The Faithful Church

The Faithful Church
In the book of Revelations we see Jesus speaking to the church in Philadelphia saying.
“To the angel of the church in Philadelphia write: 
These are the words of him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What he opens no one can shut, and what he shuts no one can open.  
I know your deeds. See, I have placed before you an open door that no one can shut. I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name.  
I will make those who are of the synagogue of Satan, who claim to be Jews though they are not, but are liars—I will make them come and fall down at your feet and acknowledge that I have loved you.  
Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come upon the whole world to test those who live on the earth. 
I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.  
Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will he leave it. I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on him my new name.  
He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. Revelations 3:7-13
Here we have what scholars call the faithful church. Jesus says to this church,
“I know that you have little strength, yet you have kept my word and have not denied my name.” Revelations 3:8
Jesus tells this church
“I will make those who are of the synagogue of Satan, who claim to be Jews though they are not, but are liars—I will make them come and fall down at your feet and acknowledge that I have loved you.” Revelations 3:9.
Jesus tells them,
“Since you have kept my command to endure patiently, I will also keep you from the hour of trial that is going to come upon the whole world to test those who live on the earth.” Revelations 3:10 
He tells them the reward for their faithfulness. Saying
“I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take your crown.  
Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God. Never again will he leave it. I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on him my new name.”  Revelations 3:11,12.
The message of Jesus here to faithful believers is,
1. That those who oppose them will one day fall at the feet of the faithful believer and acknowledge that Christ has loved them.
2. That the true believer will be kept from the hour of trial that is going to come upon the world.
3. That the true believer will become a pillar in the temple of God. The strongest part of the temple.
4. That they will never leave it.
5. That Jesus will write on the faithful believer, the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which is coming down out of heaven from my God; and I will also write on him my new name.
The question is are you such a believer?
Many in the Christian world would like to think that they are like the church at Philadelphia but in reality are not.
The key however here is to know that we can be like the church of Philadelphia. In order to do so we must put Christ first in everything we do.
Jesus acknowledged that the Philadelphia church had little strength yet they remained faithful. Thus if they can do it. We can also.
Please think about it.

The Dead Church

The Dead Church
The book of revelations speaks of the Church at Sardis. It states,
“To the angel of the church in Sardis write: 
These are the words of him who holds the seven spirits of God and the seven stars. I know your deeds; you have a reputation of being alive, but you are dead.  
Wake up! Strengthen what remains and is about to die, for I have not found your deeds complete in the sight of my God.  
Remember, therefore, what you have received and heard; obey it, and repent. But if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what time I will come to you. 
Yet you have a few people in Sardis who have not soiled their clothes. They will walk with me, dressed in white, for they are worthy.  
He who overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out his name from the book of life, but will acknowledge his name before my Father and his angels.  
He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches.” Revelations 3:1-6. 
Here is a church that appears to be alive but is in fact dead.
It is possible for a church to seem to be doing all the right things yet not be doing what God wants them to do.
There are many churches that hold great orchestrated praise services. That follow a systematic study of the Bible. That even have prayer meetings. These churches on the outside look fine but all they are doing is following an empty scripted program. They are ministering to their congregation but not doing what God wants them to do.
That’s true for people to. An individual can seem like they have got it all together. They attend church both on Sunday and during the week. They go to prayer meetings even go to other Christian events. The trouble is they are simply doing it because they feel this is what a person should do. They are not doing what God wants them to do.
Matthews Gospel records,
“Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.  
    Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,  and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20.
The church has a duty to perform. That is presenting the gospel to all the world and to teach new converts all that Jesus taught them.
If a church or individuals are not doing so they are dead. Thus the  call of Christ to such churches, is to waken up and serve Him to the fullest.
We must always remember that the job of evangelism will not end until Christ returns to earth. That we must continually work for Christ until His return. The reward for people who do this is as Jesus said,
“He who overcomes will, like them, be dressed in white. I will never blot out his name from the book of life, but will acknowledge his name before my Father and his angels.”
Question. If you claim to be a believer in Christ Jesus, are you truly serving Him?
Please think about it.

Freedom from Judgement

Freedom from Judgement
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.
Billy Graham said,

“It is the Holy Spirits Job to Convict, 

God’s job to judge 

and my job to love,”

                                                                                   Billy Graham
Baruch Sinoza said,
“It is imperative that freedom of judgment should be granted, so that men may live together in harmony, however diverse, or even openly contradictory their opinions maybe.  In proportion as the power of free judgment is withheld, we depart from the natural condition of mankind.” Baruch Spinoza.
         I as a Christian do not believe I have the right to Judge anyone especially those outside my faith, Even when it comes to those within my faith I believe I am limited to only judging whether the person is teaching correct Christian doctrine. I have no right to judge whether or not they are going to heaven.
I as a Christian believe God has instilled in each and every person a freewill to do as they wish. That freedom even extends to whether the individual believes in God or not. Each individual must have the freedom to judge for themselves what they believe and what they do.
God did not make robots. God crated human beings with a free will.
I believe that no matter who you are Christian, Muslim, Jew, or those of other faiths, Atheist. All must have the right to choose what they believe.
I also believe it is important to be able to sit with those of different philosophies, ways of life and faiths and discuss openly our opinions without fear.
I as a Christian do not fear may faith being questioned by others. I know what I believe and I am convinced that I am right. I welcome others who wish to present their faith to me. I welcome exchanges in ideas. This I believe is the way God intended it to be.
Jesus when on this earth spoke to those outside his faith. Jesus had contact with Romans, Samaritans, and others. He sat down with those looked down upon by religious leaders of His day.
This is what I believe Christians should be doing today. Jesus tells us,
“Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.  
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,  and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matthew 28:18-20.
We cannot do this if we are not willing to accept the differences in our society and reach out to them in love.
The writer of Hebrews tells Christians,
“Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.” Hebrews 12:14.
Part of living at peace with all men involves listening to others sharing your ideas and beliefs and allowing them to believe what they wish to believe. This is the way God intended things to be.
Please think about it. 

Prayer

Prayer
The gospel of Matthew notes Jesus said,
“And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the street corners to be seen by men. I tell you the truth, they have received their reward in full.  
But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you.  
And when you pray, do not keep on babbling like pagans, for they think they will be heard because of their many words.  
Do not be like them, for your Father knows what you need before you ask him.” Matthew 6:5-8.
Praying is an act of faith. As Jesus said, God knows what we need before we ask him. However God want to us to show our faith in him by acknowledging Him in Prayer and praying, for our needs.
The writer of Hebrews states,

“Now faith is being sure of what we hope for 

and certain of what we do not see.”  

Hebrews 11:1

Prayer is acknowledging God is real in good times and in bad. Acknowledging God will meet our needs even when we cannot see Him.
Our prayers should go up to God not just in the bad times but in the good times.
The apostle Paul states,
“Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer.” Romans 12:12.
The book of Acts states of those early believers, 
“They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer” Acts 2:42.
Leonard Ravenhill noted,

"If weak in prayer,

 we are weak everywhere." 

Leonard Ravenhill

As twenty-first century Christians we need to pray. I like what Francis of Assisi said,

“We should seek not so much to pray

 but to become prayer.” 

Francis of Assisi.

Please think about it.

Lost Fear

Lost Fear
James the half brother of Jesus said,
“Speak and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives freedom,  
because judgment without mercy will be shown to anyone who has not been merciful. Mercy triumphs over judgment!” James 2:12,13.
I find all to many people calling themselves Christians do not fear the judgement of God. They do a lot of things that are not pleasing to God.
James states,
“My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry,  for man’s anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires.  
Therefore, get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent and humbly accept the word planted in you, which can save you.” James 1:19-21.
If you claim to be a Christian do not dismiss what James is saying. James was writing to Christians.
He tells Christians to be “quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to anger” He tells Christians to get rid of “all moral filth and evil that is so prevalent”
Whether we like it or not Christians do have things going on in our life that God does not like.
Think about this. Jesus tells us to Love God, our neighbour and even our enemy. Do you. Do you honestly think Jesus likes it when we demonstrate and try to restrict the rights of those we disagree within the secular democracy in which we here in North America live in.
Jesus and his disciples did not demonstrate against anyone in the secular government of Rome. He a Jew did speak out against other Jews who would misuse the Word of God. That was his right.
However 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.
The apostle Paul tells Christians,
“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.
To disobey these words is sinning and will not win one person to Christ. God is the only one who can judge people. Christians are told not to.
We as Christians are to operate within the laws of the country in which we live. The apostle Paul tells us.
“Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.  
Consequently, he who rebels against the authority is rebelling against what God has instituted, and those who do so will bring judgment on themselves.”  Romans 13:1,2. 
Paul wrote that while living under the rule on Nero. Who persecuted Christians and eventually put Paul to death.
The apostle Peter writes,
“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.  
Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy. 
Dear friends,
 I urge you, as aliens and strangers in the world, to abstain from sinful desires, which war against your soul.  
Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us.’" Peter 2:9-12.
If you claim to be a Christian are you living such a life. If not you need to be confessing your sins to God and asking God to show you how to live such a holy life.
Remember what the writer of Hebrews said,
“Make every effort to live in peace with all men and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.” Hebrews 12:14
Please think about it.

Salvation, Eternity, and the Christian

Salvation, Eternity and the Christian
“That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.  
For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved.  
As the Scripture says, “Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame.”  
For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him,  for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
                                                                                                                                 Romans 10:9-13
Here in his letter to the Romans the apostle Paul makes it clear how we are saved. How we get to heaven. He states,
“...if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.”
This is the message Christians need to be taking to the world today.
Salvation is first of all an act of faith. It is believing Jesus is Lord, the Son of God, God incarnate. That Jesus is the Saviour of man and that God raised Him from the dead. That is what gets us to heaven.
Each person in their hearts must believe in their heart the words of Jesus who said,
“I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” 
                                                                                                                                              John 14:6.
Each person must answer the question Jesus asked Martha,
Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” 
                                                                                                                                  John 11:25,26
  It doesn’t matter who we are Jew or Gentile we have the same Lord, the same God. God loves all mankind equally.
All we have to do is call on the name of the Lord to be saved. God couldn’t have made things any easier.
Since the dawn of time mankind has know there is life after death. As a result he has devised various way he thought you got to God. Mankind tried to reach up to God. Reaching up to God cannot be done.  
  God realized this and instead God chose to reach down to mankind in the form of Jesus Christ.
He made getting into heaven is as simple as believing on Him.
The book of acts records the apostle Paul as telling the Greeks the way to heaven. It is the same today. The book of Acts records,
“Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: “Men of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious.  
For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. Now what you worship as something unknown I am going to proclaim to you. 
“The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by hands.  
And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else.  
From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live.  
God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us.  
‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’ As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’ 
“Therefore since we are God’s offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone—an image made by man’s design and skill.  
In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent.  
For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead.” 
When they heard about the resurrection of the dead, some of them sneered, but others said, “We want to hear you again on this subject.”  
At that, Paul left the Council.  
A few men became followers of Paul and believed. Among them was Dionysius, a member of the Areopagus, also a woman named Damaris, and a number of others"
                                                                                           Acts 17:17-34
This is the message we as Christians need to be presenting to the world.
We need to be asking people to answer Christ’s question to Martha when He said,
“I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” 
                                                                                                    John 11:25,26
Please think about it.