There is a modern pastor who claims that he doesn't want to "place a barrier between the world and the church?" When referring to friendship with homosexuals in the church. Are you kidding!
There is a barrier between the world and the church. There can be no fellowship for the believer with the world. Those who are lost are not reconciled to Christ, our job is to warn them that they need to be. Why are they lost? That's simple because of their sin. What sin? All the sins Godspeaks about in the Word of God.
It is our sinful nature that separates us from God and from believers, however, through faith in Christ we can be reconciled to God and to other believers, only if we confess our sinfulness and trust Christ, Who paid the penalty for our sin, after which He changes us into a new creation.
Shame on those who bring evil into the worship with God's people. The worship gathering is not for unbelievers, evangelism is for the streets, since our worldly apostate churches are too embarrassed and lazy to go to the masses to preach, they encourage the congregations to bring the unholy masses to the worship gathering, this is offensive to God. "Light has no fellowship with darkness" and God said "come out from among them and be separated."
Mark 16:15 "And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature."
I see no mandate in the Word to bring non-believers into our worship services.
When we welcome non-believer to the worship we are disobeying God. When we water down our sermons to be careful with the unsaved wicked , we disobey God. When we act happy and friendly no matter how vile the sinfulness of an unsaved person, we offend and mock God.
Our worship services should be kept only for believers, and only for those believers who are not in open sin themselves.
1 Corinthians 5:13 "But those who are outside, God judges. REMOVE THE WICKED MAN FROM AMONG "
Many unsaved people have learned the lingo, putting on a pretense to rival Broadway performers, fooling those in the apostate church. They have worked their way into leadership positions, watered down the gospel and even changing the meaning of truth to fit with those who would be offended at a strong sermon against evil.
Matthew 7:15 "Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves."
Many leaders in pulpits today have never been born again. They teach lies that tickle the ears of those who want a superficial helpless and impotent gospel of works and happiness. They encourage others to try real hard to be good, negating the power of the Holy Spirit, relegating Him to a genie in a bottle to do the bidding of it's host.
If we are going to trust Christ, then we must trust Him with our salvation, our cleansing and our keeping.....all of it, or it is not trust in Him at all.
Monday, October 20, 2014
Self-Righteousness Will Not Save You
We have to make a decision whether to confess our sin and trust Christ, when we do place our trust in what He did on the cross on our behalf, He sends the Holy Spirit to come and live in us.
Ephesians 2:8-13 “8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and[h]that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.
11 Therefore remember that formerly you, the Gentiles in the flesh, who are called “Uncircumcision” by the so-called “Circumcision,” which is performed in the flesh by human hands— 12 remember that you were at that time separate from Christ, [i]excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off [j]have been brought near [k]by the blood of Christ.”
The Holy Spirit is our seal and guarantee of our inheritance. WE are positionaly seated in the heavenlies with Christ.
Ephesians 1:13-14 “13 In [a]Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also [b]believed, you were sealed in [c]Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is [d]given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory.”
Ephesians 2:1-10 “2 And you [a]were dead [b]in your trespasses and sins, 2 in which you formerly walked according to the [c]course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. 3 Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, [d]indulging the desires of the flesh and of the[e]mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead [f]in our transgressions, made us alive together [g]with Christ (by grace you have been saved),6 and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and[h]that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them”
The Holy Spirit continually cleanses us until the day we die. We are a NEW Creation, no longer what we used to be, the old us is gone. We cannot bring back the old creation, any more than a butter fly can crawl back into the cocoon and be a worm again.
2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.”
Those who get confused have been taught that there are scriptures that prove one can walk away, basing this presumption on what they see in others rather than what the Bible says. They see people who seem to have been godly, but over time, they walked away from the Lord.
1 John 2:19 “They went out from us, but they were not really of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us; but they went out, so that it would be shown that they all are not of us.”
We also must remember if you cannot earn your salvation by your works, there is no way you would be able to keep that salvation by your works. Works have no effect on our salvation. It is a free gift of God.
Ephesians 2:8-10 “8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and[h]that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them”
The old testament saints were saved the same way we are, their blood sacrifice of animals did not take away their sin, it was a picture of the sacrifice of Christ to come later, nor did their adherence to the ten commandments. Now that sacrifice has occurred, the true sacrifice that did take away our sin. The death of Christ and the resurrection proving that He is God. It covered the sin in our bodies, while the sin in our spirit was taken away. The Father in heaven cannot look at sin, in any degree, so He made a way for us to be sealed with the Holy Spirit in Christ so that the Father can look at us and see His Son, instead of us.
I find it interesting that when we die, our spirit goes to God, but our body is left behind, until it is raised in its’ new form, changed and uncorrupted.
Our faith should not be in our own ability to keep from sinning, or in our own ability to obey, it should be in the faithfulness of Christ alone.
John 2:1 “My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:”
It is Christ in us Who is righteous, not us. He covered our sin in His blood. Only the shedding of blood can take away sin. An attempt to not sin, does not remove our sinful nature, only the blood of Christ accounted to us, covered that sinful nature, it is covered in the blood until Christ takes us out of this world.
God does not want us to sin, He has provided a way for us to keep from sinning and that is through Christ. However, we do disobey as children because our flesh is weak even though our spirit is born again.
Romans 8:3 “For what the Law could not do, weak as it was through the flesh, God did: sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh,”
Christ had to die to atone for our sins, it makes no sense that we would have to continually work to keep what Christ had to die for. Can anyone die for their own sins? Those who think you can lose their salvation must think that a blood sacrifice was not necessary for the atonement of their sins, or they would realize, that to think one could lose their salvation, someone would have to die all over again for those new sins. It is only through the blood atonement of Christ that can save anyone.
Do those who think they can lose their salvation, believe that Christ’s blood sacrifice was not enough, we have to keep doing good deeds to add a little more to this bloody sacrifice? Do they think that we can die for our own sins? If we cannot atone for our own sins through the shedding of our blood, then what makes us think that our silly lifeless obedience sacrifices could atone?
Do not be proud of yourself because you obeyed, or think that it secured your salvation for you. If anyone think that each new obedience is one more cog in the wheel of securing their salvation, then they walk in pride, which is sin, and they are practicing a form of Catholicism which says that the more we obey or do good works the greater chance of heaven. It is still a works based religion to think one can keep the salvation they never earned to begin with and obtained it without a bloody sacrifice.
Let me ask those who think they can lose their salvation a few questions:
· How many sins do you have to do to lose what you did not earn in the first place?
· How big does a sin have to be for you to lose the salvation you did not earn?
· How do you get back your salvation if you have lost it?
· Which sins will lose you the salvation that you did not earn?
· Do you sin in thought word or deed regularly?
· Is it sin to have a lustful thought and if so, then does this lose one their salvation?
· Is someone who is born again by the Holy Spirit of Promise, sinless?
· Did you receive your salvation by living in obedience to Christ?
· Who paid the penalty for our sin?
· Do we keep ourselves or does God keep us after He changes us into a new creation?
· Do your little ones sin, do you disregard them as your children because they have sinned?
· What do you do when your little ones sin?
· If you believe we do not sin after we have become born again, then how would we ever sin to lose that salvation?
Matthew 5:28 “but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”
No one can say that they no longer sin after being born again. Anyone who says this, is lying and therefore sinning by such a claim.
1 John 1:8 “If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us.” This was written to believers, not the unsaved.
God knows that we have a sinful nature, that lives in our flesh continually, we have to battle it and we have the free will not to battle it, even though we walk in conviction and shame when we sin, we sometimes give into the flesh. The old nature is gone from the spirit, but the flesh is weak, while the spirit is strong.
Matthew 26:41 “Watch and pray, that you enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
Ephesians 6:12 “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.”
This life is a battle, but not a physical one a spiritual one. The more we battle the flesh in the Spirit the less we will sin. If we are born again and do not battle the flesh, the more we will give into the flesh. We are still born again, but the flesh will overpower the spirit until we confess that sin and begin to obey again.
The battle is in the heart, not the flesh. When we sin in the flesh, it is because we have given into the temptations of the heart before anyone can see it, it was a problem of the heart first. Anyone can pretend while obeying on the outside for everyone to see, but that does not mean they are born again. Those who are pretenders seeking to earn their own salvation by their works, will eventually be exposed for what they are, they will become too tired of the pretense and begin to live on the outside what was in their heart all along.
2 Corinthians 10:3-5 “For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ,”
If we never sinned then we would not have to battle. The battle is continual until the day we are taken out of this world.
God will discipline His little children. Hebrews 12:4-11 “4 You have not yet resisted [d]to the point of shedding blood in your striving against sin;5 and you have forgotten the exhortation which is addressed to you as sons,
“My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord,
Nor faint when you are reproved by Him;
6 For those whom the Lord loves He disciplines,
And He scourges every son whom He receives.”
7 It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline? 8 But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. 9 Furthermore, we had [e]earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of [f]spirits, and live? 10 For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness. 11 All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.”
God does not throw away His children by removing their salvation, He disciplines them, because of His great love for them.
Those who think one can lose their salvation based on their deeds, are not looking at Christ, discerning His character, but they are focused on works, entirely on human works, rather than the work that Christ did on the cross.
When Christ told us to trust Him, He meant for us to trust Him not only for salvation, but for cleansing us and keeping us until He comes for us.
I Believe Christ!!!!! When He said “ I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
For those who teach that He does not walk away but we can, are lying. God said that it is upon His faithfulness that we are saved and kept, not on ours.
2 Timothy 3:13 “If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself.”
Did you trust Christ, or are you continuing to trust in your self-righteousness.
Ephesians 2:8-13 “8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and[h]that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.
11 Therefore remember that formerly you, the Gentiles in the flesh, who are called “Uncircumcision” by the so-called “Circumcision,” which is performed in the flesh by human hands— 12 remember that you were at that time separate from Christ, [i]excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. 13 But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off [j]have been brought near [k]by the blood of Christ.”
The Holy Spirit is our seal and guarantee of our inheritance. WE are positionaly seated in the heavenlies with Christ.
Ephesians 1:13-14 “13 In [a]Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also [b]believed, you were sealed in [c]Him with the Holy Spirit of promise, 14 who is [d]given as a pledge of our inheritance, with a view to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory.”
Ephesians 2:1-10 “2 And you [a]were dead [b]in your trespasses and sins, 2 in which you formerly walked according to the [c]course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience. 3 Among them we too all formerly lived in the lusts of our flesh, [d]indulging the desires of the flesh and of the[e]mind, and were by nature children of wrath, even as the rest. 4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead [f]in our transgressions, made us alive together [g]with Christ (by grace you have been saved),6 and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, 7 so that in the ages to come He might show the surpassing riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus. 8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and[h]that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them”
The Holy Spirit continually cleanses us until the day we die. We are a NEW Creation, no longer what we used to be, the old us is gone. We cannot bring back the old creation, any more than a butter fly can crawl back into the cocoon and be a worm again.
2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.”
Those who get confused have been taught that there are scriptures that prove one can walk away, basing this presumption on what they see in others rather than what the Bible says. They see people who seem to have been godly, but over time, they walked away from the Lord.
1 John 2:19 “They went out from us, but they were not really of us; for if they had been of us, they would have remained with us; but they went out, so that it would be shown that they all are not of us.”
We also must remember if you cannot earn your salvation by your works, there is no way you would be able to keep that salvation by your works. Works have no effect on our salvation. It is a free gift of God.
Ephesians 2:8-10 “8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and[h]that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not as a result of works, so that no one may boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them”
The old testament saints were saved the same way we are, their blood sacrifice of animals did not take away their sin, it was a picture of the sacrifice of Christ to come later, nor did their adherence to the ten commandments. Now that sacrifice has occurred, the true sacrifice that did take away our sin. The death of Christ and the resurrection proving that He is God. It covered the sin in our bodies, while the sin in our spirit was taken away. The Father in heaven cannot look at sin, in any degree, so He made a way for us to be sealed with the Holy Spirit in Christ so that the Father can look at us and see His Son, instead of us.
I find it interesting that when we die, our spirit goes to God, but our body is left behind, until it is raised in its’ new form, changed and uncorrupted.
Our faith should not be in our own ability to keep from sinning, or in our own ability to obey, it should be in the faithfulness of Christ alone.
John 2:1 “My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:”
It is Christ in us Who is righteous, not us. He covered our sin in His blood. Only the shedding of blood can take away sin. An attempt to not sin, does not remove our sinful nature, only the blood of Christ accounted to us, covered that sinful nature, it is covered in the blood until Christ takes us out of this world.
God does not want us to sin, He has provided a way for us to keep from sinning and that is through Christ. However, we do disobey as children because our flesh is weak even though our spirit is born again.
Romans 8:3 “For what the Law could not do, weak as it was through the flesh, God did: sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and as an offering for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh,”
Christ had to die to atone for our sins, it makes no sense that we would have to continually work to keep what Christ had to die for. Can anyone die for their own sins? Those who think you can lose their salvation must think that a blood sacrifice was not necessary for the atonement of their sins, or they would realize, that to think one could lose their salvation, someone would have to die all over again for those new sins. It is only through the blood atonement of Christ that can save anyone.
Do those who think they can lose their salvation, believe that Christ’s blood sacrifice was not enough, we have to keep doing good deeds to add a little more to this bloody sacrifice? Do they think that we can die for our own sins? If we cannot atone for our own sins through the shedding of our blood, then what makes us think that our silly lifeless obedience sacrifices could atone?
Do not be proud of yourself because you obeyed, or think that it secured your salvation for you. If anyone think that each new obedience is one more cog in the wheel of securing their salvation, then they walk in pride, which is sin, and they are practicing a form of Catholicism which says that the more we obey or do good works the greater chance of heaven. It is still a works based religion to think one can keep the salvation they never earned to begin with and obtained it without a bloody sacrifice.
Let me ask those who think they can lose their salvation a few questions:
· How many sins do you have to do to lose what you did not earn in the first place?
· How big does a sin have to be for you to lose the salvation you did not earn?
· How do you get back your salvation if you have lost it?
· Which sins will lose you the salvation that you did not earn?
· Do you sin in thought word or deed regularly?
· Is it sin to have a lustful thought and if so, then does this lose one their salvation?
· Is someone who is born again by the Holy Spirit of Promise, sinless?
· Did you receive your salvation by living in obedience to Christ?
· Who paid the penalty for our sin?
· Do we keep ourselves or does God keep us after He changes us into a new creation?
· Do your little ones sin, do you disregard them as your children because they have sinned?
· What do you do when your little ones sin?
· If you believe we do not sin after we have become born again, then how would we ever sin to lose that salvation?
Matthew 5:28 “but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”
No one can say that they no longer sin after being born again. Anyone who says this, is lying and therefore sinning by such a claim.
1 John 1:8 “If we say that we have no sin, we are deceiving ourselves and the truth is not in us.” This was written to believers, not the unsaved.
God knows that we have a sinful nature, that lives in our flesh continually, we have to battle it and we have the free will not to battle it, even though we walk in conviction and shame when we sin, we sometimes give into the flesh. The old nature is gone from the spirit, but the flesh is weak, while the spirit is strong.
Matthew 26:41 “Watch and pray, that you enter not into temptation: the spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
Ephesians 6:12 “For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.”
This life is a battle, but not a physical one a spiritual one. The more we battle the flesh in the Spirit the less we will sin. If we are born again and do not battle the flesh, the more we will give into the flesh. We are still born again, but the flesh will overpower the spirit until we confess that sin and begin to obey again.
The battle is in the heart, not the flesh. When we sin in the flesh, it is because we have given into the temptations of the heart before anyone can see it, it was a problem of the heart first. Anyone can pretend while obeying on the outside for everyone to see, but that does not mean they are born again. Those who are pretenders seeking to earn their own salvation by their works, will eventually be exposed for what they are, they will become too tired of the pretense and begin to live on the outside what was in their heart all along.
2 Corinthians 10:3-5 “For though we walk in the flesh, we are not waging war according to the flesh. For the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ,”
If we never sinned then we would not have to battle. The battle is continual until the day we are taken out of this world.
God will discipline His little children. Hebrews 12:4-11 “4 You have not yet resisted [d]to the point of shedding blood in your striving against sin;5 and you have forgotten the exhortation which is addressed to you as sons,
“My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord,
Nor faint when you are reproved by Him;
6 For those whom the Lord loves He disciplines,
And He scourges every son whom He receives.”
7 It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline? 8 But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. 9 Furthermore, we had [e]earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of [f]spirits, and live? 10 For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness. 11 All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.”
God does not throw away His children by removing their salvation, He disciplines them, because of His great love for them.
Those who think one can lose their salvation based on their deeds, are not looking at Christ, discerning His character, but they are focused on works, entirely on human works, rather than the work that Christ did on the cross.
When Christ told us to trust Him, He meant for us to trust Him not only for salvation, but for cleansing us and keeping us until He comes for us.
I Believe Christ!!!!! When He said “ I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
For those who teach that He does not walk away but we can, are lying. God said that it is upon His faithfulness that we are saved and kept, not on ours.
2 Timothy 3:13 “If we are faithless, He remains faithful, for He cannot deny Himself.”
Did you trust Christ, or are you continuing to trust in your self-righteousness.
Saturday, October 18, 2014
Do Not Place Your Trust In Any Man
I am reminded recently of the intensely deceptive tactics of the devil in our world.
2 Corinthians 11:14 "No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light."
I was reading an article this morning about the death of Thomas Kinkade, the self proclaimed painter of lights. Many believers were excited about his paintings, not merely because they were beautiful, but because the artist claimed to be a Christian.
I had misgivings about this artist, not because he painted, or because I saw something in him, but because I had a strong sense of uneasiness with his popularity.
Whenever I have seen someone who was loved by the world as well as believers, I have to wonder what this person is compromising to be friendly with the world. I enjoyed very much the paintings that Mr. Kinkade produced and even considered buying one, until I discovered the cost. I could not afford the originals and the prints were even too spendie for me to feel justified purchasing one of them. I did buy a calendar or two over the years and were given some as gifts.
When I discovered more information about the artist, it was confirmed that something was wrong, I guess I will call it discernment, that God allowed me to see something was not right, even though I didn't know what it was, this happens to me frequently with celebrities who claim to be believers. I dismiss the sense I have until the proof comes forward. I am always suspect now when a famous person, loved by the world, declares that they are a Christian.
Thomas Kinkade had the reputation of attending poker parties where he became drunk and on one occasion urinated over a balcany spilling on someone below during one of his drunken stupors.
He was divorced and living with his girlfriend when he died at the age of 54 of an overdose of Valium mixed with alcohol.
Kinkade once stated that his paintings were; "not the world we live in but the world we wished we lived in." Whether or not Kinkade was born again I don't know, what I do know is that he left a terrible taste in the mouth of the non-believer, something the unregenerate world could use as an excuse for hating Christians as hypocrites for generations to come.
Do we not understand that our life example remains even after our death. What we leave behind counts for eternity. Did this "painter of lights" get his idea from the "angel of light." Could it be that the devil used one more person to smudge the name of Christ by claiming to be a Christian while living wickedly?
It is important that we not jump on every band wagon that comes down the road, claiming to be Christian. When it comes to the arts, painters, actors, ball players, stars of the stage and others, we must not elevate them simply because they claim to be "Christians."
I have had this same sense of warning about "Tebo." When I saw him dressed in a bathing suit that would embarrass a true believer while posing with his girl friend in a scanty bikini, my suspicions were answered. Something still feels wrong and more intensely now. All the show of praying in public was a violation of Scripture that tells us to pray privately.
Many have made claims of "Christianity", later having been proven to be social Christians acting as though they were using the name of Christ to gain wealth and popularity. We see the fruits of their efforts in their lifestyle and who likes them. If the world loves them, then they are probably not born again.
Amy Grant went secular in her singing after claiming to be singing for God
Elvis lived a wicked lifestyle while being paid to sing in churches because he had a beautiful voice.
Mel Gibson is a Catholic drunk driver who made a movie about the crucifixion. People were sucked into that movie claiming it changed their life, but months and even just weeks later there was nothing different about their lives. Perhaps that was because the gospel message was not in the movie, it was decidedly Catholic with much false doctrine in it. The only truth about it was that Christ died on a cross. Sadly some evangelical leaders praised the movie as something everyone should see.
Thomas Kinkade died while drinking and committing adultery.
Joyce Landorf ran off with her station manager while married to another man, and is now divorced, having never repented from her sin, she still does women's seminars.
Jimmy Swarart used prostitutes and when commanded by his leaders to step down, refused, even though he repented, one does not get right back in the pulpit after a scandal of this magnitude. Disobeying the discipline of the church is an indication of lack of repentance no matter what he says.
Jim and Tammy Baker fleeced the people with their silly theme parks, he went off to jail, while there, his wife Tammy, divorced him. I have heard that he repented and is broken, I hope that is true, however the taste in the mouths of the unbelievers remains bitter. His wife Tammy remarried in violation of God's Word.
Pat Robertson claimed to be able to lift 2000 pounds even though he is only 79 years old, which was found to be false, in other words he lies. He also advised a man to go ahead and divorce his wife with Alzhiemers, while he was committing adultery, to marry his girlfriend.
Believers need to stop elevating someone because they claim to be believers. We need to examine the fruit, ignore and even reject those who have fallen and will not repent.
Believers do fall as times, those in the public eye are more exposed to disarming flattery, therefore becoming more vulnerable to temptation. As time goes on we can see who are fakers and who are genuine by their brokenness and willingness to be disciplined for their sin. Those who refuse to be accountable and will not even admit they have sinned, reveal their unregenerate hearts.
The Sun Myung Moons and David Koresh's of the world are not nearly as dangerous to the Christians church, those guys are easy to recognize for almost any church goer. It is those who have public notoriety, television exposure endorsed by many because they preach the Bible, while at the same time violating it in part if not entirely.
We must be willing to evaluate all things according to the Word, place no man on a pedestal. When we look at men as icons of virtue simply because they say some things we like and based on their popularity we have crossed the line into idolatry.
* Psalm 12:2 They speak vanity every one with his neighbour: with flattering lips and with a double heart do they speak.
* Psalm 5:9 For there is no faithfulness in their mouth; their inward part is very wickedness; their throat is an open sepulchre; they flatter with their tongue.
* Psalm 62:4 They only consult to cast him down from his excellency: they delight in lies: they bless with their mouth, but they curse inwardly.
* Psalm 78:36-37 They did flatter Him with their mouth, and they lied unto Him with their tongues. 37 For their heart was not right with Him, neither were they stedfast in His covenant.
2 Corinthians 11:14 "No wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light."
I was reading an article this morning about the death of Thomas Kinkade, the self proclaimed painter of lights. Many believers were excited about his paintings, not merely because they were beautiful, but because the artist claimed to be a Christian.
I had misgivings about this artist, not because he painted, or because I saw something in him, but because I had a strong sense of uneasiness with his popularity.
Whenever I have seen someone who was loved by the world as well as believers, I have to wonder what this person is compromising to be friendly with the world. I enjoyed very much the paintings that Mr. Kinkade produced and even considered buying one, until I discovered the cost. I could not afford the originals and the prints were even too spendie for me to feel justified purchasing one of them. I did buy a calendar or two over the years and were given some as gifts.
When I discovered more information about the artist, it was confirmed that something was wrong, I guess I will call it discernment, that God allowed me to see something was not right, even though I didn't know what it was, this happens to me frequently with celebrities who claim to be believers. I dismiss the sense I have until the proof comes forward. I am always suspect now when a famous person, loved by the world, declares that they are a Christian.
Thomas Kinkade had the reputation of attending poker parties where he became drunk and on one occasion urinated over a balcany spilling on someone below during one of his drunken stupors.
He was divorced and living with his girlfriend when he died at the age of 54 of an overdose of Valium mixed with alcohol.
Kinkade once stated that his paintings were; "not the world we live in but the world we wished we lived in." Whether or not Kinkade was born again I don't know, what I do know is that he left a terrible taste in the mouth of the non-believer, something the unregenerate world could use as an excuse for hating Christians as hypocrites for generations to come.
Do we not understand that our life example remains even after our death. What we leave behind counts for eternity. Did this "painter of lights" get his idea from the "angel of light." Could it be that the devil used one more person to smudge the name of Christ by claiming to be a Christian while living wickedly?
It is important that we not jump on every band wagon that comes down the road, claiming to be Christian. When it comes to the arts, painters, actors, ball players, stars of the stage and others, we must not elevate them simply because they claim to be "Christians."
I have had this same sense of warning about "Tebo." When I saw him dressed in a bathing suit that would embarrass a true believer while posing with his girl friend in a scanty bikini, my suspicions were answered. Something still feels wrong and more intensely now. All the show of praying in public was a violation of Scripture that tells us to pray privately.
Many have made claims of "Christianity", later having been proven to be social Christians acting as though they were using the name of Christ to gain wealth and popularity. We see the fruits of their efforts in their lifestyle and who likes them. If the world loves them, then they are probably not born again.
Amy Grant went secular in her singing after claiming to be singing for God
Elvis lived a wicked lifestyle while being paid to sing in churches because he had a beautiful voice.
Mel Gibson is a Catholic drunk driver who made a movie about the crucifixion. People were sucked into that movie claiming it changed their life, but months and even just weeks later there was nothing different about their lives. Perhaps that was because the gospel message was not in the movie, it was decidedly Catholic with much false doctrine in it. The only truth about it was that Christ died on a cross. Sadly some evangelical leaders praised the movie as something everyone should see.
Thomas Kinkade died while drinking and committing adultery.
Joyce Landorf ran off with her station manager while married to another man, and is now divorced, having never repented from her sin, she still does women's seminars.
Jimmy Swarart used prostitutes and when commanded by his leaders to step down, refused, even though he repented, one does not get right back in the pulpit after a scandal of this magnitude. Disobeying the discipline of the church is an indication of lack of repentance no matter what he says.
Jim and Tammy Baker fleeced the people with their silly theme parks, he went off to jail, while there, his wife Tammy, divorced him. I have heard that he repented and is broken, I hope that is true, however the taste in the mouths of the unbelievers remains bitter. His wife Tammy remarried in violation of God's Word.
Pat Robertson claimed to be able to lift 2000 pounds even though he is only 79 years old, which was found to be false, in other words he lies. He also advised a man to go ahead and divorce his wife with Alzhiemers, while he was committing adultery, to marry his girlfriend.
Believers need to stop elevating someone because they claim to be believers. We need to examine the fruit, ignore and even reject those who have fallen and will not repent.
Believers do fall as times, those in the public eye are more exposed to disarming flattery, therefore becoming more vulnerable to temptation. As time goes on we can see who are fakers and who are genuine by their brokenness and willingness to be disciplined for their sin. Those who refuse to be accountable and will not even admit they have sinned, reveal their unregenerate hearts.
The Sun Myung Moons and David Koresh's of the world are not nearly as dangerous to the Christians church, those guys are easy to recognize for almost any church goer. It is those who have public notoriety, television exposure endorsed by many because they preach the Bible, while at the same time violating it in part if not entirely.
We must be willing to evaluate all things according to the Word, place no man on a pedestal. When we look at men as icons of virtue simply because they say some things we like and based on their popularity we have crossed the line into idolatry.
* Psalm 12:2 They speak vanity every one with his neighbour: with flattering lips and with a double heart do they speak.
* Psalm 5:9 For there is no faithfulness in their mouth; their inward part is very wickedness; their throat is an open sepulchre; they flatter with their tongue.
* Psalm 62:4 They only consult to cast him down from his excellency: they delight in lies: they bless with their mouth, but they curse inwardly.
* Psalm 78:36-37 They did flatter Him with their mouth, and they lied unto Him with their tongues. 37 For their heart was not right with Him, neither were they stedfast in His covenant.
Friday, October 17, 2014
Flattery is of no Use Whatever
Next time someone accuses you of being mean spirited because of warnings from God that you have for them, or accuses you of judging, perhaps they need to read these verses.
Proverbs 26:24-28 "24 He who hates, disguises it with his lips, And lays up deceit within himself;
25 When he speaks kindly, do not believe him, For there are seven abominations in his heart;
26 Though his hatred is covered by deceit, His wickedness will be revealed before the assembly.
27 Whoever digs a pit will fall into it, And he who rolls a stone will have it roll back on him.
28 A lying tongue hates those who are crushed by it, And a flattering mouth works ruin."
Psalm 12:2-3 "They speak falsehood to one another; With flattering lips and with a double heart they speak. May the LORD cut off all flattering lips, The tongue that speaks great things;:
Psalm 55:20-21 "He has put forth his hands against those who were at peace with him; He has violated his covenant. His speech was smoother than butter, But his heart was war; His words were softer than oil, Yet they were drawn swords."
Psalm 62:4 "They have counseled only to thrust him down from his high position; They delight in falsehood; They bless with their mouth, But inwardly they curse. Selah."
Proverbs 27:6 "Faithful are the wounds of a friend, But deceitful are the kisses of an enemy."
Jeremiah 9:8 ""Their tongue is a deadly arrow; It speaks deceit; With his mouth one speaks peace to his neighbor, But inwardly he sets an ambush for him."
Proverbs 26:28 "A lying tongue hates those it crushes, And a flattering mouth works ruin."
Proverbs 29:5 "A man who flatters his neighbor Is spreading a net for his steps."
Job 32:21-22 ""Let me now be partial to no one, Nor flatter any man. "For I do not know how to flatter, Else my Maker would soon take me away."
Galatians 1:10 "For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a bond-servant of Christ."
1 Thessalonians 2:5-6 "For we never came with flattering speech, as you know, nor with a pretext for greed--God is witness-- nor did we seek glory from men, either from you or from others, even though as apostles of Christ we might have asserted our authority."
Proverbs 28:23 "He who rebukes a man will afterward find more favor Than he who flatters with the tongue."
Proverbs 27:9 "Oil and perfume make the heart glad, So a man's counsel is sweet to his friend."
Romans 16:17-18 "Now I urge you, brethren, keep your eye on those who cause dissensions and hindrances contrary to the teaching which you learned, and turn away from them. For such men are slaves, not of our Lord Christ but of their own appetites; and by their smooth and flattering speech they deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting."
2 Timothy 4:3-4 "For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths."
Luke 20:21 "They questioned Him, saying, "Teacher, we know that You speak and teach correctly, and You are not partial to any, but teach the way of God in truth."
Proverbs 26:24-28 "24 He who hates, disguises it with his lips, And lays up deceit within himself;
25 When he speaks kindly, do not believe him, For there are seven abominations in his heart;
26 Though his hatred is covered by deceit, His wickedness will be revealed before the assembly.
27 Whoever digs a pit will fall into it, And he who rolls a stone will have it roll back on him.
28 A lying tongue hates those who are crushed by it, And a flattering mouth works ruin."
Psalm 12:2-3 "They speak falsehood to one another; With flattering lips and with a double heart they speak. May the LORD cut off all flattering lips, The tongue that speaks great things;:
Psalm 55:20-21 "He has put forth his hands against those who were at peace with him; He has violated his covenant. His speech was smoother than butter, But his heart was war; His words were softer than oil, Yet they were drawn swords."
Psalm 62:4 "They have counseled only to thrust him down from his high position; They delight in falsehood; They bless with their mouth, But inwardly they curse. Selah."
Proverbs 27:6 "Faithful are the wounds of a friend, But deceitful are the kisses of an enemy."
Jeremiah 9:8 ""Their tongue is a deadly arrow; It speaks deceit; With his mouth one speaks peace to his neighbor, But inwardly he sets an ambush for him."
Proverbs 26:28 "A lying tongue hates those it crushes, And a flattering mouth works ruin."
Proverbs 29:5 "A man who flatters his neighbor Is spreading a net for his steps."
Job 32:21-22 ""Let me now be partial to no one, Nor flatter any man. "For I do not know how to flatter, Else my Maker would soon take me away."
Galatians 1:10 "For am I now seeking the favor of men, or of God? Or am I striving to please men? If I were still trying to please men, I would not be a bond-servant of Christ."
1 Thessalonians 2:5-6 "For we never came with flattering speech, as you know, nor with a pretext for greed--God is witness-- nor did we seek glory from men, either from you or from others, even though as apostles of Christ we might have asserted our authority."
Proverbs 28:23 "He who rebukes a man will afterward find more favor Than he who flatters with the tongue."
Proverbs 27:9 "Oil and perfume make the heart glad, So a man's counsel is sweet to his friend."
Romans 16:17-18 "Now I urge you, brethren, keep your eye on those who cause dissensions and hindrances contrary to the teaching which you learned, and turn away from them. For such men are slaves, not of our Lord Christ but of their own appetites; and by their smooth and flattering speech they deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting."
2 Timothy 4:3-4 "For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but wanting to have their ears tickled, they will accumulate for themselves teachers in accordance to their own desires, and will turn away their ears from the truth and will turn aside to myths."
Luke 20:21 "They questioned Him, saying, "Teacher, we know that You speak and teach correctly, and You are not partial to any, but teach the way of God in truth."
In His Strength
For those Believers who are still here on this earth, I thought this was a lovely and appropriate British saying to post today.
"KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON."
"KEEP CALM AND CARRY ON."
Let the Past Be the Past
Those of us who are born again, could have made the choice to rebel against God, wreaking havoc everywhere we go. Every one of us could have concocted an excuse for refusing to learn the right path to take.
We could say, "my parents abandoned me" or "my mother loved my brother more than me" or "my father wasn't around enough", or whatever other excuse we want to use to wallow in self pity rather than trust Christ, determining to do things His way.
No parent is perfect and some are pretty awful, however, did we stop to think that God gave us those parents? God knew before we were conceived that we would be in the family we were born to and He knew if we would be given another family to raise us.
A child's attitude is developed very early in life, perhaps as young as two. When a child is not nurtured, trained or protected by the time they are two, they develop an angry heart. We have adopted four children of our six. The four adopted children came at older ages.
When they entered our home, they did not see it as their new family, but as the next foster home. We didn't want to be foster parents, we wanted to adopt to give the children a sense of belonging. We were young and didn't realize that the anger at being taken from their natural parents, was festering in them all their lives to this very day. We thought if we gave them a stable family life with two parents, love and opportunity, they would come out of their anger and bitterness. As we grew in the Lord we realized that we forgot to take into account the choice of a child. The child must want the love and instruction before he can become anything other than how he was trained.
It was not a "generational curse", it was a sense of deep loss that motivated them to rebel against anyone who would be the authority, even if that authority was trying to help. Many adoptive parents have the same story. This is not a curse, it is by lack of love from natural parents and lack of proper training in their early life. It is not an excuse for their behavior though, if we want to think in humanistic terms, everyone has a "reason" for being rebellious and angry, when things don't go the way we want them to. When we reach a certain age, we have a choice to depart from the way we were raised or follow in the foot steps of rebellious parents.
Moses was raised by the Pharaoh, after his mother placed him in the river to spare him death at the hands of the Egyptians. He was nursed by his own mother for the first early years of his life, then his time was spent with his adoptive father, learning to build cities and lead people. The end result was a confident young man who had training and skills to lead his people out of captivity. He suffered persecution when the Lord opened his eyes to who he really was, and later was given the task of freeing God's people from bondage. Notice too that Moses was with his natural mother for the formative years before she went out of the picture.
Then there was Joseph, who was sold into slavery by his own brothers, thrown into a well, later to become a leader in Egypt where his brothers ended up bowing down to him. Joseph could have harbored bitterness and hate toward wicked brothers, but instead he got on with the life God had for him and even forgave when the brothers were repentant.
God was the engineer in all of this, for His purposes, and the misery was not to be compared to the glory that these men saw, the power of God was clear as time went on.
Those who are adopted and have seen miserable times before you entered your new home, I want to encourage you that you do not have to harbor bitterness and anger over your circumstances, you can choose to confess the sin of pride and anger while trusting Christ for salvation and deliverance from the hate that comforted you as young children and through your life.
The devil loves to remind us of our past misery, if he can keep us in a "one down" position he can cause great destruction in our lives. His favorite tactic is to keep us bitter and angry over the past, never allowing us to move beyond that afflicted condition.
Adopted children, this is for you, God tested you for years, in sometimes very difficult circumstances. He did not cause you to engage in the attitudes you chose, He merely did what would cause those attitudes to emerge, they were already there. When someone responds badly to provocation, that attitude did not develop instantaneously, it was already in there waiting for the time when it would be incited by people or circumstances.
Matthew 7:16-18
"16 You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they? 17 So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit"
God allows us testing so that we will see our own hearts. When difficult and even miserable circumstances come, they are to drudge out the inner self, that we might confess that sin, we may not have known was in there.
When a battered child grows up and finds Christ, there is forgiveness in their heart, ready and willing to forgive those who have hurt them. They are no longer bent on self destruction because of hate, they are on the road to healing, ready to live for Christ, setting aside all of their past to go to live the present as if there never was a past.
After all, Christ forgets our past when He forgives us, what right have we to hold onto a painful and destructive past. The past is not here now, why waste any time on it. Our future is dependent on today, right now, not the past.
1 John 1:9
"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
We could say, "my parents abandoned me" or "my mother loved my brother more than me" or "my father wasn't around enough", or whatever other excuse we want to use to wallow in self pity rather than trust Christ, determining to do things His way.
No parent is perfect and some are pretty awful, however, did we stop to think that God gave us those parents? God knew before we were conceived that we would be in the family we were born to and He knew if we would be given another family to raise us.
A child's attitude is developed very early in life, perhaps as young as two. When a child is not nurtured, trained or protected by the time they are two, they develop an angry heart. We have adopted four children of our six. The four adopted children came at older ages.
When they entered our home, they did not see it as their new family, but as the next foster home. We didn't want to be foster parents, we wanted to adopt to give the children a sense of belonging. We were young and didn't realize that the anger at being taken from their natural parents, was festering in them all their lives to this very day. We thought if we gave them a stable family life with two parents, love and opportunity, they would come out of their anger and bitterness. As we grew in the Lord we realized that we forgot to take into account the choice of a child. The child must want the love and instruction before he can become anything other than how he was trained.
It was not a "generational curse", it was a sense of deep loss that motivated them to rebel against anyone who would be the authority, even if that authority was trying to help. Many adoptive parents have the same story. This is not a curse, it is by lack of love from natural parents and lack of proper training in their early life. It is not an excuse for their behavior though, if we want to think in humanistic terms, everyone has a "reason" for being rebellious and angry, when things don't go the way we want them to. When we reach a certain age, we have a choice to depart from the way we were raised or follow in the foot steps of rebellious parents.
Moses was raised by the Pharaoh, after his mother placed him in the river to spare him death at the hands of the Egyptians. He was nursed by his own mother for the first early years of his life, then his time was spent with his adoptive father, learning to build cities and lead people. The end result was a confident young man who had training and skills to lead his people out of captivity. He suffered persecution when the Lord opened his eyes to who he really was, and later was given the task of freeing God's people from bondage. Notice too that Moses was with his natural mother for the formative years before she went out of the picture.
Then there was Joseph, who was sold into slavery by his own brothers, thrown into a well, later to become a leader in Egypt where his brothers ended up bowing down to him. Joseph could have harbored bitterness and hate toward wicked brothers, but instead he got on with the life God had for him and even forgave when the brothers were repentant.
God was the engineer in all of this, for His purposes, and the misery was not to be compared to the glory that these men saw, the power of God was clear as time went on.
Those who are adopted and have seen miserable times before you entered your new home, I want to encourage you that you do not have to harbor bitterness and anger over your circumstances, you can choose to confess the sin of pride and anger while trusting Christ for salvation and deliverance from the hate that comforted you as young children and through your life.
The devil loves to remind us of our past misery, if he can keep us in a "one down" position he can cause great destruction in our lives. His favorite tactic is to keep us bitter and angry over the past, never allowing us to move beyond that afflicted condition.
Adopted children, this is for you, God tested you for years, in sometimes very difficult circumstances. He did not cause you to engage in the attitudes you chose, He merely did what would cause those attitudes to emerge, they were already there. When someone responds badly to provocation, that attitude did not develop instantaneously, it was already in there waiting for the time when it would be incited by people or circumstances.
Matthew 7:16-18
"16 You will know them by their fruits. Grapes are not gathered from thorn bushes nor figs from thistles, are they? 17 So every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, nor can a bad tree produce good fruit"
God allows us testing so that we will see our own hearts. When difficult and even miserable circumstances come, they are to drudge out the inner self, that we might confess that sin, we may not have known was in there.
When a battered child grows up and finds Christ, there is forgiveness in their heart, ready and willing to forgive those who have hurt them. They are no longer bent on self destruction because of hate, they are on the road to healing, ready to live for Christ, setting aside all of their past to go to live the present as if there never was a past.
After all, Christ forgets our past when He forgives us, what right have we to hold onto a painful and destructive past. The past is not here now, why waste any time on it. Our future is dependent on today, right now, not the past.
1 John 1:9
"If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
Thursday, October 16, 2014
No Such Thing As A Generational Curse
In recent years we have been hearing from time to time the concept of "generational curses", on families. This is not a Biblical concept.
The meaning of a curse as a noun is this:
"a solemn utterance intended to invoke a supernatural power to inflict harm or punishment on someone or something."
"she'd put a curse on him"
To invoke or use a curse against. "it often seemed as if the family had been cursed"
synonyms: put a curse on, put the evil eye on, anathematize, damn, hex, jinx;
No man has the power to proclaim a curse on another man. All sin is an individual choice. Each person is subject to his own sin nature before becoming a new creation in Christ.
It seems that when the culture began to lose interest in blaming our parents or circumstances for our sin, there are those who developed another form of blaming that has no basis in Scripture, that of the "generational curse."
The very nature of the word "curse" tends to denote someone speaking against a person, calling down evil on them. The idea creates the picture of someone who has the power to control the life experiences of another person simply by their words and invocations.
There is no such thing as a "generational curse." No family is cursed with sin because of another person, or a family. Only individuals are sinful, it's not a curse but a choice brought on by a sinful nature. All people have a sinful nature that must be covered in the blood of Christ to become born again. We have victory over sin through obedience to His principles. Our salvation is completely dependent on trusting Christ to cleanse and heal our spirits.
Ezekiel 18:20 ""The person who sins will die. The son will not bear the punishment for the father's iniquity, nor will the father bear the punishment for the son's iniquity; the righteousness of the righteous will be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked will be upon himself."
Be careful to evaluate everything new that comes from the latest book or most popular author. Mankind is always looking for ways to blame others for their sin, as though they have no control over themselves.
When we get before the Lord, we will not be saying "but the devil made me do it", or "it was my father, he raised me badly." We will go before the Lord to account for our sins alone without excuse.
The meaning of a curse as a noun is this:
"a solemn utterance intended to invoke a supernatural power to inflict harm or punishment on someone or something."
"she'd put a curse on him"
To invoke or use a curse against. "it often seemed as if the family had been cursed"
synonyms: put a curse on, put the evil eye on, anathematize, damn, hex, jinx;
No man has the power to proclaim a curse on another man. All sin is an individual choice. Each person is subject to his own sin nature before becoming a new creation in Christ.
It seems that when the culture began to lose interest in blaming our parents or circumstances for our sin, there are those who developed another form of blaming that has no basis in Scripture, that of the "generational curse."
The very nature of the word "curse" tends to denote someone speaking against a person, calling down evil on them. The idea creates the picture of someone who has the power to control the life experiences of another person simply by their words and invocations.
There is no such thing as a "generational curse." No family is cursed with sin because of another person, or a family. Only individuals are sinful, it's not a curse but a choice brought on by a sinful nature. All people have a sinful nature that must be covered in the blood of Christ to become born again. We have victory over sin through obedience to His principles. Our salvation is completely dependent on trusting Christ to cleanse and heal our spirits.
Ezekiel 18:20 ""The person who sins will die. The son will not bear the punishment for the father's iniquity, nor will the father bear the punishment for the son's iniquity; the righteousness of the righteous will be upon himself, and the wickedness of the wicked will be upon himself."
Be careful to evaluate everything new that comes from the latest book or most popular author. Mankind is always looking for ways to blame others for their sin, as though they have no control over themselves.
When we get before the Lord, we will not be saying "but the devil made me do it", or "it was my father, he raised me badly." We will go before the Lord to account for our sins alone without excuse.
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