Israel is Back in the Land to Stay

This is what God has in store for Israel!!! He performed a miracle in 1948 when He gave them back their land and He will do another one in the near future.

Isaiah 61:8-9

"8 For I, the Lord, love justice,
I hate robbery in the burnt offering;
And I will faithfully give them their recompense
And make an everlasting covenant with them.

9 Then their offspring will be known among the nations,
And their descendants in the midst of the peoples.
All who see them will recognize them
Because they are the offspring whom the Lord has blessed."

Weep You Muslims, Israel is the Victor

Read it and weep all you Muslims who think you will one day prevail over Israel. You will not win this war against her, God has already decided the outcome and it is Israel who is the victor.

Isaiah 60:12-14
"12 “For the nation and the kingdom which will not serve you will perish,
And the nations will be utterly ruined.
13 “The glory of Lebanon will come to you,
The juniper, the box tree and the cypress together,
To beautify the place of My sanctuary;
And I shall make the place of My feet glorious.
14 “The sons of those who afflicted you will come bowing to you,
And all those who despised you will bow themselves at the soles of your feet;
And they will call you the city of the Lord,
The Zion of the Holy One of Israel."

Our Cleansing Continues Until We Are Taken Home

Any time I hear this, "God knows my heart", as an excuse to justify sin, I say "yes he does, He knows just how wicked it is and has said that what is acted out in the flesh is proof of the condition of the heart."

The heart comes first, then the actions. The actions cannot be different from the heart, they work in tandem. In fact, we can sin deeply without that sin ever becoming an action, the action may be repressed by cultural pressure, but that does not mean there is no sin.

Christ said if we so much as think it in our heart, it is the same as if we have committed it. The heart is always bad before any actions surface, by the time the actions occur the heart has already been in sin.

There are many people walking around appearing to be righteous, do the things that make them acceptable in the culture they live in, but are harboring evil in their hearts. Each one must evaluate their own hearts in light of the Word of God, asking God to reveal to them any wicked way that still remains. Anyone who thinks they are completely clean, walking in pride over their goodness, is still in need of conviction and cleansing through the Holy Spirit.

Hebrews 10:14 :For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are (being) sanctified.:"

Matthew 5:21-22
Murder Begins in the Heart
"21 “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of the judgment.’ 22 But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment. And whoever says to his brother, ‘Raca!’ shall be in danger of the council. But whoever says, ‘You fool!’ shall be in danger of hell fire."

Romans 6:1-12
"6 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?

2 God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?

3 Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?

4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.

5 For if we have been planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:

6 Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.

7 For he that is dead is freed from sin.

8 Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him:

9 Knowing that Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; death hath no more dominion over him.

10 For in that he died, he died unto sin once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God.

11 Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord.

12 Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof."

Matthew 15:19 "For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander."

Today in the News Feed on Face book I saw a picture of a man with sun glasses on, sitting on a sidewalk. He had a sign in front of him declaring that he was blind and needed help. In front of him was a bowl full of money, that had been filled by compassionate people who wanted to help him. The man was in his twenties and was looking through his sunglasses, at an iphone checking his e-mail.

We used to receive calls for our little chapel at our home because no one was at the building all week. All of the calls we received were people asking for their electric and water bills to be paid. They had used their money for cigarettes, cable tv, cell phones and others things that were unnecessary.

One day I got one of these calls from a woman who was lamenting the fact that her electricity was turned off and her children were cold. I reminded her that it was August, the temperature outside was over 80 and that if she would just open her windows she could warm up the house. Yes, there are clues about the scammers and liars that we can discern easily if we can get past misplaced compassion.

Often I would tell the beggars on the phone, that they had a greater need than electricity and water, and that was the gospel, then I would proceed to tell them their need of repentance, showing them that they had just lied to me about "needing", when all they wanted was to be carried by others for their needs while enjoying pleasures with the money they had. I knew that all the callers were in this condition because I would ask them certain questions that revealed their condition.

Most of the time I never got more than a few sentences when they would hang up on me. Why do so many people think that "the church", should pay for their needs, when they are just too irresponsible to use the money they have wisely?

I never figured out this, "the church should foot the bills for me" mentality. One woman called me a devil because, after giving her the gospel, I attempted to counsel her on how to manage her money.

Manipulation is a huge part of the picture with those who will attempt to separate you or the church from your money and goods.

I will give a person a lunch, some advise and even comfort, but I do not give money if there is any hint that they are lazy and irresponsible. It is a pleasure to me to be able to help those who want to learn how to manage their money, but I have little tolerance for those who would fight against doing what is right.

We have all made mistakes in the managing of our money at times, but most of us do not go begging for someone else to bail us out, we learn from our missteps and begin again on a different and better path. Everyone needs to learn how to manage money, it is the rebellion against the learning that aggravates me.

May the Lord give us discernment in our giving, that we not enable beggers to continue in the fleecing of others. Perhaps we need to remember too that sometimes we don't give to someone to help them as much as we like to feel proud of ourselves that we did.

When we care more about the well being of others than our own good feelings, then we can rightly discern what is best for a person, not what makes them happy temporarily.

Many people in our culture do not have a need for goods, they simply manage what they have so badly that they waste away the funds that should be designated for needs in favor of pleasures.




Discernment is the key and the gospel is always needed in these cases. Never neglect to speak of the Lord when dealing with these people. Their greatest need is that they repent and trust Christ. God can fix all the ills in a person's life when they submit to Him.

Pictures and Statues of Christ are Idols!!!!

Today I have determined to place this on every facebook in the news feed that has a picture or statue depicting Christ.

"That picture of a man is not Christ, it is an idol."

Acts 17:9 "Being then the children of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and thought of man.""

When will believers stop looking at graven images to get their sense of closeness to Christ? May God convict them of the use of these idols. It seems to be happening more and more, in spite of the Scripture in Acts that is clear about this matter.

Secure Our Borders.....Why?

As for securing our borders? What is the real issue here for Americans? What is the reason we want to secure our borders?

This has been a real dilemma for me. I have had mixed feelings about the problem of illegals coming in by the droves, it seems almost like an invasion because of the magnitude of the situation. As I began to seek God on this enigma of massive proportions I also saw a new perspective that most people are not addressing and even I missed looking through the narrow tunnel of the political and economic ramifications.

The real reason in my estimation, for securing our borders is to prevent illegals from coming to our country and taking jobs away from our citizens. I do believe that people coming into our country should come legally, however, when children are sent across by themselves, then I believe we have a responsibility to care for them.

When we have no control over a situation then we have to assume it is God's will for us, a call to action for His glory. God has been sending women and children from oppressed countries to come to the United States for help out of their poverty and abuse. How can we turn them away?

If a woman and child came to our door for food and in rags, we are responsible as believers to provide for them. Why is our country any different, we, after all, call ourselves a Christian nation. Where are the Christian churches, that dwell in their ivory towers every week, the attendees dressing up like royalty to attend buildings that resemble the Taj Mahal.

As Christian churches we seem to have enough money to accommodate all sorts of programs, fancy buildings, beautiful and expensive clothing, electronic devices and much more that is often unnecessary, not to mention paying high salaries to pastors and elders for their services.

How many people take vacations every year to far away places just for personal enjoyment, and still have the resources to live in houses that are more than adequate, owning late model cars and closets full of clothing?

Where is the money for missions, where are the many workers from these lavish churches that could fund help services and gospel tracts and Bibles for those who are invading our country. Those churches are also full of people who could volunteer their services to care for these children.

When we have become so "patriotic" that we would send defenseless children back through hardship to "get rid" of them, then we are more concerned about guarding our wealth than we are about evangelism or caring for those God sends to us.

Where in the Bible does God tell any country to secure their borders, other than Israel?

I will follow any law that is not against God's Law, however those coming across are not believers as a whole, they are in need of the gospel, this should be our greatest concern, that those who have come, have been sent by God to us to bring them the Gospel message while seeing to their immediate needs.

We seem to have the mentality that missions is "over there, across the sea" and that missionaries are "specially educated college grads", when the Bible teaches that all of us are missionaries, responsible to bring the gospel to anyone and everyone that crosses our path.

Perhaps we should pray for the workers to be called to this task of seeing to the evangelism of the immigrants who are sneaking into our country. What would we do if our family was in danger of starvation and military abuse? Would we seek another safer country to migrate to, in desperation for the sake of our families?

If our mindset is to let into our country only those who are accomplished and able to contribute to the wealth of our country, then we are mercenary, materialistic and lack compassion for the masses of people who are not only starving physically but also spiritually.

After all, isn't our reason for living, as a believer, to bring the gospel to the world, even our own little corner of it!!!

Perhaps we need to rethink our views on the border situation. Perhaps we need to stop worrying about our "economy" and "business survival" or natural resources and begin thinking with the mind of Christ.

God is able to provide all the needs necessary for us as believer, without us calculating our own needs. He can grow the flour in our bins when they are almost empty. He can give us a bumper crop of fruit and vegetables when it does not seem possible. He can give us potatoes in the middle of a drought. When we obey Him, trusting Him for our resources, jobs and economy, then He will provide as needed.

Believers are here for one reason only, and that is to bring the gospel to a lost and dying world. Knowing that we are not citizens of this world, sent as missionaries, should make us think always in terms of that commission than anything that is going on politically.

Many missionaries helped the locals when it didn't seem like there would be enough necessary provision and God brought the increase, not only in worldly needs but in the salvation of many.

We have to stop looking at what we have to do to protect ourselves, just obeying God and knowing that He can protect us. We may even find that many of those immigrants will grow up and become an asset to us as a side benefit for obeying God. But even if they don't, we are called to obey and leave the results to Him.

Do We Like To Cherry Pick?

There is one celebration that Christ commanded us to do in remembrance of Him. So many gatherings have neglected this. It is not Christmas, resurrection day (aka "Easter"); it is not Pentecost or lent. It is the Lord's Supper.

Luke 22:19
"And when He had taken some bread and given thanks, He broke it and gave it to them, saying, "This is My body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of Me."

While He was still on earth on the day before He died, the celebration of the Lord's Supper was instituted in place of the Passover, because it was a picture of the fulfillment of the prophetic Messiah, not to come in the future, but Who has come. Christ left us the Lord's supper as the observance to be instituted once His mission was fulfilled as a sign of the new covenant.

Hebrews 8:13
"In speaking of a new covenant, he makes the first one obsolete. And what is becoming obsolete and growing old is ready to vanish away."

It was the Passover until He died, then it became the Lord's Supper after His death. We no longer celebrate the Lord's future coming, but now we celebrate His finished work on the cross.

1 Corinthians 11:23-26
"23 For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you: that the Lord Jesus on the same night in which He was betrayed took bread; 24 and when He had given thanks, He broke it and said, “Take, eat; this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” 25 In the same manner He also took the cup after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood. This do, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of Me.”
26 For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death till He comes."

The first century church celebrated this God ordained ritual every day until they began meeting only once a week, then they continued to celebrate it every time they came together, it was the worship that Christ commanded that we observe.

There are only three rituals (physical actions which have symbolic meaning) that we are commanded to do in Scripture, they are; baptism, the head covering for women or lack of head covering for men and Lord's Supper.

1 Corinthians 14:26
"What is the outcome then, brethren? When you assemble, each one has a psalm, has a teaching, has a revelation, has a tongue, has an interpretation. Let all things be done for edification."

I have seen this in a local assembly, the brethren come together during the Lord's supper, a brother will get up to ask for a song, pray or share a scripture pertaining to the Lord's death and resurrection, while others interject as led by the Holy Spirit. There is no designated leader, because Christ is the leader in each man.

After the Lord's supper, which is the worship time, is the teaching time. In this part of the gathering one man has prepared a teaching and leads, but every man is active in correcting or adding to what is being taught. No error is allowed to go unchallenged and Scripture is the basis for every declaration.

The leader must be above reproach, no man may lead if he is living in open sin, this keeps the gathering pure and focused entirely on Christ.

1 Timothy 3:2
"An overseer, then, must be above reproach, the husband of one wife, temperate, prudent, respectable, hospitable, able to teach,"

There is no outside hierarchy for the local gatherings. They are completely autonomous, leaving the leaders in each gathering accountable to God and to their congregation for the proceedings there. There are no organized rules for the people or the gathering outside of the Scriptures. Man made rules are discouraged, only God's mandated principles as directed by God in His Word are approved. (1 Corinthians 11:17-34)

When we look at the local gathering, as described in the Word, it is easy to see how far from Scriptural standards the modern church has strayed. There were no worship teams, no one man pastor models, no error allowed without challenge and every man was accountable to God for participation in the service.

The women were to remain in submission, not usurping the authority of the men, however were given latitude for singing and praying and prophesying with their head covered.

1 Corinthians 11:6
"For if a woman does not cover her head, let her also have her hair cut off; but if it is disgraceful for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, let her cover her head."

The head covering for a woman was not a cultural things any more than the men being the leaders. The lack of head covering for a man was also mandated by God in these passages, that too, had nothing to do with culture, but with the order of submission in the gathering.

In 1 Corinthians 11 we see several things that should be observed today and are not, as the modern church is in rebellion against the Scriptures, "having a form of religion but negating the power thereof."

The things God has mandated are, men in leadership, women to be covered when praying and prophesying, and the observance of the Lord's supper often. One man leadership is discouraged while participation by all men is encouraged.

Are we interested in obeying God or are we cherry picking the scriptures we like right out of their context to be able to have the religion be desire?