Christian?

Christian?
Jesus said,
“Many will say to me  on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’  
Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’” Matthew 7:22,23.
Not everyone who says they are Christian is a follower of Christ Jesus. Just because someone goes to church does not make them a true follower of Christ. Just because someone is a minister or speaks from the pulpit be it in a church or in the media does not make them a true follower of Christ.
As I quoted Jesus saying,
“Many will say to me  on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’  
Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’” Matthew 7:22,23.
Living in North America I see many people in the media and in church, who call themselves Christians but are not. A quick look at what they teach shows they are not true followers. A quick look at their lives shows they are far from Christ.
They may claim they are prophesying, driving out demons and performing miracles but are they really?
It’s hard to tell if such things are truly happening especially through the lense of the media. The media be it the internet, television or radio can hid the truth.
I always say while the media is a good way to proclaim the message of Christ Jesus one should always be careful. There are a lot of false teachers out there.
I believe it is imperative that first of all, all believers in Christ pray and read the Bible for themselves. To ask God for guidance and show them the truth.
I believe also it is equally imperative that all believers in Christ Jesus should be a part of a church congregation near where they live. This way you get to know who the pastor and teachers within the congregation are. You see their lives and see if they are truly following the teachings of Christ Jesus in word as well as in deed.
Please think about it.

On False Teachers

On False teachers,
Jude the half brother of Jesus warning about false teachers writes,
“Dear friends, although I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we share, I felt I had to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints.  
For certain men whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are godless men, who change the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord.” Jude 1:1-3
The Christian life is very much one of vigilance. We must be on guard when it comes to our faith. We must watch out for those who claim to be believers in Christ but are not. Jesus himself warned about such people saying,
“Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves.  
By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles?  
Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.  
A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit.  
Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.  
Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them. 
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.  
Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’ Then I will tell them plainly, 
‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’ Matthew 7:15-23.
It is easy for anyone to string a series of scripture verses together, verses taken out of context made to sound like truth, when in reality it is not the truth.
Especially in within the multimedia world we live in we need to be more vigilant than ever. There is a lot of false information out there.
There are men and women claiming to be believers in Christ who in reality are not.
  Jude says of these people,
“These men are blemishes at your love feasts, eating with you without the slightest qualm—shepherds who feed only themselves. They are clouds without rain, blown along by the wind; autumn trees, without fruit and uprooted—twice dead.  
They are wild waves of the sea, foaming up their shame; wandering stars, for whom blackest darkness has been reserved forever. Jude 1:12,13.
Thus it is imperative that we as believers in Christ read the scriptures for ourselves. That we be unafraid to question pastors, evangelist, teachers and others who claim to be teaching the word of God. An honest teacher of God’s word will not be insulted by you questioning them.
At the same time it is imperative that we stand up to false teachers and cast them out of our congregations.
The apostle Paul telling us,
“What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside?  
God will judge those outside. “Expel the wicked man from among you.” 1 Corinthians 5:12,13.
Please think about it.

Caution

Caution
The Epistle of Jude warns,
“Dear friends, although I was very eager to write to you about the salvation we share, I felt I had to write and urge you to contend for the faith that was once for all entrusted to the saints.  
For certain men whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are godless men, who change the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign and Lord.” Jude 1:3,4.
Jude is warning believers about false teachers. Men who are teaching false doctrine. This is something anticipated by Jesus who said,
“Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves.” Matthew 7:15.
The apostle Paul also warns about such people.
“For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.  
They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.” 2Timothy 4:3,4.
It is so easy for a person to sound like a believer and not be one. It’s easy to memorize some scripture. Then take them out of context to make them sound as though it is right teaching when it is not. Many people have been deceived this way.
As Christians we need to know at the very least the basics of our faith. We need to understand that anyone who does not believe the core beliefs of our faith is not a true believer in Jesus Christ.
One universally accepted statement of Christian faith is the Apostles Creed. While not written by the apostles it states the basic beliefs of all true believers. The Apostle Creed reads,
1.I believe in God the Father the almighty maker of heaven and earth
2. I believe in Jesus Christ God’s on and only Son, our Lord and Saviour.
3. I believe Jesus was conceived by the Holy Ghost, and born of the Virgin Mary
4. I believe Jesus suffered under Pontius Pilate; That He was Crucified, died, was buried. That he descended in hell.
5. I believe He rose again on the third day from the dead.
6. I believe that he ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father almighty.
7. I believe Jesus will one day Judge the living and the dead.
8. I believe in the Holy Ghost
9. I believe in the Church which is the communion of the saints,
10. I believe in the forgiveness of sin.
11. I believe in the resurrection of the body.
12. I believe in life everlasting.
The other important things Christians need to be doing is studying the scriptures for yourself. To pray and ask God to show you personally the truth that is in the scriptures.
Thus the question, Are you truly taking time each day to study even just a small portion of scripture?
Please think about it.

Christians and judging

Christians and Judging
Jesus said,
“Do not judge, or you too will be judged.  
For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” 
         Matthew 7:1,2.
Over the years I’ve heard many Christians say that because of what Jesus says here in Matthew 7:1,2. We are not to judge anyone. That is not entirely true.
We are called not to judge other people especially those outside the church because we don’t know what is in their hearts. We truly don’t know what makes them what they are.
That’s not to say we are not to exercise good judgement especially when it comes to those in the Church.
The apostle Paul wrote,
“What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside?  
God will judge those outside. “Expel the wicked man from among you.” 
                                                                                              1 Corinthians 5:12,13.
All too many charlatans have hid behind the “do not judge” or “do not come against the elect of God”, argument in order to lead people astray or separate good honest believers from their money.
Christians need to be careful. There are many in our world today who claim to be Christians that are not.
Matthew records Jesus as saying,
“Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you.  
For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Christ,’ and will deceive many.”  
                                                                                                                                 Matthew 24:4,5.
The apostle Paul wrote,
“For the time will come when men will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around them a great number of teachers to say what their itching ears want to hear.  
They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.” 
                                                                                                          2 Timothy 4:3,4.
Such things are happening today. There are many, many ministries in both in the media and out that are claiming to be of God but are not. They talk a good talk but they twist scriptures to suit their own way of thinking.
Unfortunately these ministries are mixed with the majority of ministries that are very good and bringing glory to God.
It can be hard to tell them apart.
There are however several things you can do to decide what ministries to support.
1. First and foremost pray and ask God to show you the truth about the ministry.
2. Support your local congregation first. Here in Canada I know all charities which include churches, have to give an accounting as to where the money goes every year.
Additionally you know where your local church stands theologically and have easy  access to their statement of faith.
3. Check the ministry you wish to support carefully.
A/ Ask for a statement of faith from the ministry.
B/ Read the scriptures they use to support their beliefs carefully and see if they are indeed taken in context.
C/ Ask for a financial statement.
   All honest ministries will give you a financial statement including what  is spent on salaries, travel, equipment for the ministry and such.
             If a ministry will not provide you with a statement of faith and their financial statement don’t support them.
Only then after you have checked all of this out should you support anyone.
Always remember the words of Jesus who said,
“Many will say to me  on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’  
Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’" 
                                                                                                                      Matthew 7:22,23.
Please think about it.

Counterfeit Christians

Counterfeit Christians

Jesus said,
“Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven.  
Many will say to me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and in your name drive out demons and perform many miracles?’  
Then I will tell them plainly, ‘I never knew you. Away from me, you evildoers!’” 
                                                                              Matthew 7:21-23.
I write this as a warning not just to Christians but to none-Christians also. There are many people in the world who claim to be Christians, but are Christians in name only.
They claim to be doing the work of God yet quite frankly in some cases they are simply lining their pockets.
Others are simply misguided or have been led away from the faith for various reasons. Some may not even realize they are not Christians.
The ones I worry about are the ones who have the potential for leading people astray. The ones making at times outrageous claims. Claims of the miraculous without allowing confirmation of the miraculous event by someone independent of the ministry.
I as a Christian believe in the miraculous such things happened in both the New Old and New Testaments. God worked through his prophets, through Jesus and the disciples of Christ to perform miracles and we Christians claim God is the same God yesterday today and forever. Therefore there has to be miracles happening today.
The thing is I don’t believe they are happening as often as some evangelist claim.
Those who claim the miraculous aside there are also those who would misguide people. They subtly by presenting the scriptures out of context, to support what they believe rather than teaching the truth.
They even when confronted refuse to correct their teaching and continue perverting the truth of God’s word.
Sadly because Christianity, especially the evangelical movement dose not have any real governing authority frauds and counterfeit Christians are everywhere.
In biblical times there was the council of Jerusalem that held the early believers to account no such body exists today.
The apostle Paul wrote,
“What business is it of mine to judge those outside the church? Are you not to judge those inside?  
God will judge those outside. “Expel the wicked man from among you.” 
                                                                                       1 Corinthians 5:12,13.
If you read the writings of the Apostle Paul you’ll see that he is very adamant about teaching solid biblical principles. He also comes against people of his day who were not following good Christian teaching.
In his letter to Timothy he writes,
“As I urged you when I went into Macedonia, stay there in Ephesus so that you may command certain men not to teach false doctrines any longer  nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies. These promote controversies rather than God’s work—which is by faith.” 
1 Timothy 1:3,4.
As Christians we need to be on guard against false teaching. We need to be studying the scriptures and seeing what they say for ourselves. We need to be praying and asking for God’s guidance as to what is the truth when it comes to the scriptures.
We need to find a body of believer that study the bible. People who study the bible using a wide range of commentaries not just ones that tell them what they want to hear.
We need to make those we support be they at the local level of the church or pastors and evangelist in the media accountable.
We need to ask them to explain their beliefs and even hold them accountable for every penny they receive.
We need to hold them legally and morally accountable for everything that they do.
Think about it

False Teachers,

False Teachers

“As I urged you when I went into Macedonia, stay there in Ephesus so differences you may command certain men not to teach false doctrines any longer  nor to devote themselves to myths and endless genealogies. These promote controversies rather than God’s work—which is by faith.  The goal of this command is love, which comes from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.”
1 Timothy 1-5
Paul here is writing to Timothy and emphasizes the need to speak out and correct false teachers.
Speaking against false teaching in the church is a big thing for Paul. He wants to make sure the pure word of God is taught. This is how it should be today.
Today the threat from false teachers is greater than ever before because of the easy access to the media. That is why we as Christians need to be on the alert for those who would lead others away from the faith.
Having said that I know within the Christian faith there are different interpretations of some minor doctrines. That’s to be expected.
There however should be no debate on the central beliefs of Christianity. The apostles creed although not written by the apostles, I believe sums these basic beliefs up when it says,

Apostles' Creed

I believe in God the Father, Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth:

And in Jesus Christ, his only begotten Son, our Lord:

 Who was conceived by the Holy Ghost, born of the Virgin Mary:

Suffered under Pontius Pilate; was crucified, dead and buried: He descended into hell:

The third day he rose again from the dead:

He ascended into heaven, and sits at the right hand of God the Father      Almighty:

From thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead:

I believe in the Holy Ghost:

I believe in the holy catholic* church (*that is, the true Christian church of all times and all places.): the communion of saints:

The forgiveness of sins:

 The resurrection of the body:

And the life everlasting. 

Amen.

 
In the apostle Paul’s day as it is today there are many people who are out there particularly trying to part Christians from their money. There are others who are out there deliberately trying to lead Christians astray.
I remember a preacher in the late seventies named Jim Jones who was a good orator who so misled people that he took them down to place in a south American country where they all committed mass suicide.
 Today there are men and women in the media in particular that all they want to do is get rich. They do this by convincing Christians that by contributing to their ministry God will bless them ten, twenty, or even a hundred fold. Looking on God as if he were a ‘sugar daddy’. A divine banker who gives a hundred percent interest on their money. This is simply garbage.
As Christians we need to be watching and carefully listening to what is being preached. We need to be looking at the evangelist, preachers and teachers to see if they are truly living up as far as possible to the word of God.
We from time to time need to question them about where the money they are collecting is really going. Not only is the money being spent legally according to the laws of the country they are in, but are they doing what is morally right with the money they receive.
Is most of the money collected for example going to the ministry or is the evangelist or pastor taking the lions share?
When it comes to teaching the scriptures we need to be asking them to explain their reasoning behind what they are teaching.
I know when I teach the adult mid week bible study at our church we encourage questions. I am frequently asked how I came to the conclusion I did. We will even stop and discuss a point for as long as it takes for everyone to understand.
I and my pastor are also open to correction as we expect everyone who comes out to it to be. No one is perfect we all make mistakes.
I was always taught that a teacher of the Gospel of Christ is held up to a higher standard. This is what we should be doing to every one who is preaching or teaching Gods word.
Please think about it.