June 9, 2008 by Administrator.

Not too long ago, a lost gentleman came to me and said,

“Do you know who I saw having lunch together?”

Of course I replied by saying that I didn’t know. He named a certain man and woman. Both of these people profess to be Christians and are married to different individuals. Then this lost gentleman asked me,

“No one was there with them. Now how does that look?”

My mind immediately went to the verse, which says, “Avoid the very appearance of evil.” I did not want to concede to his point, so I tried to defend their reputation and morality by saying,

“I know… I’m absolutely sure that there is nothing going on.”

Then he replied to me by saying,

“And I agree! I would bet one million dollars that nothing is going on. But how does it look?”

I glanced down, nodded my head, and pressed my gently clenched fist against my lips. Then leaning back, I looked up and met his eyes and said,

“You’re right.” 

It does not take a follower of Christ to know what the appearance of evil is. The smallest of things (that could be perceived as evil) can have very detrimental effects on the testimony of a Christian. We must take care to guard ourselves. Sometimes it can be disturbing to know that the world is always watching for something with which to tear down a Christian’s reputation. I say this not only for you, but also myself. We must be mindful of our surroundings so that we are not placing ourselves in the very appearance of evil. More than just our reputation is on the line… it’s Christ’s.

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April 19, 2008 by Administrator.

“So we must listen very carefully to the truth we have heard, or we may drift away from it.” Hebrews 2:1 NLT 

As Christians, we are all in danger of being deceived by false teachers or chasing after the things of the world. We are advised by the writer of Hebrews to intently listen to the truth we have heard in God’s Word. I particularly like the implications of the word “drift” in this verse. This kind of drifting is like a ship without an anchor. It will be gently pushed by the waves away from where it began. Before long, the wind will howl and the torrential rains will pour. The ship will be surrounded by a thick darkness. The world’s influences will crash on us eagerly trying to capsize our witness for Christ. The fury of Satan will do all it can to overcome us. Without an anchor in Christ and His Word, we as Christians will drift into the tempestuously evil sea of the world. If we do not regard God’s Word as the infallible truth, then what do we have? Each person will do what is right in his own eyes. We cannot lean on our own understanding, but must see all things through the pages of God’s Word. If we do not heed the Truth, we will find ourselves far from where we ever expected to be.

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March 5, 2008 by Administrator.

It is really a shame that so many “Christian” churches have completely forgotten, or purposely forgotten, to inform the lost about their eternal punishment to come. It seems that they are intentionally ignoring this doctrine because it seems harsh and can be a turn off to unbelievers. Of course this should be preached lovingly, not with hatred. Instead of trying to compassionately tell people the truth, many groups are altogether throwing out any mention of it. Unbelievers are warned not to sin, but they are never told what will happen to them after death. The wages of sin is death… eternal death. There will only be weeping, pain, sorrow, anguish, and torment for those who die in their sins separated from Christ. John MacArthur very bluntly describes with Scripture what is to come for the lost after death:

“The punishment of the wicked is never ending as the bliss of the righteous. The wicked are not given a second chance, nor are they annihilated. The punishment of the wicked dead is described throughout Scripture as ‘eternal fire’ (Mt 25:41); ‘unquenchable fire’ (Mt 3:12); ‘disgrace and everlasting contempt’ (Da 12:2); a place where ‘their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched’ (Mk 9:44-49); a place of ‘torments’ and ‘flame’ (Lk 16:23-24); ‘eternal destruction’ (2Th 1:9); a place of torment with ‘fire and brimstone’ where ‘the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever’ (Rev 14:10-11); and a ‘lake of fire, and brimstone’ (Rev20:10). Here Jesus indicates that the punishment itself is everlasting—not merely the smoke and flames. The wicked are forever subject to the fury and the wrath of God. They consciously suffer shame and contempt and the assaults of an accusing conscience—along with the fiery wrath of an offended deity—for all of eternity. Even hell will acknowledge the perfect justice of God (Ps 76:10); those who are there will know that their punishment is just and that they alone are to blame (cf. Dt 32:3-5).”

How do you think your church congregation would respond if they were to hear “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” by Jonathan Edwards this Sunday morning? Let’s not assume that God is infinitely patient. He is love, but He is also justice. Though this doctrine is becoming more and more unpopular, it is still real as ever. Let’s never be accused of only preaching half truths. We are born depraved, incapable of doing good. Only Christ can save us from our sins and the jaws of Sheol.

Posted in Church, Today's World, Doctrine | 7 Comments »

January 12, 2008 by Administrator.

This post has been kind of hard for me to type out. I’ve known all week that I wanted to go over the topic of gluttony, but it’s been difficult to flesh out. Perhaps it is because I deal with it first-hand in my life. This past Monday I realized that I was a glutton. Most of the things I shouldn’t do excessively, I do. The things I need to do more of, I don’t. I think my whole life I have ignored the fact that gluttony is a sin. I have over-eaten, I have over-slept, I have spent money frivolously, I have worked greedily to earn more, and I have put aside too much time for me. Not only this, but I cannot recall I time I was sorrowful for being gluttonous. I’ve looked back and said, “Man, I shouldn’t have bought all this junk.” I’ve also said, “I shouldn’t have eaten so much.” But was I ever repentant? I can’t say that I ever was. Our culture believes that we cannot have enough of anything: Our houses aren’t big enough, our closets aren’t full enough, our cars aren’t nice enough, our salaries aren’t high enough, our plates aren’t big enough, and our lives just aren’t good enough. As sinners, we crave more of what feeds our flesh, even to the point of gluttony.

The portrait above of Henry VIII is truly the epitome of gluttony. Observe that his clothes, his jewels, his size, and the room in which he stands are all examples of excess. Do we as Christians read the Word of God excessively or pray without ceasing? Or are we greedily desiring the things that Henry VIII flaunts: riches, power, and materialism all inside a palace.

If we have food and covering, with these we shall be content. ~ 1 Timothy 6:8

He who keeps the law is a discerning son, but he who is a companion of gluttons humiliates his father. ~ Proverbs 28:7

A faithful man will abound with blessings, but he who makes haste to be rich will not go unpunished. ~ Proverbs 28:20

“A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest,” then your poverty will come as a robber and your want like an armed man. ~ Proverbs 24:33-34

For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. ~ Luke 12:12

Posted in Christian Living, Today's World, Biblical Study | 2 Comments »

October 18, 2007 by Administrator.

Is self-esteem Scriptural? I have been rolling this question around in my head for the past few weeks. There is a difference in pride and self-esteem, but where is the line? I believe the media would explain these two terms in this manner:

Self-esteem is to be happy with who you are and be self-confident. We are to love ourselves and meet our intra-personal needs. Giving “time out” for yourself, centering your life, and having independence are steps towards self-esteem. However, being prideful is to be arrogant, narcissistic, egotistical, and vain.

Self-esteem seems to be a watered down version of pride. Should not Christians place their confidence in Christ? Should not our independence be lost in our slavery to Jesus? Should we be dependent on ourselves or live a life by faith? I’m not suggesting that we hate ourselves, but rather die daily. I welcome your thoughts on this topic. Is self-esteem Scriptural? If yes, where is the line between it and pride?

…and rest your hope fully upon the grace that is to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ; as obedient children, not conforming yourselves to the former lusts, as in your ignorance ~ 1 Peter 1:13b-14

Posted in Biblical Thoughts, Today's World | 3 Comments »

September 20, 2007 by Administrator.

Day by day, I hear the phrase, “I love him”, “I love her”, or “I love you”. Yet, when I hear these sayings from various people and consider the situation, I begin to doubt the meaning of “love”. It appears to me that the word “love” has a very warped view from the meaning it is given in Scripture. The word is very abused. I think as Americans, we have a selfish meaning for it. It seems that we “love” someone when it benefits us in some way. We believe that some individual makes us happy. We desire the companionship of others for a number of reasons. A few of them are happiness, affection, and loneliness. For these three basic things, the motive behind each one is selfishness. We think that he/she will make us happy. We want their affection. We don’t want to be lonely. Did Christ love us because of what He could receive in return? If He had… no one would have been saved by His blood. Christ’s love was the purest act of unselfishness. He died for us when the masses hated Him and His disciples deserted, denied, and betrayed Him. Was Jesus getting anything in return for His love? Was He getting happiness, affection, and the satisfaction of not being alone? It says in 1 Corinthians, “love is not self-seeking.” As followers of Christ, we have the example of how to live a life with love. There is no greater love for one, than when someone lays down his life for his friends. I believe this verse is saying that unselfishness is the key. Would someone die for another if his or her ulterior motive was selfishness? I really don’t think so. The next time you go to say, “I love you”, are you meaning it the Biblical or American way? The meaning of love is found in Christ Jesus.

Posted in Biblical Thoughts, Today's World | 1 Comment »

September 11, 2007 by Administrator.

I still see Christians being plagued by the condmenation, “judge not”. Even though I posted on this several months ago, I feel the need to refresh this topic.

We are all quite familiar with the verse “Judge not, lest ye be judged” in Matthew 7. Sadly, this verse has become a modern secular tool against Christianity. Claiming Christians and non-Christians alike use this verse to quiet the voices of any who try to condemn sin. This verse has been completely distorted for the individual moral convictions of whoever uses it. People will deliberately overlook countless Scriptures where God makes declarations of His hate for certain sins. Instead, “Christians” and the unsaved use this verse to dismantle other Christians for condemning sins that they don’t feel should be judged. Of course, we are to show love. But Christ has not called us to be so loving to the world that we disregard anything they do. God loved the children of Israel, but He would not sit back and tolerate their sinful, rebellious acts. Am I expected by the Lord to be tolerant? Proverbs 8:13 says that the fear of the Lord is to hate evil. How do these conforming individuals explain verses like these? I understand that I should not judge others of their faults if I am too struggling hard with it myself. Yet, the fact of the matter is that we are not called, as followers of Christ, to make others feel comfortable in their sin. The Word of God is full of convicting messages. The Holy Spirit used those same convicting pages to draw me to Himself. If you don’t want people to feel convicted or guilty for their actions, then you are showing that you don’t want others to condemn you for your own actions. When people use this verse in defense of sin, they are really saying, “Tolerate, lest ye be not tolerated.” 

Posted in Church, Biblical Thoughts, Today's World, Christian Applications | 1 Comment »

September 3, 2007 by Administrator.

Sadly, there is a widespread inflation across American churches. Many churches keep unrealistic, dishonest numbers about their church membership/enrollment. I scratch my head every time I hear of a church having 1,000 members, but only 400 show up every Sunday morning. At the Sunday night service they’ll have 175 on average. Oh, and let’s not even talk about the Wednesday evening service. Why keep “members” on the list when they haven’t showed up in over two years? Quite frankly, it’s dishonest to have inflated memberships numbers of people who are no longer in the church or have gone somewhere else but haven’t informed the church. I remember listening to an elderly woman at a local church who helped in recording the Sunday School attendance. Their church’s goal was to surpass an enrollment of 500 for Sunday School. Currently their attendance was in the 300’s, but their enrollment was in 400’s. She suggested to the other volunteers that the enrolled people who haven’t attended in years be removed. That way the church would have more true numbers. However, the other members grew angry and accused her of trying to hinder the church from reaching its goal. But her point was that the church should have a true, accurate enrollment. She was also accused of shutting the “un-attenders” out from the gospel if they removed their names. I remember this woman being very troubled about her church’s goal at that time. What was their priority? Was it to reach the lost or to reach 500? Was it to reach the goal honestly or just to reach 500 on inflated records? I myself have heard of church leaders saying that by removing “un-attenders” from membership would be like shutting the door of salvation in their face. This was quite absurd. Strangely, no attempt was being made to bring back these un-attenders, but heaven-forbid you remove them from the church membership. They might be condemned to hell if God tells them at the throne that their membership had expired at Abilene Church of God. Is it dishonest to keep inflated numbers on the church records? Is it dishonest to tell your investors that your business makes more revenue than it really does? Is it dishonest to tell your boss that you completed more tasks than you really have? Is it dishonest to keep inflated records in the church? On second thought, I wouldn’t say it’s dishonest, I would say that it’s a lie.

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August 29, 2007 by Administrator.

I would love to have a buck for every time I have heard the phrase, “proof’s in the pudding.” Unfortunately, this phrase is used out of place in churches across the nation. Members have the mentality that if it works, do it. They think the end result justifies the means. When Christians use this phrase they are really saying, “If you have to change your worship style to get more people to come, do it. If you have to have a pizza party with football and floats for the youth to come, do it. If you have to show movie clips in the sermon to get the congregation more interested, do it. If you have to remove your denomination affiliation (such as Methodist, Baptist, Church of God, etc.) to get more people in the door, do it. If you have to have a gym, track, game field, and café to get people to stay in the church, do it. If all or some of these things increase your membership, then that proves it; proof’s in the puddin’!” 

This phrase covers so many flawed ideas about the church. Church folk will approve nearly any church program if it gets more people to come inside. Sadly, they mistake this for God. They believe that God produces every numerical result in the church. They forget that Satan can produce results too (Exodus 7:11; 7:22; 8:7;). The churches that are caught up with being the big one on the block have lost focus on the Bible. There is no drive for holiness or godliness, just “bigness”. Yes, they may have discipleship programs and evangelism programs, but there is a starvation for truth and absolutes. Scripture is that, but it’s on the backburner. They’ll get a large crowd by having a 15 minute devotion after the Slam-Dunk competition. Is this spiritual growth? Is this holiness? While the church is making the pudding (church) taste right to the customers, they are putting a teaspoon of Jesus in it with a quart of cultural entertainments. I fear that many church members and leaders envision their church as the next Saddleback Church. They want it so bad; they can almost taste the goodness of the pudding. What is the church next-door doing? If it’s getting more visitors than your own youth leader shaving his head for 500 kids, then do it, because it must work. I think there is poison in this pudding and not proof of God’s hand. 

Posted in Church, Today's World | 1 Comment »

July 25, 2007 by Administrator.

Yesterday morning I was listening to Bryan Chappell speak to a group of us men about the necessity of grace in preaching. A gentleman asked how pastors ought to preach to a legalistic congregation. Dr. Chappell described legalism as “human idolatry”. Indeed he was right. Man seeks to create laws that he can attain, accomplish, and pride himself in. Though none of these laws can be found in Scripture, man wants to better himself by being able to live, worship, and obey a strict set of guidelines. God has called us to be holy. King James might command us to use the KJV Bible, but Christ hasn’t. Man demands a certain haircut, a specific version, proper habits, and a code of attire. Man wants to be able to have God’s favor based on his own works. This is impossible! By grace we have been saved through faith. And by whose grace? By the grace of God, not of works that we should boast. Is God going to commend people for keeping up man-made, unscriptural rules? Is God going to commend people for adding to the commandments that He has already given us (Revlelation 22:18-19)? It is human idolatry to make up man-made rules. Why? Man is feeding his pride that he is able to keep these rules. Man can glory in himself for accomplishing these things. Even a lost man can keep his hair short, carry a black KJV Bible, wear the right clothes, and attend church faithfully. But the commandments of God are beyond our ability to keep on our own. Don’t legalize the Bible. Take what He has given us and give Him all the credit for any good that we might do. Our best is like filthy rags. 

Posted in Today's World, Christian Applications | 6 Comments »

July 18, 2007 by Administrator.

“But those who want to get rich fall into temptation and a snare and many foolish and harmful desires which plunge men into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all sorts of evil, and some by longing for it have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs. But flee from these things, you man of God, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, perseverance and gentleness.” ~ 1 Timothy 6:9-11 NASB    

This passage is powerful. Living in a materialistic culture feeds the desire for more of something that doesn’t bring happiness. It’s easy to become focused on the overtime you put in and how much money that will bring home. It’s easy to dream of getting rich quick. The pursuit of money is a root to all sorts of evil. Why do we lust after something that is lifeless and worthless? Should Christians pursue worldly success or spiritual advancement? Every Christian has two questions they can ask themselves that could be a turning point in their walk:    

1.       Do I want to live a routine life for God? We can get up every day, have a quick quiet time, go to work, balance our checkbooks, spend loads, and pay bills. This equates to a normal life in our society. We buy new things, save for new things, and look for new things. Our thoughts are focused on what we don’t have and what we plan to get.    

2.      Or do I want to pursue godliness? I have met godly people and not one of them was preoccupied with money. They worked hard and put in overtime, but it wasn’t for money. Should we seek new jobs for more money or because God wants us to? Temptations and snares infiltrate the lives of those who desire to be rich plunging them into destruction and ruin (possibly even financial ruin).    

My thought life has been enslaved in the past to the pursuit of money. Yet, I hear the voice of God asking me, “Is that what you want to live for?” We have so little time to serve God in this sinful world. Should we waste away our lives on earth for success among men? By seeking worldly gain, we are switching sides on God. We leave Him and join the opposing side. Don’t fill your life with grief over money. Seek the things that we Christians have been commanded to: godliness, faith, love, perseverance, and gentleness. It is our honor, privilege, and duty as followers of Christ to pursue these things and flee from the love of money.

Posted in Christian Living, Today's World | 1 Comment »

July 10, 2007 by Administrator.

There is an excellent article on Dead Theologians which exposes the heresy in today’s world. The article is entitled, “The Arch-Heretic Speaks”, and is referring to Pope Benedict. Please read and see the current attacks that plague us Protestants from the Roman Catholic Church. For more information on the Roman Catholic Church, feel free to visit the very informative, truthfully-confrontational blog called Papal Bull.   

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