Do Something,
“Again, it will be like a man going on a journey, who called his servants and entrusted his property to them.
To one he gave five talents of money, to another two talents, and to another one talent, each according to his ability. Then he went on his journey.
The man who had received the five talents went at once and put his money to work and gained five more.
So also, the one with the two talents gained two more.
But the man who had received the one talent went off, dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money.
“After a long time the master of those servants returned and settled accounts with them. The man who had received the five talents brought the other five. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with five talents. See, I have gained five more.’
“His master replied, ’Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’
“The man with the two talents also came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘you entrusted me with two talents; see, I have gained two more.’
“His master replied, ‘Well done, good and faithful servant! You have been faithful with a few things; I will put you in charge of many things. Come and share your master’s happiness!’
“Then the man who had received the one talent came. ‘Master,’ he said, ‘I knew that you are a hard man, harvesting where you have not sown and gathering where you have not scattered seed.
So I was afraid and went out and hid your talent in the ground. See, here is what belongs to you.’
“His master replied, ‘You wicked, lazy servant! So you knew that I harvest where I have not sown and gather where I have not scattered seed?
Well then, you should have put my money on deposit with the bankers, so that when I returned I would have received it back with interest.
“ ‘Take the talent from him and give it to the one who has the ten talents.
For everyone who has will be given more, and he will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken from him.
And throw that worthless servant outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’
Matthew 25:14-30.
The main point in this parable is do something for Christ. Christianity is a faith that believes in reaching out to people with the Love of God. It is a faith of action.
Jesus said,
“You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden.
Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.
In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”
Matthew 5:14-16
Jesus told us to go and make disciples of all nations.
James makes it clear,
“As the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without deeds is dead.”
James 2:26.
I know reaching out to people can be a risk. We risk rejection of even our friends and families. Still it is a risk we must take.
If we truly believe that Jesus is the One and Only Son of God. That he is the way the truth and the life. That no one comes to the Father but by Him. We must reach out to those around us with this message.
To fail to reach out with the message of Christ to those around us is to put it bluntly, to potentially sentence those around us to an eternity in hell. An eternity separated from God.
We need to heed the words of Jesus who said,
"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 28:19,20.
I know it’s a dangerous world out their for Christians. But we have a calling that compels us to go in spite of the dangers, even if it’s just to reach our neighbours and friends.
Think about it.
Thursday 12 June 2014
Wednesday 11 June 2014
Be Ready
Be Ready
“At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.
Five of them were foolish and five were wise.
The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them.
The wise, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps.
The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep.
“At midnight the cry rang out: ‘Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’
“Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps.
The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.’
“ ‘No,’ they replied, ‘there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.’
“But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut.
“Later the others also came. ‘Sir! Sir!’ they said. ‘Open the door for us!’
“But he replied, ‘I tell you the truth, I don’t know you.’
“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.”
Matthew 25:1-13.
Someone once told me the whole meaning of this parable in two words, “be prepared.” They were right.
We do not know the hour or the time Jesus will return and we do not know the hour of our death thus we should be ready at all times for his return.
Being prepared is a personal thing. No one else can prepare for us. We need to be in that personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
We need to have confessed our sins to Him and allowed him to come into our lives as Lord and Saviour. Our lives need to be dedicated to the Lord
We need to be studying the scriptures and witnessing to the lost.
Jesus said
“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 28:19-20.
This is the lot of the Christian, to tell the world about God’s love. To tell the world of the salvation that can only come through Christ Jesus. To teach the new converts all Jesus has taught us to until He returns in His Glory.
Think about it.
“At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom.
Five of them were foolish and five were wise.
The foolish ones took their lamps but did not take any oil with them.
The wise, however, took oil in jars along with their lamps.
The bridegroom was a long time in coming, and they all became drowsy and fell asleep.
“At midnight the cry rang out: ‘Here’s the bridegroom! Come out to meet him!’
“Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps.
The foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil; our lamps are going out.’
“ ‘No,’ they replied, ‘there may not be enough for both us and you. Instead, go to those who sell oil and buy some for yourselves.’
“But while they were on their way to buy the oil, the bridegroom arrived. The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut.
“Later the others also came. ‘Sir! Sir!’ they said. ‘Open the door for us!’
“But he replied, ‘I tell you the truth, I don’t know you.’
“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour.”
Matthew 25:1-13.
Someone once told me the whole meaning of this parable in two words, “be prepared.” They were right.
We do not know the hour or the time Jesus will return and we do not know the hour of our death thus we should be ready at all times for his return.
Being prepared is a personal thing. No one else can prepare for us. We need to be in that personal relationship with Jesus Christ.
We need to have confessed our sins to Him and allowed him to come into our lives as Lord and Saviour. Our lives need to be dedicated to the Lord
We need to be studying the scriptures and witnessing to the lost.
Jesus said
“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 28:19-20.
This is the lot of the Christian, to tell the world about God’s love. To tell the world of the salvation that can only come through Christ Jesus. To teach the new converts all Jesus has taught us to until He returns in His Glory.
Think about it.
Tuesday 10 June 2014
The Last Days
The Last days
"But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God"
2 Timothy 3:1-4
In my last two posts I’ve warned about those who would attempt to read into events of the day and speculate on the fulfillment of Prophesy. But don’t get me wrong I am a firm believer we are in the last days. I believe this in part because of such people claiming to be teachers of the word and perverting it.
I also believe that without the help of God our civilization, our race, our very existence on this planet is in peril.
Some time ago I came across an article written in the 1950's that could have been written today. The article by John B. Harrington quots from Paul Gallico in Esquire Magazine in 1948: wrote,
"A writer in a popular magazine has written the following words; 'We are all, if you will pardon the expression, Headed for Hell in a handbarrow. If, ever the people of the world stood in need of a spiritual revival, it is now. We are beginning to poison the face of the earth with our miserable presence. The brakes are off. The cart of the world is sliding down the way greased with hatred, ambition, lies, self-seeking and avarice toward the pit.’"
Harrington notes that Gallico makes no pretense of being "a religious man" noting that "...for him it is precisely religion in its organized forms which has in part caused the situation he deplores. He is careful to state that it is not "religion" for which he is looking. For in his opinion, religion throughout the history of our culture has advanced its control over human beings by the investment of bigotry and persecution.
Yet, out of despair over the current human situation he says; ‘The voice for which my heavy spirit is yearning must reach us all... For if it is not heard, we are lost. Something beyond our material enrichment and lust for power and position, some rewards founded on good will, selflessness, and the innate dignity of the human spirit...honour, humility, decency courage."
What Gallico and many in the world today are looking for is the true Christ spoken of in the Gospels, not religion.
We as Christians need to take an honest look at what we are teaching and our lifestyle.
We need to go back to the basic teachings of Jesus and the writers of the New Testament.
We need to be living the word of God.
I believe Christianity is a lifestyle not a religion. I believe the words of Francis of Assisi who said,
“Preach the Gospel at all times and when necessary use words.”
For me Christianity is a faith of love understanding and reaching out to the world with God’s mercy.
We are not called to judge, 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.
I am however called to reach the world with the most incredible message of love I have ever known.
And if there was ever a time the world needed hope it is now, as Paul Gallico puts it,
“We are beginning to poison the face of the earth with our miserable presence. The brakes are off. The cart of the world is sliding down the way greased with hatred, ambition, lies, self-seeking and avarice toward the pit.”
And the way I see it there is no hope but in Jesus.
As Christians we can only present the word of God to the world but we must do it in the most non judgmental way possible and leave to our listeners what they are going to believe.
The apostle Paul after speaking in the Aeropagus in Athens never condemned the Athians. He never once judged them because of their lifestyle or beliefs. He did however warn them, concluding his remarks with this,
“For he(God) 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.”
Acts 17:31.
The results were the same as happens today the book of Acts recording,
“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 17:32-34.
I strongly believe it is up to us as Christians to stay away from what is speculation at best and false prophesy at worst, and get out there and any way we can present the good news of Jesus Christ to the world.
The world is heading to Hell in a Handbarrow I don’t think any honest Christian would deny that, but we as Christians have a way to pluck individuals out of that handbarrow.
We have a sacred duty to reach the lost and show them the way to an eternity with God.
Think about it.
"But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God"
2 Timothy 3:1-4
In my last two posts I’ve warned about those who would attempt to read into events of the day and speculate on the fulfillment of Prophesy. But don’t get me wrong I am a firm believer we are in the last days. I believe this in part because of such people claiming to be teachers of the word and perverting it.
I also believe that without the help of God our civilization, our race, our very existence on this planet is in peril.
Some time ago I came across an article written in the 1950's that could have been written today. The article by John B. Harrington quots from Paul Gallico in Esquire Magazine in 1948: wrote,
"A writer in a popular magazine has written the following words; 'We are all, if you will pardon the expression, Headed for Hell in a handbarrow. If, ever the people of the world stood in need of a spiritual revival, it is now. We are beginning to poison the face of the earth with our miserable presence. The brakes are off. The cart of the world is sliding down the way greased with hatred, ambition, lies, self-seeking and avarice toward the pit.’"
Harrington notes that Gallico makes no pretense of being "a religious man" noting that "...for him it is precisely religion in its organized forms which has in part caused the situation he deplores. He is careful to state that it is not "religion" for which he is looking. For in his opinion, religion throughout the history of our culture has advanced its control over human beings by the investment of bigotry and persecution.
Yet, out of despair over the current human situation he says; ‘The voice for which my heavy spirit is yearning must reach us all... For if it is not heard, we are lost. Something beyond our material enrichment and lust for power and position, some rewards founded on good will, selflessness, and the innate dignity of the human spirit...honour, humility, decency courage."
What Gallico and many in the world today are looking for is the true Christ spoken of in the Gospels, not religion.
We as Christians need to take an honest look at what we are teaching and our lifestyle.
We need to go back to the basic teachings of Jesus and the writers of the New Testament.
We need to be living the word of God.
I believe Christianity is a lifestyle not a religion. I believe the words of Francis of Assisi who said,
“Preach the Gospel at all times and when necessary use words.”
For me Christianity is a faith of love understanding and reaching out to the world with God’s mercy.
We are not called to judge, 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.
I am however called to reach the world with the most incredible message of love I have ever known.
And if there was ever a time the world needed hope it is now, as Paul Gallico puts it,
“We are beginning to poison the face of the earth with our miserable presence. The brakes are off. The cart of the world is sliding down the way greased with hatred, ambition, lies, self-seeking and avarice toward the pit.”
And the way I see it there is no hope but in Jesus.
As Christians we can only present the word of God to the world but we must do it in the most non judgmental way possible and leave to our listeners what they are going to believe.
The apostle Paul after speaking in the Aeropagus in Athens never condemned the Athians. He never once judged them because of their lifestyle or beliefs. He did however warn them, concluding his remarks with this,
“For he(God) 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.”
Acts 17:31.
The results were the same as happens today the book of Acts recording,
“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 17:32-34.
I strongly believe it is up to us as Christians to stay away from what is speculation at best and false prophesy at worst, and get out there and any way we can present the good news of Jesus Christ to the world.
The world is heading to Hell in a Handbarrow I don’t think any honest Christian would deny that, but we as Christians have a way to pluck individuals out of that handbarrow.
We have a sacred duty to reach the lost and show them the way to an eternity with God.
Think about it.
Monday 9 June 2014
Some advice to Christians
Some Advice to Christians
“No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.
As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.
For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.
Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left.
Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.
“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come.
But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into.
So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.
“Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time?
It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns.
I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.
But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself, ‘My master is staying away a long time,’
and he then begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with drunkards.
The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of.
He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Matthew 24:36-51
This is a follow up to what I was talking about yesterday. Jesus makes it clear
“No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.”
Jesus make it clear that society will go on as normal. It will be like in the time of Noah,
“people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away..”
The call of Jesus is to be ready. He says,
“So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.”
In other words don’t bother about speculation as to when he is coming be ready at any time.
Jesus says,
“Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time?
It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns.
I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.”
Note here Jesus is saying a wise servant whom the master has put in charge of his servants gives them food at the proper time.
In other words, builds up the body of believers. Doing as Jesus instructed in Matthew 28 when he said,
"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 28:19-20.
As far as I’m concerned we cannot win souls by speculating on when Jesus is returning.
Buying books that supposedly tell of prophetic events yet to happen is a waste. They may be interesting but the money could be better spent on ministries that are out there reaching the world for Christ.
Jesus said,
“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.
This is the whole duty of the Christian, to win souls. And Jesus makes it clear what our reward will be.
“Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time?
It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns.
I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.”
Think about it.
“No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.
As it was in the days of Noah, so it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.
For in the days before the flood, people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away. That is how it will be at the coming of the Son of Man.
Two men will be in the field; one will be taken and the other left.
Two women will be grinding with a hand mill; one will be taken and the other left.
“Therefore keep watch, because you do not know on what day your Lord will come.
But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what time of night the thief was coming, he would have kept watch and would not have let his house be broken into.
So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.
“Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time?
It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns.
I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.
But suppose that servant is wicked and says to himself, ‘My master is staying away a long time,’
and he then begins to beat his fellow servants and to eat and drink with drunkards.
The master of that servant will come on a day when he does not expect him and at an hour he is not aware of.
He will cut him to pieces and assign him a place with the hypocrites, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Matthew 24:36-51
This is a follow up to what I was talking about yesterday. Jesus makes it clear
“No one knows about that day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.”
Jesus make it clear that society will go on as normal. It will be like in the time of Noah,
“people were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, up to the day Noah entered the ark; and they knew nothing about what would happen until the flood came and took them all away..”
The call of Jesus is to be ready. He says,
“So you also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.”
In other words don’t bother about speculation as to when he is coming be ready at any time.
Jesus says,
“Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time?
It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns.
I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.”
Note here Jesus is saying a wise servant whom the master has put in charge of his servants gives them food at the proper time.
In other words, builds up the body of believers. Doing as Jesus instructed in Matthew 28 when he said,
"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 28:19-20.
As far as I’m concerned we cannot win souls by speculating on when Jesus is returning.
Buying books that supposedly tell of prophetic events yet to happen is a waste. They may be interesting but the money could be better spent on ministries that are out there reaching the world for Christ.
Jesus said,
“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.
This is the whole duty of the Christian, to win souls. And Jesus makes it clear what our reward will be.
“Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom the master has put in charge of the servants in his household to give them their food at the proper time?
It will be good for that servant whose master finds him doing so when he returns.
I tell you the truth, he will put him in charge of all his possessions.”
Think about it.
Sunday 8 June 2014
A Warning
A warning
"Jesus left the temple and was walking away when his disciples came up to him to call his attention to its buildings.
“Do you see all these things?” he asked. “I tell you the truth, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.”
As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. “Tell us,” they said, “when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”
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.
You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come.
Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places.
All these are the beginning of birth pains.
“Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me.
At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other,
and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people.
Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold,
but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.
And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
“So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination that causes desolation,’ spoken of through the prophet Daniel—let the reader understand—
then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.
Let no one on the roof of his house go down to take anything out of the house.
Let no one in the field go back to get his cloak.
How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers!
Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath.
For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again.
If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened.
At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or, ‘There he is!’ do not believe it.
For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect—if that were possible.
See, I have told you ahead of time.
“So if anyone tells you, ‘There he is, out in the desert,’ do not go out; or, ‘Here he is, in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it.
For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.
Wherever there is a carcass, there the vultures will gather.
“Immediately after the distress of those days “ ‘the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’
“At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory.
And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.
“Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near.
Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it is near, right at the door.
I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.
Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.
Matthew 24:1-35
There is a lot in the above section of scripture but it can be boiled down to this.
Basically it tells us that there will be many who come in the name of Christ who are not. There will be wars and rumours of wars. Many false prophets will arise and the world in general will dislike Christians. All of which is happening to a degree now.
The vast majority of this scripture portion however is take up with telling us to live upright and honest lives. To take courage in the adversity that will arise.
For me I am very cautious when some preacher or evangelist starts saying such and such prophesies are being fulfilled.
Here in North America it seems to be the wild west when it comes to ministers and evangelist especially of a charismatic or Pentecostal bent. There is no real oversight on these people they make wild claims that don’t come about.
I remember one gentleman that started sprouting from his soap box that there was going to be calamity when the year 2000 came about. The computers were going to go wild.
He and many like him had Christians believing the world was going to slip into some kind of turmoil.
Some people at the church I was attending at the time asked me in all honesty if I was stocking up on water and food. For when the computers caused the electrical system to fail.
I smiled and said I had a two bottles of water in my fridge and intended to cook my turkey as normal in my electric oven.
I was right there was no massive break down. Sadly however the church never came out and held the false prophets to account for their errors. These false prophets never gave the money back they made from the books they sold.
Had they been in Old Testament times they’d have been stoned. We let them off without even a word to more than likely prophesy falsely again.
Even as I write this there is some garbage being spouted about the “Blood Moons” don’t be fooled folks. Blood moons have happened before on Jewish festivals and important holidays. It’s bound to happen. The Jewish calendar is based on the lunar year so blood moons have happened before.
And for the record they have never during a major event. They occurred after the Spanish inquisition. The never occurred during the most monumental event in Jewish history the holocaust of world war two.
That being said I think as I see it, it’s a waste of time and money trying to predict when Christ will return. It’s a kin to reading tea leaves.
Instead of sending money to some evangelist who thinks he is predicting the return of Christ or some major event, instead of buying books on prophesy sent the money to a missionary who is reaching out to the lost. Give it to your home church for missions. It will do far more good.
After all Jesus said,
“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 most noble thing a Christian can do in their life is introduce someone to their Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Not attempt to see the future.
Think about it.
"Jesus left the temple and was walking away when his disciples came up to him to call his attention to its buildings.
“Do you see all these things?” he asked. “I tell you the truth, not one stone here will be left on another; every one will be thrown down.”
As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. “Tell us,” they said, “when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”
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.
You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come.
Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places.
All these are the beginning of birth pains.
“Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me.
At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other,
and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people.
Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold,
but he who stands firm to the end will be saved.
And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
“So when you see standing in the holy place ‘the abomination that causes desolation,’ spoken of through the prophet Daniel—let the reader understand—
then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains.
Let no one on the roof of his house go down to take anything out of the house.
Let no one in the field go back to get his cloak.
How dreadful it will be in those days for pregnant women and nursing mothers!
Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath.
For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again.
If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened.
At that time if anyone says to you, ‘Look, here is the Christ!’ or, ‘There he is!’ do not believe it.
For false Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect—if that were possible.
See, I have told you ahead of time.
“So if anyone tells you, ‘There he is, out in the desert,’ do not go out; or, ‘Here he is, in the inner rooms,’ do not believe it.
For as lightning that comes from the east is visible even in the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.
Wherever there is a carcass, there the vultures will gather.
“Immediately after the distress of those days “ ‘the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’
“At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory.
And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other.
“Now learn this lesson from the fig tree: As soon as its twigs get tender and its leaves come out, you know that summer is near.
Even so, when you see all these things, you know that it is near, right at the door.
I tell you the truth, this generation will certainly not pass away until all these things have happened.
Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away.
Matthew 24:1-35
There is a lot in the above section of scripture but it can be boiled down to this.
Basically it tells us that there will be many who come in the name of Christ who are not. There will be wars and rumours of wars. Many false prophets will arise and the world in general will dislike Christians. All of which is happening to a degree now.
The vast majority of this scripture portion however is take up with telling us to live upright and honest lives. To take courage in the adversity that will arise.
For me I am very cautious when some preacher or evangelist starts saying such and such prophesies are being fulfilled.
Here in North America it seems to be the wild west when it comes to ministers and evangelist especially of a charismatic or Pentecostal bent. There is no real oversight on these people they make wild claims that don’t come about.
I remember one gentleman that started sprouting from his soap box that there was going to be calamity when the year 2000 came about. The computers were going to go wild.
He and many like him had Christians believing the world was going to slip into some kind of turmoil.
Some people at the church I was attending at the time asked me in all honesty if I was stocking up on water and food. For when the computers caused the electrical system to fail.
I smiled and said I had a two bottles of water in my fridge and intended to cook my turkey as normal in my electric oven.
I was right there was no massive break down. Sadly however the church never came out and held the false prophets to account for their errors. These false prophets never gave the money back they made from the books they sold.
Had they been in Old Testament times they’d have been stoned. We let them off without even a word to more than likely prophesy falsely again.
Even as I write this there is some garbage being spouted about the “Blood Moons” don’t be fooled folks. Blood moons have happened before on Jewish festivals and important holidays. It’s bound to happen. The Jewish calendar is based on the lunar year so blood moons have happened before.
And for the record they have never during a major event. They occurred after the Spanish inquisition. The never occurred during the most monumental event in Jewish history the holocaust of world war two.
That being said I think as I see it, it’s a waste of time and money trying to predict when Christ will return. It’s a kin to reading tea leaves.
Instead of sending money to some evangelist who thinks he is predicting the return of Christ or some major event, instead of buying books on prophesy sent the money to a missionary who is reaching out to the lost. Give it to your home church for missions. It will do far more good.
After all Jesus said,
“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 most noble thing a Christian can do in their life is introduce someone to their Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Not attempt to see the future.
Think about it.
Saturday 7 June 2014
A Prediction
A Predication
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the graves of the righteous.
And you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our forefathers, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’
So you testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets.
Fill up, then, the measure of the sin of your forefathers!
“You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell?
Therefore I am sending you prophets and wise men and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify; others you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town.
And so upon you will come all the righteous blood that has been shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Berekiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.
I tell you the truth, all this will come upon this generation.
“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing.
Look, your house is left to you desolate.”
Matthew 23:29-38
Jesus here tells how the religious leaders of his day claim they wouldn’t act like their forefathers and kill the prophets.
Yet he say that they would. They did took offence to Jesus and to his followers. They seen to it that Jesus was put to death
They seen to it that the young church was persecuted. We just have to read the first part of the book of acts to see how the teachers of the law in the time of Jesus and the apostles persecuted the church.
It was to the point that the church was forced to separate from Judaism taking with it the proclamation of the good new of Jesus Christ, that had first come to the Jews.
By the end of the second century the church was almost entirely made up of non Jews.
As a church today we must be careful to see that our message does not waver. That we do not come against those within our midst who are truly preaching the word of God.
Our message must be pure. We cannot allow those who are teaching the scriptures incorrectly to take the message over.
Paul writing to Timothy states,
“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
I believe all believers, church congregations and denominations must take a look from time to time at what we believe and what we are teaching. We must take careful stock, then if we find error in our teaching be humble enough to take corrective action and turn back to the correct teachings of the Bible.
Think about it
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You build tombs for the prophets and decorate the graves of the righteous.
And you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our forefathers, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’
So you testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets.
Fill up, then, the measure of the sin of your forefathers!
“You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell?
Therefore I am sending you prophets and wise men and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify; others you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town.
And so upon you will come all the righteous blood that has been shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Berekiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.
I tell you the truth, all this will come upon this generation.
“O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing.
Look, your house is left to you desolate.”
Matthew 23:29-38
Jesus here tells how the religious leaders of his day claim they wouldn’t act like their forefathers and kill the prophets.
Yet he say that they would. They did took offence to Jesus and to his followers. They seen to it that Jesus was put to death
They seen to it that the young church was persecuted. We just have to read the first part of the book of acts to see how the teachers of the law in the time of Jesus and the apostles persecuted the church.
It was to the point that the church was forced to separate from Judaism taking with it the proclamation of the good new of Jesus Christ, that had first come to the Jews.
By the end of the second century the church was almost entirely made up of non Jews.
As a church today we must be careful to see that our message does not waver. That we do not come against those within our midst who are truly preaching the word of God.
Our message must be pure. We cannot allow those who are teaching the scriptures incorrectly to take the message over.
Paul writing to Timothy states,
“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
I believe all believers, church congregations and denominations must take a look from time to time at what we believe and what we are teaching. We must take careful stock, then if we find error in our teaching be humble enough to take corrective action and turn back to the correct teachings of the Bible.
Think about it
Friday 6 June 2014
Freedom
Freedom
“I will walk about in freedom, for I have sought out your precepts. I will speak of your statutes before kings and will not be put to shame, for I delight in your commands because I love them.
I lift up my hands to your commands, which I love, and I meditate on your decrees.”
Psalm 119:45-48
Today as I write this it is June 6th 2014 the 70th anniversary of Day. Here in Canada the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) is putting on an all day special, commemorating the day a hundred and fifty thousand men rush ashore in Normandy France.
These men risked their life that we might have freedom.
My Father while not at Normandy fought in the British Army in North Africa, Italy, Belgium and Germany. He spoke little of his actual time in Battle he tended to dwell on the good times he had with his friends between the fighting.
One day however when I went to visit him at home. By this time he was in his eighties and he’d been watching television someone who was denying the holocaust every happened was being sentenced for hate crimes was in the news.
He suddenly started an angry tirade aimed largely at the television. He was very upset saying that he knew the death camps were real. That he was there.
His tirade lasted a few seconds then he settled down and told me for the first time his experience at the Bergen Belsen death camp. He’d been among the liberator of the camp. He’d seen the horror and it had left wounds that he’d never spoken about for decades.
He said that’s why they had fought the war, to end tyranny. That we should always remember those who fought and died to end it.
For me I believe the fear of God was forgotten in Germany during the 1930's and 1940's. That the people in part out of ignorance and in part out of fear followed an evil man. As a result it lead to the ultimate deaths of more than fifty-six million people.
The scripture I quoted above says a lot,
“I will walk about in freedom, for I have sought out your precepts. I will speak of your statutes before kings and will not be put to shame, for I delight in your commands because I love them.
I lift up my hands to your commands, which I love, and I meditate on your decrees.”
Psalm 119:45-48.
If we believe in God. If we truly walk in the precepts of God. If we love God and we ensure our leadership both political and religious, loves God then the horrors of world war two will not be repeated.
Abba Hillel Silver wrote,
“Faith in God is the strongest bulwark of a free society. Human freedom began when men became conscious that over and above society and nature there is a God who created them...who fashioned them in His likeness, and that they are, therefore, possessed of intrinsic and independent significance and are endowed, as individuals, with original and irrevocable rights and authority.”
It is only when mankind turns its back on God’s truths of Love and mercy that such a thing as world war two can happen.
The men that started world war two were far from God. Their hearts were filled with hate.
We can never let this happen again. We must stand up to hate and prejudges wherever it may be.
We must insist that our political and religious leaders exercise tolerance and show love to all irrespective of their race colour creed or their lifestyle.
Martin Luther King Jr. once prayed,
“We thank thee, O God, for the spiritual nature of man. We are in nature but we live above nature.
Help us never to let anybody or any condition pull us so low as to cause us to hate.
Give us strength to love our enemies and to do good to those who despitefully use us and persecute us.
We thank thee for thy Church, founded upon thy Word, that challenges us to do more
than sing and pray, but go out and work as though the very answer to our prayers depended on us and not upon thee.
Then, finally, help us to realize that man was created to shine like stars and live on through all eternity.
Keep us, we pray, in perfect peace; help us to walk together, pray together, sing together, and live together until that day when all God’s children, Black, White, Red, and Yellow will rejoice in one common bond of humanity in the kingdom of our LORD and of our God, we pray. Amen.”
The writer of Ecclesiastes wrote,
“Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.
For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.”
Ecclesiastes 12:13,14.
As Christians we need to fear God and keep his commandments, Jesus saying,
"Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’
This is the first and greatest commandment.
And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’
All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
Matthew 22:37-40
If we are doing this and requiring our leaders both political and religious to do it also. Our world will be a much better place.
Remember,
“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.
It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
Love never fails....”
1 Corinthians 13:4-8a.
This is what it is to be Christian. These ideals are the ideals those men died for on June 6th 1944.
For us to do less than show love to our fellow man is not only to let those who died in world war two down but to fall short of what God wants us to do and to potentially sentence those we come in contact with to a Christless eternity.
Think about it.
“I will walk about in freedom, for I have sought out your precepts. I will speak of your statutes before kings and will not be put to shame, for I delight in your commands because I love them.
I lift up my hands to your commands, which I love, and I meditate on your decrees.”
Psalm 119:45-48
Today as I write this it is June 6th 2014 the 70th anniversary of Day. Here in Canada the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) is putting on an all day special, commemorating the day a hundred and fifty thousand men rush ashore in Normandy France.
These men risked their life that we might have freedom.
My Father while not at Normandy fought in the British Army in North Africa, Italy, Belgium and Germany. He spoke little of his actual time in Battle he tended to dwell on the good times he had with his friends between the fighting.
One day however when I went to visit him at home. By this time he was in his eighties and he’d been watching television someone who was denying the holocaust every happened was being sentenced for hate crimes was in the news.
He suddenly started an angry tirade aimed largely at the television. He was very upset saying that he knew the death camps were real. That he was there.
His tirade lasted a few seconds then he settled down and told me for the first time his experience at the Bergen Belsen death camp. He’d been among the liberator of the camp. He’d seen the horror and it had left wounds that he’d never spoken about for decades.
He said that’s why they had fought the war, to end tyranny. That we should always remember those who fought and died to end it.
For me I believe the fear of God was forgotten in Germany during the 1930's and 1940's. That the people in part out of ignorance and in part out of fear followed an evil man. As a result it lead to the ultimate deaths of more than fifty-six million people.
The scripture I quoted above says a lot,
“I will walk about in freedom, for I have sought out your precepts. I will speak of your statutes before kings and will not be put to shame, for I delight in your commands because I love them.
I lift up my hands to your commands, which I love, and I meditate on your decrees.”
Psalm 119:45-48.
If we believe in God. If we truly walk in the precepts of God. If we love God and we ensure our leadership both political and religious, loves God then the horrors of world war two will not be repeated.
Abba Hillel Silver wrote,
“Faith in God is the strongest bulwark of a free society. Human freedom began when men became conscious that over and above society and nature there is a God who created them...who fashioned them in His likeness, and that they are, therefore, possessed of intrinsic and independent significance and are endowed, as individuals, with original and irrevocable rights and authority.”
It is only when mankind turns its back on God’s truths of Love and mercy that such a thing as world war two can happen.
The men that started world war two were far from God. Their hearts were filled with hate.
We can never let this happen again. We must stand up to hate and prejudges wherever it may be.
We must insist that our political and religious leaders exercise tolerance and show love to all irrespective of their race colour creed or their lifestyle.
Martin Luther King Jr. once prayed,
“We thank thee, O God, for the spiritual nature of man. We are in nature but we live above nature.
Help us never to let anybody or any condition pull us so low as to cause us to hate.
Give us strength to love our enemies and to do good to those who despitefully use us and persecute us.
We thank thee for thy Church, founded upon thy Word, that challenges us to do more
than sing and pray, but go out and work as though the very answer to our prayers depended on us and not upon thee.
Then, finally, help us to realize that man was created to shine like stars and live on through all eternity.
Keep us, we pray, in perfect peace; help us to walk together, pray together, sing together, and live together until that day when all God’s children, Black, White, Red, and Yellow will rejoice in one common bond of humanity in the kingdom of our LORD and of our God, we pray. Amen.”
The writer of Ecclesiastes wrote,
“Now all has been heard; here is the conclusion of the matter: Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of man.
For God will bring every deed into judgment, including every hidden thing, whether it is good or evil.”
Ecclesiastes 12:13,14.
As Christians we need to fear God and keep his commandments, Jesus saying,
"Jesus replied: “ ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’
This is the first and greatest commandment.
And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’
All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
Matthew 22:37-40
If we are doing this and requiring our leaders both political and religious to do it also. Our world will be a much better place.
Remember,
“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.
It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.
It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.
Love never fails....”
1 Corinthians 13:4-8a.
This is what it is to be Christian. These ideals are the ideals those men died for on June 6th 1944.
For us to do less than show love to our fellow man is not only to let those who died in world war two down but to fall short of what God wants us to do and to potentially sentence those we come in contact with to a Christless eternity.
Think about it.
Thursday 5 June 2014
Christian Accountability
Christian Accountability
“You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence.
Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean.
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men’s bones and everything unclean.
In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.”
Matthew 23:24-28
Another admonition of Jesus to the religious leaders of his day. He’s accusing them of looking good on the outside while inwardly they are a rotting mess.
Here is a good example of why we need to get to know our Christian leadership well.
I think anyone who has been a Christian in North America for any length of time knows at least one evangelist who has fallen from grace.
A so called man of God who on the outside looks good but on the inside was far from God.
We need to check out those we support carefully.
I don’t think there’s anything wrong with asking the ministers we support be they our church leaders or evangelist in the media, what they are doing with the money we donate to them.
I think every Christian institution should publicly give a detailed list of how they spend the money donated.
The men and women who lead our churches or are representing God in the media need also to prove they are as clean on the inside as they are on the outside. The need to live exceptionally moral lives.
It’s a hard thing to do but I firmly believe that if there is even the hint of something wrong within a ministry those who head the ministry from the pastor, board members on down need to come clean about what they are doing publicly.
If it comes down to a matter of morals especially with regards to anyone in authority within a ministry it first needs to be dealt with in accordance to instructions give to us by Jesus in Matthew 18:15-17 which states,
“If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over.
But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’
If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would a pagan or a tax collector.”
I think it should go with the territory. If a religious leader such as an evangelist wishes to live in the media, in the public eye. Then they should be willing to be accountable in the public eye for things both financial and moral.
At our church we have a yearly meeting in which every penny is accounted for.
I have also been a part of another church a much larger one in which a pastor was dismissed because of a moral problem in his life.
To this day that church still holds its pastoral staff and board members to the highest possible moral standard.
It is only right that the Christian leadership be held to a high standard of accountability then they must be removed from their position of authority and if necessary cast out of the church.
Think about it.
“You blind guides! You strain out a gnat but swallow a camel.
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You clean the outside of the cup and dish, but inside they are full of greed and self-indulgence.
Blind Pharisee! First clean the inside of the cup and dish, and then the outside also will be clean.
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You are like whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men’s bones and everything unclean.
In the same way, on the outside you appear to people as righteous but on the inside you are full of hypocrisy and wickedness.”
Matthew 23:24-28
Another admonition of Jesus to the religious leaders of his day. He’s accusing them of looking good on the outside while inwardly they are a rotting mess.
Here is a good example of why we need to get to know our Christian leadership well.
I think anyone who has been a Christian in North America for any length of time knows at least one evangelist who has fallen from grace.
A so called man of God who on the outside looks good but on the inside was far from God.
We need to check out those we support carefully.
I don’t think there’s anything wrong with asking the ministers we support be they our church leaders or evangelist in the media, what they are doing with the money we donate to them.
I think every Christian institution should publicly give a detailed list of how they spend the money donated.
The men and women who lead our churches or are representing God in the media need also to prove they are as clean on the inside as they are on the outside. The need to live exceptionally moral lives.
It’s a hard thing to do but I firmly believe that if there is even the hint of something wrong within a ministry those who head the ministry from the pastor, board members on down need to come clean about what they are doing publicly.
If it comes down to a matter of morals especially with regards to anyone in authority within a ministry it first needs to be dealt with in accordance to instructions give to us by Jesus in Matthew 18:15-17 which states,
“If your brother sins against you, go and show him his fault, just between the two of you. If he listens to you, you have won your brother over.
But if he will not listen, take one or two others along, so that ‘every matter may be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses.’
If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if he refuses to listen even to the church, treat him as you would a pagan or a tax collector.”
I think it should go with the territory. If a religious leader such as an evangelist wishes to live in the media, in the public eye. Then they should be willing to be accountable in the public eye for things both financial and moral.
At our church we have a yearly meeting in which every penny is accounted for.
I have also been a part of another church a much larger one in which a pastor was dismissed because of a moral problem in his life.
To this day that church still holds its pastoral staff and board members to the highest possible moral standard.
It is only right that the Christian leadership be held to a high standard of accountability then they must be removed from their position of authority and if necessary cast out of the church.
Think about it.
Wednesday 4 June 2014
Blind Guides
Blind Guide
“Woe to you, blind guides! You say, ‘If anyone swears by the temple, it means nothing; but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.’
You blind fools! Which is greater: the gold, or the temple that makes the gold sacred?
You also say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar, it means nothing; but if anyone swears by the gift on it, he is bound by his oath.’
You blind men! Which is greater: the gift, or the altar that makes the gift sacred?
Therefore, he who swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it.
And he who swears by the temple swears by it and by the one who dwells in it.
And he who swears by heaven swears by God’s throne and by the one who sits on it.
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.”
Matthew 23:16-23
Her Jesus is criticizing the teachers for their practices. They are too busy teaching about the material things that come into the temple but forget the more important matters of Justice, mercy and faithfulness.
I see especially in the media televangelists constantly teaching on giving money into the Lords work.
The classic example is ‘seed faith’. Give to get is how many preachers who bring the topic up teach.
Some are going as far as saying be faithful with your pledge to keep this ministry going and God will bless you many times over.
On one occasion I was even shocked at a person saying if you don’t honour God with your tithes and offerings to their ministry God will not honour or bless you.
This is not what the Bible says.
It seems to be a common thing with such ministries that they also are spouting off about all the ills of the world.
They centre out groups, politicians, and individuals people of various lifestyles, whom they claim promote sinning. Usually people with whom they don’t see eye to eye.
In doing so the true lesson of Christ is missed one of Justice Mercy and Faithfulness.
How sad, especially when the message of the gospel is one of the love and mercy of God.
God understands the heart and the position everyone is in. God meets people where they are at.
He does not care how much you give financially to His work. He cares about the spiritual condition of each person and wishes to come into a personal relationship with them.
This is the true message of the gospel.
As Christians we and our leaders need to examine what we are teaching and make sure that it is the true message of the Gospel of Christ. That justice love and mercy are being preached both in our lives and in the church congregation we attend.
We need to seek out people who are espousing the doctrine of the Love and Mercy of God.
We in our own lives need to be showing to the world God’s Love and Mercy.
Think about it.
“Woe to you, blind guides! You say, ‘If anyone swears by the temple, it means nothing; but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.’
You blind fools! Which is greater: the gold, or the temple that makes the gold sacred?
You also say, ‘If anyone swears by the altar, it means nothing; but if anyone swears by the gift on it, he is bound by his oath.’
You blind men! Which is greater: the gift, or the altar that makes the gift sacred?
Therefore, he who swears by the altar swears by it and by everything on it.
And he who swears by the temple swears by it and by the one who dwells in it.
And he who swears by heaven swears by God’s throne and by the one who sits on it.
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You give a tenth of your spices—mint, dill and cummin. But you have neglected the more important matters of the law—justice, mercy and faithfulness. You should have practiced the latter, without neglecting the former.”
Matthew 23:16-23
Her Jesus is criticizing the teachers for their practices. They are too busy teaching about the material things that come into the temple but forget the more important matters of Justice, mercy and faithfulness.
I see especially in the media televangelists constantly teaching on giving money into the Lords work.
The classic example is ‘seed faith’. Give to get is how many preachers who bring the topic up teach.
Some are going as far as saying be faithful with your pledge to keep this ministry going and God will bless you many times over.
On one occasion I was even shocked at a person saying if you don’t honour God with your tithes and offerings to their ministry God will not honour or bless you.
This is not what the Bible says.
It seems to be a common thing with such ministries that they also are spouting off about all the ills of the world.
They centre out groups, politicians, and individuals people of various lifestyles, whom they claim promote sinning. Usually people with whom they don’t see eye to eye.
In doing so the true lesson of Christ is missed one of Justice Mercy and Faithfulness.
How sad, especially when the message of the gospel is one of the love and mercy of God.
God understands the heart and the position everyone is in. God meets people where they are at.
He does not care how much you give financially to His work. He cares about the spiritual condition of each person and wishes to come into a personal relationship with them.
This is the true message of the gospel.
As Christians we and our leaders need to examine what we are teaching and make sure that it is the true message of the Gospel of Christ. That justice love and mercy are being preached both in our lives and in the church congregation we attend.
We need to seek out people who are espousing the doctrine of the Love and Mercy of God.
We in our own lives need to be showing to the world God’s Love and Mercy.
Think about it.
Tuesday 3 June 2014
Woe
Woe
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to.
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are.”
Matthew 23:13,14.
This I believe is an admonition for today. It is directed not only at the Pharisees and teachers of the law in the time of Jesus but at teacher of the scriptures today.
There are many churches out their that you must follow such and such a ritual in order to get to heaven.
There are many ministers, and evangelist who are laying down strict rules with respect on how a Christian is to act. Rules if not followed they say will bar the convert from heaven.
There is a lot of legalism in the Christian world.
The result is to turn new converts off and on to a road that is going far from God. This should not be so.
We as individual Christians need to be reading the word of God. We need to be in prayer asking God for his guidance in both our lives and in the lives of our leadership.
My challenge to the Christian community as a whole is to take a look at the leadership within the congregation you are attending.
Take a look every so often at what is being taught in your church congregation and denomination and what you yourself believe.
Then read the Bible and the teachings of Christ and the apostles and see if what is being taught lines up with the Bible and Christ.
This is not an unusual thing. Good things have come from questioning the authority of the church leaders.
Men like Martin Luther, Calvin, and others did so and in doing so brought the church back closer to its roots. And the correct teachings of the scriptures.
Think about it.
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the kingdom of heaven in men’s faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to.
“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are.”
Matthew 23:13,14.
This I believe is an admonition for today. It is directed not only at the Pharisees and teachers of the law in the time of Jesus but at teacher of the scriptures today.
There are many churches out their that you must follow such and such a ritual in order to get to heaven.
There are many ministers, and evangelist who are laying down strict rules with respect on how a Christian is to act. Rules if not followed they say will bar the convert from heaven.
There is a lot of legalism in the Christian world.
The result is to turn new converts off and on to a road that is going far from God. This should not be so.
We as individual Christians need to be reading the word of God. We need to be in prayer asking God for his guidance in both our lives and in the lives of our leadership.
My challenge to the Christian community as a whole is to take a look at the leadership within the congregation you are attending.
Take a look every so often at what is being taught in your church congregation and denomination and what you yourself believe.
Then read the Bible and the teachings of Christ and the apostles and see if what is being taught lines up with the Bible and Christ.
This is not an unusual thing. Good things have come from questioning the authority of the church leaders.
Men like Martin Luther, Calvin, and others did so and in doing so brought the church back closer to its roots. And the correct teachings of the scriptures.
Think about it.
Monday 2 June 2014
Jesus Words
Jesus Words,
“Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples:
“The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat.
So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach.
They tie up heavy loads and put them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them.
“Everything they do is done for men to see: They make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on their garments long; they love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; they love to be greeted in the marketplaces and to have men call them ‘Rabbi.’
“But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have only one Master and you are all brothers. And do not call anyone on earth ‘father,’ for you have one Father, and he is in heaven.
Nor are you to be called ‘teacher,’ for you have one Teacher, the Christ.
The greatest among you will be your servant.
For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.”
Matthew 23:1-12
Here Jesus tells his disciples to obey what the religious leaders tell them. In other words they were preaching the law which the disciples Jews had to follow.
The problem with the teachers of the law was that they themselves were not practising what they were teaching.
The wanted the prestige the job brought. They wanted to be recognized as someone special.
God never intended our religious leaders to be puffed up. They were to be humble practising what they preached.
Jesus laid down some guide lines for his disciples and those to follow them as to how they were to act.
1. you are not to be called “Rabbi’ all are equal among the disciples. No one is better than the other.
2. Don’t call anyone on earth ‘Father’ because you have only one father God
This is referring I believe in the religious sense. We have no spiritual ‘fathers’ on earth only God who is in heaven.
3. You are not to be called teacher. For you have one teacher Christ.
Here he’s warning against people rising up and calling themselves teachers interpreting the scriptures in a wrong way. Such teachers may even claim they have new revelation. This is wrong.
Our teaching comes from Christ and him alone. All correct Christian teaching comes directly from God and Christ alone.
History is full of men and women who have misled people by claiming their teaching is the only correct teaching.
We must always be careful that our teaching is in line with that of the bible.
4 The greatest among you will be your servant.
Lack of humility was a major problem for the Pharisees. Our ministers and evangelist must be humble people. If they are not they can be led astray.
A humble person particularly a leader recognizes his ministry is one of service to his congregation.
He will listen to people and even admit if he makes a mistake and submit to correction.
All of the above is what a Christian should be.
Think about it.
“Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples:
“The teachers of the law and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat.
So you must obey them and do everything they tell you. But do not do what they do, for they do not practice what they preach.
They tie up heavy loads and put them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them.
“Everything they do is done for men to see: They make their phylacteries wide and the tassels on their garments long; they love the place of honor at banquets and the most important seats in the synagogues; they love to be greeted in the marketplaces and to have men call them ‘Rabbi.’
“But you are not to be called ‘Rabbi,’ for you have only one Master and you are all brothers. And do not call anyone on earth ‘father,’ for you have one Father, and he is in heaven.
Nor are you to be called ‘teacher,’ for you have one Teacher, the Christ.
The greatest among you will be your servant.
For whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.”
Matthew 23:1-12
Here Jesus tells his disciples to obey what the religious leaders tell them. In other words they were preaching the law which the disciples Jews had to follow.
The problem with the teachers of the law was that they themselves were not practising what they were teaching.
The wanted the prestige the job brought. They wanted to be recognized as someone special.
God never intended our religious leaders to be puffed up. They were to be humble practising what they preached.
Jesus laid down some guide lines for his disciples and those to follow them as to how they were to act.
1. you are not to be called “Rabbi’ all are equal among the disciples. No one is better than the other.
2. Don’t call anyone on earth ‘Father’ because you have only one father God
This is referring I believe in the religious sense. We have no spiritual ‘fathers’ on earth only God who is in heaven.
3. You are not to be called teacher. For you have one teacher Christ.
Here he’s warning against people rising up and calling themselves teachers interpreting the scriptures in a wrong way. Such teachers may even claim they have new revelation. This is wrong.
Our teaching comes from Christ and him alone. All correct Christian teaching comes directly from God and Christ alone.
History is full of men and women who have misled people by claiming their teaching is the only correct teaching.
We must always be careful that our teaching is in line with that of the bible.
4 The greatest among you will be your servant.
Lack of humility was a major problem for the Pharisees. Our ministers and evangelist must be humble people. If they are not they can be led astray.
A humble person particularly a leader recognizes his ministry is one of service to his congregation.
He will listen to people and even admit if he makes a mistake and submit to correction.
All of the above is what a Christian should be.
Think about it.
Sunday 1 June 2014
Sound Teaching
Sound Teaching
"While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them,
“What do you think about the Christ ? Whose son is he?” “The son of David,” they replied.
He said to them, “How is it then that David, speaking by the Spirit, calls him ‘Lord’? For he says,
“ ‘The Lord said to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet.” ’
If then David calls him ‘Lord,’ how can he be his son?”
No one could say a word in reply, and from that day on no one dared to ask him any more questions."
Matthew 22:41-46.
The Pharisees considered themselves the successor to Moses when it came to teaching the law.
So Jesus answered them a question,
“What do you think about the Christ ? Whose son is he?” “The son of David,” they replied.”
Jesus then presented them with a problem,
“How is it then that David, speaking by the Spirit, calls him ‘Lord’? For he says,
“ ‘The Lord said to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet.” ‘If then David calls him ‘Lord,’ how can he be his son?”
The Pharisees had no answer. Their theology was in error. David was referring to someone that was his Lord. Therefor was greater than David and couldn’t be his son.
As they had no come back they stopped asking him questions.
It’s the same today. If our Christian doctrine is correct it will line up with the word of the Lord, the Bible. If it is in error it will not.
If you question someone, be it a preacher, evangelist or average Christian a question about their teaching and it doesn’t line up with the Bible, most of the time they will avoid speaking with you.
There are very good examples out there in the world today of Televangelist who are teaching wrong things.
When questioned they refuse to answer the question or they ignore all together the person asking the question.
We as Christians must be aware of these people.
For me I strongly believe a minister be they in the media or in the pulpit, must be accountable to some group in authority.
Independent evangelist or pastors give me cause to be very cautious simply because over the years I’ve found many of these people to surround themselves with yes men. Who don’t oppose them in any way even when they stray from correct teaching.
This should not be so.
We as Christians should be able to hold our spiritual leaders to account with respect to what they teach and how they act.
If they are not they can like the Pharisees of old go off the rails and start teaching things God never intended to be taught.
Thus to both Christian and Non-Christian reading this I would advise that when it comes to choosing a preacher or church congregation to listen to and attend, I would say go to one that is attached to a denomination that holds their ministers and teachers accountable.
Three examples I can think of are Baptist, The Assemblies of God in the United States and the Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada. I have found have proven track records with respect to seeing that their ministers, teachers and missionaries in line with the teachings of the Bible.
Therefore I would encourage people to go to one of these churches and ask them what they believe and why.
Please think about it.
"While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them,
“What do you think about the Christ ? Whose son is he?” “The son of David,” they replied.
He said to them, “How is it then that David, speaking by the Spirit, calls him ‘Lord’? For he says,
“ ‘The Lord said to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet.” ’
If then David calls him ‘Lord,’ how can he be his son?”
No one could say a word in reply, and from that day on no one dared to ask him any more questions."
Matthew 22:41-46.
The Pharisees considered themselves the successor to Moses when it came to teaching the law.
So Jesus answered them a question,
“What do you think about the Christ ? Whose son is he?” “The son of David,” they replied.”
Jesus then presented them with a problem,
“How is it then that David, speaking by the Spirit, calls him ‘Lord’? For he says,
“ ‘The Lord said to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet.” ‘If then David calls him ‘Lord,’ how can he be his son?”
The Pharisees had no answer. Their theology was in error. David was referring to someone that was his Lord. Therefor was greater than David and couldn’t be his son.
As they had no come back they stopped asking him questions.
It’s the same today. If our Christian doctrine is correct it will line up with the word of the Lord, the Bible. If it is in error it will not.
If you question someone, be it a preacher, evangelist or average Christian a question about their teaching and it doesn’t line up with the Bible, most of the time they will avoid speaking with you.
There are very good examples out there in the world today of Televangelist who are teaching wrong things.
When questioned they refuse to answer the question or they ignore all together the person asking the question.
We as Christians must be aware of these people.
For me I strongly believe a minister be they in the media or in the pulpit, must be accountable to some group in authority.
Independent evangelist or pastors give me cause to be very cautious simply because over the years I’ve found many of these people to surround themselves with yes men. Who don’t oppose them in any way even when they stray from correct teaching.
This should not be so.
We as Christians should be able to hold our spiritual leaders to account with respect to what they teach and how they act.
If they are not they can like the Pharisees of old go off the rails and start teaching things God never intended to be taught.
Thus to both Christian and Non-Christian reading this I would advise that when it comes to choosing a preacher or church congregation to listen to and attend, I would say go to one that is attached to a denomination that holds their ministers and teachers accountable.
Three examples I can think of are Baptist, The Assemblies of God in the United States and the Pentecostal Assemblies of Canada. I have found have proven track records with respect to seeing that their ministers, teachers and missionaries in line with the teachings of the Bible.
Therefore I would encourage people to go to one of these churches and ask them what they believe and why.
Please think about it.
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