Man's Way is not God's Way

Concerning the relationship between husband and wife.

Genesis 3:16 ""Yet your desire will be for your husband, and he shall rule over you"

The phrase translated "desire will be for your husband" does not mean we will desire him, it means in the original language; "the woman's desire will be to rule over him but he will rule over her", this is a condition of the fall. A Christian husband should not "rule" over the wife nor the wife over the husband. The man is to lead not rule. The woman follows out of choice when the husband obeys God.

A woman who places her husband above God is practicing idolatry. Leaders are not gods, and they do not have absolute authority over those they lead. They lead by example and by teaching, not by force or intimidation.

Proverbs 31:10-31

A wife of noble character, who can find? She is far more precious than rubies. / The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he lacks nothing of value. / She brings him good and not harm all the days of her life. ...

1 Peter 3:7-8

7 Husbands, in the same way, treat your wives with consideration as a delicate vessel, and with honor as fellow heirs of the gracious gift of life, so that your prayers will not be hindered. 8 Finally, all of you, be like-minded and sympathetic, love as brothers, be tenderhearted and humble."

No one is superior to anyone else, all believers have the Holy Spirit in them and have been assigned gifts and talents by God to be supported by others in the body.

Ephesians 5:25-33

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave Himself up for her / to sanctify her, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, / and to present her to Himself as a glorious church, without stain or wrinkle or any such blemish, but holy and blameless. ."

A believing wife cannot resist the allure of a godly man who treats her like gold. She will be happy to follow when she realizes the husband has her welfare above his own.

Proverbs 31:10-31

A wife of noble character, who can find? She is far more precious than rubies. / The heart of her husband trusts in her, and he lacks nothing of value. / She brings him good and not harm all the days of her life."

This is a woman with her own talents and abilities given to her by God and appreciated by her husband. He does not dictate what she does with her calling, the Holy Spirit does that. He teaches and protects but he does not dominate or rule over her. Remember the man ruling over the woman was a condition of the fall, not a command of God.

Going to a Church Building, Saying you are a Christian and Even doing Good Deeds is not Proof you are Saved! Only Trusting in Christ and desiring to be Changed by Him will gain you Salvation

Matthew 7:21-23 "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.’"
Notice God says: "I NEVER knew you."

Even When You are Surrounded!

"They are in front of us, behind us, and we are flanked on both sides by an enemy that outnumbers us 29:1. They can't get away from us now!” Chesty Puller, American hero.

For those days you feel surrounded by ungodly people who reject you, keep in mind that when we have no choice we know it is God's will for us, for His purposes.

Romans 8:28
"28 And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose."

Jewish Context Before you Read Galatians

We are the Church, it is not a Building, and We are governed by the Holy Spirit

We do not "go to church" God never told us to build buildings like temples to go where God dwells as in the Old Testament. We are the church, we are His temple and we gather with anyone at any time of the week to edify one another in the Lord. We worship continually in our hearts even if we are alone.

Romans 14:5-6 "5 One person regards a certain day above the others, while someone else considers every day alike. Each one should be fully convinced in his own mind. 6He who observes a special day does so to the Lord; he who eats does so to the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who abstains does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God.…"

Sadly the idea of "going to church" has created a hierarchy the congregants go and see that paid pastor as their mediator between them and God, but leaders are plural and not paid, all believers participate in the gathering.

1 Timothy 2:5
"5 For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;"

Men teach and the others judge but they have no authority over any other believer, if they did that would mean they have authority over Christ Who lives in each of us.

1 John 2:27 "And as for you, the anointing which you received from Him remains in you, and you have no need for anyone to teach you; but as His anointing teaches you about all things, and is true and is not a lie, and just as it has taught you, you remain in Him."

Born again believers are all priests with different functions but all are equal and all use their gift given to them by God.

In the modern hierarchy gathering many in the congregation are not allowed to use their gifts because of this false model of church hierarchy system.

1 Corinthians 14:26 "26 What then shall we say, brothers? When you come together, everyone has a psalm or a teaching, a revelation, a tongue, or an interpretation. All of these must be done to build up the church."

1 Corinthians 12:15-26
15 If the foot says, “Because I am not a hand, I am not a part of the body,” it is not for this reason any less a part of the body.
16 And if the ear says, “Because I am not an eye, I am not a part of the body,” it is not for this reason any less a part of the body.
17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole body were hearing, where would the sense of smell be?
18 But now God has arranged the parts, each one of them in the body, just as He desired.
19 If they were all one part, where would the body be?
20 But now there are many parts, but one body.
21 And the eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you”; or again, the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.”
22 On the contrary, it is much truer that the parts of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary;
23 and those parts of the body which we consider less honorable, on these we bestow greater honor, and our less presentable parts become much more presentable,
24 whereas our more presentable parts have no need of it. But God has so composed the body, giving more abundant honor to that part which lacked,
25 so that there may be no division in the body, but that the parts may have the same care for one another.
26 And if one part of the body suffers, all the parts suffer with it; if a part is honored, all the parts rejoice with it."

Most of Scripture is being violated in our day because so much of God's word has been interpreted in terms of our western culture and the way people want it to be. It is easier to let the "pastor" up front do their spirituality for them, so they have nothing to do but sit and listen and in many cases the people go home and forgot what was said.

 
When we all participate we remember what was going on because we were a part of it.

 
Any time we elevate one member above another we are exercising idolatry, making that leader greater than the Holy Spirit Who l lives in us.

 
Those who follow people must repent and return to trusting in the Holy Spirit as they did when they first trusted Christ.

 
Matthew 23:15-16 "… 15 Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You traverse land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are. 16Woe to you, blind guides! You say, ‘If anyone swears by the temple, it means nothing; but if anyone swears by the gold of the temple, he is bound by his oath.’…"

This passage could apply easily to the modern paid pastor system in which the congregation elevates the man in the pulpit to idol status and will not listen to anyone else but him or those who have degrees from human institutions.

 
Most Christians today do not seek the Holy Spirit, they seek that degreed person who has been elevated to god like status. They make the Holy Spirit under that man.

 
Acts 13:10
and said, “O child of the devil and enemy of all righteousness, you are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery! Will you never stop perverting the straight ways of the Lord?"

Galatians 1:7-9
which is not even a gospel. Evidently some people are troubling you and trying to distort the gospel of Christ. / But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be under a curse! / As we have said before, so now I say again: If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be under a curse!"

2 Corinthians 11:13-15
"For such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, masquerading as apostles of Christ. / And no wonder, for Satan himself masquerades as an angel of light. / It is not surprising, then, if his servants masquerade as servants of righteousness. Their end will correspond to their actions."

Romans 10:2-3
"For I testify about them that they are zealous for God, but not on the basis of knowledge. / Because they were ignorant of God’s righteousness and sought to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness."
When God opens our eyes to the truth we see how decided by this false system we were and it is a relief to be out of it.

Walking According to the Promises of God

When we trust in Christ we feel devastation at times, but we do not walk according to those feelings we walk according to His promises and what we know about Christ Who lives in us.

When we learn to ignore our feelings and agree with God about truth we will not give into temptation to do what does not please God.

Many times in my younger years I operated according to my feelings and it was a disaster waiting to happen. It was God's grace that prevented me from destroying my life, His mercy and His provision that directed me back to the narrow road.

All of us who are authentically born again can remember times when it had to be God Who protected us when we messed up, His love is greater than our mess ups and it is His love that brings us back to obedience to Him.

Never allow the devil to convince you God never helped or changed you, he wants to discourage and distract, but God will never allow us to accept the accusation fo the devil.

1 Corinthians 6:9-11 "9 Or do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived; neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals,

10 nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor those habitually drunk, nor verbal abusers, nor swindlers, will inherit the kingdom of God.

11 Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God."

We are able to say, yes this was us but now we belong to God and nothing will deter us from what He has called us to be and do.

Remember this part of that passage: "11 Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God."

Waiting Every Day for Christ's Return

I am waiting, I admit somewhat impatiently, for the rapture. The world is becoming intolerable for believers and few are left who will listen to truth.

Even those who claim to be Christians have become hostile to the truth of the Bible. They are not just disobedient to what they know, they reject the truth and punish those who speak it.

2 Timothy 3:1-5 "3 But realize this, that in the last days difficult (ragingly insane) 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."

Notice verse 5; "having a form of godliness" but denying Christ through denial of the truth of His Word. They do not seem to realize that the Bible is the very essence of Who Christ is and He expects us to seek Him in all things.

Matthew 6:33 "33 But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto you."

Spiritual and Emotional Boot Camp

we walk with Christ.

Satan has been very clever in His deception

Debating the day Christ was born is useless since God never told us in His Word.

It doesn't matter when Christ was born, it only matters that God never commanded that we celebrate His birth.

What the church does now at Christmas time is a distraction from Him. They are traditions of men that have caused people to turn from Christ to the false Santa and the pagan rituals while claiming it is for God.

Mark 7:6-8 "6 But He said to them, “Rightly did Isaiah prophesy about you hypocrites, as it is written:

‘This people honors Me with their lips,

But their heart is far away from Me.

7 And in vain do they worship Me,

Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’

8 Neglecting the commandment of God, you hold to the tradition of men.”

None of the rituals observed at this time of year were commanded or endorsed by God. Just because someone decides to make up their own holiday and ritual and attach God's name to it does not mean it is for God.

Why do most people celebrate the holidays at this time of year? It brings warm fuzzy feelings that began in childhood when we all enjoyed them. Sadly it is a tradition that goes way back, so far back that most people have no idea why they do what they do. I know, been there and done it all, even raised our children on it.

Now, having repented myself of teaching these things to my children I see much more clearly how much the modern church is caught up in all kinds of rituals and observances God never gave but if we were to be honest we keep them going because of those warm fuzzy feelings we get when we do them.

If it were not about the feelings, what is so hard about giving up what God never told us to do?

Satan is always very clever, he mixes a whole lot of happy things that provoke feelings and then attaches a little out-of-context scripture with it to make it all look legitimate.

Luke 6:46

46 “Why do you call me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ and do not do what I say?"

Romans 2:13

"For it is not the hearers of the law who are righteous before God, but it is the doers of the law who will be declared righteous."

John 14:15

"If you love Me, you will keep My commandments."

God does not endorse those rituals that man decided for himself because of the happy fun derived from them. He wants us to read His Word and follow His ways without adding any of our own ways to His Word.

Proverbs 3:5-6 "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways submit to him, and he will make your paths straight.".

We must ask the Lord for truth even if it means giving up anything that we were taught that did not come from the Word of God.

When I began asking for wisdom no matter what it brought my eyes began to see all the things modern Christianity hung onto so tightly that people became hostile and angry that their ways were challenged at all.

They even became angry when I didn't speak to them about my findings but observed that I didn't do those things anymore.

Just my decision for myself was enough to anger them because they only wanted endorsement through following them.

It is amazing how so many people will be angry just because we don't do what they do even if we never speak to them about it.

The Lord removed from my heart the desire to follow feelings, expunging from me anything God never commanded or endorsed so that I was free to ignore the celebrations of the world.

It occurred to me one day that the unsaved world loves these holidays, then I asked God why. They loved these holidays because they were happy fun and not from God. When the world loves something we know it will not be of God.

Why did the "Christian holidays" go so wrong with the Santas and the easter eggs and bunnies? It is because these holidays were never given by God. They were concocted by the devil to distract from God while appearing to be for Him.

It is astounding how hated believers are for not doing what the rest of the world is doing.

John 15:18-25

Disciples’ Relation to the World

18 “If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you.

19 If you were of the world, the world would love you as its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you.

20 Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A slave is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will persecute you as well; if they followed My word, they will follow yours also."

I do not judge anyone as an unbeliever for observing the holidays but I do challenge my brothers and sisters in Christ to ask God to show them truth no matter where it leads or who they will lose.

If your brothers and sisters disagree with you they will love you and treat you respectfully even if you don't do what they do, even if you challenge them to ask God. They will not bludgeon you to intimidate you into endorsing what God has told you not to endorse.

I love my brothers and sisters in Christ which is the reason I warn them to seek Christ in all matters, no matter how good something makes you feel. Satan is very sly in knowing how to manipulate feelings that make someone sense that they have lost something if they give up what does not please God.

John 15:25 "25 But this has happened so that the word that is written in their Law will be fulfilled: ‘They hated Me for no reason.’

The Pharisees and religious leaders hated Christ because He was not like them, and because He upset their "religious" system, it is no different today than it was then.

May each one of us seek Christ in ALL things!!!

Jesus Christ is the Essence of His Own Word, to Deny any part of it is to deny Him.

Stop Over-explaining to toxic people

Words and Rituals do not Count

Many say words, and do rituals who were never saved because they depended on what they were doing and what they said.

They Say Words and Do Rituals but are not Saved

There are many who say words, do rituals, and attend gatherings who were never saved because they depended on what they were doing and saying but had no desire for Christ to change them into a new creation.

 
They wanted to go to heaven their own way through works and words but were not changed by Christ. They wanted to be in a club that accepted them with things to do and places to go but had no inkling and understanding about submitting to Christ for Him to do all the work in them. Their walk did not last, after a time they slid back into their old self after pretending through emulating what others were saying and doing which was not in their hearts but only outward appearance of "religion."

 
1 John 2:19-20 "19 They went out from us, but they did not belong to us. For if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us. But their departure made it clear that none of them belonged to us. 20 You, however, have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth."

Ephesians 2:8-9
"8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and [a]this is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast."

Ephesians 2:10
"10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them."

When we have been changed by Christ we do not return to our old selves. Believers still battle the flesh at times but do not continually live a sinful lifestyle. When we fall temporarily the Holy Spirit convicts us and we confess it to be cleansed.

1 John 1:9 "
"9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous, so that He will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness."
This passage was written to believers."

Psalm 119:67
"Before I was afflicted, I went astray; but now I keep Your word."

Hebrews 12:6 "5 And you have forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons: “My son, do not take lightly the discipline of the Lord, and do not lose heart when He rebukes you. 6 For the Lord disciplines the one He loves, and He chastises every son He receives.” 7 Endure suffering as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father?"

There are many who claim to be Christians who remain on their way to hell because their desire was to join the Christian club but they had no desire to die to self and be changed by Christ. Some of them thought they would gain accolades from the gathering of believers and others who did it to gain heaven but have never been changed because they attempted to change themselves to fit the group without a desire to be changed by Christ.

 
2 Corinthians 5:17 "Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new".

 
When a man tries to change himself to fit into a culture it will not last because a person cannot continue pretense forever, it weighs them down and eventually, they will return to their old selves.

When Christ changes a man's heart it is an act of God and permanent for eternity. No man can undo what God does, nor do they want to undo His work.

 
Some people say someone who walks away lost their salvation, but they didn't they never had it to lose. If they had been changed by Christ they would never return to their old self again. It is a Spiritual work of Christ to change a person and the Holy Spirit is given to us as a guarantee of our inheritance.

 
Ephesians 1:13-14
"13 In Him, you also, after listening to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation—having also believed, you were sealed in Him with the Holy Spirit of the promise, 14 who is a first installment of our inheritance, in regard to the redemption of God’s own possession, to the praise of His glory."

When we have trusted Christ and He has changed us we are His possession.

 
Romans 8:16
"The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children."

Count Our Losses as Gain

We must count our losses as gains because they teach us things. Never ignore the losses and the lessons they are as valuable as the other blessings.

Yes, losses and failures are blessings that bring us along in maturity. Those who avoid tough things, and avoid discussing tough things are those who do not learn.

Pretending one's life is full of happy things all the time is dishonest. Yes, as a believer we have joy through everything which is the reason we can freely speak of them without giving into discouragement.

Those who cannot face the truth of difficult times are walking in fear. Fear of how they look in the eyes of others and fear of facing the truth.

1 Corinthians 13:6-7 "… 6 Love takes no pleasure in evil, but rejoices in the truth. 7 It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things."

Galatians 6:2

"Carry one another’s burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ."

As my husband says often; "a burden shared is half a burden and a joy shared is twice a joy."

When we love someone we share it all, the burdens as well as the joys.

Selfish people speak only of their happy times and run away as soon as we share our trials.

An unselfish person full of God's love does not run from trials nor do they pretend they have none. It is through sharing that we open up a relationship path for others to share with us.

Honesty can be trusted but counterfeit joy with the pretense of continual happiness is dishonesty and cannot be trusted.

Romans 15:1

"We who are strong ought to bear with the shortcomings of the weak and not to please ourselves."

1 Thessalonians 5:14

"And we urge you, brothers, to admonish the unruly, encourage the fainthearted, help the weak, and be patient with everyone."

It is clear from these scriptures that we are to engage with believers in honesty that we might be an encouragement to one another. Not to build pride but to be a "wing man" of sorts, that is sit with our friend as if we were going through with them in all things.

What is a wing man? "A wingman is a pilot who flies in formation behind and outside the lead aircraft, providing support and backup."

Just showing up to be support to those who are ailing or even those who are enjoying a blessing is what true friendship is all about. Believers are a family of siblings, we are deeply connected to one another by Christ.

1 John 3:16

"By this we know what love is: Jesus laid down His life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers."

It isn't easy to find someone like this in these end times. However, we can be one of these people as the Lord leads, for others.

John 15:12-13

"This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. / Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends."

Laying down our lives for others does not necessarily mean to die for them, it is rare that this is needed, but we can lay aside our own things to be there for someone else when Christ directs.

Philippians 2:2-4

"then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being united in spirit and purpose. / Do nothing out of selfish ambition or empty pride, but in humility consider others more important than yourselves. / Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others."

The greatest love we can be for one another is to seek Christ for truth and be unified in following Him. For this to happen we must know His word, not our desired belief about His word, but His meaning to be able to edify one another.

The purpose of the gathering of believers is not to make others become just like us, it is to encourage one another to be like Christ.

The purpose of gathering together is to edify one another. Our worship is in Spirit and in Truth all week long, our gathering is to encourage one another and build one another up to live more fully for Christ. We do not do this with flattrey and praise to one another, but speaking to one another the things of God that we might grow in holiness.

Ephesians 5:19-21

"19 speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your hearts to the Lord;

20 always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to our God and Father;

21 and subject yourselves to one another in the fear of Christ."

When I began to pray for wisdom God opened the floodgates of understanding about many things and this is one of them. He made it clear that our purpose on earth is to spread the gospel as led by the Holy Spirit and to edify, encouraging the saints so we are all equipped to be used by God.

No one is above another, no one is special, we are all indwelt by the Holy Spirit and He is the One Who speaks to us and leads us, each one according to the gifts He has given us.

1 Corinthians 12:14-27

"14 For the body is not one part, but many.

15 If the foot says, “Because I am not a hand, I am not a part of the body,” it is not for this reason any less a part of the body.

16 And if the ear says, “Because I am not an eye, I am not a part of the body,” it is not for this reason any less a part of the body.

17 If the whole body were an eye, where would the hearing be? If the whole body were hearing, where would the sense of smell be? 18 But now God has arranged the parts, each one of them in the body, just as He desired.

19 If they were all one part, where would the body be? 20 But now there are many parts, but one body.

21 And the eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you”; or again, the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.”

22 On the contrary, it is much truer that the parts of the body which seem to be weaker are necessary;

23 and those parts of the body which we consider less honorable, on these we bestow greater honor, and our less presentable parts become much more presentable,

24 whereas our more presentable parts have no need of it. But God has so composed the body, giving more abundant honor to that part which lacked,

25 so that there may be no division in the body, but that the parts may have the same care for one another.

26 And if one part of the body suffers, all the parts suffer with it; if a part is honored, all the parts rejoice with it."

Notice God does not mention the brain here? Is is possible the brain could represent the Holy Spirit Who controls all the other parts of the body?

A paid pastor could not effectively speak on this passage because he would have to admit he is no higher or worth more than any other person sitting in the pew, and yet the attendees treat him as though he is the authority over the rest.

The Holy Spirit is the only Authority over every believers. We all have our roles different from one another but no one is special or better, only Christ is special and best.

Romans 12:4-5

"Just as each of us has one body with many members, and not all members have the same function, / so in Christ we who are many are one body, and each member belongs to one another."

Those who want a hierarchy or want to be a hierarchy do not understand God's purpose for the body. Christ must be pre-eminent and all the believers with all the different functions and callings must point to Christ in their calling.

Ephesians 4:12-16

"to equip the saints for works of ministry and to build up the body of Christ, / until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God, as we mature to the full measure of the stature of Christ. / Then we will no longer be infants, tossed about by the waves and carried around by every wind of teaching and by the clever cunning of men in their deceitful scheming."

So we are all in the body with a purpose and we are each led by the Holy Spirit. We listen to one another to evaluate the accuracy according to the Bible, but no one has authority over another, that would be to usurp the Authority of the Holy Spirit.

Colossians 1:18

"And He (Christ) is the head of the body, the church; He is the beginning and firstborn from among the dead, so that in all things He may have preeminence."

So, do not allow the traditions of men to place pressure on you to be like them, be led instead by the Holy Spirit.

Hallelujah!!!!!