Thursday, May 26, 2022
Be Bold, Be Strong and Never Allow the Pretender to Rule over the Believers
"Ezekiel 33:14-15
"14 But when I say to the wicked, ‘You will certainly die,’ and he turns from his sin and practices justice and righteousness, 15 if a wicked person returns a pledge, pays back what he has taken by robbery, walks by the statutes which ensure life without committing injustice, he shall certainly live; he shall not die."
Ezekiel 33:17-18
17 “Yet your fellow citizens say, ‘The way of the Lord is not right,’ when it is their own way that is not right. 18 When the righteous turns from his righteousness and commits injustice, then he shall die in it.
When a nation is past the tipping point in sin, without remorse for it, even defending it as a right the nation as a whole is no longer Christian if it really ever was so.
The only nation in the world that will ever be entirely Christian is the nation of Israel at the end of the tribulation when the entire nation will trust in Christ and evangelize the rest of the world. There has never been an entire nation that was Christian and will never be until the end of the time of Jacob's trouble.
We are past the tipping point in the United States. We have murdered over 60 million babies as well as entrenched sins of every stripe rampant to the point of becoming the social norm. Rampant sin of every form of debauchery is the cultural norm while Christianity is the fringe, demeaned, mocked and excluded every day now by those in power.
The wicked have been warned and yet they grow in numbers taking over every venue in every agency as more people who claim to be Christian are influenced by those irrational satanic ideas.
The Christians have been warned as preachers on the internet, the ones who remain faithful to God's word have warned and pleaded with the people to repent and instead of repenting they dig their heels in slipping deeper into sin, worse sin than ever before just as Sodom and Gomorrah did back in the day.
What are so many "conservatives" wanting us to "get back to" in America? The way it used to be when just 50 years ago began the teaching of self-esteem became mandated, all rules about family were expunged from the training in schools while the parents abdicated their responsibility to train their children in righteousness? Do they want to go back to the days when Christianity was taught as a better life choice based on cultural standards rather than on a transformation by Christ?
If we were to write a book outlining all the violations of the word of God down through the centuries in our country it would be lengthy. Our culture could not have become as wicked as it is if the people had dedicated themselves to prayer and Scripture study with the emphasis on Christ changing hearts.
Our form of cultural Christianity had trained people to follow good rules without Christ. The emphasis was on following the rules to appear righteous without the power of Christ changing hearts. This led to pride as well as harshness on those who did not adhere to the prescribed rules by those in authority.
Without the power of Christ in changing hearts the rules are easily changed when the culture as whole changes. If we are not motivated by the direction of the Holy Spirit our actions and attitudes are fleshly, easily manipulated without the power to remain strong, that power being Jesus Christ. When the culture applies pressure on cultural Christians to accept something other than the truth they readily cave to be accepted by others.
When Christ is our strength no one can deter us from the truth or cause guilt over our desire for righteousness.
How would it be possible to return the bodies we have stolen through abortion? We can never bring back those babies. We remain under judgment even if the nation as a whole were to repent we must still pay the consequences for our sin of rampant murder.
For those who think we can get our country back through political pushback must not realize how entrenched the wicked are within our nation and they must not realize just how sinful the nation has been having passed the tipping point.
We cannot payback what we have stolen, we cannot bring back more than 60 million babies, we must pay for our sin, whether or not we repent, but we will not because the nation has turned it's back on God, even in the houses of worship where the attendees claim to be Christian but care little if anything about obeying the Holy Word of God.
2 Timothy 3:1-5 "2 Timothy 3:1-5
Difficult Times Will Come
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."
Did you notice this phrase in the 2 Timothy 3 passage; "HOLDING TO A FORM OF GODLINESS ALTHOUGH THEY HAVE DENIED IT'S POWER"
Did you notice this phrase in the 2 Timothy 3 passage;
"4 treacherous, reckless, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God,"
Did you know this is a description of the end times church? Obviously, the world has come into the church, so much so that it is likely that most who attend gatherings today came to Christianity based on culture and have never been born again.
No one becomes a Christian merely by choosing to become a part of a local church. A born-again believer is transformed by Christ at the time they confess their sinful nature and desire to be changed by Christ into a new creation. It's not so much about our individual sins, it's about our sinful nature being changed by Christ into the new creation, He does that we do not change ourselves in our own effort. We are changed by Him because of our desire to be changed.
One way to pray might be this: "Lord I hate my sinful nature, please change me into a new creation that I might serve you."
When we have been "contrite" meaning crushed over the realization that we are so sinful is what motivates God to change us.
When we are changed by Christ into a new creation we no longer think the same way we did before. We think with the mind of Christ, we interpret everything in terms of how Christ thinks, rather than a fallen sinful mindset of the old nature.
2 Corinthians 5:16-18 "…16 So from now on we regard no one according to the flesh. Although we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. 17 Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away. Behold, the new has come! 18 All this is from God, who reconciled us to Himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation:…"
"All this is from God", is the key phrase, is anyone attempting to become a Christian by their own power, they will come with their fallen sinful mind misinterpreting everything God said according to worldly thinking. When we have the mind of Christ we will see all matters in terms of how God thinks, not according to the ideas of the world.
The modern church is filled with people who "became a Christian" culturally but were never born again and their sinful hearts were never changed. These people bring error, rebellion, and contention to the gathering, causing division and sadly often unchallenged by others in the group.
Pretenders often learn enough Biblical lingo to confuse and deter others from the truth. Sadly in our day many Christians are afraid of offending man more than God and allow the error to be taught in favor of protecting the "feelings" of the pretender. The pretender is empowered by the lack of challenge. The believers are fearful of being seen as rude or mean by challenging error so the pretender wields more power than the born-again believers.
This is the reason the modern church grows further away from truth while intimidating weak believers into silence.
Now that we know the condition of the church we ought to never back down or feel guilt over telling the truth, boldly and without apology.
Wednesday, May 25, 2022
Two Supporting One Another for their to be Honor and Respect
The man leads either toward God or away from God in a family. It is natural for the household to go the way of the man whichever way he walks.
He leads when he does nothing at all, he leads by example. Leading by example is far more powerful than words.
There is an old saying: "More is caught than taught." This is the truth, whichever way the man walks, is the way that influences the children the most.
This is also true of leaders in the church too, they will lead far more by their example than by their teaching.
1 Peter 5:3
"Not domineering over those in your charge, but being examples to the flock."
1 Peter 5:2
"Shepherd the flock of God that is among you, exercising oversight, not under compulsion, but willingly, as God would have you; not for shameful gain, but eagerly;"
Titus 1:7
"For an overseer, as God's steward, must be above reproach. He must not be arrogant or quick-tempered or a drunkard or violent or greedy for gain,:
If a man demonstrates a life attitude of following Christ his children are more likely to follow Christ too. If a man is lazy in his walk, unconcerned about his example to others his children will do the same.
A mother's teachings bear little weight with children if the father is not supporting her as an authority in the lives of the children.
When a man demeans or ignores his wife the children will learn to disrespect their mother. The way the man treats his wife influences the children in the way they treat their mother.
Proverbs 1:8-9 "8
Listen, my son, to your father’s instruction, and do not forsake the teaching of your mother. 9For they are a garland of grace on your head and a pendant around your neck.…"
Notice in this passage in Proverbs it is both the instruction of the father and the law of the mother that is needed for the children to be emotionally and spiritually healthy. Each must support one another in the way of the Lord.
Tuesday, May 24, 2022
Building Quality Relationships
There is only one way to build a quality relationship that lasts a lifetime.
I am sure many people in our culture would say "just letting things go" will keep the relationship intact. This could not be farther from the truth.
Quality relationships are built by expressing concerns and discussing them, with the willingness to place ourselves in someone else's shoes.
Sadly very few people today want to be honest because honesty brings vulnerability. When we are honest we open ourselves to criticism, criticism makes us feel attacked if we are prideful and defensive.
If we are humble and interested in growing in wisdom we will see criticism as an opportunity for self-reflection. Those who are narcissistic are weak inside, unable to expose the slightest flaw within themselves. They see every look at flaws as a devastating weakness. They do not realize a strong person is able to look at all sides of themselves, the good and the ugly.
Strong people are not devastated by facing needed change in their character, they grow as they face warts and flaws. There is only one way to grow in wisdom and that is to regularly self-reflect to evaluate whether there is needed change.
Weak people cannot admit their own flaws, their weakness is seen in their defensiveness. We live in a culture now that considers it foolish to admit flaws. We must remember that the culture as a whole says the opposite of what God says.
2 Corinthians 12:9-11
"9 And He has said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” Most gladly, therefore, I will rather boast about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in me.
10 Therefore I delight in weaknesses, in insults, in distresses, in persecutions, in difficulties, in behalf of Christ; for when I am weak, then I am strong.
11 I have become foolish; you yourselves compelled me. Actually I should have been commended by you, since I was in no respect inferior to the most eminent apostles, even though I am a nobody."
The happiest people are those who know their own weaknesses, admit their flaws, and grow as they experience progress in their walk. There is great joy in changing and growing. It is a wonderful freedom that comes when we are invested in our growth without a need to control anyone else.
There is continual sadness for those who walk in pride having to justify the intimidation and mocking that spills out of their wicked hearts as they seek to control others.
Psalms 1:1-4
"1 Happy is the man who does not go in the company of sinners, or take his place in the way of evil-doers, or in the seat of those who do not give honour to the Lord.
2 But whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and whose mind is on his law day and night.
3 He will be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, which gives its fruit at the right time, whose leaves will ever be green; and he will do well in all his undertakings.
4 The evil-doers are not so; but are like the dust from the grain, which the wind takes away."
When Jesus Christ is our focus we have no need or desire to control anyone even ourselves, we allow the Holy Spirit to be in control of us. When He is in control we do not walk in guilt or guile, just pure joy all the time.
Romans 7:22
"For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being,"
Sunday, May 22, 2022
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