In Our View
My personal opinions on today's top issues
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Introduction This page is a page dedicated to my thoughts on current issues that effect the Christian. All the opinions expressed on this page are mine and are what I consider to be topics that are both controversial as well as thought provoking. I attempt to explain my views both Biblically and practically. Christians often avoid "hot topics"; and controversial issues, staying with "politically correct" issues or what is popular for the day. This is cowardly leadership that is crowd (numbers) producing but Christ (Spiritual growth) reducing! If these opinions cause you to become angry, I'm sorry. If they cause you to think and evaluate your position on these issues, then welcome to Christian maturity. A free thinker makes a strong Christian, one who can "rightly handling the word of truth" (2 Timothy 2:15)
Have you noticed that Christians on both sides of the political spectrum (Democrat and Republican) usually align themselves with their respective party interests instead of the Bible as it relates with many of today's issues. Christians who are Democratic see no wrong in abortion and they support the woman's "right to choose". Christians on the Republican side champion anti abortion rights, pro second amendment rights and less taxes while usually ignoring the plight of the homeless, hungry and orphaned. Both sides are acting hypocritically because they take political sides instead of spiritual ones. Neither really cares about the word of God, only use it for votes. So what does the Bible says on the matter and where do we stand in this light? During the times of the bible, Christians were neutral to politics. On one hand the Pharisees killed Jesus for political reasons (to protect their power base, to appease Caesar) and on the other Rome was pagan and barbaric in their rule. The Christian understood that their kingdom was "not of this world" as Jesus taught them. They understood that all systems of man's invention were corrupt and could not be used for kingdom advantage. Jesus never taught his disciples to lobby the Roman senate, to "save" Caesar, or to become politically involved. He taught them to live at peace with all men, to witness Christ's love to all, and to rely on God alone, not to lean on the "arm of flesh" (men's systems). We must understand that all unsaved men are lost, and untrustworthy to lead Christians in moral issues. If they don't commit adultery, they commit fraud, lie in TV commercials. They use money to live lavishly, and only pander to Christians during elections. If you operate in this realm, don't expect morality or Christian ethics. As a citizen you have a right to vote and become involved in politics, but as a Christian you have greater responsibilities. You must not swear allegiance to a political party, but only to Jesus. The pulpit is for the Gospel, not to rail against political leaders. Remember what happened when Caesar (Constantine) became a Christian and made clergy religious / political leaders. The Roman Catholic Church with all their "teachings" was born, and instead of the coliseum and lions, there were the inquisitions. You cannot merge the two kingdoms; light and darkness are opposed. Top of Page In today's multi-ethnic society, it seems the race issue is always coming to the fore front of most issues. We as Christians have tended to avoid the issues all together. Here in America as well as many other countries, our worship services are some of the most segregated social gatherings there are. This is because they are some of the only ones where we choose who to be with! At work, at school, at the mall, at sporting events, and in our towns we are forced to interact with other cultures and with people of different skin colors. With church and other social clubs, we can be around those like us, and we can feel comfortable. We do not have to leave our "comfort zone" of inclusiveness. I believe that we who are Christians have been spineless and cowardly witnesses of Jesus and the gospel. We are taught by Jesus to love and receive all into our company regardless of ethnic or social standing. When Jesus crossed into Samaria in John chapter four, he ministered to a Samaritan woman by a well. By traveling through Samaria and by talking to the woman, Jesus was violating the laws of separation of his day, but he was teaching a great truth to all. He taught that all mankind is created in God's image and worthy of respect and God's love. God sees only one race, the human race! In Acts fifteen; the church at Jerusalem struggled with the assimilation of gentile (non-Jewish) converts into a Christian church that was mostly converted Jews. The apostles wisely drew no distinction between the two groups, but only insisted they follow basic laws. In Galatians chapter two, Paul recalls this historic event, but adds the incident where Peter, being afraid of fellow Jews, refused to eat with the gentiles who became Christians. This in spite of his (Peter) declaration in Acts eleven that "the Spirit told me to go with them, (the men of Caesarea) making no distinction." (vs.12), Peter felt the pressure of societal prejudice. Paul had to rebuke him for his hypocrisy. There can be no quarter given in this area! We are commanded to love all equally. Prejudice and discrimination are works of Satan, and birthed in hearts that are worldly and not Christ like. We are commanded to reach out across cultural and color lines to witness God's love to the world. To treat someone different due to skin color or ethnic differences shows that we are carnal, and in need of deliverance in our hearts. Have you made any effort to visit a church of a different ethnic group than you? Have you attempted to make friends with people of other skin colors than yours? Who do you invite to your home church meetings? How do you look on interracial marriage, integrated neighborhoods, immigration, your Pastor being of a different color than you, and such? Your response to these questions, and others like them is a barometer of your heart.Are you a Peter or a Jesus? Top of page Are we factual or revisionists? When we think of thanksgiving, we tend to look at the pilgrims and the formation of America with a somewhat "colored" view. We see Christians coming here to escape religious persecution, building a godly Christian nation founded on "moral Christian values". We see Indian and pilgrim forging peace, sharing food and showing peace and good will. This is the America we learned as a child. The truth of the matter is this is only partly true. The pilgrims did come here to escape persecution, but once here, they persecuted those who weren't "like them" (read Anglican). They made and broke treaties with the Indians, who they considered savages, slaughtered them and stole their land for the next 280 years. These "founders" began the enslavement, rape and abuse of Africans that took a Civil war to end, yet saw no moral wrong with it. "Freedom and justice for all" was not for all of America's people, only the white ones.This nation, if one is honest, was built with the same tools as others; war, deception and brutality. It is always difficult for people in dysfunctional homes to see the wrongs until they look at it in retrospect or at a distance. They consider a true diagnosis of their situation to be slander to their families reputation. We to, having grown up in America, can't see it's true history because we are blinded by nationalistic pride and revisionist history. Truth always sets men free. We must understand that this nation has flaws, that the well meaning founders made errors and allowed their prejudice to color their wisdom. The founders were frail humans, full of greed, lust for power and sin as we are, and needing God's grace as we do. Let us not worship a nation mythically, or defend it blindly, but let us only worship the Kings of Kings and Lord of Lords. We can truly be thankful knowing that Christ Jesus came into the world, and because of that, we have much to be thankful for. To all my HC brethren, Happy Thanksgiving! Top of Page Christmas is a special time of the year. Giving, sharing, caroling, a spirit of peace as well as good will is in the Earth. Wars are stopped, combatants salute their enemies if only for a short day or two. It seems that all churches are busy, songs of faith are everywhere. I often wonder if we are so caught up in condemning the materialism and greed of the secular side of Christmas that we lose sight of a mysterious truth, that the spirit of Christmas is in the world in December. Peace, good will to mankind is what the Angels spoke, and to a degree this is what we see. Charity abounds at this time of the year, giving, well wishing and stories of Christ abound. Murders go down, and concern for the homeless and needy is increased. People seem to get along better at Christmas time. You who are Pharisees and J.W.'s may ba-humbug me all you want, but Christmas is MY time of year, when Jesus is lifted up, and all speak of peace, good will and giving. Enjoy it while you can, January will soon come with it's trouble and y2k countdown! The fear mongers will tell us the end of the world is near. So from us at Break Bread Ministries to you my home church friends, MERRY CHRISTMAS, PEACE, GOOD WILL TO ALL. LET US WORSHIP THE PRINCE OF PEACE JESUS CHRIST!Top of Page As we enter 1999, I already see and hear the prophets of doom coming on the scene with dire predictions of the end of the world, and that y2k will usher in the "tribulation" of the end times. Sales of books, tapes and freeze dried food is in full gear. Sadly, even home churches are caught up in this frenzy! As I listen to all the talk of fear, I am reminded that "perfect love drives out fear" (1 John 4:18). As Christians, perfect love in Jesus Christ should give us strength to overcome society based fear (y2k). To be witnesses in society, people need to see confident, faith filled Christians, those who see life's storms as small obstacles in the overall kingdom of God and eternity. They need to see Christians stand up to adversity and not flinch the same way the Christians did in the Roman Coliseum when the lions were turned loose on them. We need to re-read Foxe's book of martyrs and see what faith will overcome! Nobody knows what the future holds, but I remember Hal Lindsey's" The late great planet Earth" written in 1970 (thirty years ago) predicting the end soon ( in 1988!). I remember" 88 reasons the rapture will occur in September 1988" (it didn't, but many quit jobs and sold homes expecting the end). I remember the next year the same author wrote" 89 reasons the rapture will occur in September 1989" (it didn't then either!). I remember all the Babylon / Saddam Hussien / Antichrist books in the bookstores predicting the rebuilding of Babylon and the gulf war as the start of Armageddon. Last year we saw" year of jubilee" teachings, none of which came true. Did I forget "debt burning"?, and the "end-time wealth transfer"?. Excuse me if I have little faith in prophecy teachers and modern "prophets" who keep sliding their predictions along as decades pass along. I believe they teach the same warmed-over teaching the dispensationalists have been teaching with a mystical / fear driven slant. Fear sells, and Christians love to buy also. I think home churches especially should not buy into this frenzy and remember why we left traditional church. We should not be aligned with survivalists or fringe groups who want to run and hide. If the end comes, I meet Jesus. If hard times come, I still have Jesus. I think it is mostly overblown hype driven by fear and carnality. If you are a prophet, lets hear some specifics and stop hedging!Top of Page It seems to me that the Christian world has rum amok with fear. With Y2K scaring the daylights (and faith) out of most, scenes of martyrdom in other countries scare the rest. Our gospel of faith has been replaced with one of fear. The reason we fear is that we are being told that year 2000 has a prophetical (or magical) meaning to the Christian, EVEN THOUGH THERE IS NO MENTION OF ANY SPECIAL SIGNIFICANCE ATTACHED TO THIS DATE IN ANY SCRIPTURE!!! Because we accept this without scriptural proof shows how gullible and ignorant we are of the scriptures. We are told of "generic" signs that point to Christ's return soon, so the manipulators put the two together. We have all heard of the "wars, rumors of war, persecution of Christians, earthquakes, and unrest in the middle east. The only problem is these signs could be applied to ANY AGE, ANY GENERATION!! There have always been war, earthquakes, and Christians have been killed since Nero's time on. The second reason we believe is that "prophets of God" are saying it. These pseudo holy men say they speak for God, but notice their disclaimers. They use the terms "may come, might cause a food shortage, may cause a possible stock crash, et, et. If they speak FOR GOD, why not the terms; will happen, shall come, with dates included. The OT prophets predicted a 70 year captivity, and it came to pass. No hedging there. If 2000 comes, and we are still here and there was no MAJOR crisis; (at least one the Christian didn't cause by panic); will we denounce these prophets as false, and those who followed them as blind? No we will carry on as though it never happened, looking for the next "windmill" (crisis) to attack, for in this the Christian takes pleasure. We cannot understand the meaning of resting in the Lord. So all you doomsayer store your food, look for Antichrist, pull all your money out of banks, and hide in fear like scared rabbits. I intend to stand firm, and face whatever comes as other Christians have over the years. "For ye.......took joyfully the spoiling of your goods, knowing in yourselves that ye have in Heaven a better and an enduring substance........Now the just shall live by faith, but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition, but of them that believe......(Hebrews 10:34-39 KJV)Top of page Good Friday is the day some Christians have observed the crucifixion death and of Jesus. It is mostly observed in liturgical churches, the others (Baptist, Pentecostal, Word of Faith, Independent, house church) do not observe it, instead concentrating on Easter (Resurrection Day). This is sad, because you cannot have life without death. Jesus said unless a corn of wheat falls into the ground and dies it will be alone (John 12:24). It will produce life after it is buried. Jesus had to suffer and die to "bring forth" life in us. Let us pause on Good Friday and commemorate the fateful day some 2000 years ago, for it truly was a GOOD day! Just as there is no resurrection without death, so in our lives there is no spiritual life without death, death of self, will, and purpose. Paul said "It is not I that live, but Christ that lives within me" (Galatians 2:20). Think on this when you complain about your "hard times" as a "Kings kid"; when all your prosperity doctrines and claim-it formulas don't work and you are under duress and pressure from Satan. Think about the suffering of Christ, he is our example! To all, a blessed Good Friday, and a powerful Resurrection Sunday! JESUS IS ALIVE With war going on in Iraq, the question must be addressed on the Christians stance on war. Is war ever justified?, does God allow war? Didn't God order wars in the Bible? We must look at the message of the Gospel and separate it from political rhetoric and bias. We must also separate it from patriotism. Only then can we see truth unclouded by bias. I believe much of the wars and killing ascribed to God in the OT are the man's attempt to justify war and brutality. If you say "God ordered me to kill" then it becomes OK in your eyes. This is the driving force behind the Muslims "jihad" or holy war, as well as the Roman Catholics "liberation theology". Both these doctrines state war and killing are OK as long as the cause is just (I forgot the crusades and the abortion clinic bombings). I seriously doubt God ordered women, children and feeble to be slaughtered while possessing the promised land. I think these stories were embellished to "place" God on their side. Even if true, these wars were led BY GOD HIMSELF, the orders never came from man. The truth is that man is vile, evil and has been a murderer from Cain on. Man wars and kills because of lust and greed (James 4:1&2). When we war, we become judges of who should live and who should die. The rightness or wrongness of the issue is who has the largest, most powerful army. In Jesus day, a gang called zealots tried to rid Palestine of Romans by gorilla warfare, all in the name of Jehovah. Jesus didn't support them or endorse their cause, even though their cause against brutal Rome was just. He understood the greater call of the cross was to be a peace-maker. This stand caused him to be handed over to the Romans to win the release of Barabbas, a zealot. Men saw more value in a resistance fighter (Barabbas) than it a peacemaker (Jesus). Even today we revere war heroes and chide "objectors" as cowards. This goes on even in Churches and Christian circles! Today, we cannot, in good faith, call any war "just or good" knowing that people are killed, homes destroyed, and orphans produced. As Christians, we must be peacemakers and allow the world and it's systems to stand in the last judgment with blood on their hands. Our stand must be to be against all wars and brutality, even though in our minds we think it is right. Top of Page After the bombings and killings at Columbine H.S., we all are asking serious questions about violence, guns, and gun control. Where does the Christian stand on this issue? Two NT scriptures on weapon possession are Matt. 26:52 which states ".... for all who draw the sword will die by the sword" and Luke 22:36 in which Jesus tells the twelve to sell a cloak to buy a sword if they didn't have one. Others scriptures use the sword symbolically to show "fighting against evil. After examining the scriptures, it seems to plainly show that weapon possession for defensive use was permitted, but with ownership came the risk of perishing by the same type of weapon. This means the odds of being killed by a gun is greater for those who possess and brandish them during confrontations (See Peter in Matt 26:51-52!). Jesus seemed to imply to his followers he wouldn't always be with them to protect them from robbers or wild animals on their travels, so owning a sword would fit the bill for defensive purposes. Today, we must separate talk of 2nd amendment rights, political gun restrictions and get to a more spiritual question, how can our gun ownership and our vocal complaining tarnish our witness in society? As Christians, we are called to a higher moral law than the Constitution, it is God's law. This law states we should not use our freedom as a license to sin or to cause others to stumble. Our greater calling is to show Christ's love and be peacemakers in society. Even though we have a constitutional and scriptural right to possess a weapon for self-defense, we also have a responsibility to not appear "gun loving" or "militant". We should discreetly possess arms without calling attention to ourselves. I believe the scriptural guidelines are 1) allowing weapons for self-defense in your home or on your person (as long as you are legally licensed). 2) Making sure the responsibility of ownership is known. 3) Since these are defensive weapons, assault style, high capacity magazines are not needed, so banning or restricting them should not be opposed. 4) Owning too many firearms can be idolotry and it is a bondage that Christ can free you of. 5) Yielding our "rights" to others for the common good is what Christianity is all about, so waiting periods should not be opposed, since they can save lives. Top of page There is much teaching; some good, most bad on giving and the Bible. There is the "prosperity doctrine" that teaches tithe and give offerings and God will restore 100 to 1000 fold. There is the "end time wealth transfer" teaching that teaches if you tithe and give offerings, the money from the " wicked" will come to you. Let us not forget "buying" miracles or healings if you will only "plant a seed" to "move" God's hand. There is then the "normal" church teaching that God "requires" you to tithe 10% of your income (net or gross, it's debatable!) then God will "bless" you. Offerings are additional above the tithe. What troubles me is that NONE of these are NT teachings, and the tithing is NOT scripturally correct according to the OT. In the OT, there were three tithes: one for the priests, one for the poor and needy, and one for YOU to fund your trip to make yearly sacrifice at the temple in Jerusalem. This means that one-third of the tithe is for the pastor, one-third for the needy, and one-third is yours to keep to pay for your gas to drive you to church. Who does it this way??? (no one I know of, they would be dismissed!). Of course this is all how we SHOULD be tithing according to the OT laws in the bible that tell us how to tithe. And if we break the least to them, we break them all, so we MUST follow them exactly! The bottom line is Christ has redeemed us from the law. The NT is silent on tithing for the church because it doesn't apply!!! What applies is laying aside what God has placed in your heart, not grudgingly or of compulsion. This is to fund the care of widows and orphans, the feeding of the poor and spreading of the Gospel. Don't be deceived, give as much as God tells you to give, then use it for people, not buildings, salaries or new cars. If Jesus came into our churches, would he need a whip to drive our the thieves? You decide. Top of page The subject of divorce and the Christian is one that stirs up passion and emotions. One camp is against all divorce, stating that if you re-marry, you will live in a perpetual state of adultery. This camp doesn't allow church leaders (elders, pastors, deacons) to serve if they divorce, even if they never re-marry. The other camp sees nothing wrong with divorce. It is not unusual to see leaders who have been married 2 or 3 times. They counsel their members to leave if they are "unhappy, unfulfilled, or just feel this one is not the one God has for you. The Bible seems to be clear on some things; 1) Jesus said divorce wasn't meant to be from the beginning. 2) God through Moses allowed it because of men's hard hearts. 3) Jesus stated divorce was permitted in the case of adultery (Matt. 19:1-9). Paul added that If you are married to an unbeliever, and they leave, let them leave, the believing party is not bound to the marriage contract any longer. He goes on to state "Are you married, do not seek a divorce. Are you divorced, do not seek a wife. But IF YOU DO MARRY, YOU HAVE NOT SINNED........ (1 Cor. 7:12-15, 27-28). The Bible seems to say that marriage is a permanent, binding contract a man and woman make for life. This contract is to be for life, but it can be broken by adultery or abandonment. Under these conditions, one can biblically get a divorce or re-marry. For frivolous reasons as "I no longer love her", or "he wants children and I don't" or "I'm unhappy, unfulfilled, and just feel this one is not the one God has for me". These are unbiblical reasons and do not break the marriage contract in God's eyes even though it is in man's court. In any case, there is no such thing as a "perpetual state of adultery". If you divorce and re-marry for the wrong reasons, you can repent and find forgiveness. But remember that this carefree attitude and rebellion will cost you spiritually and may cost you a ministry or your reputation.Top of page Today, we are daily reading about our youth. Violence, crime, immorality, teen pregnancy and rebellion and disobedience are on the rise. We ask ourselves what is wrong and what is the answer. WE are the problem! We have allowed the worlds system with its "psychobabble" methods to instruct us on parenting. We use to use the Bible, and it's instructions to train, discipline and teach our children. We "spared not the rod" so we wouldn't spoil the child. We knew foolishness was bound in their hearts, and that same rod would drive it out. Now, we are told to stroke our children's egos, to pamper them and to "reason" with them as you would with an adult. We wonder why our children are self centered, lazy, rude, ill mannered and such. WE are the ones who let them leave the house going to school with pins in their noses and green dyed, mohawk hair. WE let our girls wear "hot pants" and short skirts, along with low cut blouses. We let them have dates over to our house and then let them go upstairs and close the door for hours. If we would exercise out parental rights, our kids would look, act and dress like normal children instead of freaks. Guns were always around, but we knew never to touch them. we feared the consequences of our actions. Today's youth have no fear, and with it no respect for authority. They go in their parents room and search for guns, money, et. We won't go in to their room to see what they are into because "we respect their privacy". As children, their rights are limited, that is unless we yield our parental rights and allow our children to rule us. We need to act like parents, and less like our children's friends. Lets see if we can raise a generation we can be proud of, and change this one that shames us. We can only do this if WE act as adults, and not like our kids!Top of page Recently, there was a article in the Atlanta Constitution about Christianity in the year 2000. It said there were thousands of denominations in the world, all claiming to have THE message of Christ. Each one claimed the Bible as it's source and truth it's basis. Each one had different methods of: 1) baptism, 2) communion, 3) salvation and different theology on 1) heaven, 2) hell, 3) Jesus, 4) the trinity, 5) the endtimes, et. You wonder who is right? Jesus said "upon this rock (the confession of Christ as the Son of God) I will build my church (singular). There is only one church, the body of Christ. In this one church, you do not join it, you are born into it. "Joining" a church is not biblical and should not be required. Pledging to tithe and attend faithfully is not scriptural and should not be required. Requiring attendance in Sunday school and bible study is not scriptural and should not be required. What if all Christians left denominations, and served Jesus in spirit and truth? Think of the money saved for the needy. Think of the unity and the witness to this world! We can only dream. "father, make them one as we are one so that the world may know you sent them" Top of page As I sit here and write this, the world is still here! Jesus hasn't come yet, Armageddon hasn't started, I haven't been ambushed by survivalist groups over sharing food, I want to share what we wrote one year ago: "As we enter 1999, I already see and hear the prophets of doom coming on the scene with dire predictions of the end of the world, and that y2k will usher in the "tribulation" of the end times. Sales of books, tapes and freeze dried food is in full gear. Sadly, even home Churches are caught up in this frenzy! IIt seems to me that the Christian world has rum amok with fear. With Y2K scaring the daylights (and faith) out of most, scenes of martyrdom in other countries scare the rest. Our gospel of faith has been replaced with one of fear. The reason we fear is that we are being told that year 2000 has a prophetical (or magical) meaning to the Christian, EVEN THOUGH THERE IS NO MENTION OF ANY SPECIAL SIGNIFICANCE ATTACHED TO THIS DATE IN ANY SCRIPTURE!!! Because we accept this without scriptural proof shows how gullible and ignorant we are of the scriptures. We are told of "generic" signs that point to Christ's return soon, so the manipulators put the two together. We have all heard of the "wars, rumors of war, persecution of Christians, earthquakes, and unrest in the middle east. The only problem is these signs could be applied to ANY AGE, ANY GENERATION!! There have always been war, earthquakes, and Christians have been killed since Nero's time on. The second reason we believe is that "prophets of God" are saying it. These pseudo holy men say they speak for God, but notice their disclaimers. They use the terms "may come, might cause a food shortage, may cause a possible stock crash, et. If they speak FOR GOD, why not the terms; will happen, shall come, with dates included. The OT prophets predicted a 70 year captivity, and it came to pass. No hedging there. If 2000 comes, and we are still here and there was no MAJOR crisis; (at least one the Christian didn't cause by panic); will we denounce these prophets as false, and those who followed them as blind? No we will carry on as though it never happened, looking for the next "windmill" (crisis) to attack, for in this the Christian takes pleasure. So all you doomsayer store your food, look for Antichrist, pull all your money out of banks, and hide in fear like scared rabbits. I intend to stand firm, and face whatever comes as other Christians have over the years. "For ye.......took joyfully the spoiling of your goods, knowing in yourselves that ye have in Heaven a better and an enduring substance........Now the just shall live by faith, but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him. But we are not of them who draw back unto perdition, but of them that believe......(Hebrews 10:34-39 KJV) ........ I remember Hal Lindsey's "The late great planet Earth" written in 1970 (thirty years ago) predicting the end soon ( in 1988!). I remember "88 reasons the rapture will occur in September 1988" (it didn't, but many quit jobs and sold homes expecting the end). I remember the next year the same author wrote "89 reasons the rapture will occur in September 1989" (it didn't then either!). I remember all the Babylon / Saddam Hussein / Antichrist books in the bookstores predicting the rebuilding of Babylon and the gulf war as the start of Armageddon. Last year we saw "year of jubilee" teachings, none of which came true. Did I forget "debt burning"?, and the "end-time wealth transfer"?. Excuse me if I have little faith in prophecy teachers and modern "prophets" who keep sliding their predictions along as decades pass along. I believe they teach the same warmed-over teaching the dispensationalists have been teaching with a mystical / fear driven slant. Fear sells, and Christians love to buy also. I think home churches especially should not buy into this frenzy and remember why we left traditional church. We should not be aligned with survivalists or fringe groups who want to run and hide. If the end comes, I meet Jesus. If hard times come, I still have Jesus. I think it is mostly overblown hype driven by fear and carnality. If you are a prophet, lets hear some specifics and stop hedging!" Enough said, now lets get on with proclaiming the good news of the Kingdom, and stop predicting foolishness! In the Bible, we are told that Judas betrayed Jesus for thirty pieces of silver. We as Christians tend to think of this as the ultimate sell-out. We despise Judas, and we ask "How could he betray the Lord?". This is the typical response from most of us, the "righteous response". I know, you ask, "How are we like Judas?, and how do we sell him out?". We sell him out every time we choose the world over Jesus. The Bible states "...friendship with the world is hatred toward God. Anyone who chooses to be a friend of the world becomes an enemy of God" (James 4:4, NIV). At least Judas received a large sum of money, we will do it for free. What do we get in exchange for quitting the practice of our faith because our mate doesn't want a "christian spouse", or we want to date a "unsaved" person. We as Christians betray the Lord every time we "backslide" or compromise our faith for worldy things. These can take the form of choosing adultery or unfaithfulness over Jesus, choosing dishonesty and deception at our business over Jesus, or choosing perversion, greed or lust over Jesus. Remember, both Judas and us have choices to make, be faithful and maybe suffer, or betray him for a temporary pleasure. So when Easter comes, and we hear the story of Judas and his betrayal of Jesus, please do not be to critical. Remember that we too can and do betray him, even though we know what his word says and what the consequences are. In some ways, Judas had an excuse. He didn't know Jesus was the messiah. He did hang himself in grief when this was revealed in his spirit. What is our excuse? As Easter approaches, it is plain to see that the resurrection of Jesus is becoming a passe event in modern American society. This used to be a time of reflection, reverence and awe as we as a society paused to acknowledge the Savior's suffering on Calvary, as well as His rising in power over sin. We always saw movies on Jesus, Mass and special services were broadcast on TV, and Christ was" in the air"so to speak. Today, the passion plays and stories are buried in the back of the religious page of the paper, the almost non-stop movies about Jesus during Holy week are disappearing and modern ministries shun Lent, Palm Sunday or any Holy Week reflection. We as a society are "offended" by the cross and by the name of Jesus. You see, Calvary and crucifixion speak of suffering, sacrifice and total commitment to the Lord. Today's society is built on "feel good" and "no suffering" and modern theology worships at the feet of the gods of prosperity and comfort. Here there is no room for the suffering of Calvary, hense no room for the resurrection. The Resurrection is THE focal point of our faith. In it death and Hell are conquered. This is the event that brings us eternal life. Paul said ... "it there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith" (1 Cor 15:13-14). If you reject the Gospel message, if you are backslidden, or a "carnal Christian", if you are an unbeliever, you reject the resurrection, take care that God doesn't reject you in the final judgment. In the Gospel of Luke 10:38-42, we are shown a illustration of two "kingdom workers", Mary and Martha. While Martha was busy cooking, cleaning and preparing things, Mary sat and listened to Jesus. Martha became angry at Mary, and told Jesus to scold her. Jesus responded in vs. 41 "Martha, Martha, .... you are upset about many things, but only one thing is needed. Mary has chosen what is better, ...". What Jesus was exposing was the "busy spirit" that is prevalent in most "Martha Christians". A Martha Christian subconsciously links staying busy with service to God. They feel as though idle time is evil, and rest is a ploy of Satan to keep us from evangelizing. Their day is micromanaged with Church duties first. I have known many "Martha's" on my Christian journey. They are always to busy to talk, never at home, never have time for vacations, picnics or social events, but they ALWAYS have time to be at a every Church service, even though they may be worn out physically. "Marthas' " confuse SERVICE TO GOD with SERVICE TO THE CHURCH! Pastors love "Marthas' " because they can extract the physical kingdom building out of them. "Marthas' must sacrifice the spiritual side of kingdom building, there isn't enough time for both. The road of spiritual burnout is littered with Martha Christians, those who became frustrated and angry with the "Mary Christians", those who realize man's kingdom building will wait for the kingdom to be built within! "Mary Christians" realize work has to be done, but only what the Lord has ordained. We (me included) "Marys'" have learned to stop running around looking like we are doing kingdom work, and just live out our faith in our daily life. Christianity is a expression of our daily lives, not a performance on Sunday. When man took God's NT community out of homes, and placed them in buildings, the emphasis went from the relaxed atmosphere of a living room to a building you have to dress up to go to, take time to clean, do extra chores at, serve on committees, counsels, boards and choirs, and split your family time with. No wonder we are stressed! The structure (buildings) create most of the "Martha Christian" today. NT community is a family, where fun and relaxation should rule. If "serving the Church" is wearing you out, causing you to be angry, bitter, resentful, or your spiritual life is being choked, if you feel guilty missing a service or not tithing, or if your relationships at home are suffering, if your children think you love Church more than them (because you spend more time there than with them), GET OFF THE MARTHA TREADMILL! The Royal law vs. biblical laws, which do we obey? When we look at the christian faith, we tend to see it as a journey of obeying rules. We have the 10 commandments, the teachings of Jesus, Paul, and the other Apostles. We also have the rules of our individual churches or denominations to also keep. Which rules are mandatory to go to heaven, which are "minor", and which can we get by with? Most christians don't realize that ALL the rules are summed up in what James called "the royal law", that is to love God and love your neighbor as yourself". Legalism is keeping rules because God told you you would go to hell if you didn't, the royal law teaches that you willingly follow the teachings of God because you want to. Paul wrote in Galatians that Christ has freed us from the yoke of slavery to the law. It is a yoke to try to keep rules, it is freedom to obey the Holy Spirit within out of a willing heart. True freedom won't use freedom as an excuse to sin, and it won't look for "outs". True freedom will produce the most pure holy life in a person. Rules produce pharisees. Do you keep the laws of the bible and your church, or the royal law of love? Today, we live in a society that lacks commitment or work ethic toward any cause or situation. We as a people look for an easy, quick and painless way out, whether by compromise, fraud or cowardice, of our hardships in life. We also are a people without principal or values, cheating and distorting truth when it is to our advantage. Sadly, many christians are adopting this same philosophy. They would rather be shaky, less than honest and undependable than to commit to the way of the cross, with it' demands for integrity, honesty, compassion and total commitment to the Gospel. Christians flock to "teachers" who lift their "self esteem", promise them riches are God's will and tell them "we all are sinners saved by grace, God understands your failed lives". They tell us that God is like a "daddy" who doesn't expect anything from us except to "rest, love and be at peace". All this while we live morally shady lives, defraud our brother, lie, cheat and steal to move up the social and corporate ladders of life. The benchmark of the christian is commitment and integrity to Christ and His word in the face of overwhelming stress, pressure and tests of life. As John Starns sang, "Weep your tears for others, we don't need your sorrow, we're held by a mighty hand, a hand that holds tomorrow. We have stood through every test, and every situation, we'll stand on His mighty word, a mighty firm foundation....Don't give up on a child of God, he'll be there when the battle is over, he will make it through the storms, find his way in the darkest hour, don't give up on a child of God, he's the one who God is leading, don't give up, don't give up on a child of God" Remember, the benchmark of the christian is standing up under duress with their character and commitment intact. Contending for the Center In any movement, there is a “pendulum effect" that inevitability takes place. When a movement begins, the swing tends to go towards one extreme then swings all the way toward the other. With each successive swing, the extremes are less and less, until finally the pendulum hangs directly in the center. This is the point of balance and stability. In a Christian movement, this is where the Lord will be found, balanced between two extremes. The house church movement; I believe; is swinging to both extremes, attempting to find the "center" where God’s will is. In one camp is the isolationist, who tends to link mass gatherings and fellowship with others, known as outsiders, as a sign of submitting to the spirit of anti-Christ. They are always mistrusting of leadership of any sort, they are usually anti-government and attractive to survivalists. These ran amok during y2k with their doomsday predictions, food storage, gun and ammo stockpiling and run for the hills mentality. They tend to be legalistic, dogmatic and revolve around a strong willed prophet. They also tend to relegate women to lesser roles in the assemblies. On the other side is the nominal HC adherent. These have the attitude that whether you go to a house church or institutional church, it doesn’t really matter. They believe there are multiple choices in the Kingdom of God, and it doesn’t matter if you call yourself a pastor, elder, priest, bishop or pope. That you worship in a house, a cathedral, or a synagogue in irrelevant, to each his own. To them, the idea of ekklesia and brotherhood are abstract concepts that any modern church can provide, just choose your flavor. They argue the form isn’t important, only that we go somewhere. They have little knowledge or they do not care about the false doctrines of Clergy / Laity, the CEO leader, the misuse of the priesthood of all believers, and stifling of each one’s Spiritual gifting. I submit that if we as a "movement", and I use that term only for observation sake, are going to convince the masses that the small ekklesia is the normal NT church, we must find the Biblical center and homestead there. We also must reject the extremes on both sides and embrace the unity of the faith spoken of in the Bible. We must project JESUS to the world, not weirdness, anger or division. We are not "selling home church", we are witnessing Christ. I feel we can accomplish this (find the center) with these five points: 1) Our teaching and doctrines must be grounded in scripture, irrefutable and with the purpose of building up each other, not causing controversy. We as teachers cannot afford to bring in our denominational bias into our teaching. Example: Baptists are associated with eternal security and prohibitions on women leading or teaching as well as emersion baptism and secession of spiritual gifts. Church of Christ with no musical instruments and baptismal salvation. Pentecostals with speaking in tongues and the ability to backslide and legalistic dress code. Word of Faith with the prosperity teaching, name-it-and-claim-it theology and falling out laughing. Reformed with predestination and infant baptism by sprinkling. Others are KJV only, Jesus only, et. Whatever group we were saved (or discipled) under usually will determine our theological anchor 2) City wide or regional gatherings are not evil or sinful, and help “put a face” on this movement and the brethren involved with it. These should be supported, and increased in number. These gatherings must be for building up each other, not doctrinal debates or tearing each other down. No man is an island; we gain strength from fellowship with each other. It is encouraging to know that we aren’t alone in this journey. Networking allows us to “know those labor among us” so we can have a support base if needed. These should be advertised in the religious section of the local paper. Quarterly gatherings should be a norm. 3) The voices of extremism on both sides must not become our spokes-people, but must yield to a consensus in the middle. Those who speak for a group paint a picture to the uninformed that becomes the image or identity of the group, negative or positive. It seems the most published HC authors tend to have some extreme views. To the public, this is seen as the norm of the HC belief system. Is this the view we want to give those we are trying to disciple? Who but the angry, the discontented and the unstable will want to come and join our ranks? 4) We need to write and submit articles to Christian periodicals that show and promote the HC concept. We need to show that our theology is mainstream. We need exposure in the christian world so the HC can be seen as a mainstream christian movement, faithful to the NT text and practice. I wrote an article for Ministries Today magazine, and they eagerly published it, even I had never submitted an article before. I see a lack of articles about the HC in mainstream christian magazines; i.e. Christianity Today or Charisma. We have great authors and writers, and most christians don’t know we exist. Had you ever heard of a house church until you became involved? Why don’t we dialogue our thoughts publicly? We end up “preaching to the choir”, when our message needs to be heard in mainstream institutional church. 5) We should encourage networking and cataloging of fellowships so that new converts can be pointed to an ekklesia near them. Frustration in locating a HC will discourage the seeker. HC Central, housechurch.org and House2House are doing a great job in listing known HC locations. We need all who home church to list with these brethren so a comprehensive listing will be present. Submitted in love, Should a christian always support Israel? As Israel stand on the brink of all out war in Palestine, I have reflected on what I was taught as a young christian. I was told to always blindly support Israel whenever war or fighting breaks out. I was taught that Israel and the Jews were God’s chosen people, and God would judge anyone who opposed them. This was based on the Bible passages of Genesis12:3 where God told Abram that “He would bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse” and Psalms 122:7, which tells us to “pray for the peace of Jerusalem! "May they prosper who love you” I now realize I was taught an unbiblical truth. Any honest study of the scriptures will show you three things: 1) The OT was a covenant of flesh and works, the NT one of faith and grace. We can no more pull OT "promises" out to use under the NT, than we can use the Magna Carta to append our Constitution. This is why the physical seed and spiritual seed of Abraham do not share the same blessings. Abraham’s offspring, Issac and Ishmael, are both promised to be great nations. Today both Jews and Arabs, the descendants of Abraham are blessed with abundant wealth but lack any true spirituality. The church is the spiritual seed of Abraham, and we see our wealth in NT attributes of faith and spirituality even if we are physically poor. 2) If God had an irrevocable pact to always protect and keep Israel, why did He (God) allow the temple to be destroyed, the Jew scattered, and constant hardship to follow "His chosen" for the last 2000 years? Could it be because the heralding in of the NT had to come at the expense of the old? All the OT symbols, i.e. the Temple, the Priesthood, the animal sacrifices had to cease. Jesus Christ became to both Jew and Gentile the Door to God. He was the Temple, the sacrifice and the priesthood. This is why there will never be another temple built. God has closed the door on that way. You come through Jesus totally or you are not His. 3) Which brings us to #3. The mixing of symbolic and literal symbols when interpreting scripture. Many see The Revelation as a series of literal events. They say there must be a temple rebuilt in literal Israel, Jesus will come to sit on a literal throne ruling over a kingdom of humans and resurrected spirit-beings on earth. Half will need food, the others won’t. The humans will have wives and families, the resurrected spirit-beings can't have wives, for they will be like angels. This sounds like Hollywood sci-fi, not the word of God. Jesus tried to use physical events to teach spiritual reality, but his disciples only saw naturally as we do. They asked Him when he would set up his kingdom, and could they rule with him. On the cross, when Jesus cried out "Eloi. Eloi", they thought that he called for Elijah, believing the traditional teaching of the day that Elijah would come to protect the innocent. They did not understand the words that Jesus taught them for the last 3 years that He had to die and rise to conquer sin and death. Jesus taught a spiritual Kingdom, a spiritual new Jerusalem (as John saw in Revelation), a spiritual temple, and a spiritual people dwelling with God forever. Today, in God’s New Covenant, Israel and the Jewish people are no better or worse that anyone else. They have no special door to Heaven. They must come the way of the cross as we (non-Jews) do. Israel has been cut off many times in the past for her rebellion, her disobedience and rejection of God’s prophets. The fact is, they had Jesus their messiah killed, telling Pilate "let his blood be on our hands, and on our children". (Matt. 27:25) The blood is indeed on their hands for today, Israel is a secular state. The Holy sites are there only to make money from tourists, not because they think they are Holy. Islam has more reverence for Jesus and His words than the Jewish people. Israel was given their land in 1948 by the UN mandate, not God, and has been trying to evict those who were there before them. It is true that you cannot allow terrorists to terrorize a people, but just as we in America did not hold ALL muslims to blame for Sept. 11, 2001, Israel cannot justify persecuting ALL Palestinian people for the suicide bombings, or justify seizing their land. Co-existence must happen. Christian, remember this, not all Palestinians are muslim or terrorists. Some are christian, most are peaceful, and just desire a home. They do have proper grievances that need to addressed. Are we as christians going to side with a Christ rejecting country when they shoot down christians or children? Are you comfortable praying for and siding with Israel right or wrong? You must decide if you are. I choose to pray for peace and against violence from both sides. A strip of land is not worth all this bloodshed. Over the two thousand or so years of the church's history, the debate over the positions of Armeniaism, that one can forfeit their salvation, and Calvinism, that one can never lose their salvation has raged on and on. This is a most important question, one that either keeps millions in fear of losing their soul needlessly, or one that had damned millions to Hell, all while telling them they were saved. Without re-hashing all the theological history, I would like to appeal to you to look at the Bible plainly, without "theologically slanted glasses" and ponder these points. 1) Life IS eternal for the saved and the lost. The soul of man will never cease to be. This in no way violates where that soul goes after physical death. 2) Man IS a freewill agent, made by God that way. He (they) have the ability to choose right or wrong, choose God or Satan, choose sin or salvation. In Deut. 28, God told Israel "I set before you life and death, blessings and curses, choose life". The choice is ours! 3) If man could never lose salvation, why would the NT warn us of the dangers of; "falling away", "departing from the faith", "a pig that was once washed wallowing again in the mire", "having one's name blotted out of the Book of Life" or "if you do these things, you will never fall"? 4) Did the Bible lie in 1 Cor. 6:9 when it gave a list of those who would not inherit heaven? What about those that bore the fruit of salvation for many years, yet died in the sins of that scripture? To sum up this writers belief, God provides eternal life to all. To the faithful believer, it is in Heaven. To the rejecter or the backslider, it is in Hell. For the doctrine of eternal security to work, man must be saved in spite of his will. He cannot reject God, his sin and sinful lifestyle will be ignored, and all the profane living cannot void out his "ticket to Heaven". The Bible fully declared God's mind from the beginning. Obedience brings blessings, disobedience brings judgement. Ask Moses and the children of Israel who never entered the land promised by God because of their sin. Ask Israel and Judah who entered captivity and slavery because of disobedience. And ask David, who knew enough of God's mind to pray in Psalms 51 that God "not take the Holy Spirit from him" and for his enemies in Psalms 69 to "blot them out of the book of life". No, the only eternal security in the hands of the Father. No man can pluck us out of His hand, but we can remove ourself. Remember the words of Jesus, "he that endures to the end, the same shall be saved". The only place in the Gospels where Jesus gets angry and is
moved to violence is in the story of him entering the Temple area
with a whip and overthrowing the moneychangers tables and the table of
those who sold sacrifices (turtledoves). What made Jesus so mad? It was the visual effect of seeing the
Holy Temple desecrated by those who desired to make money off the
Gospel. Jesus said they turned His Father's house into "a den of thieves". In the 16th century, German Monk Johann Tezel started the practice of selling indulgences. These were "pardons from Purgatory" that the relatives of departed loved ones could buy, thus 'delivering' (in their mind) the loved one from the underworld. Tezel had a saying "As soon a coin in coffer rings, the soul from purgatory springs", thus promising for money that which he could not deliver. Today, indulgences are still being sold but it is not the Catholic church selling
them. The Pentecostal / Charismatic / Word Faith church is the dealer. They aren't
called indulgences, but "seed". They don't deliver from Purgatory, but
from poverty, demons, sickness, depression and dispair. Watch
any christian TV network and soon they will be on, asking you to
"prayerfully sow a generous seed" so "God can release miracle working
power into your life". The Profits (pun intended) of this message are
rich men and women who have merchandised the Gospel and have turned it
into million dollar lifestyles complete with boats, luxury cars and mansions. "Are you comfortable in your skin?" It amazes me how much time, money and effort we humans put into being someone we are not. If we are thin, we want to be heavier. If we are heavy, we want to be thin. If we are young, we want to appear old. If we are old, we want to appear young. Fitness clubs, dyes, plastic surgery, middle age people wearing teen clothes, it almost is too much to handle. Mothers and daughters compete for the same men. Men abandon the mother of their children for a "new model" because it is the 'in' thing to do. Botox, tummy tucks, weaves, extensions, agmentations......have we gone mad? Why don't we just embrace where we are in life? Why can't we be comfortable with who we are? 21st century Americans have an identity crisis going on. They want to be someone besides themselves. When I was a child, I didn't want mom running around in hot pants. I didn't want dad to act like my peer. I wanted role models, mature parents who could guide me.
Proverbs 20:29 "The glory of young men is their strength: and the beauty of old men is the gray head"
Paul wrote "When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish thing" (1 Cor 13:11)
What he was saying is that children should play, be irresponsible and live a fantasy life, but not adults.
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What is your opinion? email them to me at jeff@bbmin.org Jeff |