THIS SHOULD BE MILK BUT O SOME IT WIL BE MEAT.
There is a difference.
There is a distinct difference between the following phrases:
Go into all the world and PREACH the gospel
And
Lets go and WIN the WORLD
On it's face the difference in these statement may seem obvious, but consider the typical Chrisitian view, it goes something like this:
Jesus gave us a mandate to preach the gospel to the whole world and therefore if we can spread this gospel to the whole world sweeping changes would be made throuout the world and it would be a better place.
Having this view leads us to perform many actions like:
Fund mission trips
Hold conferences
Have revival services
Give out tracts
Go witnessing
Fund televangelists
Give altar calls
All of these activities are driven by our understanding of the great commission, but their is a distinct difference between preaching the gospel and winning the world. The most important of the distinctions is that the WORDS of Jesus PREVENTS us from achieving this task:
Matthew 7:13-14
13 Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. 14 For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.
With a word Jesus FOREVER limits the number of people who will come to GOD through our efforts. He could have said, 'narrow is the gate to life but that's okay MANY will find it' but no he declares that ONLY a few will find it. This declaration by Jesus guarantees that only a few will find it.
In understanding this fact we MUST realize that GOD is NOT trying to win the WHOLE world to himself. Before I am labeled a heretic let us examine the single most DEMONIC doctrine held by the church:
God/The Holy Spirit is a gentleman and will never override your will. I think that Jonah would have something to say about this ridiculous statement. Jonah wanted one thing and GOD wanted another. Did God say to Jonah okay Jonah you can have it your way? No, God simply turned him into fish food and in the end GOD HAD HIS WAY! Do you think GOD has CHANGED? THERE HAS NEVER BEEN AN INSTANT IN TIME WHEN THE WILL OF GOD WAS NOT MANIFESTED! The bible is a written record of God's interaction with mankind, and can ANYONE point to ANYTIME in all it's pages where GOD's will was EVER repressed OR denied. Here is a useful concept to hold on to: if there is ANYTHING that God WANTS to do but CANNOT do then he is no God. A God who has a will that he CANNOT OR WILL NOT express is NO GOD AT ALLL!
Do we hold in our minds a concept that God and the devil is in some cosmic struggle for the souls of the human race? Such a ridiculous notion! There is NO battle for humanity being waged by God. You only struggle with someone who is your equal and GOD HAS NO EQUAL! Listen to his word:
Isaiah 46:10
10 Declaring the end from the beginning,
And from ancient times things which have not been done,
Saying, My purpose will be established,
AND I WILL ACCOMPLISH ALL MY GOOD PLEASURE,
What are we supposing with our conclusions, do we really believe that a human being can RESIST God? Think of any unsaved person you know, do you really believe that God is calling that person but that person is RESISTING God? Consider this:
Romans 9:19b
WHO HAS RESISTED HIS WILL?
Paul asked the question to which we all know the answer, and that answer is NO ONE HAS RESISTED HIS WILL. Since this is the case why then is the whole world not saved, let Jesus answer:
Mark 4:10-12
10 And when he was alone, they that were about him with the twelve asked of him the parable. 11 And he said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables: 12 That seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest at any time they should be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them.
Jesus was explaining to the disciples why he spoke in parables. Verse twelve is indeed a remarkable statement because Jesus says that if he DID NOT SPEAK to the crowd in parables they WOULD TURN AND BE CONVERTED. Consider his statement to the disciples, UNTO YOU IT IS GIVEN TO KNOW THE MYSTERIES OF THE KINGDOM. This means that it is NOT GIVEN to EVERYONE to know but ONLY to those GOD has CHOSEN.
John 15:16
16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit–fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.
Ephesians 1:4
4 For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love
2 Thessalonians 2:13
But we ought always to thank God for you, brothers loved by the Lord, because from the beginning GOD CHOSE you to be saved through the sanctifying work of the spirit and belief in the truth
The thread in all of these verses is that it is GOD who is doing the CHOOSING. THE CHOICE WAS NOT YOURS. YOU DID NOT DECIDE TO COME TO HIM. WE ONLY COME TO GOD IF HE CHOOSES US. GOD HAS A PLAN and we for the most part CANNOT see it. God choses those to whom he would give his light at this time, and EVERYONE he chooses comes to him.
It may be hard to see but GOD has a plan for the sinner as well as the saint. In fact he says that the sinner was made so that the riches of glory would be shown to you his saints. It may not make sense but his plan is beautiful.
So going back to our original statement there is a difference between preaching the gospel and winning the world. God has called us to proclaim the gospel to the world but not for the purposes of winning the world but to claim the FEW HE has chosen out of the world.
MEAT NOT MILK.
Go into all the world and PREACH the gospel
And
Lets go and WIN the WORLD
On it's face the difference in these statement may seem obvious, but consider the typical Chrisitian view, it goes something like this:
Jesus gave us a mandate to preach the gospel to the whole world and therefore if we can spread this gospel to the whole world sweeping changes would be made throuout the world and it would be a better place.
Having this view leads us to perform many actions like:
Fund mission trips
Hold conferences
Have revival services
Give out tracts
Go witnessing
Fund televangelists
Give altar calls
All of these activities are driven by our understanding of the great commission, but their is a distinct difference between preaching the gospel and winning the world. The most important of the distinctions is that the WORDS of Jesus PREVENTS us from achieving this task:
Matthew 7:13-14
13 Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. 14 For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it.
With a word Jesus FOREVER limits the number of people who will come to GOD through our efforts. He could have said, 'narrow is the gate to life but that's okay MANY will find it' but no he declares that ONLY a few will find it. This declaration by Jesus guarantees that only a few will find it.
In understanding this fact we MUST realize that GOD is NOT trying to win the WHOLE world to himself. Before I am labeled a heretic let us examine the single most DEMONIC doctrine held by the church:
God/The Holy Spirit is a gentleman and will never override your will. I think that Jonah would have something to say about this ridiculous statement. Jonah wanted one thing and GOD wanted another. Did God say to Jonah okay Jonah you can have it your way? No, God simply turned him into fish food and in the end GOD HAD HIS WAY! Do you think GOD has CHANGED? THERE HAS NEVER BEEN AN INSTANT IN TIME WHEN THE WILL OF GOD WAS NOT MANIFESTED! The bible is a written record of God's interaction with mankind, and can ANYONE point to ANYTIME in all it's pages where GOD's will was EVER repressed OR denied. Here is a useful concept to hold on to: if there is ANYTHING that God WANTS to do but CANNOT do then he is no God. A God who has a will that he CANNOT OR WILL NOT express is NO GOD AT ALLL!
Do we hold in our minds a concept that God and the devil is in some cosmic struggle for the souls of the human race? Such a ridiculous notion! There is NO battle for humanity being waged by God. You only struggle with someone who is your equal and GOD HAS NO EQUAL! Listen to his word:
Isaiah 46:10
10 Declaring the end from the beginning,
And from ancient times things which have not been done,
Saying, My purpose will be established,
AND I WILL ACCOMPLISH ALL MY GOOD PLEASURE,
What are we supposing with our conclusions, do we really believe that a human being can RESIST God? Think of any unsaved person you know, do you really believe that God is calling that person but that person is RESISTING God? Consider this:
Romans 9:19b
WHO HAS RESISTED HIS WILL?
Paul asked the question to which we all know the answer, and that answer is NO ONE HAS RESISTED HIS WILL. Since this is the case why then is the whole world not saved, let Jesus answer:
Mark 4:10-12
10 And when he was alone, they that were about him with the twelve asked of him the parable. 11 And he said unto them, Unto you it is given to know the mystery of the kingdom of God: but unto them that are without, all these things are done in parables: 12 That seeing they may see, and not perceive; and hearing they may hear, and not understand; lest at any time they should be converted, and their sins should be forgiven them.
Jesus was explaining to the disciples why he spoke in parables. Verse twelve is indeed a remarkable statement because Jesus says that if he DID NOT SPEAK to the crowd in parables they WOULD TURN AND BE CONVERTED. Consider his statement to the disciples, UNTO YOU IT IS GIVEN TO KNOW THE MYSTERIES OF THE KINGDOM. This means that it is NOT GIVEN to EVERYONE to know but ONLY to those GOD has CHOSEN.
John 15:16
16 You did not choose me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit–fruit that will last. Then the Father will give you whatever you ask in my name.
Ephesians 1:4
4 For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love
2 Thessalonians 2:13
But we ought always to thank God for you, brothers loved by the Lord, because from the beginning GOD CHOSE you to be saved through the sanctifying work of the spirit and belief in the truth
The thread in all of these verses is that it is GOD who is doing the CHOOSING. THE CHOICE WAS NOT YOURS. YOU DID NOT DECIDE TO COME TO HIM. WE ONLY COME TO GOD IF HE CHOOSES US. GOD HAS A PLAN and we for the most part CANNOT see it. God choses those to whom he would give his light at this time, and EVERYONE he chooses comes to him.
It may be hard to see but GOD has a plan for the sinner as well as the saint. In fact he says that the sinner was made so that the riches of glory would be shown to you his saints. It may not make sense but his plan is beautiful.
So going back to our original statement there is a difference between preaching the gospel and winning the world. God has called us to proclaim the gospel to the world but not for the purposes of winning the world but to claim the FEW HE has chosen out of the world.
MEAT NOT MILK.
Sowing the seed of the word.
1 Corinthians 3:6
6 I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow.
This verse gives us insight into the way that God operates in regards to humans and how indeed he designed the human being to work. Paul was here rebuking the corinthians on their carnal thoughts in regards to allegiance to particular teachers. What he wanted them to know was that he planted a seed that was reaped by someone else.
This is an amazing insight because this explains the overwhelming success of the super hero movie genre as of late. The success of one of these films are almost certain because of the above principle. Top grossing franchises and films like X-men, Spiderman, Green Lantern, Thor and the like are the end result of a long process. A seed was sown in the seventies and eighties by Stan Lee when he imagined these characters and drew them in his comic books. Millions of little kids were fascinated by these characters back them as evident by the success of the comic book sales. Fast forward two decades and these little children have now grown to adults. The thing is that most adults DO NOT read comics any longer but they do watch movies. So beginning with the Spiderman franchise the superhero theme and the seeds that were sown in comic books decades ago were now mature trees with fruit and was now ready for a harvest. So what was sowed in comics was now reaped in movies.
This principle was initiated by God and no one knows better than him on how to use it. Consider this:
Romans 14:11
11 It is written:
As surely as I live, says the Lord,
every knee will bow before me;
every tongue will confess to God.
And,
Philippians 2:10-11
10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
Please note the use of the word EVERY in the above verses. God is telling us the EVERY human will confess the LORDSHIP of JESUS. But how can this be? It will be because of the same principle employed by Stan Lee:
Matthew 24:14
14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
God will sow the seed in the WHOLE world and there will be a harvest eventually.
MEAT NOT MILK.
6 I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow.
This verse gives us insight into the way that God operates in regards to humans and how indeed he designed the human being to work. Paul was here rebuking the corinthians on their carnal thoughts in regards to allegiance to particular teachers. What he wanted them to know was that he planted a seed that was reaped by someone else.
This is an amazing insight because this explains the overwhelming success of the super hero movie genre as of late. The success of one of these films are almost certain because of the above principle. Top grossing franchises and films like X-men, Spiderman, Green Lantern, Thor and the like are the end result of a long process. A seed was sown in the seventies and eighties by Stan Lee when he imagined these characters and drew them in his comic books. Millions of little kids were fascinated by these characters back them as evident by the success of the comic book sales. Fast forward two decades and these little children have now grown to adults. The thing is that most adults DO NOT read comics any longer but they do watch movies. So beginning with the Spiderman franchise the superhero theme and the seeds that were sown in comic books decades ago were now mature trees with fruit and was now ready for a harvest. So what was sowed in comics was now reaped in movies.
This principle was initiated by God and no one knows better than him on how to use it. Consider this:
Romans 14:11
11 It is written:
As surely as I live, says the Lord,
every knee will bow before me;
every tongue will confess to God.
And,
Philippians 2:10-11
10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
Please note the use of the word EVERY in the above verses. God is telling us the EVERY human will confess the LORDSHIP of JESUS. But how can this be? It will be because of the same principle employed by Stan Lee:
Matthew 24:14
14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
God will sow the seed in the WHOLE world and there will be a harvest eventually.
MEAT NOT MILK.
Revisiting WWJD
A few years back a movement sprung up in the United States called the WWJD - what would Jesus do. It was signified by the letters WWJD on bracelets and other paraphernalia, and was intended to raise the consciousness of the wearers and others about living their lives in accordance with what Jesus would do in a certain situation. Some would label it commendable in it's efforts to reach the world, however it had two significant flaws and they were:
1- It became a fad and fashion statement. It lost any potential it had by becoming a fad that was adopted by the in crowd. Anything that is whole heartedly embraced by the world can never be of Christ because of Jesus' declaration that 'The world hates me'. It is because of this that such a campaign cannot not have it's intended value and must from it's onset be corrupted, because if the world adopts it then it cannot be of God. So the WWJD movement became a fad and that leads to the other significant flaw,
2- it basically came down to the wearers of the paraphernalia to know what Jesus would do in a given situation. You must know that people of this world are blinded by the devil to do his will and as such they will not have a true concept of who Jesus was because such understanding is only yielded by his spirit and cannot be known otherwise. If you are aware you will notice that people have all sorts of concepts about what Jesus would do in certain situations based on something they heard in Sunday school or in some debate somewhere or some pie in the sky viewpoint but it will always end in folly because they cannot know without knowing him.
The bottom line is that you can only know what Jesus would do by READING the words he spoke and you can only UNDERSTAND those words by the Spirit because the words are Spirit and they are spiritually discerned. Jesus WOULD:
Love his neighbor (not just regular but love to his own hurt)
Give to the poor
Help the weak
Turn the other cheek
Not resist an evil person
Not pay back evil with evil
Bless those who curse him
Put the needs of others BEFORE his own needs
Be patient
Be long suffering
Forgive
Keep no record of wrongs
Love his enemies
1- It became a fad and fashion statement. It lost any potential it had by becoming a fad that was adopted by the in crowd. Anything that is whole heartedly embraced by the world can never be of Christ because of Jesus' declaration that 'The world hates me'. It is because of this that such a campaign cannot not have it's intended value and must from it's onset be corrupted, because if the world adopts it then it cannot be of God. So the WWJD movement became a fad and that leads to the other significant flaw,
2- it basically came down to the wearers of the paraphernalia to know what Jesus would do in a given situation. You must know that people of this world are blinded by the devil to do his will and as such they will not have a true concept of who Jesus was because such understanding is only yielded by his spirit and cannot be known otherwise. If you are aware you will notice that people have all sorts of concepts about what Jesus would do in certain situations based on something they heard in Sunday school or in some debate somewhere or some pie in the sky viewpoint but it will always end in folly because they cannot know without knowing him.
The bottom line is that you can only know what Jesus would do by READING the words he spoke and you can only UNDERSTAND those words by the Spirit because the words are Spirit and they are spiritually discerned. Jesus WOULD:
Love his neighbor (not just regular but love to his own hurt)
Give to the poor
Help the weak
Turn the other cheek
Not resist an evil person
Not pay back evil with evil
Bless those who curse him
Put the needs of others BEFORE his own needs
Be patient
Be long suffering
Forgive
Keep no record of wrongs
Love his enemies
The Unadulterated and Unabridged Word of God (No Qualifications)
The word abridged means:
To reduce in scope
The word adulterated means:
To corrupt, debase or make impure by adding a foreign or inferior substance or element.
Paul and Peter warned us of men who would come to the flock and present us with doctrines that are unsound. But how do we identify doctrines that are unsound? The problem with these types of teachings is that those who are not willing to search the scriptures for themselves will not be able to identify thes unsound teachings and will adopt them as truth. This corruption enter the church usually by qualifications to the word of God.
It is common today to hear some preacher offer qualifications to the word of God, these may seem harmless and may even come across as a point of clarification to some passage of scripture but I assure you that they are as corrupt as any devil can declare. An example of this qualification can be heard when a preacher teaches on giving. Jesus said give to the poor and give liberally and give to everyone who ask you. If a preacher is bold enough to preach this word he would immediately qualify it by saying 'but we must have discerment' or 'we have to use 'wisdom''. Such qualifications, whilst seemingly filled with wisdom, are really adulterations of the word of God because they water down the truth given by Jesus. A precher may preach on love and boldly say 'God commands us to love our neighbor', but then would immediately qualify it by saying something like 'but ya gotta use wisdom' or 'God save you from your sins not ya sense'. These seem like useful additions but they are all intended to convey to the bearers that you do what Jesus says BUT...
There is a reason for these blatant additions by the preachers and it is that they add these qualifications into the word of God to PROTECT you from con artist and potential abusers, but this is demonic. Everything that Jesus declares in the gospel is DESIGNED to MAKE US VULNERABLE. Jesus teaching on forgiveness tells us to forgive those who sin against us and he tells us to forgive without qualification. By nature if we our offended by someone we try to avoid that situation so as to not be offended again, but Jesus says that if someone sins against you don't create situations where you try to prevent it from happening again, instead we are to forgive them EVERYTIME. This sets us up too be vulnerable because we have NO defense against someone who seeks to abuse our obedience to God.
Luke 6:29
29 And unto him that smiteth thee on the one cheek offer also the other; and him that taketh away thy cloke forbid not to take thy coat also.
Look at how vulnerable we are in the above verse. Jesus tells us that if we are smitten on one cheek don't run, or call the police, or sue, NO, he tells us to OFFER the other cheek. No qualifications. Look at what he commands in the following verse:
Luke 6:28
Bless those who curse you and pray for those who mistreat you
He tells us to pray for those who mistreat us. The word mistreat means abuse. And the pray for in this text does not mean Lord kill them but Lord bless them! The thing to see here is that Jesus himself wants us to be vulnerable to the world because when we are vulnerable he will defend us.
Do not fear direct and complete obedience to the words of Jesus, because they are designed to make you weak, and vulnerable and to cause you to feel abused THIS IS NECESSARY , because it ONLY when you are weak that he is strong.
Bertram Mills
To reduce in scope
The word adulterated means:
To corrupt, debase or make impure by adding a foreign or inferior substance or element.
Paul and Peter warned us of men who would come to the flock and present us with doctrines that are unsound. But how do we identify doctrines that are unsound? The problem with these types of teachings is that those who are not willing to search the scriptures for themselves will not be able to identify thes unsound teachings and will adopt them as truth. This corruption enter the church usually by qualifications to the word of God.
It is common today to hear some preacher offer qualifications to the word of God, these may seem harmless and may even come across as a point of clarification to some passage of scripture but I assure you that they are as corrupt as any devil can declare. An example of this qualification can be heard when a preacher teaches on giving. Jesus said give to the poor and give liberally and give to everyone who ask you. If a preacher is bold enough to preach this word he would immediately qualify it by saying 'but we must have discerment' or 'we have to use 'wisdom''. Such qualifications, whilst seemingly filled with wisdom, are really adulterations of the word of God because they water down the truth given by Jesus. A precher may preach on love and boldly say 'God commands us to love our neighbor', but then would immediately qualify it by saying something like 'but ya gotta use wisdom' or 'God save you from your sins not ya sense'. These seem like useful additions but they are all intended to convey to the bearers that you do what Jesus says BUT...
There is a reason for these blatant additions by the preachers and it is that they add these qualifications into the word of God to PROTECT you from con artist and potential abusers, but this is demonic. Everything that Jesus declares in the gospel is DESIGNED to MAKE US VULNERABLE. Jesus teaching on forgiveness tells us to forgive those who sin against us and he tells us to forgive without qualification. By nature if we our offended by someone we try to avoid that situation so as to not be offended again, but Jesus says that if someone sins against you don't create situations where you try to prevent it from happening again, instead we are to forgive them EVERYTIME. This sets us up too be vulnerable because we have NO defense against someone who seeks to abuse our obedience to God.
Luke 6:29
29 And unto him that smiteth thee on the one cheek offer also the other; and him that taketh away thy cloke forbid not to take thy coat also.
Look at how vulnerable we are in the above verse. Jesus tells us that if we are smitten on one cheek don't run, or call the police, or sue, NO, he tells us to OFFER the other cheek. No qualifications. Look at what he commands in the following verse:
Luke 6:28
Bless those who curse you and pray for those who mistreat you
He tells us to pray for those who mistreat us. The word mistreat means abuse. And the pray for in this text does not mean Lord kill them but Lord bless them! The thing to see here is that Jesus himself wants us to be vulnerable to the world because when we are vulnerable he will defend us.
Do not fear direct and complete obedience to the words of Jesus, because they are designed to make you weak, and vulnerable and to cause you to feel abused THIS IS NECESSARY , because it ONLY when you are weak that he is strong.
Bertram Mills
Making the world a better place?????
Making the world a better place?!?!
Most Christians would view the above statement as their mandate from God. They would see this as the natural result of our obedience to the command of Jesus:
Matthew 28:19-20
19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
They often dream of safer communities and wholesome families when somehow they will be successful in their efforts to evangelize the world. They carry with them what I call 'The Concept of Winning', where the believe that their is somehow a contest between God and the devil where the winner would be decided by the one who has the most souls in the end. The only problem with this is thatGOD HAS NOT DETERMINED IT SO!
We think of sinners as people who COULD do right but CHOOSE not to. When we see some drug addict strung out on drugs we declare 'that's what happens when you make stupid choices'. Or when we see some single parent with seven children from seven different fathers we say 'ya think she couldn't keep her legs closed?'. We are masters at looking down on the lost as if they had the capacity to do BETTER. Consider this:
2 Corinthians 4:4
4 The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
This is the condition of EVERY unbeliever. This verse tells us that the the unbeliever CANNOT see the light of the gospel. We may feel as though we understand this passage but if we really did we would PITY the lost and NOT judge them. We often wonder WHY DON'T THESE PEOPLE DO BETTER???? The answer is because they CANNOT do better. PLEASE NOTE THAT THE UNBELIEVER DOES NOT BLIND HIMSELF; he is victim of Satan. Consider:
2 Timothy 2:26
26 and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.
It is ONLY when:
Galatians 1:15-16
15 But when God, who set me apart from birth and called me by his grace, was pleased 16 to reveal his Son in me so that I might preach him among the Gentiles,
You see we cannot come to him UNTIL it pleases him for us to do so. With that said we can understand that the condition of this world is as God would have it.
Most Christians would view the above statement as their mandate from God. They would see this as the natural result of our obedience to the command of Jesus:
Matthew 28:19-20
19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
They often dream of safer communities and wholesome families when somehow they will be successful in their efforts to evangelize the world. They carry with them what I call 'The Concept of Winning', where the believe that their is somehow a contest between God and the devil where the winner would be decided by the one who has the most souls in the end. The only problem with this is thatGOD HAS NOT DETERMINED IT SO!
We think of sinners as people who COULD do right but CHOOSE not to. When we see some drug addict strung out on drugs we declare 'that's what happens when you make stupid choices'. Or when we see some single parent with seven children from seven different fathers we say 'ya think she couldn't keep her legs closed?'. We are masters at looking down on the lost as if they had the capacity to do BETTER. Consider this:
2 Corinthians 4:4
4 The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.
This is the condition of EVERY unbeliever. This verse tells us that the the unbeliever CANNOT see the light of the gospel. We may feel as though we understand this passage but if we really did we would PITY the lost and NOT judge them. We often wonder WHY DON'T THESE PEOPLE DO BETTER???? The answer is because they CANNOT do better. PLEASE NOTE THAT THE UNBELIEVER DOES NOT BLIND HIMSELF; he is victim of Satan. Consider:
2 Timothy 2:26
26 and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will.
It is ONLY when:
Galatians 1:15-16
15 But when God, who set me apart from birth and called me by his grace, was pleased 16 to reveal his Son in me so that I might preach him among the Gentiles,
You see we cannot come to him UNTIL it pleases him for us to do so. With that said we can understand that the condition of this world is as God would have it.
The case AGAINST a Christian Nation
The case AGAINST seeking a Christian nation.
The disciples asked Jesus a question about the end of the age and the sign of his coming. He explained to them that there will be several signs including earthquakes and famines, but one sign in particular is overlooked in our teachings. Jesus said,
Matthew 24:9
9 “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me.
I learned of Jesus that he DOES not exaggerate. The key thing of this verse is to see that Jesus does not say that you will be hated by SOME nations; he explicitly says that YOU will be hated by ALL nations. The ONLY way that the words of Jesus can remain true is that CHRISTIANS will REMAIN a MINORITY wherever they reside. This prophecy of Jesus does not support our hopes for developing a CHRISTIAN nation because if ALL nations will hate you then it follows that NO nation will be predominately Christian. Jesus himself declares that 'narrow is the road to righteousness and only a FEW find it'.
When we envision going into the world to win the lost we carry with us oftentimes a concept of winning defined by getting more souls than the devil. THIS CANNOT HAPPEN BECAUSE GOD NEVER PROMISED IT. Therefore I declare to you
'THE BAHAMAS WILL NEVER BE A CHRISTIAN NATION'
because on the day described above IT TOO must be among the nations that HATE the children of God. Therefore in line with the words of Jesus our efforts to spread the word will NEVER impact the lives of the many but only the few, and that is exactly how HE wants it.
The disciples asked Jesus a question about the end of the age and the sign of his coming. He explained to them that there will be several signs including earthquakes and famines, but one sign in particular is overlooked in our teachings. Jesus said,
Matthew 24:9
9 “Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me.
I learned of Jesus that he DOES not exaggerate. The key thing of this verse is to see that Jesus does not say that you will be hated by SOME nations; he explicitly says that YOU will be hated by ALL nations. The ONLY way that the words of Jesus can remain true is that CHRISTIANS will REMAIN a MINORITY wherever they reside. This prophecy of Jesus does not support our hopes for developing a CHRISTIAN nation because if ALL nations will hate you then it follows that NO nation will be predominately Christian. Jesus himself declares that 'narrow is the road to righteousness and only a FEW find it'.
When we envision going into the world to win the lost we carry with us oftentimes a concept of winning defined by getting more souls than the devil. THIS CANNOT HAPPEN BECAUSE GOD NEVER PROMISED IT. Therefore I declare to you
'THE BAHAMAS WILL NEVER BE A CHRISTIAN NATION'
because on the day described above IT TOO must be among the nations that HATE the children of God. Therefore in line with the words of Jesus our efforts to spread the word will NEVER impact the lives of the many but only the few, and that is exactly how HE wants it.
Manifesting the life of Jesus
2 Cor 4:11
For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.
Paul says that we are CONSTANTLY being deliver over to death for Jesus' sake. This connotes a state of perpetual contact with death. The context of this verse renders it a figurative death because one cannot constantly be given to die literally because death is a final and one time event. What Paul was showing here is that we are constantly being subjected to circumstances that are fearful, full of trouble, debilitating, threatening and loss.
But why?
He goes on to tell us that this occurs 'so that the life of Jesus may be manifested in our mortal flesh'. Therefore it is only in instances when we are 'delivered over to death' that we can manifest the life of Christ in our mortal bodies. This happens when we respond to the death in the way prescribed by Jesus.
Example
If we are presented with an instance where some one has stolen from us what should be our response? Do we demand what was stolen back? Do we submit the case to the police? Do we seek redress with the courts. The theft represents a type of death and you have been exposed to it and now you are required to manifest the life of Jesus in our situation. How should we respond?
...and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. Luke 6:30
It is only in our compliance with the words of Jesus that we manifest the life of Jesus in our situations
For we who live are constantly being delivered over to death for Jesus' sake, so that the life of Jesus also may be manifested in our mortal flesh.
Paul says that we are CONSTANTLY being deliver over to death for Jesus' sake. This connotes a state of perpetual contact with death. The context of this verse renders it a figurative death because one cannot constantly be given to die literally because death is a final and one time event. What Paul was showing here is that we are constantly being subjected to circumstances that are fearful, full of trouble, debilitating, threatening and loss.
But why?
He goes on to tell us that this occurs 'so that the life of Jesus may be manifested in our mortal flesh'. Therefore it is only in instances when we are 'delivered over to death' that we can manifest the life of Christ in our mortal bodies. This happens when we respond to the death in the way prescribed by Jesus.
Example
If we are presented with an instance where some one has stolen from us what should be our response? Do we demand what was stolen back? Do we submit the case to the police? Do we seek redress with the courts. The theft represents a type of death and you have been exposed to it and now you are required to manifest the life of Jesus in our situation. How should we respond?
...and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. Luke 6:30
It is only in our compliance with the words of Jesus that we manifest the life of Jesus in our situations
Principles I use to understand the Word of God.
Principles I use to understand the scriptures
1) God is in control over ALL his creation at every moment
- God has complete control over everything that has ever existed
- God is NOT a passive ruler but the ultimate micro-manager
2) No one and no thing can EVER resist the will of God
- There has never been neither will there ever be anything that will do ANYTHING apart from his will
- if there was ever anything or anyone who was able to resist his will that thing would be stronger than God.
3) Everything is ALWAYS as God wills it
- nothing has EVER frustrated the will of God at ANY time
- If ANYTHING arises that God does not will then that thing is greater than God
4) God IS love, His mercy endures FOREVER, HIs anger last for a MOMENT
-since God is love then that means he can ONLY act in kindness, patience, apart from envy, apart from arrogance, apart from pride, apart from rudeness, apart from self seeking. He is not easily angered and does not keep record of wrongs. These form the basis of EVERY action of GOD.
- the mercy of God is a trait that arises out of the fact that he is love and since God endures forever so his mercy endures forever
- since God Is love and his mercy endures forever then his Anger CANNOT last forever. Therefore in regards to God His anger CANNOT be a perpetual expression since it CANNOT be sustained longer than a moment in the face of LOVE and MERCY.
1) God is in control over ALL his creation at every moment
- God has complete control over everything that has ever existed
- God is NOT a passive ruler but the ultimate micro-manager
2) No one and no thing can EVER resist the will of God
- There has never been neither will there ever be anything that will do ANYTHING apart from his will
- if there was ever anything or anyone who was able to resist his will that thing would be stronger than God.
3) Everything is ALWAYS as God wills it
- nothing has EVER frustrated the will of God at ANY time
- If ANYTHING arises that God does not will then that thing is greater than God
4) God IS love, His mercy endures FOREVER, HIs anger last for a MOMENT
-since God is love then that means he can ONLY act in kindness, patience, apart from envy, apart from arrogance, apart from pride, apart from rudeness, apart from self seeking. He is not easily angered and does not keep record of wrongs. These form the basis of EVERY action of GOD.
- the mercy of God is a trait that arises out of the fact that he is love and since God endures forever so his mercy endures forever
- since God Is love and his mercy endures forever then his Anger CANNOT last forever. Therefore in regards to God His anger CANNOT be a perpetual expression since it CANNOT be sustained longer than a moment in the face of LOVE and MERCY.
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