"20And he lifted up his eyes on his disciples, and said, Blessed be ye poor: for yours is the kingdom of God.
21Blessed are ye that hunger now: for ye shall be filled. Blessed are ye that weep now: for ye shall laugh.
22Blessed are ye, when men shall hate you, and when they shall separate you from their company, and shall reproach you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of man's sake.
23Rejoice ye in that day, and leap for joy: for, behold, your reward is great in heaven: for in the like manner did their fathers unto the prophets.
24But woe unto you that are rich! for ye have received your consolation.
25Woe unto you that are full! for ye shall hunger. Woe unto you that laugh now! for ye shall mourn and weep.
26Woe unto you, when all men shall speak well of you! for so did their fathers to the false prophets.
27But I say unto you which hear, Love your enemies, do good to them which hate you,
28Bless them that curse you, and pray for them which despitefully use you.
29And unto him that smiteth thee on the one cheek offer also the other; and him that taketh away thy cloak forbid not to take thy coat also.
30Give to every man that asketh of thee; and of him that taketh away thy goods ask them not again.
31And as ye would that men should do to you, do ye also to them likewise.
32For if ye love them which love you, what thank have ye? for sinners also love those that love them.
33And if ye do good to them which do good to you, what thank have ye? for sinners also do even the same.
34And if ye lend to them of whom ye hope to receive, what thank have ye? for sinners also lend to sinners, to receive as much again.
35But love ye your enemies, and do good, and lend, hoping for nothing again; and your reward shall be great, and ye shall be the children of the Highest: for he is kind unto the unthankful and to the evil.
36Be ye therefore merciful, as your Father also is merciful.
37Judge not, and ye shall not be judged: condemn not, and ye shall not be condemned: forgive, and ye shall be forgiven:
38Give, and it shall be given unto you; good measure, pressed down, and shaken together, and running over, shall men give into your bosom. For with the same measure that ye mete withal it shall be measured to you again." -Luke 6:20-38
Showing posts with label World News. Show all posts
Showing posts with label World News. Show all posts
Saturday, July 3, 2010
Wednesday, June 23, 2010
My Death Experience
The following account is of a thing that happened to me in my earlier 20's. Approximately 20 years ago. It is a true story.
At this time in my life I had been a true Christian believer for only a couple of years. And had much zeal for the things of God. I had volunteered my time and efforts to a ministry outreach program in the inner city of a large city. I did not have much money at the time. In fact I had become jobless and nearly homeless when the pastor of this outreach told me that I could live inside the ministry building. The building now was an old warehouse that was being converted into a place where they could meet for church services, and for reaching out to help the needy in the community. It was a dirty building needing lots of work. I volunteered to do some of that work as well as ministry activities. I slept on a cot that was donated by someone to the church.
One day, I became very ill. I don't know what it was. Maybe it could have been food poisoning. Or,...just poisoning of some kind.
This was not the only time I had been poisoned. In fact I have since had poisoning of some sort a few times since. Not ever knowing what exactly caused it.
Living in such a place I knew there were some strange things going on around me, to other people as well.
Anyway, one night I did not feel well and went to bed. Some time during the night as I was sleeping, I became very aware of my surroundings. I knew it was in the middle of the night as I sat up in bed. Even though the lights were off, I could still see in the dark. I would describe it as night vision the military uses those special night vision goggles they have. Anyway, I felt strange like something was different. I tried to look at my hand in front of my face, but I could not see it. I tried to touch my face, but my hand went right through my head! I looked down at my knees as I was sitting on the side of the bed, but only saw the side of the bed and not my knees. It was as if I was hovering. Then I looked back at my pillow and saw myself laying there! I actually was experiencing being outside my body and seeing my body laying on the pillow. It was scary. I did not see any one else. No angels or demons, or God. No one was there with me. I was all alone. I didn't see any tunnel or heaven or hell, just the room in the natural. I tried to move a pencil laying near by but it wouldn't budge. The pencil seemed to weigh 10 tons!
I became a little more fearful being outside my body. And I didn't like it. I felt that outside my body I had no control. I could not interact with the physical realm at all. All I could do was float.
I became increasingly alarmed and concerned. Luckily I knew some scriptures. I immediately moved my self back toward the bed where my body was laying. I decided that I wasn't going to accept this situation that was happening to me. So I began to fight. I was wrestling against the spirit of death. Even though I didn't see it.
The bible says: "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places." -Ephesians 6:12
So I spoke loudly in my spirit. (I couldn't control the lips on my body) I said, "In the name of Jesus, I shall NOT die but live and declare the Word and works of the Lord! I command this body to live and function normally in Jesus' name." I repeated this a few times and in addition I said other things too like, "I command this body to rise up in the name of Jesus! Arise and walk! I command this body to line up with the Word of God! I bind the spirit of death in Jesus name. I command sickness, disease, and death to leave me and leave my body in Jesus name!"
So I went on praying like this for a while. It felt like a wrestling match! I had to work at it. I had to fight! Then surely but slowly I could feel my body. It felt like a dead weight. It felt like a million tons of lead. But I kept fighting. Even though I began to feel my body, it didn't move at first. It took a while. But then I forced it to sit up in bed. It was so heavy that I felt literally like I was trying to pick up a dead body.
Finally I stood in my physical body out of bed! I still felt like a ton of bricks. And I also felt extremely ill. I felt like food poisoning or some other kind of poison was in my body. I struggled to the hall way and then collapsed. I opened my eyes to find myself on the floor flat on my back. I struggled again trying to get my body to function.
The next day I was sick in bed all day, but eventually regained my strength and health. And I am now alive over 20 years later to tell the story.
The strange thing is that this was not the only time I went through this. Other times I had similar experiences. I feel that the enemy of my soul was trying to kill me so that I couldn't tell people about the love of Jesus Christ which is the only reason for my existence on this earth. My relationship with God is everything I have. That is why I feel it is my reason for being alive.
I feel this is important to share with people to let them know that if you or someone you know is sick unto death, Do NOT give up! You can make it. Believe in Jesus and pray the scriptures! Some things may seem impossible to us in the natural. But all we have to do is believe in God and fight the situation! God has given those of us who believe authority in His name!
"I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the LORD." -Psalm 118:17
At this time in my life I had been a true Christian believer for only a couple of years. And had much zeal for the things of God. I had volunteered my time and efforts to a ministry outreach program in the inner city of a large city. I did not have much money at the time. In fact I had become jobless and nearly homeless when the pastor of this outreach told me that I could live inside the ministry building. The building now was an old warehouse that was being converted into a place where they could meet for church services, and for reaching out to help the needy in the community. It was a dirty building needing lots of work. I volunteered to do some of that work as well as ministry activities. I slept on a cot that was donated by someone to the church.
One day, I became very ill. I don't know what it was. Maybe it could have been food poisoning. Or,...just poisoning of some kind.
This was not the only time I had been poisoned. In fact I have since had poisoning of some sort a few times since. Not ever knowing what exactly caused it.
Living in such a place I knew there were some strange things going on around me, to other people as well.
Anyway, one night I did not feel well and went to bed. Some time during the night as I was sleeping, I became very aware of my surroundings. I knew it was in the middle of the night as I sat up in bed. Even though the lights were off, I could still see in the dark. I would describe it as night vision the military uses those special night vision goggles they have. Anyway, I felt strange like something was different. I tried to look at my hand in front of my face, but I could not see it. I tried to touch my face, but my hand went right through my head! I looked down at my knees as I was sitting on the side of the bed, but only saw the side of the bed and not my knees. It was as if I was hovering. Then I looked back at my pillow and saw myself laying there! I actually was experiencing being outside my body and seeing my body laying on the pillow. It was scary. I did not see any one else. No angels or demons, or God. No one was there with me. I was all alone. I didn't see any tunnel or heaven or hell, just the room in the natural. I tried to move a pencil laying near by but it wouldn't budge. The pencil seemed to weigh 10 tons!
I became a little more fearful being outside my body. And I didn't like it. I felt that outside my body I had no control. I could not interact with the physical realm at all. All I could do was float.
I became increasingly alarmed and concerned. Luckily I knew some scriptures. I immediately moved my self back toward the bed where my body was laying. I decided that I wasn't going to accept this situation that was happening to me. So I began to fight. I was wrestling against the spirit of death. Even though I didn't see it.
The bible says: "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places." -Ephesians 6:12
So I spoke loudly in my spirit. (I couldn't control the lips on my body) I said, "In the name of Jesus, I shall NOT die but live and declare the Word and works of the Lord! I command this body to live and function normally in Jesus' name." I repeated this a few times and in addition I said other things too like, "I command this body to rise up in the name of Jesus! Arise and walk! I command this body to line up with the Word of God! I bind the spirit of death in Jesus name. I command sickness, disease, and death to leave me and leave my body in Jesus name!"
So I went on praying like this for a while. It felt like a wrestling match! I had to work at it. I had to fight! Then surely but slowly I could feel my body. It felt like a dead weight. It felt like a million tons of lead. But I kept fighting. Even though I began to feel my body, it didn't move at first. It took a while. But then I forced it to sit up in bed. It was so heavy that I felt literally like I was trying to pick up a dead body.
Finally I stood in my physical body out of bed! I still felt like a ton of bricks. And I also felt extremely ill. I felt like food poisoning or some other kind of poison was in my body. I struggled to the hall way and then collapsed. I opened my eyes to find myself on the floor flat on my back. I struggled again trying to get my body to function.
The next day I was sick in bed all day, but eventually regained my strength and health. And I am now alive over 20 years later to tell the story.
The strange thing is that this was not the only time I went through this. Other times I had similar experiences. I feel that the enemy of my soul was trying to kill me so that I couldn't tell people about the love of Jesus Christ which is the only reason for my existence on this earth. My relationship with God is everything I have. That is why I feel it is my reason for being alive.
I feel this is important to share with people to let them know that if you or someone you know is sick unto death, Do NOT give up! You can make it. Believe in Jesus and pray the scriptures! Some things may seem impossible to us in the natural. But all we have to do is believe in God and fight the situation! God has given those of us who believe authority in His name!
"I shall not die, but live, and declare the works of the LORD." -Psalm 118:17
Monday, June 21, 2010
Personal Experiences
I am going to begin writing about some of the personal experiences I have had in my life. Some are just small to express a point while others are life-changing, soul gripping impacting situations that I will never forget.
Maybe someday I will compile these stories from this blog and put them into a book. It may sound a little boring right now, but I guarantee it is not!
I just celebrated this blog's 1 month anniversary this past weekend. From the start of it I said that I would write about many things. My life experiences is just another thing to add to the list. At the beginning when this blog started on May 20, I said that I would write about world events, the New World Order, and what is coming on this planet. Well I haven't done very much of that yet. I've really felt pressed to post the important things of Christianity first. This way I'll make sure that the things of Bible truth are available first to who ever reads. I will still write about those things, but now I am adding topics that are more personal.
Some of these personal experiences I had are too incredible to keep to myself. I can get writers block just like any other writer. So maybe this will help. So far I have been posting almost every single day. I'm sure somebody is getting something out of reading this blog because I am getting a fair amount of visitors. Many of them return to read the next post. For that I am glad and I hope the best for these folks whoever they may be.
So here's to more good writing to come. Check back often! And leave me any suggestions or comments in my BlogFrog community which you can find by looking on the right side of this page. ===>
Maybe someday I will compile these stories from this blog and put them into a book. It may sound a little boring right now, but I guarantee it is not!
I just celebrated this blog's 1 month anniversary this past weekend. From the start of it I said that I would write about many things. My life experiences is just another thing to add to the list. At the beginning when this blog started on May 20, I said that I would write about world events, the New World Order, and what is coming on this planet. Well I haven't done very much of that yet. I've really felt pressed to post the important things of Christianity first. This way I'll make sure that the things of Bible truth are available first to who ever reads. I will still write about those things, but now I am adding topics that are more personal.
Some of these personal experiences I had are too incredible to keep to myself. I can get writers block just like any other writer. So maybe this will help. So far I have been posting almost every single day. I'm sure somebody is getting something out of reading this blog because I am getting a fair amount of visitors. Many of them return to read the next post. For that I am glad and I hope the best for these folks whoever they may be.
So here's to more good writing to come. Check back often! And leave me any suggestions or comments in my BlogFrog community which you can find by looking on the right side of this page. ===>
Friday, June 18, 2010
Praise Jesus!
Praise Jesus!
Let everybody start praising Him!
Let us glorify His name! So that everything we do will bring glory to Him.
Jesus is worthy! Look at everything He has done. Can we even see it all? Do we even know?
Has everything He has done for you been accounted for? Have you written it down?
What if each of us had a book written about the things He has done for us personally? What if we recorded every miracle and every answer to prayer. ...We would still be writing!
There are His heavenly angels though. They are keeping the record. They have a book of what has been done for each one of us.
And we have a book, that was handed down from those who have testified for us what it is that He has done. We have the account. And it is written...
"Thy righteousness also, O God, is very high, who hast done great things: O God, who is like unto thee!" -Psalm 71:19
"4Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
5But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed." -Isaiah 53:4-5
Praise the Lord!
Thank you Jesus for what you have done for each of us! Let us praise Your Holy name!
Praise Jesus!
Let everybody start praising Him!
Let us glorify His name! So that everything we do will bring glory to Him.
Jesus is worthy! Look at everything He has done. Can we even see it all? Do we even know?
Has everything He has done for you been accounted for? Have you written it down?
What if each of us had a book written about the things He has done for us personally? What if we recorded every miracle and every answer to prayer. ...We would still be writing!
There are His heavenly angels though. They are keeping the record. They have a book of what has been done for each one of us.
And we have a book, that was handed down from those who have testified for us what it is that He has done. We have the account. And it is written...
"Thy righteousness also, O God, is very high, who hast done great things: O God, who is like unto thee!" -Psalm 71:19
"4Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sorrows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted.
5But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed." -Isaiah 53:4-5
Praise the Lord!
Thank you Jesus for what you have done for each of us! Let us praise Your Holy name!
Praise Jesus!
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Bible Versions - How to know which version to choose
For a new believer, or for anyone wanting to step up their bible reading, this can be a daunting task. For some it can even seem overwhelming. Don't let this question of choosing a bible version keep you from reading it at all.For those who don't speak English, this task is much easier because most other languages have few versions. So they just have to pick the one that is written in their own language. But for English speaking people there is an untold number of versions and even variations of the bible.
We must be careful! It is important to know a little bit about how we got the bible in our language. It is good to know a little about how God preserves His Word. I don't want to make this sound too complicated. You don't have to be a bible scholar or a seminary graduate to understand this. It is a lot simpler when we ask for Gods help.
Gods Word is perfectly accurate. There is no error in what He said. The Holy Bible is true and can be trusted completely. But there is a problem when sinful people begin to try to interpret it from an ignorant sinful perspective. That becomes a bigger problem when those sinful people begin to make their own interpretations and publish it "as the bible". We are not trusting in men when we read the bible, but are looking to God our heavenly Father.
"20Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation.
21For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost." -2Peter 1:20-21
The most important thing to realize about choosing a bible version, is to be seeking God with all of your heart. 1Thessalonians 1:5 says: "For our gospel came not unto you in word only, but also in power, and in the Holy Ghost, and in much assurance; as ye know what manner of men we were among you for your sake." And look at this scripture...
"It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life." -John 6:63
I spoke about some of this in my post on 6/13/2010 entitled, How to read the bible. It is a good article. If you get the chance I highly recommend reading it.
It takes some effort on our part if we want God to deliver us from the spiritual darkness.
"But without faith it is impossible to please him: for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek Him." -Hebrews 11:6
In this scripture quote, I am placing the emphasis on seeking God diligently. Any one who is really looking for God with their whole heart, regardless of their bible version, is not going to be left out! God rewards those who are seeking Him. If you have a version of the bible that is not considered to be very reliable, that doesn't mean you will not come to the knowledge of the truth. God may eventually lead you to the correct version. I like the King James Bible the best but I am not a KJV only person. I believe that God can use other versions to speak to your heart if you are truly seeking Him. Remember that God is not limited in what He can use. He is not confined to a box like some religions believe. An example of this is the story in the bible where in the book of Numbers chapter 22:21-35 God spoke to the sorcerer Balaam through a donkey! If He did that, then I'm sure He could use any version of the bible He wants to. I do however believe that as you grow as a Christian, and as you allow God to lead you, that you will find there are fewer reliable bible versions. The King James is the most accurate English version for what I have discovered.
However, I believe also that there are dangerous things that some have done to distort the truth of Gods word in these end days. I believe that there are "versions" that are not true translations of the Holy scripture. There are some versions that are known to eliminate certain words or entire verses from the Holy scripture! This is extremely dangerous! Some people take Gods word lightly. There are even churches that quote from paraphrased bibles, making their congregations think they are reading scripture when it is nothing but a twisted rendition. Are they doing it ignorantly? God's Word says: ...
"My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children." -Hosea 4:6
I believe that it is the believers responsibility to honor Gods Holy Word! It is our responsibility to respect God by taking His word seriously. We should be concerned about all of the "new" changes in new translations, commentaries, and transliterations of the bible. The bible says:
"Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you." -Deuteronomy 4:2
If you do a little history check you will see what I am referring to. Here are just a few of the problems:
In the King James Version of the bible (which is the one I use the most), the first edition printed in the year 1611 contained an apocryphal section. These books were removed from all printings in 1885. That is only 125 years ago. Such a short time for something that was existing in scripture since the Septuagint that existed in the Jewish temple since the time of Jesus! Why they took it out is because of the label it contained. The word "Apocrypha" is supposed to mean "not inspired". This label was put on these books by the Catholic bishop Jerome in 300 AD. Note that the Catholics did not put these apocryphal books into the bible, they only labeled them "Apocrypha." It is important to note that these things are too technical for new believers to have to worry about. Like I said earlier, the main thing is to be seeking God for who He is, and to not get hung up on these other technical issues. I am only bringing it out in this article because I think people should be aware of a little bible history, and how we got some of the modern translations. Even though I believe that the King James Bible is the most accurate of all English bibles, I am still curious to know why the changes were made to it. Most Christians don't even know about these things.
I visited a church who uses "The Message" as their main version for preaching. I actually heard a preacher there mock people for questioning him for using that so called version. People will not know there is something important missing from a version until they do extensive research on it. The "Message" is only one mans slang paraphrase that he decided in his own words, "to get playful with it!" This is a dangerous mistranslation of scripture! Why is it accepted by believers? Here again, I think it is due to their lack of knowledge.
The New International Version of the bible actually leaves out entire verses, and changes meanings! There are other versions as well that do the same. A couple examples of this are Matthew 18:11. It is missing from the NIV completely. In the KJV it says, "For the Son of man is come to save that which is lost." Another scripture missing from the NIV is Mark 11:26. In the KJV it says, "But if ye do not forgive, neither will your Father which is in heaven forgive your trespasses." These are just a couple of examples of two scriptures that we can not live without! There is a long list of many more startling changes and omissions from this NIV bible as well as many others.
There are many sites online that will allow you to do version comparisons of the bible. Biblegateway.com has over 100 different versions on line that you could compare. Not all of those are in English though. I think about 21 of them are English versions. biblos.com is another incredible site for studying and comparing different versions of the bible. It includes other languages as well and many study resources.
I don't know how the bible is or was translated into other language versions, but I hope that it is accurate. This blog has a Language Translator widget at the upper right hand side for non English speaking folks to see it in their own language. I wonder when they use it and the KJV scripture quotes I have on this page are translated into other languages, how accurate is that translator. I wouldn't want to be guilty of changing Gods word! I don't know if transliteration and meaning is lost when those scriptures change languages. I wonder if they use the biblios.com site at the above link, if it is the same as using the translator widget. If someone knows the answer I would appreciate you sending me an email to my contact info in my profile. Thank you. I can only pray that those people are able to get an accurate version in their own language.
Another important thing to note is that the Word of God isn't going to change just because a version or language software tried to change it! God's Word is the same yesterday, today, and forever!
"Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away." -Luke 21:33
"For verily I say unto you, Till heaven and earth pass, one jot or one tittle shall in no wise pass from the law, till all be fulfilled." -Matthew 5:18
I keep coming back to this one thing because it is the most important. If you get anything out of this post, remember this one thing. No matter which version of the bible that you use, if you are seeking God with all of your heart, He will never let you down! He will always take care of you. He will always lead you out of spiritual darkness and into His light. He is faithful! Trust in Him to guide you and lead you. Don't forget, your relationship is with your heavenly Father through Jesus Christ. With Him you can never go wrong!
Coming Soon to this blog ...
An article post Coming Soon: How to know which Bible version to choose ...keep visiting this blog!
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
The American people have truly been shammed!
The American people have truly been duped, lied to, shammed and scammed! And so have the rest of the world! ...Listen up folks, ...we haven't even begun to see the worst of it yet!Sorry to have to tell you what you're probably already smart enough to figure out by now. This world and it's riches are worthless!
I was just reading a blog and comments that someone posted about mortgage notes and the tangled web of who owns the loan....etc... I'm not sure I even want to explain what it is she was saying about how they can't trace who owns what based on the unlicensed transferring and so forth. "MERS"
Man, what a nightmare! There were quite a number of comments below her blog post as well. All of them going through the same mortgage problems.
I don't own any property myself. No house or land. And now, I have to say that I am glad that I don't have to deal with the stress that so many others are going through. The Bible says a few things about this:
This scripture is what I was thinking of as I read the peoples troubles they're having with the mortgage situation.
"For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows." -1Timothy 6:10 and...
"For we brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out." -1Timothy 6:7
By quoting these scriptures I am not trying to say that people who own homes have strayed from the faith. All I am pointing out is the trouble that has come on the American people and the rest of the world. There is no escaping this failure of the economy! There is no way our government will ever be able to pull itself out of the economic doom that has snowballed beyond our worst realizations.
Because of the greediness of the human nature and those who throttle some form of power, we are now doomed to realize the consequences. As the above scripture says, "for the love of money".
I know some people will try to say that I am being pessimistic. But I think it's time to face reality. The only bail out anyone is going to get, that is really worth something is God's bailout! It is time to look around us and see that this is it folks! The planned New World Order is here and is moving into official position over the entire planet! There is no need to fret. There is no need to cry. There is only a need to repent of the foolish things of this world and turn our hearts 100% toward our heavenly Father. Let's look to Him finally as the warnings of disaster and gloom hit the planet from all sides. Let us prepare for His soon catching away promised in His Word!
It is time for all of us to let go of the things of this world once and for all! Let go of the money and materialism. It has no eternal value anyway.
Many of the false churches are still preaching to their congregations about building wealth in this lifetime. What they are doing is setting up those people for a fall! We need to open our eyes and be alert! Many of the churches no longer preach the truth of God's Word. It's like many of them don't even really know God anymore. They have gone after signs and wonders and riches!
"Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal: 20But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal:
21For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also." - Matthew 6:19-21
Monday, June 14, 2010
How to choose a denomination or church
There are many people around the world in various countries who are limited to what kind of Christian church they could attend. Here in America, there are so many different churches and denominations that it can be challenging for someone who is a brand new Christian to figure out where to start. How do you pick a church? Why are there so many different denominations? These are questions that I will try to answer. Hopefully by this, more understanding and wisdom can be applied so that it won't be such a stumbling block to people.
When I first got saved 22 years ago, I came out of one religion, which claimed to be a "Christian" religion. But it was just that, a religion. As a new believer in Christ, I was introduced to the concept of having a direct relationship to God through His Son Jesus Christ. The old way in the religion, you had kind of a membership of sorts with the church, and relied on the church and their doctrine to save you. (which it didn't, I might add).
Many Christians today are still relying on the "church" to do the saving for them. They got saved, but they are still practicing religion according to denominational rules and cultural traditions, instead of according to the bible and the freedom of the Holy Spirit.
It is not wrong to attend one of these churches as long as you realize that your personal relationship with God is between you and God. Not between you and the denominational church.
On 6/2/2010 and 6/3/2010 I wrote two posts entitled: God in a box and God outside the box. You could find them in the blog archive on the right side of the page.
In these two articles I wrote about this very thing of religion confining God to the boundaries of man-made denominational rules. The only thing we should use as a denominational guideline is the Word of God. Some churches have a lot of extra rules that are not in the bible. Like no wearing hats to church, or jewelry. Or no dancing. Some church denominations don't believe in using musical instruments! These things are not the doctrines of the bible. They are man-made rules. These rules restrict and confine the flow of the Holy Spirit in people putting burdens on them that the Lord did not intend! These false religions have the disguise of Christianity, but they are really a tool to trap new innocent Christians and bring them back into bondage. Some new Christians were just washed clean by the blood of Jesus being set free from the bondages of sin, and they will go to a church that puts them under a new bondage of false rules! These kinds of churches are religious and controlling. They seek to have power and control over people to get their money. They are not concerned at all with the individual believers development and growth in Christ.
Different denominations started when men, in their fleshly arguing and disagreements decided to form their "own" church or religion. In their blindness, thinking they are free, they became proud and arrogant declaring others wrong and their selves better. The bible says:
"Speak not evil one of another, brethren. He that speaketh evil of his brother, and judgeth his brother, speaketh evil of the law, and judgeth the law: but if thou judge the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but a judge." -James 4:11
These scriptures in the book of James were written because God knew that human beings would be prone to making these errors of segregation. In the garden of Gethsemane Jesus prayed:
"That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me." -John 17:21
Jesus prayed for unity among those who would believe in Him. But a lot of what we've had in the churches is discord and division. So it wasn't God who made the different denominations. It was the sinful flesh nature at work in men.
I believe though that God is in control, and He hasn't lost His people who are a part of these denominations and churches. Gods love is strong. And He didn't die on that cross in vain. So take heart! You may still attend these churches if you want to with the spiritual understanding of religion vs. relationship.
It is incredible how much God loves His people who live their whole lives in religious bondage! If they were free, they would begin to experience His love on a much greater level than they do now.
When choosing a church remember that it is not the church that saves you! It was Jesus! Try to look for a church that you know believes in the Bible as God's true Word! This type of church will be humble and will always honor the bible by referring to it a lot during preaching, and will apply it to their own lives.
Another thing to remember is that as a believer in Christ, you are part of the church yourself! And your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit! (1Corinthians 6:19)
You are needed by the rest of the church because you belong to Jesus. The church is not a building!
If you are looking for the right place to go to meet together with other believers in Christ, you should pray first and let His Holy Spirit lead you to where you should go.
I believe that God in these end times is leading His people out of the religious arena's and bondage burdening church buildings that restrict, and sending them to be salt and light in the world. People live their lives outside of the church buildings and dead denominations anyway. The life of the Spirit is where God is. God is with you if you believe in Him!
Sunday, June 13, 2010
How to read the Bible
So in the previous article I made reference to 1Corinthians chapter 2 verse 14 which says that the natural man cannot receive or know the things of God because they are spiritually discerned. Then I said that meant the flesh part of the intellect or the brain. But I want to add also that the natural man in this scripture is referring to the sinful nature in humans. As long as people are living according to the sinful nature, they cannot understand the things of God. People are naturally accustomed to living their lives by doing what ever the sin nature tells them to do instead of listening to the leading of the Holy Spirit. This relates to understanding the bible and how to read it. If sinful people are to ever read the bible and understand it, they must become born again.
The Holy Bible is not just any book. It is not like any other book in the world. It is a spiritual book. And therefore must be read with spiritual understanding. It's not as difficult as it may sound.
Many people have said that they tried to read the bible but they couldn't understand it. There are a few things we should understand first that will make bible reading easier and joyful.
The bible is almost like a written code. For people to understand it, they must have the proper code key that will help them break the code so they can understand it. This code key is the Holy Spirit! If you really want to read and understand the bible you must have the indwelling Holy Spirit who will assist you in reading, and who will reveal the Word of God to you! This is the main key. If you ever want to understand the bible. This one factor is the most important thing for you to have.
Remember, reading the bible is part of the relationship you have with God. It is not a religious ritual!
So now with your relationship with God, and the infilling of the Holy Spirit, you are equipped and ready to read.
Now don't try to read the bible like you would any book, like a text book or encyclopedia or something. It takes more than your brain to read this book. Remember the scripture reference and what I said earlier about the brain and the sinful nature not understanding God? The bible is a spiritual book. So you want to read it with your heart(spirit). In order to do that we must pray. Praying is opening our heart to God and preparing ourself to be able to receive what it is that the Holy Spirit may want to teach us. So pray first and ask God to help you to understand what it is that you are reading. Believe that He hears your prayer. (Believing that He hears you is faith in action). And then He will hear and answer by revealing Himself to you as you read!
Another tip to reading the bible is the way you read it. By that I mean there are many different ways to read the bible. Some read through from cover to cover in a year. Some will open it randomly and just read anything. Some will try to read a chapter a day. The best way is to do what you sense the Spirit of God is leading you to do. I like to read by jumping around and connecting verses that relate to each other. And at other times I will just read a chapter at a time. Doing any of these is better than nothing at all. Just pick it up and start reading.
If you have never read the bible before and don't know how to begin, try to start in the gospel of John. The gospel of John in the New Testament is one of the easiest and most important books in the bible. Some other places to start reading is the other three gospels, Matthew, Mark, or Luke. And then Psalms and Proverbs. Or you could just start at the front in Genesis. If you start out in Genesis, it can be a long way to getting to the gospels which is the most important part for brand new Christians.
Another tip is, try not to cover a lot of chapters in a hurry so that you could say that you read it all. People that speed read the bible never develop a relationship with God. Sometimes you can sit down and read just one verse. Read it slow, read it over again and again. This procedure will plant the scripture deep in your spirit, grounding you in the Word of God, and building your spirit up strong. Read this way through a chapter until a verse seems to jump out at you. When this happens, you want to stop on that verse and begin to read it over and over. Dwell on that one verse. When a verse jumps out at you, that is God speaking to you through that verse. So you want to spend more time on it. This way of reading scripture will feed your spirit and is the best way to read. It's not just reading it but praying the scripture as you read. Remember the Lord is with you in this helping you understand it.
Now to summarize the most important things to knowing how to read the bible properly for understanding are:
1) you must be born again according to scripture with the indwelling Holy Spirit.
2) reading the bible is not ritual, it is working out a relationship with God.
3) read with an open heart not just with your brain.
4) you must pray and ask God to reveal Himself to you as you read.
5) read slow and prayerfully to digest the Word.
What should be number 6 is, read the bible everyday. You will notice your progress and spiritual strength increasing. But if you slack off and stop reading, you will become weak in your spirit and more vulnerable to temptation. Keep reading to keep out of spiritual problems. God bless you! I hope this helps you to develop a better relationship with God!
An article post Coming Soon: How to know which Bible version to choose ...keep visiting this blog!
Saturday, June 12, 2010
Knowledge
"My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge: because thou hast rejected knowledge, I will also reject thee, that thou shalt be no priest to me: seeing thou hast forgotten the law of thy God, I will also forget thy children." -Hosea 4:6
Everybody is ignorant about something. I know that is a shocking statement and can be disagreeable when first read. But lets think about this. The truth is that no one, no human being knows everything. Even Einstein was a human being lacking knowledge about something! He had a high IQ, but his brain did not contain all of the knowledge of all of the books in every library in the world.
So then, neither do we. Some people have Masters degrees or Doctorates. Some are the best in their own field. But the same may be completely ignorant in another field. For example, a rocket scientist may know nothing about brain surgery. Would you trust your surgery to a jet engine specialist?
This is not to mention whether those who have a Masters for example even are masters in their field. Or is the degree only a certificate of the completion of study in that field? Once you have a Masters does that mean there is nothing in that particular field left for you to learn?
The day we stop learning is the day we die! I think there is always something to learn. No matter what degrees we may have that "prove" we know everything! By this, many can become deceived into thinking that they know it all.
If we knew what it was that we didn't know, ...then we would know it. Therefore, we don't know what it is that we don't know! Which means we are ignorant about something. Even the FBI doesn't know everything. That's why they have to conduct investigations so they can find out and learn what it is they don't know. We too, should investigate what it is that we don't know.
Ask yourself, "What is it that God wants me to know?" By asking ourselves these types of questions we will uncover the knowledge He wants us to have.
"But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned." -1Corinthians 2:14
The "natural man" spoken of in the above scripture is referring to the physical knowledge portion of the human, which is the brain and it's ability to learn. The scripture is saying that the knowledge we need of God is spiritual, not physical. It tells us that we need Gods spirit in order to know Him and His knowledge He has for us. We need to be born of His Spirit.
Not to sound too gloomy by saying this, but I have to make a point. When our body dies and is buried in the grave it will rot. The brain will rot with the rest of the body. And all the knowledge that was in our brains will rot with the brain. Our certificates and degrees will be placed in some memorial box by our surviving families for dust collection. So, the only thing that will last is what we know spiritually!
We must know God and the spiritual stuff that He wants us to know! This can be accomplished by becoming born again and by reading and studying the Holy Bible.
Please visit this site tomorrow for Part 2 of this article entitled: How to read the Bible.
Everybody is ignorant about something. I know that is a shocking statement and can be disagreeable when first read. But lets think about this. The truth is that no one, no human being knows everything. Even Einstein was a human being lacking knowledge about something! He had a high IQ, but his brain did not contain all of the knowledge of all of the books in every library in the world.
So then, neither do we. Some people have Masters degrees or Doctorates. Some are the best in their own field. But the same may be completely ignorant in another field. For example, a rocket scientist may know nothing about brain surgery. Would you trust your surgery to a jet engine specialist?
This is not to mention whether those who have a Masters for example even are masters in their field. Or is the degree only a certificate of the completion of study in that field? Once you have a Masters does that mean there is nothing in that particular field left for you to learn?
The day we stop learning is the day we die! I think there is always something to learn. No matter what degrees we may have that "prove" we know everything! By this, many can become deceived into thinking that they know it all.
If we knew what it was that we didn't know, ...then we would know it. Therefore, we don't know what it is that we don't know! Which means we are ignorant about something. Even the FBI doesn't know everything. That's why they have to conduct investigations so they can find out and learn what it is they don't know. We too, should investigate what it is that we don't know.
Ask yourself, "What is it that God wants me to know?" By asking ourselves these types of questions we will uncover the knowledge He wants us to have.
"But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned." -1Corinthians 2:14
The "natural man" spoken of in the above scripture is referring to the physical knowledge portion of the human, which is the brain and it's ability to learn. The scripture is saying that the knowledge we need of God is spiritual, not physical. It tells us that we need Gods spirit in order to know Him and His knowledge He has for us. We need to be born of His Spirit.
Not to sound too gloomy by saying this, but I have to make a point. When our body dies and is buried in the grave it will rot. The brain will rot with the rest of the body. And all the knowledge that was in our brains will rot with the brain. Our certificates and degrees will be placed in some memorial box by our surviving families for dust collection. So, the only thing that will last is what we know spiritually!
We must know God and the spiritual stuff that He wants us to know! This can be accomplished by becoming born again and by reading and studying the Holy Bible.
Please visit this site tomorrow for Part 2 of this article entitled: How to read the Bible.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Jesus Loves You!! How you can be saved:
Step 1) God loves you!!"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." -John 3:16
The bible says that there is only one way to get into heaven, and it is through Jesus Christ.
How do you get into heaven? In the Bible Jesus said that "Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." -John 3:3 Well, what is being "born again"? And how do we do that? ...Read on further to find out:
Step 2) Acknowledge to God that you have sinned.
This may come as a shock to some but the prerequisite to becoming a true Christian is that we first must be a sinner! The Bible says that Jesus Christ died for the sinners and for the ungodly. Romans 5:6-8
I'm not saying that you should go out and commit a bunch of sin. I am only stressing the fact that in order for a person to truly be saved they must humble themselves and admit to God that they have sinned.
"But he giveth more grace. Wherefore he saith, God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble." -James 4:6
This is the first step. God already knows that we have broken His rules, He just wants us to admit it.
"If we say that we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us." -1 John 1:10
"For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God;" -Romans 3:23
If a person doesn't think that they have sinned and they call their self a Christian, then they are lying!
"If we say that we have fellowship with him, and walk in darkness, we lie, and do not the truth:" -1John 1:6
It is not enough to be a "good" person! Neither is it enough to join a denomination or a church!
"But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags;" -Isaiah 64:6
Step 3) Our sin has separated us from God.
"23For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." -Romans 6:23
"For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved." -John 3:17
"But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." -Romans 5:8
Step 4) Repent!
What do we do about this sin that has separated us from God? We must repent! This means to turn to God with all of our heart, mind, and strength, and turn from the sinful lifestyle we were living in.
Then we put all of our trust in Him to save us!
"Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost." -Acts 2:38
Step 5) Believe and Receive!
"The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand: repent ye, and believe the gospel." -Mark 1:15
"But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:" -John 1:12
"He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned." -Mark 16:16
We also must believe the things that the bible says about Jesus.
"He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water." -John 7:38
This is what the scripture says:
We believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God born of a virgin. He suffered for us and died on a cross; shedding His blood to save us from our sins. Then after three days of being buried in a tomb, He came back to life because He is our God and savior. He physically rose from the grave. Then He ascended into heaven and now sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty!
Step 6) Pray!
To accept Jesus as your personal savior, you can pray something like this:
Heavenly Father, I come before you in prayer acknowledging that I am a sinner. I confess to you that I am guilty. I am asking that you would please forgive me of all of my sins, and cleanse me from all unrighteousness.
I choose to believe in you now, and I repent and turn from my sin toward you with all of my heart.
I believe that you love me and gave yourself for me on the cross so that I may be saved.
I now accept what you did for me by suffering, shedding your blood, and dying on the cross. I believe you also rose from the grave to give me new life in you.
I now believe in my heart that you do forgive me of all my sins, and I accept you Lord Jesus as my personal savior!
Thank you Lord God for cleaning up my soul and for giving me eternal life through Jesus Christ your Son. Thank you for salvation! Thank you for your love! And, thank you for filling me with your precious Holy Spirit.
In Jesus name I pray. Amen!
Don't stop here. Now begin to develop a prayer life. Continue to pray to God all the time as much as you can now that you have started a new relationship with Him. Also, you must begin reading the Holy Bible everyday so that your new spirit can begin to grow in Jesus Christ.
Another thing you can do is get baptized in a bible believing church.
Learn about communion and how to take it.
Forgive everyone who ever hurt you!
"For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you:" -Matthew 6:14
Congratulations! And welcome to the true family of God! If you just accepted Jesus Christ by praying this prayer, you may email me if you want and let me know about it here: WoTmin@gmail.com
John 3:16
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." -John 3:16
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Want to become a genius? ...Then follow Jesus!
I notice that when people begin looking to God for answers, He gives it to them! It's amazing how following hard after Jesus can expand your brain!
The skeptics will try to say that Christians are narrow minded, but I think it's the other way around. When you follow Christ, He opens your heart and mind to new found wisdom and truth so that you could see a larger perspective of things.
He gives you insight, wisdom, revelation, knowledge, discernment, and over all cranial expanse!
He is the creator. He made the brain. And therefore He knows more about the way humans think. So when we trust in Him for everything, He gives it to us.
When I worship God I can almost literally feel the oxygen shooting to my brain cells! Hallelujah!
I am so glad that He saved me! I am so glad that I now know Him and have Him in my life as my savior, friend and God. He is not boring like some dumb religion! He is a personable God who relates to us! He is real, and makes Himself known to those who are looking for Him!
The skeptics will try to say that Christians are narrow minded, but I think it's the other way around. When you follow Christ, He opens your heart and mind to new found wisdom and truth so that you could see a larger perspective of things.
He gives you insight, wisdom, revelation, knowledge, discernment, and over all cranial expanse!
He is the creator. He made the brain. And therefore He knows more about the way humans think. So when we trust in Him for everything, He gives it to us.
When I worship God I can almost literally feel the oxygen shooting to my brain cells! Hallelujah!
I am so glad that He saved me! I am so glad that I now know Him and have Him in my life as my savior, friend and God. He is not boring like some dumb religion! He is a personable God who relates to us! He is real, and makes Himself known to those who are looking for Him!
Philipians 4:8
"8Finally, brethren, whatsoever things are true, whatsoever things are honest, whatsoever things are just, whatsoever things are pure, whatsoever things are lovely, whatsoever things are of good report; if there be any virtue, and if there be any praise, think on these things." -Philipians 4:8
Tuesday, June 8, 2010
Oil Spill
I live in Arizona far away from the gulf of Mexico. So it can seem as though that big oil spill doesn't effect those of us who are farther away. But, we can see it on the news. It is a part of our country.
What I am trying to say is, that my heart really sinks when I see those fellow Americans of mine over there on the coast being confronted and attacked by the rich uncaring oil companies.
It makes me angry to see that companies from another country could destroy our land without a concern while American citizens lives are ruined!
We don't normally even think of our fellow citizens in another part of the country until something bad happens to them. It makes me want to support them, fight for them, pray for them, stand up for them, love them!
I am making this post because I care about those Americans in this horrible situation. I think the rest of us wish that somehow all this negativity down there would just go away. But that is not the reality. Ignoring the problems is not responsible.
I hope the US government places a large fine against the companies that are guilty of destroying the gulf coast! They say that BP makes a profit of 66 million USD per day! That is disgustingly shocking in the light of their lazy uncaring cover up attitude that they have towards the damage they have caused!
The bottom line is,... they don't care!
The American tax payer does not need to pay for this! The American tax payers need to take ownership of BP!
To all those who live in that region and are being directly affected by this spill I want to say that my heart goes out to you! I wish there was something I could do to stop the oil. I pray to God that He will take care of your personal and local economy. I pray that He interrupts this demonic attack against our land. I pray that you could feel the love coming from Americans in other parts of the country, who love you and support you through this tragedy! I pray that through this horror that God will turn it all around for your good. I pray that somehow good will come out of this. With God all things are possible.
I know there are many churches and Christians gathered together to seek the Lord down there. I want you to know that I stand in agreement with your prayers. I believe that Americans from far away places in this land will rise up and join together with you to fight this evil! And I do believe that God Almighty hears the prayers of His people! I believe that He will do something to fix this big problem. There is nothing too big for God to handle! May God bless everyone who lives in the gulf coast!
Please leave your comments below. Thank you!
What I am trying to say is, that my heart really sinks when I see those fellow Americans of mine over there on the coast being confronted and attacked by the rich uncaring oil companies.
It makes me angry to see that companies from another country could destroy our land without a concern while American citizens lives are ruined!
We don't normally even think of our fellow citizens in another part of the country until something bad happens to them. It makes me want to support them, fight for them, pray for them, stand up for them, love them!
I am making this post because I care about those Americans in this horrible situation. I think the rest of us wish that somehow all this negativity down there would just go away. But that is not the reality. Ignoring the problems is not responsible.
I hope the US government places a large fine against the companies that are guilty of destroying the gulf coast! They say that BP makes a profit of 66 million USD per day! That is disgustingly shocking in the light of their lazy uncaring cover up attitude that they have towards the damage they have caused!
The bottom line is,... they don't care!
The American tax payer does not need to pay for this! The American tax payers need to take ownership of BP!
To all those who live in that region and are being directly affected by this spill I want to say that my heart goes out to you! I wish there was something I could do to stop the oil. I pray to God that He will take care of your personal and local economy. I pray that He interrupts this demonic attack against our land. I pray that you could feel the love coming from Americans in other parts of the country, who love you and support you through this tragedy! I pray that through this horror that God will turn it all around for your good. I pray that somehow good will come out of this. With God all things are possible.
I know there are many churches and Christians gathered together to seek the Lord down there. I want you to know that I stand in agreement with your prayers. I believe that Americans from far away places in this land will rise up and join together with you to fight this evil! And I do believe that God Almighty hears the prayers of His people! I believe that He will do something to fix this big problem. There is nothing too big for God to handle! May God bless everyone who lives in the gulf coast!
Please leave your comments below. Thank you!
John 14:27
"27Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid." -John 14:27
Monday, June 7, 2010
Listening vs. Hearing
Did you ever try to tell someone something important but it seemed like they weren't listening?
A person recently asked me for advise because they were in the middle of a life crisis. I gave them good sound teaching and direction which I believe was a blessing from God for them. But, they acted like I was invisible. I could see God helping them, reaching out to them with the very solution they needed. But they were blind to it. A lot of parents feel this way with their teenagers. As a parent, you've been there. You know a bad decision from the right way, but... the kid still wants to discover the error on his own, (without your sound instruction.)
You can hear an airplane flying over, or a horn honking somewhere in the distance. But you are not listening for those things. Both hearing and listening are verbs, which means they are both an action. But the listening is more of an applied effort. It is diligent purposeful hearing plus "doing" afterward that completes the cycle of what is said.
I heard a preacher once say that 50% of the preaching is done by the listener. And that is true. Think about it. If the congregation is yawning away in the pew, then what good does the preaching do? Some preachers are very articulate, able to keep the listeners excited and awake. It would seem that they are doing a wonderful job preaching. But it is required of the listeners, that they take what was said and apply it to their lives. This is the fulfillment or completion of listening.
So listening requires a diligent action on the part of the hearer.
"22But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. 23For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:
24For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was." -James 1:22-24
It is important that we try to focus when what is being said is truth for our benefit. God wants to bless us. But sometimes we are too busy or distracted to receive that blessing.
"My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge:" -Hosea 4:6
If we only knew what is was that God wanted to bless us with, then we would be more willing to listen and obey.
A person recently asked me for advise because they were in the middle of a life crisis. I gave them good sound teaching and direction which I believe was a blessing from God for them. But, they acted like I was invisible. I could see God helping them, reaching out to them with the very solution they needed. But they were blind to it. A lot of parents feel this way with their teenagers. As a parent, you've been there. You know a bad decision from the right way, but... the kid still wants to discover the error on his own, (without your sound instruction.)
You can hear an airplane flying over, or a horn honking somewhere in the distance. But you are not listening for those things. Both hearing and listening are verbs, which means they are both an action. But the listening is more of an applied effort. It is diligent purposeful hearing plus "doing" afterward that completes the cycle of what is said.
I heard a preacher once say that 50% of the preaching is done by the listener. And that is true. Think about it. If the congregation is yawning away in the pew, then what good does the preaching do? Some preachers are very articulate, able to keep the listeners excited and awake. It would seem that they are doing a wonderful job preaching. But it is required of the listeners, that they take what was said and apply it to their lives. This is the fulfillment or completion of listening.
So listening requires a diligent action on the part of the hearer.
"22But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. 23For if any be a hearer of the word, and not a doer, he is like unto a man beholding his natural face in a glass:
24For he beholdeth himself, and goeth his way, and straightway forgetteth what manner of man he was." -James 1:22-24
It is important that we try to focus when what is being said is truth for our benefit. God wants to bless us. But sometimes we are too busy or distracted to receive that blessing.
"My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge:" -Hosea 4:6
If we only knew what is was that God wanted to bless us with, then we would be more willing to listen and obey.
John 14:21
"21He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him." -John 14:21
Sunday, June 6, 2010
John 14:6
"6Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me." -John 14:6
Saturday, June 5, 2010
Trusting in and Obeying God's voice
Sometimes God speaks to our heart by His Spirit within us if we are tuned into His Holy Spirit by reading His Word.
"For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God." -Romans 8:14
If God speaks to your heart and tells you to do something, do you always obey?
What if it is something that doesn't make sense to you?
People have heard God speak to them to give a certain gift offering for instance to a ministry or to a person that He put on their heart. If they obey God, He will bless them back. If they don't obey, then God has to find another giver that He can use. Hopefully someone will eventually listen to God in the situation. Don't be left out of your blessing by leaving the obedience for someone else to do it.
Obedience to God's voice requires trust. We must trust in Him in order for us to move ahead in carrying out the act of obedience. This can be especially hard to do if what He tells us to do doesn't make sense to us. Once we hear His guiding voice, we then must make a choice to trust in Him completely. Then we can step out in faith and do the thing He told us.
Sometimes He tells us to do something that doesn't make sense and our mind wants to rationalize, and come up with excuses. But there is an unseen reason God wants us to do a certain thing. Maybe that thing He wants us to do is His requirement to bring blessing to us. It may not always have to do with giving.
I know someone who is not Jewish but was a Christian for most of his life. He never considered keeping the Sabbath Day according to the old testament because he figured that we are not under the law. Which is true. We are not under the Mosaic law, we are under the law of grace. But this person had been praying about a certain problem he had and couldn't get the breakthrough. Then one day God spoke to him in his heart and told him to keep the Sabbath Day! Well, for this Gentile Christian believer, it didn't make any sense. He said he never kept the Sabbath in his life, or even thought about it. And besides he said we are not under the law. But,... God told him to do it!
Well the man didn't listen right away. First he began to do research about what the Sabbath really is and how to really keep it. After about a month he began keeping the Sabbath, and now is seeing a miraculous turn around in his situation. You can determine whether it was his Sabbath keeping or his obedience to God that brought the breakthrough he was looking for.
All of the arguments were there about the old testament laws and all. The understanding was that he didn't start keeping the Sabbath in order to earn salvation, or that he would be condemned if he didn't, but rather out of obedience to God.
"But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law." -Galatians 5:18
If the Holy Spirit leads and guides you into doing something like this, then you are free to obey Him and you are still not under the law. You are free.
When things like this don't make sense to us, are we always willing to change our lifestyles and our busy schedules to accommodate what God said to us? Or do we continually instead rationalize away what could have been the path He chose for us to take? Be careful not to miss out on the blessing God has for you!
"For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God." -Romans 8:14
If God speaks to your heart and tells you to do something, do you always obey?
What if it is something that doesn't make sense to you?
People have heard God speak to them to give a certain gift offering for instance to a ministry or to a person that He put on their heart. If they obey God, He will bless them back. If they don't obey, then God has to find another giver that He can use. Hopefully someone will eventually listen to God in the situation. Don't be left out of your blessing by leaving the obedience for someone else to do it.
Obedience to God's voice requires trust. We must trust in Him in order for us to move ahead in carrying out the act of obedience. This can be especially hard to do if what He tells us to do doesn't make sense to us. Once we hear His guiding voice, we then must make a choice to trust in Him completely. Then we can step out in faith and do the thing He told us.
Sometimes He tells us to do something that doesn't make sense and our mind wants to rationalize, and come up with excuses. But there is an unseen reason God wants us to do a certain thing. Maybe that thing He wants us to do is His requirement to bring blessing to us. It may not always have to do with giving.
I know someone who is not Jewish but was a Christian for most of his life. He never considered keeping the Sabbath Day according to the old testament because he figured that we are not under the law. Which is true. We are not under the Mosaic law, we are under the law of grace. But this person had been praying about a certain problem he had and couldn't get the breakthrough. Then one day God spoke to him in his heart and told him to keep the Sabbath Day! Well, for this Gentile Christian believer, it didn't make any sense. He said he never kept the Sabbath in his life, or even thought about it. And besides he said we are not under the law. But,... God told him to do it!
Well the man didn't listen right away. First he began to do research about what the Sabbath really is and how to really keep it. After about a month he began keeping the Sabbath, and now is seeing a miraculous turn around in his situation. You can determine whether it was his Sabbath keeping or his obedience to God that brought the breakthrough he was looking for.
All of the arguments were there about the old testament laws and all. The understanding was that he didn't start keeping the Sabbath in order to earn salvation, or that he would be condemned if he didn't, but rather out of obedience to God.
"But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law." -Galatians 5:18
If the Holy Spirit leads and guides you into doing something like this, then you are free to obey Him and you are still not under the law. You are free.
When things like this don't make sense to us, are we always willing to change our lifestyles and our busy schedules to accommodate what God said to us? Or do we continually instead rationalize away what could have been the path He chose for us to take? Be careful not to miss out on the blessing God has for you!
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