No Bondage in God's Ways

This problem of "church control" has been taught to us from a very small age. When we walk with Christ we are not under all those human rules that people make to keep others in line with their agenda. Many many things taught in the churches are not Biblical and just man's idea of how things should operate. When we follow the Scriptures we are free from all those cumbersome human mandates.

Matthew 11:28-30

28 “Come to Me, all [a]who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For My yoke is comfortable, and My burden is light.”

Whenever someone attempts to intimidate me to do something I ask them for the scripture that says I must do that thing. They never come back with scripture, which tells me they have no authority to compel me to follow their ways.

Many people want us to follow them or the group-think, we don't have to, we are free indeed when we obey Christ.

When Christ makes us free we are under no obligation to obey those who attempt to bring us into bondage under man's ways.

Follow Christ not any Person or Organization

We know when we are in a cult-like church gathering when someone who has been attending a long time and decides to leave they are treated with shame and even shunned for leaving.

Church membership is not Biblical. When we become born-again we are automatically in God's family no matter where His people meet.

We can meet in one gathering one week and another gathering another week or we can remain in one gathering all our lives. God never commands us how often to meet or with particular people. We are told not to forsake the gathering permanently but at times it is necessary to take breaks from traditions and rules God never made.

I remember years ago when we were first believers we attended a church group who pressured us to "Join" as though it was God's requirement. We didn't join formally but attended for a couple of years. When we left I was chastised for leaving because, as they put it, it was like a marriage and we could not break that bond.

I quickly refuted what was being said using the Scriptures but was rejected and set aside for not being in their group.

This was our first experience with this kind of spiritual abuse and misuse of Scripture. What these people didn't understand is that we had already left the Catholic church because of bad doctrine after becoming born-again, it isn't likely we would be intimidated by any other group to remain where the doctrine was blatantly unbiblical.

It is amazing to me that people think they will get us to stay by being rude and mean. The fastest way to get me to run from people is when they use intimidation, mocking and rudeness to manipulate me into doing what they want. I am the kind of person who makes decisions based on truth, facts and rational thinking, not emotions generated by those who wish to make me feel unloved if I don't do what they want.

I learned early on after becoming born-again that the mark of an authentic believer is marked with humility and love, in other words all the fruit of God's Spirit.

Galatians 5:22-23

"22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law."

The fruit of the Spirit motivates believers to love one another and everyone else too.

Romans 12:10

"Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor."

John 13:35 " 35 By this everyone will know that you are My disciples, if you love one another.”

1 John 3:14

"We know that we have passed from death to life because we love our brothers. The one who does not love remains in death."

Manipulation to control others to make them just like us is not love. We influence people by speaking and by our example, not by tricks to make them feel unloved if they aren't just like us.

Treating someone disrespectfully for not remaining in our group is the height of arrogance and ruthlessness. Each one must be led by Christ as to where they will go and what they will do with their lives.

May all of us practice the love of Christ as we allow others to be who God made them to be, His child under HIs guidance.

Stop the Debate and Focus on Christ

When Christ came to earth He quoted from the Old Testament to prove the prophesy that He is the promised Messiah.

Someone asked the question which translation would Christ read from if He came to earth. I had to laugh a little!

Why would Christ "the Word" read from anything, He is the Word He can speak without any translations.

John 20:30-31

"30 Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; 31 but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name."

John 1:1

"1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."

Jesus Christ quoted the Old Testament without the need of any written book. He knew the Old Testament better than any man because He is the Author of it.

John 1:1-5

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it."

It is infantile to think that we must choose a particular English translation of the Bible when there are thousands of languages in the world, and thank the Lord, almost all of them have the Bible in their own language.

Only about 20% of the world speaks English, everyone else speaks a different language and must have their Bible translated into their own language to be able to read it.

Jesus Christ is God, He is the Word, He is the author of the Bible and His Spirit can move through every heart that desires to know Him in any language they need.

Words on a page in any translation can be misinterpreted by those who do not have the power of the Holy Spirit living in them. It takes faith and trust in Christ to depend on the Holy Spirit in everything, even the words we read on a page.

Just saying, perhaps it is best to stop all this debate about translations causing division where there need be none and focus on Christ Himself.

Only Christ Can Save a Sinner

There are many "conservatives" who think they are on higher ground that guarantees them heaven. While it is true that Conservatism has proven to be a better lifestyle because it is more based on Christian principles, it is no highway to heaven and many people who are conservative are not saved from hell.

There is only one way to heaven and that is through confession of our sinfulness and a desire to be changed by Christ into a new creation. He paid the debt for sin on the cross and our choice to obey Him in accepting that sacrifice will bring salvation through His grace toward us.

However, sadly many people think if they live a good lifestyle or are conservatives this alone will gain them heaven. They have some "god-talk" and are proud of their decision to be conservative but this is not what gains anyone heaven.

My answer to these people would be no one is basically good. And, a basically good person would not be able to be a criminal they would have a natural avertion to harming others.

There is no such thing as a good person falling in with a bad crowd, thus blaming the crowd for their own sinful choices. A crowd does not make us who we are, our choice to follow Christ or not to follow Him makes us who we are because He is the One Who changes us.

Many conservatives are going to hear very frightening words when they come before the Lord Jesus Christ on judgement day. Their answer to God that they "did this and they did that" or "said this or that" or "I believed this or that", will have no weight at all to their entrance into heaven.

Matthew 7:21-23

I Never Knew You

21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. 22 On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’ 23 And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you workers of lawlessness.’"

Anyone who is proud of their good deeds is working their way to heaven in their own flesh, it is a dead giveaway that they are not born again or they are born-again with a misunderstanding that anything they do for God in the flesh has merit.

It has been my experience that those who think they are making it to heaven because they do good deeds actually do very little regarding good deeds but only think they do and whatever they do must be seen by others to gain them the feelings of being special.

Nearly every criminal in prison will proclaim that they are basically good people.

It is common for Christians groups to think up ways to please God in the flesh, cute little manipulations to spread the gospel without actually speaking it. The "What would Jesus do Bracelet" was one of these, also, the "I found it" campaign to cause people to ask about God. The problem with these little tricks and manipulations is that they run hot at first and burn out fast because they were not what God told us to do when sharing the gospel.

Perhaps these happy tricks were devised to eliminate the embarrassment Christians feel at speaking the gospel boldly. They can feel superior and special with the tricks but are ashamed to boldly speak the gospel as Christ commanded.

Mark 16:15

"And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation."

Romans 1:16

"For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek."

Acts 10:42

"And he commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one appointed by God to be judge of the living and the dead."

2 Timothy 4:2

"Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching."

When we are walking in tandum with Christ Who lives in us we will not have fear of man or care about the rejection that will come from speaking the gospel boldly.

Our culture has been teaching for many years now that people are basically good and should be treated with such gentility that they are programmed to be offended when they are corrected or chastised. This mentality makes the culture as a whole resistant to the truth, they prefer fantasy and praise.

Isaiah 30:9-11 "…9 These are rebellious people, deceitful children, children unwilling to obey the LORD’s instruction. 10 They say to the seers, “Stop seeing visions!” and to the prophets, “Do not prophesy to us the truth! Speak to us pleasant words; prophesy illusions. 11 Get out of the way; turn off the road. Rid us of the Holy One of Israel!”…"

This is the culture we are now living in, most people are hyper-sensitive to correction but need it more than anything else.

Praise and flattery are not very useful when someone has need to grow and change. One other couple I know were lamenting the fact that they were chastised for "being negative all the time." My response to them is that we live in a crazy world that needs far more correction than anything else, after all, the good does not need attention, it is the error and disrespect that needs to be challenged in order for good to occur.

Romans 16:18

"For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive."

We live in a fantasy world now full of idle imaginings rather than truth and reality.

2 Timothy 4:3

"For the time will come when men will not tolerate sound doctrine, but with itching ears they will gather around themselves teachers to suit their own desires."

So, what is the answer for us? We keep speaking truth, let it roll off when we are reviled for Christ's sake and never allow the attackers to infect our soul. We can be joyful and obedient to Christ even if no one goes with us and even if we are rejected and reviled. People are not our strength, Christ is our strength.

Those who are deeply wounded and fearful of rejection are more self-focused while truth is not nearly as important as their temporary feelings.

I can testify to the fact that the more we walk in truth and trust in Christ the less we "feel" anything about the way people treat us. Since being accepted by people is not important we are more fully able to trust and obey Christ.