Thursday, November 20, 2025
You are not their Jesus
Amen, Amen!!!!! So often we think just one more call, just one more discussion, that they are not listening to, and just one more happy hug is going to cause the rebellious ones to like you, so they will like Jesus.
This is all wrong. If they cannot like Jesus unless they like us, then they wouldn't really like Jesus; they only use us as a safe place. Jesus Christ needs to be their safe place, and only they can make that choice.
Remember, often it is getting to the bottom without others bailing them out or being there for them, that brings them to Christ. If you really love them, let them go and pray. Follow the Link!
This is all wrong. If they cannot like Jesus unless they like us, then they wouldn't really like Jesus; they only use us as a safe place. Jesus Christ needs to be their safe place, and only they can make that choice.
Remember, often it is getting to the bottom without others bailing them out or being there for them, that brings them to Christ. If you really love them, let them go and pray. Follow the Link!
Question All Things Hold Fast to Truth
It is not fault-finding to point out sin. In my experience, fault finders are those who create rules that God never made and expect others to follow them.
We see a lot of this in our day! Many people have expectations of others that are cultural but not Biblical. They twist Scripture to justify their own ideas and impose them on others through false judgments, rude behaviors, and gossip.
We must avoid these people. If they will not listen to sound doctrine and refuse to be corrected, then we must ignore them and get away from them and all those who listen to them.
2 Timothy 4:2-4 "…2 Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and encourage with every form of patient instruction. 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. 4 So they will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.…"
2 Timothy 3:1-5 "3 But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come.
2 For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, slanderers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy,
3 unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good,
4 treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,
5 holding to a form of godliness although they have denied its power; avoid such people as these."
These people will hold to a form of religion and deeply proud of themselves for what they think they know; they cause trouble, ruining reputations without cause, and depend on followers to uphold their brand of Christianity based on their own ideas.
This group of apostate people is growing rapidly as the 2 Timothy 3 mentality increases. We are in the end times, and very little will make good sense, and God is not honored.
1 Thessalonians 5:21-22 "21 but examine everything; hold firmly to that which is good, 22 abstain from every form of evil."
We see a lot of this in our day! Many people have expectations of others that are cultural but not Biblical. They twist Scripture to justify their own ideas and impose them on others through false judgments, rude behaviors, and gossip.
We must avoid these people. If they will not listen to sound doctrine and refuse to be corrected, then we must ignore them and get away from them and all those who listen to them.
2 Timothy 4:2-4 "…2 Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and encourage with every form of patient instruction. 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. 4 So they will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths.…"
2 Timothy 3:1-5 "3 But realize this, that in the last days difficult times will come.
2 For people will be lovers of self, lovers of money, boastful, arrogant, slanderers, disobedient to parents, ungrateful, unholy,
3 unloving, irreconcilable, malicious gossips, without self-control, brutal, haters of good,
4 treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,
5 holding to a form of godliness although they have denied its power; avoid such people as these."
These people will hold to a form of religion and deeply proud of themselves for what they think they know; they cause trouble, ruining reputations without cause, and depend on followers to uphold their brand of Christianity based on their own ideas.
This group of apostate people is growing rapidly as the 2 Timothy 3 mentality increases. We are in the end times, and very little will make good sense, and God is not honored.
1 Thessalonians 5:21-22 "21 but examine everything; hold firmly to that which is good, 22 abstain from every form of evil."
The Apostasy of the Modern Church System
Nothing has changed, and everything is growing worse!
Matthew 23:1-33
Hypocrisy Exposed
23 Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples, 2 saying: “The scribes and the Pharisees have seated themselves in the chair of Moses.
3 Therefore, whatever they tell you, do and comply with it all, but do not do as they do; for they say things and do not do them.
4 And they tie up heavy burdens and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them with so much as their finger.
5 And they do all their deeds to be noticed by other people; for they broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments.
6 And they love the place of honor at banquets, and the seats of honor in the synagogues,
7 and personal greetings in the marketplaces, and being called Rabbi by the people.
8 But as for you, do not be called Rabbi; for only One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers and sisters.
9 And do not call anyone on earth your father; for only One is your Father, He who is in heaven.
10 And do not be called leaders; for only One is your Leader, that is, Christ.
11 But the greatest of you shall be your servant.
12 Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled, and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.
Eight Woes
13 “But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you shut the kingdom of heaven in front of people; for you do not enter it yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.
15 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you travel around on sea and land to make one proselyte; and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.
16 “Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘Whoever swears by the temple, that is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple is obligated.’
17 You fools and blind men! Which is more important, the gold or the temple that sanctified the gold?
18 And you say, ‘Whoever swears by the altar, that is nothing; but whoever swears by the offering that is on it is obligated.’
19 You blind men, which is more important, the offering or the altar that sanctifies the offering?
20 Therefore, the one who swears by the altar, swears both by the altar and by everything on it.
21 And the one who swears by the temple, swears both by the temple and by Him who dwells in it.
22 And the one who swears by heaven, swears both by the throne of God and by Him who sits upon it.
23 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the Law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others. 24 You blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!
25 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence.
26 You blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the outside of it may also become clean.
27 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness.
28 So you too, outwardly appear righteous to people, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.
29 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs for the prophets and decorate the monuments of the righteous,
30 and you say, ‘If we had been living in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’
31 So you testify against yourselves, that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets.
32 Fill up, then, the measure of the guilt of your fathers.
33 You snakes, you offspring of vipers, how will you escape the sentence of hell?"
The "pastors" of our day need to stop calling themselves by titles and begin to reject the place of honor as though they are above others. Nowhere in the scriptures do we see God telling us to use titles such as "Pastor" or "Reverend."
The leaders of this apostate system need to stop begging for money and pressuring people to pay tithes.
2 Corinthians 9:6-7 "The Cheerful Giver
6 The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. 7 Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver."
There are no rules, mandates, or pressure from others to give; it is all left up to the Holy Spirit Who lives in each of us.
"8 But as for you, do not be called Rabbi; for only One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers and sisters."
There is no one above another in the body of Christ. We all have callings and jobs to do, but no one is superior or an authority over anyone else. Christ, the Holy Spirit is the only Authority, and He lives in every born-again believer.
In the formalized, organized churches, you will find lots of pressure to do as everyone else does, say what they say, go where they go and be just like them. Resist this urge to fit in so that you can walk in the Spirit of Christ. No one else should tell you what you should be doing except those things according to the principles and commands of God.
Matthew 23:1-33
Hypocrisy Exposed
23 Then Jesus spoke to the crowds and to His disciples, 2 saying: “The scribes and the Pharisees have seated themselves in the chair of Moses.
3 Therefore, whatever they tell you, do and comply with it all, but do not do as they do; for they say things and do not do them.
4 And they tie up heavy burdens and lay them on people’s shoulders, but they themselves are unwilling to move them with so much as their finger.
5 And they do all their deeds to be noticed by other people; for they broaden their phylacteries and lengthen the tassels of their garments.
6 And they love the place of honor at banquets, and the seats of honor in the synagogues,
7 and personal greetings in the marketplaces, and being called Rabbi by the people.
8 But as for you, do not be called Rabbi; for only One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers and sisters.
9 And do not call anyone on earth your father; for only One is your Father, He who is in heaven.
10 And do not be called leaders; for only One is your Leader, that is, Christ.
11 But the greatest of you shall be your servant.
12 Whoever exalts himself shall be humbled, and whoever humbles himself shall be exalted.
Eight Woes
13 “But woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you shut the kingdom of heaven in front of people; for you do not enter it yourselves, nor do you allow those who are entering to go in.
15 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you travel around on sea and land to make one proselyte; and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as yourselves.
16 “Woe to you, blind guides, who say, ‘Whoever swears by the temple, that is nothing; but whoever swears by the gold of the temple is obligated.’
17 You fools and blind men! Which is more important, the gold or the temple that sanctified the gold?
18 And you say, ‘Whoever swears by the altar, that is nothing; but whoever swears by the offering that is on it is obligated.’
19 You blind men, which is more important, the offering or the altar that sanctifies the offering?
20 Therefore, the one who swears by the altar, swears both by the altar and by everything on it.
21 And the one who swears by the temple, swears both by the temple and by Him who dwells in it.
22 And the one who swears by heaven, swears both by the throne of God and by Him who sits upon it.
23 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you tithe mint and dill and cumin, and have neglected the weightier provisions of the Law: justice and mercy and faithfulness; but these are the things you should have done without neglecting the others. 24 You blind guides, who strain out a gnat and swallow a camel!
25 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you clean the outside of the cup and of the dish, but inside they are full of robbery and self-indulgence.
26 You blind Pharisee, first clean the inside of the cup and of the dish, so that the outside of it may also become clean.
27 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you are like whitewashed tombs which on the outside appear beautiful, but inside they are full of dead men’s bones and all uncleanness.
28 So you too, outwardly appear righteous to people, but inwardly you are full of hypocrisy and lawlessness.
29 “Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! For you build the tombs for the prophets and decorate the monuments of the righteous,
30 and you say, ‘If we had been living in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partners with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’
31 So you testify against yourselves, that you are sons of those who murdered the prophets.
32 Fill up, then, the measure of the guilt of your fathers.
33 You snakes, you offspring of vipers, how will you escape the sentence of hell?"
The "pastors" of our day need to stop calling themselves by titles and begin to reject the place of honor as though they are above others. Nowhere in the scriptures do we see God telling us to use titles such as "Pastor" or "Reverend."
The leaders of this apostate system need to stop begging for money and pressuring people to pay tithes.
2 Corinthians 9:6-7 "The Cheerful Giver
6 The point is this: whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows bountifully will also reap bountifully. 7 Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver."
There are no rules, mandates, or pressure from others to give; it is all left up to the Holy Spirit Who lives in each of us.
"8 But as for you, do not be called Rabbi; for only One is your Teacher, and you are all brothers and sisters."
There is no one above another in the body of Christ. We all have callings and jobs to do, but no one is superior or an authority over anyone else. Christ, the Holy Spirit is the only Authority, and He lives in every born-again believer.
In the formalized, organized churches, you will find lots of pressure to do as everyone else does, say what they say, go where they go and be just like them. Resist this urge to fit in so that you can walk in the Spirit of Christ. No one else should tell you what you should be doing except those things according to the principles and commands of God.
Wednesday, November 19, 2025
The Love is rare now but one day soon everyone will be together to celebrate our wedding!
Sometimes I think about how wonderful it would be to have good relationships with family. Not relationships based on fun and having a good time, but rather surrounded by the love of Christ as each one seeks to edify one another in the Word with the intense desire to obey God. No competitiveness to appear superior, but just humble discussion, interested in all things Jesus Christ.
Most of us cannot have these kinds of relationships here on earth because even the Christians have little desire for the Word of God in these last days, and even less desire to know what God thinks.
If you are like me, you have probably been told you are legalistic, unloving, judgmental, usurping the authority of "clergy" and worse, treated as though you are unworthy of kindness and love.
Many years ago, when I was a new believer, the meanest people were those family members who attended church gatherings every week, faithfully showing up to be seen while lacking the love of Christ and all the rest of the fruit of the Spirit.
Galatians 5:22-23 "22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law."
For years, I could not understand the discrepancy between the title "Christian" and the way people acted, with such pride and self-righteousness.
I began to be thankful that they did not accept me because I was no longer pressured to become like them. There have only been a handful of lovely believers in my life from the beginning of my salvation until now.
When the Lord opened my eyes to the false, burdensome social Christianity in nearly all the gatherings we attended, there was no going back to that pretense and superficiality.
I love my family members, but when it became clear they had no love for me or the Lord, I had only one thing to do, and that was to remove myself and get on with my life.
Over the years, God brought to me from time to time, lovely, authentically born-again believers who enjoyed speaking of the Lord and discussing His word with enthusiasm. There are very few people left in this world who enjoy speaking of the Lord Jesus Christ. And, most church attendees not only don't know their Bibles but also fight against God's principles and commands.
1 Corinthians 13:4-7 "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 account of wrongs. Love takes no pleasure in evil, but rejoices in the truth."
Here is what I do not notice when in company with churchgoers in our day:
Romans 8:6 "The mind of the flesh is death, but the mind of the Spirit is life and peace,"
Ephesians 5:9 "for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness, and truth."
Colossians 3:12-14 "Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with hearts of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Bear with one another and forgive any complaint you may have against someone else. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which is the bond of perfect unity."
The false church of our day delights in superiority, competitiveness, and holding past forgiven sins against those they think are unworthy. These folks do not confess their sin of pride or rudeness, but justify it as though they have not sinned.
1 John 4:7-8 "Beloved, let us love one another, because love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love."
2 Peter 1:5-8 "For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith virtue; and to virtue, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love."
Our modern brand of Christianity does not look to edify someone in the word; they look to find flaws to be able to gossip.
Most of us cannot have these kinds of relationships here on earth because even the Christians have little desire for the Word of God in these last days, and even less desire to know what God thinks.
If you are like me, you have probably been told you are legalistic, unloving, judgmental, usurping the authority of "clergy" and worse, treated as though you are unworthy of kindness and love.
Many years ago, when I was a new believer, the meanest people were those family members who attended church gatherings every week, faithfully showing up to be seen while lacking the love of Christ and all the rest of the fruit of the Spirit.
Galatians 5:22-23 "22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law."
For years, I could not understand the discrepancy between the title "Christian" and the way people acted, with such pride and self-righteousness.
I began to be thankful that they did not accept me because I was no longer pressured to become like them. There have only been a handful of lovely believers in my life from the beginning of my salvation until now.
When the Lord opened my eyes to the false, burdensome social Christianity in nearly all the gatherings we attended, there was no going back to that pretense and superficiality.
I love my family members, but when it became clear they had no love for me or the Lord, I had only one thing to do, and that was to remove myself and get on with my life.
Over the years, God brought to me from time to time, lovely, authentically born-again believers who enjoyed speaking of the Lord and discussing His word with enthusiasm. There are very few people left in this world who enjoy speaking of the Lord Jesus Christ. And, most church attendees not only don't know their Bibles but also fight against God's principles and commands.
1 Corinthians 13:4-7 "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 account of wrongs. Love takes no pleasure in evil, but rejoices in the truth."
Here is what I do not notice when in company with churchgoers in our day:
Romans 8:6 "The mind of the flesh is death, but the mind of the Spirit is life and peace,"
Ephesians 5:9 "for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness, and truth."
Colossians 3:12-14 "Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, clothe yourselves with hearts of compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. Bear with one another and forgive any complaint you may have against someone else. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which is the bond of perfect unity."
The false church of our day delights in superiority, competitiveness, and holding past forgiven sins against those they think are unworthy. These folks do not confess their sin of pride or rudeness, but justify it as though they have not sinned.
1 John 4:7-8 "Beloved, let us love one another, because love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love."
2 Peter 1:5-8 "For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith virtue; and to virtue, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, love."
Our modern brand of Christianity does not look to edify someone in the word; they look to find flaws to be able to gossip.
One day soon, believers will all be together at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb, and everyone there will love Jesus Christ, and they will love us too!!!
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