Thursday, November 29, 2012

What is being "Slain in the Spirit"?

Over the past few months, I've written about 90 articles and God has put the brakes on all but a very few of them.  Sometimes I get caught up in the moment and write about the "Issue Du jour".  I'm sure you can relate...

Today's issue I write with confidence that I'm supposed to be writing it!

As most of you are aware, one of the things that we discuss on the radio show and in my book, are Unbiblical Practices.  We discuss them, not because we want to "pick on" anyone, but to try and warn you and educate you, in order to save you the trouble of having to correct false teachings that can creep their way into your walk.

Over the last 3 years, I've been "interviewing" local churches in order to find one to become a part of.  Being primarily involved with Discipleship/Discernment Ministry work, I can't help but believe that I need a really good, solid, Biblically grounded and Doctrinally accurate church to send new believers to.  Suffice it to say, I CAN'T FIND ONE.

This week, after lots of research, I visited a new church.  I have several people telling me to call these churches out by name, but I don't feel lead to do so at this time.

If you've ever been to a church or have seen a video of people "falling over" as a Pastor prays over them, then you already know what the basis for this article is.  If not, take a look at this YouTube video HERE.  The narrator starts off kind of weak, but if you can get past the first 30 seconds or so, he does give an EXCELLENT teaching about the UNBIBLICAL nature of this phenomenon, complete with the twisted-scriptures used to justify this behavior.

So what is being "Slain in the Spirit"?  Just another make believe, made up thing, that someone put together in order to be able to distinguish themselves from another church.

It looks like one day I'm going to have to do a follow-up to Show 4 - Unbiblical Christianity.

Tuesday, October 9, 2012

Pastoral Position Wanted:

About 2 years ago, I heard the Shofar "blow the call", that God wanted me to serve Him as a Pastor.

For the past 2 years, I have (from time to time) explored different opportunities and listened to the experiences of some of my Pastoral acquaintances.

What you and I might think would be the requirements of a Pastor, don't really seem to blend too well with the people who are looking for the Pastors.  

Allow me to give you an example of what they want:

Wanted: Married man with excellent people skills, needs to oversee, plan, manage and otherwise be responsible for everything, up to and including wedding services, corporate prayer, outreach ministry, hospital ministry, street teams, funerals, and bingo on Sunday.

Applicant must have a minimum of 7 years experience in all the required areas and be willing to relocate without any promise of being hired.

Now if that doesn't sound daunting enough, here's what they don't tell you:

Applicant must be willing to be ruled by a board of directors, who will guide the Pastors every move, every thought and every breath.  Adherence to board mandates will outweigh all other responsibilities, including self, family, congregation, the Bible and any other communication from God Himself.  Inability to do what the board says will result in your immediate dismissal.

Now i'll agree that the example above is a SLIGHT exaggeration, but this problem (from what I've gathered so far) appears to be chronic!

You know, the Bible is full of "models".  A model is an example of either a foreshadowing or simply something that God uses to remind us that "He's done this before".  In case you didn't know it, JESUS is a Pastor.  Granted, the ULTIMATE Pastor, but He's still a Pastor.

Think about it... The word "Pastor" comes from the Latin word for "Shepherd".  What does a Shepherd do?  Usually, they tend to sheep.  Jesus tells us Himself that He's a Shepherd:

John 10:14 - I am the good shepherd; and I know My sheep, and am known by My own.

So let's see if what "they" want is Biblical...  Would you tell Jesus to ignore His own words?  Would you tell Jesus "what to do" and "how to do it"?  In John 10:27, Jesus goes on to say, "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me."  Sheep are to follow the Pastor, NOT THE OTHER WAY AROUND.

I've heard countless stories about Pastors who are trying their hardest to maintain "gainful employment", while at the hands of these wolves.  The sad part, is those Pastors should be placing all of their faith and trust in God alone and leave those churches behind to let God deal with them directly.  By staying there, they perpetuate the problem and continue to show other churches how they too can exert control over their Pastors.

In my forthcoming book, "But is it Biblical?", I have an entire chapter devoted to this topic called, "What's a Pastor For?".  It's the one area of the book that I actually took the time and performed a real "study" about not only what your average Christian thinks a Pastor is for, but what other Pastors think that a Pastor is for.  Episode 26 of our Discipleship series does a good job of discussing many of the issues associated with this topic.

As for me looking for a Pastoral position, it's true, I'm still looking.  I feel overwhelmingly called to work with a church to help develop a REAL Discipleship curriculum.  None of the Sunday school drivel where you learn about how "Noah brought 2 of every animal onto the ark and Jesus loves you."  Of course the first isn't true and while the 2nd is, it's also just 1/1,000th of the story.

Everything you could possibly want to know about what I believe and why is available for all to read both here in my blog and on our website at http://www.butisitbiblical.com.

I know there's a group of Christians out there right now who are looking for me.  Know this, I'm looking for you too.  I don't know where in the world you are, but I have 100% faith in God and I know that we'll find each other.

Sunday, October 7, 2012

New Season, New Show!

For the last few months, I have been spending a tremendous amount of time in fellowship with God and we've been brainstorming like crazy!

I'm currently working on ramping up for a new season of "But is it Biblical?" and hope to bring you the same quality shows that we've brought to you in the past!

New Season, new show, new website*, new guests, same convictions!

Keep an eye out for our new website and if you "follow" this blog, you'll be updated immediately about the dates and times of our upcoming shows!

We'll see you soon!

*New website coming soon!

Sunday, September 30, 2012

Atheists thought for the day...


If I told you that the Earth was Billions of years old, you'd say, "Yeah, I know..."  If I told you that the coffee you're drinking came from the farthest reaches of Mongolia and was brewed with 106F water from the same mountain that the coffee beans were harvested from, you'd say, "That's awesome!"  If I told you that the chicken nuggets you were eating came from a chicken that had been kept in a cage, barely big enough for it to stand in, you'd say, "I know..."


But if I told you that the Bible is in FACT the Word of God, you'd reject that premise outright!

Why is it that you wouldn't give a second thought to the non-fact that the Earth is billions of years old?  Were you there?  I wasn't.  Why is it that you wouldn't even question the origin of the coffee?  It could just be Folgers Crystals!  And as for the chickens, well unless you had seen the chicken for yourself, how do you know if it spent its life in a cage or running around a farm?

The simple fact is, you wouldn't know!  You take things on faith ALL THE TIME, but you won't even consider finding out for yourself whether or not what God has to say is truth or not.  Why is that?  Are you so smart that you know everything?

I once heard someone say, "Let's say that you knew 90% of everything that there is to know in the universe (which is impossible in and of itself).  Isn't it possible that God exists within the 10% you don't know?

Think about it...

Sunday, September 23, 2012

Who's not a Christian...

One of the things that really gets me upset, is this belief in what they're calling "Liberal Christianity".  Some call it "Progressive Christianity".

It's yet another belief that teaches "I can pick and choose what I want to believe about God and it doesn't matter if I know God's Word or not.  As long as I feel good about myself, then I know I'm right with God".

So today, I'm going to list a few items along with proof, as to what does not constitute a Christian.  I'm not going to do it from my perspective, I'm not going to offer you my opinions and I'm certainly not going to offer you my point of view.  What I am going to do, is quote GOD.  So if you think that you're a Christian and yet you don't agree with God, then it's pretty academic.  You're not a Christian.
  1. The Bible is full of contradictions, so it really doesn't matter if I read Scripture or not. - Really?  Now I don't mean to be offensive, but who told you that?  Did you figure this out by yourself?  Did some "know it all" Atheist attempt to dissuade you from listening to God?  Look at all of these verses: Deuteronomy 12:8, Judges 17:6, Judges 21:25, Job 32:1, Psalms 36:2, Proverbs 12:15, Proverbs 16:2, Proverbs 21:2, Proverbs 26:5,12,16, Proverbs 28:11.  Each and every one of those can be summed up in Proverbs 26:12 - Do you see a man wise in his own eyes? There is more hope for a fool than for him.  God expects for us to care more about how HE SEES THINGS, than how we might individually see them.  It's easy for us to get it wrong, it's impossible for HIM to do so.  In Malachi 3:6, God tells us in plain and simple language, "For I am the LORD, I do not change".  That single verse is our guarantee that there are no contradictions within the Bible.  In other words, if you think there's a contradiction, it's because you don't understand what you're reading.  If you don't believe God, then you can't possibly be a Christian.

  2. I have no prayer life, I don't go to a church and I don't really know much of what's in the Bible, yet I know that I'm right with God and I'll be going to Heaven. - Really?  That's like saying, "I have a job and I don't pay taxes, yet I know I'll be getting a refund this year".  There's a lot of Scripture I could use here in order to prove that you're not a Christian, but I can make this one quick by pointing you to: John 8:47 - He who is of God hears God's words; therefore you do not hear, because you are not of God."

  3. Who are you to tell me what I can and can't believe?  You're not God! - A truer statement has never been made.  I am not God and I am not even remotely trying to tell you what to believe.  What I am attempting to do, is to REDIRECT you from the nonsense that's rattling around in your head or from the worldly teachings that your parents, friends and teachers are telling you and instead point you toward what God has to say on the matter.  Again, if you can't be bothered by what GOD has to say on the matter, you're only fooling yourself as you can't possibly be a Christian.

  4. I would lie, cheat, steal and even KILL in order to protect what's mine!  After all, God is on the side of truth and as long as I'm protecting myself, God's okay with it! - Are you sure you're not an Atheist?  I mean, if you take the word "God" out of that statement you'd sound like an unsaved person.  This one is so rudimentary that I don't think I need to go beyond the Ten Commandments to prove to you that you're not a Christian.  Exodus 20:13, 15, 16 tell you specifically not to "lie, cheat, steal and kill".  How much more proof do you need, that you don't care about what God has to say on the matter?

  5. I don't know what God you worship, because my god loves everyone unconditionally!  - Now we're getting somewhere!  Do you see what you've done here?  You've created a god who fills you with happy thoughts and rainbows and lollipops and sunshine and cute little puppies.  Your god is one that you made up in your own mind, in order to feel better about yourself.  What you've done, is violated the first *3* of the Ten Commandments (See Exodus 20:3-17).  The first says that "You shall have no other gods except Me".  The second (in plain English), says that "You shall not make an image of anything in Heaven or Earth and worship it as a god", which by the way is pretty much just an extension of the 1st Commandment.  The third says that, "You shall not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain".  Since I'm positive you're trying to work this one out, allow me to help you.  Jesus is God, one of His many titles is Messiah.  The Greek word for Messiah, is Christ.  If you're calling yourself a Christian, then you're taking God's name in vain, because you're not being who you claim to be.  Now obeying the Ten Commandments won't get you a seat in Heaven, but at least if you knew what they were, you'd have a better idea of what your Heavenly Father expects from you than you do now.

That's just 5, and I'm certain that if you "feel" bad or sad or unhappy about those few items, then I can guarantee you that you have no relationship with God (Much like the "rich ruler" from Luke 18:18).  What you should WANT to do, is to prove me wrong!  Pick up your Bible and see if anything I've told you is wrong!  Read and find out what GOD has to say on the matter.  And then find yourself a Pastor who knows what he's doing and confirm that what you're reading is in fact what the Bible actually says.

Every day that passes is another gift you're receiving from God.  Be thankful that God gives you a chance to get closer to Him every single day.  Because one day, those chances are going to run out.  Please stop trying to be "wise in your own mind" and pick up a Bible.  It'll change your life!

Friday, August 24, 2012

Christianity in America - What happened?

Here in the United States, we take stands on all sorts of things...

We want to know what chemicals are in the food we eat...
We want to know if our chickens are caged or free range...
We want to know if the fish we eat comes from a sustainable species...
We want to know what country our coffee comes from...
We want to know where our President was born...

Americans can't help but want to know everything; after all, we're not stupid, right?

Then why don't you want to know about all of the POISON that's included with your religion?

Look, I personally don't care for Obama any more than anyone else in this country right now, but look at contender #2, Mitt Romney (who has publicly claimed membership within the Mormon church). Do you not realize that Mormons believe that God is an alien from another planet, that used to be a regular man? Do you not realize that Mormons believe that Jesus (our Lord and Savior) is the brother of Satan? Do you not realize that Mormons baptize their DEAD? Jesus said that you can not enter the Kingdom of Heaven unless you are born of water (natural birth) and of the Holy Spirit (making a decision to accept the atoning sacrifice of the blood of Christ). How can you accept something after you're dead?

If America actually sat down and took the time to look into these religions, they wouldn't vote for EITHER of these 2 men. If that happened, for the first time in our history, we'd elect one of the little guys, instead of the candidates with all the money for television commercials.

So why is it that we care so much about the chicken that's about to be slaughtered, so that we can have chicken nuggets, but we can't spend the time to find out the whole truth behind God and creation?

We're about to vote on whether or not to place someone who claims to be a Christian, but acts like a Muslim or someone who claims to be a Christian but is actually a Mormon. God says that we shall know them by their fruits, so in that context, I would say that I don't know either of these candidates as Christians.

So all of you non-practicing Catholics... There's a reason you're not practicing... I'm guessing that God's got other plans for you. Why practice a religion that's steeped in Pagan rituals? Why practice a religion that changes with the wind? God says that He does not change, so how can we call Catholics Christian?

Episcopals? Seriously? They've undergone such drastic changes over the past 30 years that nobody with half a brain even considers being one any more.

Liberal Christians? They love to say that if Jesus "was around today", He'd be a liberal. Really? Is this the same Jesus that said:


Matthew 10:34 - "Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword."

Revelation 3:16 - So then, because you are lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will vomit you out of My mouth.

It's no wonder that Atheists make such fun of Christians. So many leaders within Christianity will try to convince you that whatever they have to say is truth. They'll do everything that they can to prove to you that they're right. All I want to do is prove to you that God is right. Not me, God and the Bible.

So pick up that cup of Fair-Trade coffee and grab a Bible and start reading. You'll be amazed to find out that all of your misconceptions about God and the Bible are unfounded.

And BTW, this is not an "anti-anybody" blog post. As far as I'm concerned, God is in charge of who gets elected and who isn't (see Daniel 2:21 & Romans 13:1-2 for my reasoning). This is a wake up call to all of the people in this country who claim to be Christians, yet they have no clue who God is. Read Luke 14:25-33 and see if you're really who you say you are. Trust me, you can fool most of the people around you, but you can't fool God.

Matthew 7:21-23 - "Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven. Many will say to Me in that day, 'Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in Your name, cast out demons in Your name, and done many wonders in Your name?' And then I will declare to them, 'I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!'"

Episode 14 of Biblically Speaking covers our individual responsibility as Christians, in reference to voting. In light of the GOP convention in Tampa this coming week and the impending 2012 Presidential election, I highly recommend you give it a listen.

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Rep Todd Akin - What a shame

The world (at large), think that Christians are crazy.
Now, thanks to Rep Todd Akin from Saint Louis, they can think we're stupid too...

First of all, If you haven't heard, Mr. Akin is running for a Senate seat. He apparently made a comment regarding abortion in direct proportion to rape. He started out good and then it all went horribly wrong...

First of all, rape is wrong...

Second, the concept of "women's rights" is a secular construct, so the ideology behind it is out of sync with Scripture. God has set an "order" to things, so discussing "women's rights" as some kind of "special thing" is incompatible with God's Word.

Third, you can not be a Christian AND be alright with murdering an undelivered child. Don't like the word murder, sorry to hear it. If a man rapes a woman, you don't punish the child, you punish the father!

Fourth, Mr. Akin said that pregnancies resulting from rape are "really rare". I'd love to know where he received his forensic training from.

Fifth, Mr. Akin made it worse by saying, "if it's a legitimate rape..." What's a legitimate rape? I can only hope that he was being tactful and intended to relate, "if the sperm made contact with the egg". Sadly, we don't know what was going on in his mind.

Lastly, he went on to finish the previous sentence by saying, "...the female body has ways to try to shut that whole thing down." Really? Did I miss that day in Anatomy? Does the female body have some way to "reboot" itself like a computer?

Folks, this is why we should never blindly rally behind a "Christian candidate". First of all, you can never really know "what kind" of a Christian they are and you'll also never know just how unqualified they really are either. Well, until they make comments like that one.

Mr. Akin, his family and the people in Missouri will be in my prayers...

This is not an attack on Mr. Akin, but a quick reminder to all of my brothers and sisters to be ever vigilant in deciding who you listen to and who you trust. If I remember correctly, we discussed this topic in Episode 22 of my Discipleship Radio Series. Check it out...

Monday, August 13, 2012

Bible Nuggets - Who are "The People"?

I often like to say that "The Bible is an inexhaustible supply of information"... We refer to it as inexhaustible, because no matter how often you read it and no matter how much you study it, if you're reading it under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, from time to time He shows things to you that you've never seen before!

Wednesday, July 18, 2012

Gay Marriage: What's the problem?


The earliest known "Historical record" that we have is The Bible. The very first book of the Bible clearly shows that a "Marriage" is between a man and a woman. Even the oldest book in the Bible, the book of Job shows that a "Marriage" is between a man and a woman.

Monday, July 16, 2012

Gold and Friendship

There's something to be said about the similarities between Gold and Friendship...
Some might say that Gold is the most valuable commodity in the world today. I would argue that real and abiding friendship is even more valuable.

In today's society in the United States, some might only consider someone a friend, based on how useful you are to them. This should be no surprise, Satan accused God of having that same kind of relationship with Job! (Job 1:6-12)

Gold is a malleable metal. That means that it's shape can be easily changed from one form to another. In today's world, we use Gold for all sorts of things, from currency, to jewelry, to a coating on electronic connectors in order to prevent corrosion. Sometimes friendships have to be flexible and be able to change too.

For instance, I have a dear friend of mine who's name is George. At one point in his life, he had a deep passion, a real fire burning within him for the Lord. Today, his reliance upon God is at an all time low. I believe that God is working with George, in order to help him get to the point where God needs him. George however is as stubborn as a mule. Much like Job, God has seen fit to take away almost everything that he values, except for his life. While this should bring George closer to God, it continues to keep him at arms length.

Today, George and I are still very much friends, but like the Gold we started off talking about, the shape of our friendship has changed. We used to speak daily, talking about how Great God is. Now, we speak maybe once a month, but instead of us talking about how Great God is, George now focuses the conversation on how rough he has it. You see, I don't love George any less, but our friendship has changed. I miss our daily talks, but I'm okay with it.

You see, God "deposits people" into our lives at different times and for different reasons. There's really no way for us to ever know who it's going to be, nor when, nor why they're going to be brought into our lives. God doesn't tell us that. It's incumbent upon each of us to never place too much reliance upon any "friend", but instead place our TOTAL RELIANCE upon God instead.

May God Bless each of us with a friend so dear, even if it's only for a little while. Just remember, it's God that is forever! (Lamentations 5:19)

Monday, May 21, 2012

Should new Christians Witness?

While I'm sure that this is going to be a hot-button issue, it's something that I believe needs discussing.

Should a babe in Christ share their faith (or witness) to non-believers? And even better, Should a babe in Christ offer Spiritual guidance to other believers?

Jesus calls upon us to "go into all the world", but did He mean for new believers to do this too? Some would argue that since He didn't place any restrictions on this, then the answer is simply, "Yes". While I believe it's essential that we keep everything Biblical, we also need to look at the mechanics of this too.
Would a University hire a 6 year old to teach Quantum Mechanics? No? Okay, why? Certainly they've been taught how to add and subtract. Certainly this math is easily figured out too, right?

Would a software company hire a 12 year old to teach classes to people, who wanted to learn how to use their software? Not in the real world they wouldn't. Why? Well, for starters, I don't know ANY 12 year old's who could do this effectively. Sure, they may understand how the software works, but should they really be in a position to teach it to adults?

I could give example after example about what makes a good fit and what doesn't, but I think you understand what I'm trying to explain. New Christians are called "Babes in Christ" and Babes require multiple feedings a day, they stick their fingers in things they shouldn't, they put things in their mouth that don't belong there (especially their foot), so they're not really in any position to "feed" other babes (or anyone else for that matter).

Biblical support?

Deuteronomy 11:2 - Know today that I do not speak with your children, who have not known and who have not seen the chastening of the LORD your God, His greatness and His mighty hand and His outstretched arm ---

And just as important an issue, is the issue surrounding new Christians who would profess to know and understand the answers to things that "fathers" don't even know the answers to. I'm dealing with this one person right now, who's been a Christian for about 2 years, but they have no idea that they're a babe. NONE. They go out of their way to answer everyone's questions, even though they should be SILENT and sit back and listen and learn. It's not that they should be silent because they're a babe, they should be silent, because they don't realize that they're giving out the wrong answers to questions that actually have "correct" and "incorrect" answers. They should keep silent, because they ask questions that reveal their "babeness", yet they would speak as if they know it all and are in a position to offer Spiritual guidance to others that may be further along in their growth than they are.
Biblical support?

2 Corinthians 12:14 - Now for the third time I am ready to come to you. And I will not be burdensome to you; for I do not seek yours, but you. For the children ought not to lay up for the parents, but the parents for the children.

Now don't misunderstand me, I'm not trying to prevent the Gospel from being shared and I'm certainly not trying to prevent you from exercising the Great Commission either. All I'm trying to do is to appeal to your conscience, that there are some things that little children are better at, than babes and there are some things that young men are better at than little children. Which of course means that there are some thing that fathers are better at than young men. And not just "better at", but assigned to do by God!

Pride keeps us from revealing where each of us are in our walk. Our flesh doesn't want to believe that we're a "babe", but instead believe that we're fathers. We're not called to be boastful or prideful. We're not called upon to take jobs or responsibilities that we're not "called to do". This is one of the primary reasons that our churches are so broken. First they're full of Elders who are babes in Christ and secondly, they're run by Pastors who have lots of "school knowledge", but have no Spiritual Discernment.

I pray that if you're reading this and if this sounds even remotely familiar, that you pray over what I've shared with you today and you stop what you're doing. God doesn't share the Glory with men, EVER. If you'd stop trying to puff yourselves up and humble yourself before God and men, you'd be walking with God the way He expects you to and not the way that you want to...

Instead of seeking your own personal self satisfaction, you should be humbling yourself before someone more mature in Christ than yourself, to learn HOW to properly share your faith. It'll be the difference between the false teaching that "God has a wonderful plan for your life" and "Let me tell you about God's plan". If you see those two examples as the same, then that should stop you in your tracks. They're not the same. Not even close.

All children (especially babies), need to be taught things, whether it's about not drawing on walls or not sticking a fork into a light socket. Witnessing is no different. Your inability to know the difference between right and wrong can wind up being the difference between having a successful witnessing encounter and one that forever scares someone away from God.

Friday, May 11, 2012

Reaching Millions with the Gospel

Here's a question I received a couple of days ago.

Question: I see hundreds and hundred of mainstream education sites that offer training on thousands upon thousands of things and they're able to reach millions of people and help them. They have training videos, an audio series and all sorts of printable things for people to learn from. Why can't we do that only with facts and the truth and not godless fairy tales?

Answer: I completely understand your question!

Since I became a Pastor, I have diligently relied upon the Holy Spirit to guide me in all that I do. Having a Discipleship Ministry has got to be one of the most "Glorifying to God" things you can have. Since establishing SilverWorks, we have (miraculously) gotten a couple of thousand followers, of which only a couple of dozen have requested direct Discipleship.

It may or may not surprise you to know, that there are very few people who would call themselves Christian, who actually care about God's Word and would instead prefer to believe what they've been taught. Even today, I received an email from a brother, who was wondering how to communicate with someone 25 years older than them, on how to correct their false teachings / false beliefs.

If only I could reach millions of people who would prefer to be Disciples instead of Christians...

Of course that doesn't even begin to count up those who would call themselves Christian and be living a life completely in anathema to what they claim to love. How many would call themselves Christian, yet have no fruits to show? How many would call themselves Christian, yet they would love sex, pornography and self-pleasuring more than desiring to have intimacy in their relationship with God? How many would use vulgar language in the same sentence as the Lord's name? How many would call themselves Christian, yet ponder rape or raping? How many would call themselves Christian, yet murder their own children instead of relying on the Lord to care for them? How many would call themselves Christian, yet teach things to people that are lies and clearly twisted Scripture instead of allowing God to "Say what He means and mean what He says?" How many would call themselves Christian, yet be more concerned with money than their relationship with God? How many would call themselves Christian, yet place more emphasis on being loved by the world than by being loved by Christ?

Romans 6:1-6 - What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. For if we have been united together in the likeness of His death, certainly we also shall be in the likeness of His resurrection, knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him, that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves of sin.

If anyone needs that much Grace, then I would question whether or not they've placed all of their faith and all of their trust in God. Because if they're that far off the mark, I could only wonder how much they're depending on the Blood of Christ to save them. It had better be a lot!

If only I could find millions of people who would prefer to be Disciples instead of Christians...

What a joyous day that would be!

Wednesday, May 9, 2012

Are Demons real and are Demons here today?

Today I would like to bring to you both a story and a small teaching.

It's important that I make it abundantly clear, that this teaching is not something for you to build doctrine upon, it is however something that you need to know, because most Pastors either can't or won't teach this to you.

Last month, in the middle of the night, I was awakened from a sound sleep. I opened my eyes looked around (in the dark), intently listened for strange sounds and I saw and heard nothing. So I went to roll over and go back to sleep. That's when I realized that I was unable to move.

My immediate reaction was to panic, I struggled to move both my arms and my legs, and while I could technically "move them", I was not able to control them. It was as if I was being restrained! The only problem, was that I could neither see nor feel anyone or anything restraining me, I just couldn't move.
I strained and strained, struggled and wiggled. I tried everything I could, in order to just "change" my position. That's when I had a thought, I wondered if I was dreaming. I was most certainly NOT dreaming.

After what must have been 2-3 minutes in this panicked state (it felt like forever), I had a thought. I had from time to time read about or heard about "demonic forces", but never gave it much thought. From my experience, only crazy people actually had "encounters" with demons. So after thinking that it might be possible that I was "under attack", I called upon the Lord and in that very instant I was released! I jumped out of the bed (just to further prove to myself that I wasn't sleeping) and I went downstairs, walked outside and got some fresh air and began to thank God for His love and His Grace. I went back inside and went back to bed. The next day, as further proof that this had actually taken place, both my arms and my legs were red and sore. So sore that I could hardly move them. It was as if I had gone to the gym and instead of working out for an hour, I had done it for 6 hours! There was no doubt that all of this had happened.

About a week later, the same thing happened again, except this time I "felt like" I was able to deal with it a little bit better. I didn't panic, I didn't struggle, I just laid there (of course I tried to move, but was restrained). Except this time, I was able to "sense" something, that I wouldn't have been able to the first time. I could sense that this was the SAME demon attacking me again. So like I said, I laid there, patiently and quietly. As I laid there, I wondered silently to myself, "What does he want? Doesn't he know that there's 'No Vacancy' here?" In case you are not aware, once you have the Holy Spirit indwell within you, there's no "room" for an evil spirit too.

So after a minute or two of silent thought, nothing was happening. I couldn't help but wonder what it could want (can you blame me?). So I let another minute pass and I called upon the name of the Lord and again, this evil spirit departed and I had complete control of my limbs back again.

The very next day, I contacted Pastor Jeff (Who you may know from our Discipleship Series) and I recounted both of these experiences to him, in order to get his advice on this matter. I waited to ask anyone about this, because I wanted instead to get my answers from God directly. So after having waited and then having been attacked again without answer, I went to Jeff and asked him for his direction.

We spoke for more than an hour about his personal experiences and the experiences of others. We talked about "Medical theories" and some other worldly views on the matter. Apparently what I had experienced is very similar to many 1,000's of attacks that take place every single day.

A couple of days later, I received the phone call, telling me that my mother had passed.

A couple of days after that, I went back to God (yet again), and asked Him why He had permitted for me to be attacked. Finally God responded and said to me, "The demon that attacked you, is the demon that has been within your mother for the past 40 years". I was both shocked and at the same time, not even remotely surprised. I had always suspected that my mother had something wrong with her, I just didn't know what.

To have God reveal this tremendous event to me blew my mind. To be able to finally comprehend what had been going on in my life for the past 40 years was an amazing revelation for me.

So let's fast forward again, to this week!

Monday morning, 7AM, my "visitor" is back. Or at least that's what I thought! Same thing happened, rudely awakened, restrained and since I've had this happen twice before, I just laid there, quietly waiting. Except this time, there was something markedly different. I don't know how I know, but I know that this is another demon! There was just something different about this visitor.

So just as before, I waited a couple of minutes, silently. I just can't help but want to know what they want. Although I'm not going to ask. If they decide to tell me, I'll listen, but even then I'm not sure that I'd believe what they had to say anyway. In any event, I wait and nothing happens, so I call upon the name of God and they leave me.

So now I go to God and ask Him, "What's going on Lord? Why are you permitting me to be attacked by demons?" I was immediately answered with, "The first demon that visited you was looking for a new home. This new demon is looking to destroy your family!" He then told me one other thing that I'm not willing to reveal at the moment. I will however tell you that this demon is currently possessing another family member and is also looking for a "new home".

So this time, I immediately contact two Pastors that I trust with information like this. First, I contact Pastor Beau (who you also may recognize from our Discipleship series). I can't help but feel that fellowship regarding these issues is critical. I just know that keeping this to myself is wrong. Remember, everything that God lets happen is designed to bring Glory to Him. So if I keep quiet, who gets glorified? Nobody.

So I filled Beau in on the first two "visits" and then catch him up. Of course Beau is not surprised to hear this information, as the devil always wants to kill, steal and destroy. That's what he does! (John 10:10).

Before I called Beau, I did some homework. I went through Luke 11:24-26, Mark 9:14-29 and especially 1 Corinthians 12:10 & 1 John 4:1. It was critically important to me, that I allow all of what God has to say on this matter deeply abide in me. If only more Christians would seek to be Disciples, we'd have far more people walking with God than we do today.

So I spoke to Beau and got his input. He was adamant about Mark 9:29 and since he was already in the middle of a fast, he promised to be in prayer over this evil spirit for me and my family as well.

So fast forward (and long story shorter), I asked both Jeff and Beau a question. You see, God doesn't say a whole lot about dealing with these kinds of issues. Yes, what He does say is great, but there are not a lot of details. So I asked both of them how they felt that 1 Corinthians 12:10 applied in this situation. I wanted to know if they believed "Discerning of spirits" had anything to do with "evil spirits". They both said multiple things about that passage, but they both agreed that YES, that gift is expressly covering my issue as well.

They both told me that I have been gifted with this ability to, "have a peek behind the veil". Just for clarity, I did speak to each of them separately, neither knowing what the other said. The fact that they were both giving me the exact same information was 100% confirmation for me that I was doing the right thing(s).

So I (like so many before me), asked them WHY in the world would God give me this gift?? You see, even though Paul teaches us to "desire gifts", I have never really thought about having any. I always felt that if God needed to gift me with anything, that He'd do it, regardless of whether I wanted something or not. They both told me to just keep in prayer and total reliance on the Holy Spirit. Which is what I would have done anyway.

They also reminded me, that God gives us gifts and sometimes they're only given to us temporarily! I can't even begin to tell you how many "phony faith healers" are out there, who were able to be used to heal one person, then started a "healing ministry" and then never had the gift again. Yet they keep at it, ACTING like they're running around with the permanent gift of healing.

In any event, here I am today, writing to you about my experiences for one critical reason...

I don't want you to be fooled. Demonic forces ARE present today. Many believe that the only demons that are around today are in movies with Catholic priests! And many more believe that, "the only demons we have is the sin inside of each of us"! These are both untrue. I do not want you to be fooled nor ignorant!

Intimacy with God is so critically important, yet it seems to be almost non-existent and untaught today in churches. If you have no intimacy with the Holy Spirit, I would question if you're a Christian or a Cultural-Christian. I recently came upon that term, "Cultural Christian" and thought it was wonderfully descriptive. How many show up at church on Sundays, only to be interested in how quickly they can go home? How many show up, only to show the other members of their church "just how holy they are", just because they showed up?!

There are far fewer Disciples than there are Christians.
Have you ever wondered why?
If you have, you're in the right place!

A few days ago, I took a poll from a group of Christians and 100% of those that voted said that they know Demonic Possession still takes place. Half of them had first hand experience. If you're not in that 100%, please allow this teaching to encourage you to believe all of what God has to say in the Bible. He's never let me down, He can do the same for you too!

Monday, April 30, 2012

Ten easy steps to earning your Salvation

Everybody loves "10 easy steps". After all, most Christians use the Bible as a "Self-help book", which it is not.

First of all, you can't earn your Salvation.

With that out of the way, I need to take a few moments to PROVE IT to you.

About 15 times a week (at least) I get the honor of getting to speak to a "Lost Christian". I say "lost", because they say that they're depending on Christ for their Salvation, but they never, Ever, EVER learned the rest of the story and most times they don't even want to hear about it.

There are literally 1,000's of Ministers out there, keeping Christians in bondage, by making them believe that they have to continually, day after day, week after week, year after year, EARN their Salvation. This does two things, it keeps you coming back to their church to find out how to keep earning it and second, it keeps the money flowing in, because after all, it's your DUTY to continually give your tithe to the church.

Now remember, I don't INTERPRET Scripture, I read from it as if it were a "children's book"! God always says what He means and means what He says, so let's be like a Berean and make sure that I haven't lost my mind.

The key to understanding your Salvation, is to understand GRACE. If you don't understand GRACE, you will never understand a multitude of things from Gods Word.

I once heard a preacher say these words, and they really hit home. Not because they tickled my ears, but because the truth in them was so simple and so beautifully easy to remember, "Mercy is not getting what you DO deserve and Grace is getting what you DON'T". And the cool part about that, is you don't even need your Bible to understand that. Now that you understand what GRACE is, allow me to help paint the picture for you, as to WHY you can't EARN your Salvation.

Without a doubt, Paul is definitely one of Gods most Blessed children. God made him responsible for more than HALF of the New Testament writings.

Paul tells us in 2 Corinthians 6:1-2 - We then, as workers together with Him also plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain. For He says: " In an acceptable time I have heard you, And in the day of salvation I have helped you." Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.

First of all, the beginning of 2 Corinthians 6 is a continuation of Chapter 5. So don't misread "as workers together with Him" as some kind of proof that you need to do "works". Chapter 5 ends with how we are "Ambassadors for Christ". But what Paul is saying in those two verses, is this... "You accept the grace of God in vain, because you just accept it at face value and don't understand what it really means."

As most of you are aware, I use the NKJV translation of the Bible, because I have found it to be the most clear and the most complete of all the English translations of the Bible. There are times however, where other translations can offer you some additional insight. For example, the ESV (which in not on my list of favorite translations) , instead of saying "In an acceptable time", uses the words "In the time of my favor". I have often heard GRACE described as "undeserved favor". It's a FREE GIFT from God. (Ephesians 2:8-9) We have not earned His favor, nor have we done anything to deserve it. In fact, according to the Bible, we've ALL fallen way short of the favor of God.

Romans 3:22-24 (GW) - There is no difference between people. Because all people have sinned, they have fallen short of God's glory. They receive God's approval freely by an act of his kindness [grace] through the price Christ Jesus paid to set us free [from sin].

So if something is "TRULY FREE", that means that it costs NOTHING. That right there is the heart and soul of understanding Grace and Salvation. Either it's the "free gift" that Paul tells us it is in Romans 5:15,16,18 or God is a liar. Think about it... God did everything in His awesome power to ensure that His Word would survive for thousands of years, so why would you believe anything that anyone else told you, that doesn't MATCH His own Words?

Another example I can use to PROVE that you can't EARN your Salvation, is this wonderfully simple verse from Romans 4:4 - Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt. Allow me to reword that, "If you do works to try and earn your Salvation, you are not paid with God's Grace unto Salvation, you are instead making God OWE YOU". God would only OWE us if we were in a works based system... As we ARE NOT, then works do not in fact make God owe us. No action taken by man will ever make God indebted to our cause or make our reward EARNED. (See Romans 11:6) Don't believe me? Then go ahead and read that verse again.

God has literally gone out of His way to get everyone on this miserable planet saved. From the Garden of Eden to the Cross, He never once stopped trying to help us to become "Holy as He is Holy" (1 Peter 1:16). How much more could God possibly love us, than He already does?

Titus 3:4-7 - But when the kindness and the love of God our Savior toward man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, that having been justified by His grace we should become heirs according to the hope of eternal life.

I could go on and on and on and on and on (and on), showing you verse after verse of SOLID PROOF, but in the end, you have two choices. You can either believe the preachers who fed you poisoned grass or you can believe the Word of God, who feeds you the "bread of life" (John 6:35).

Addition: After writing this, it occurred to me that I left one huge component out. About 90% of my teachings are designed for "babes in Christ", but sometimes I blur the lines between babes and small children. I believe that it's really important for me to point out that GRACE is not a license to sin.

Paul says several things on this, but it's important that I paint this out for you, so that you understand clearly.

Paul is just beginning to explain GRACE to us here:
Romans 6:1-2 - What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? Certainly not!...

Paul is trying to make it clear to you that you are no longer under the law at all:
Romans 6:14 - For sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace.

Now Paul needs to explain what he just said, so that you wouldn't be confused:
Romans 6:15 - What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? Certainly not!

Now Paul drives home his point, regarding our freedom from sin (Grace):
Romans 6:22 - But now having been set free from sin, and having become slaves of God, you have your fruit to holiness, and the end, everlasting life.

And finally, the culmination of both your freedom and your free gift:
Romans 6:23 - For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

I can't stress this enough, so many of you have been brain-washed into thinking that you have to "act" a certain way, think a certain way, do things in a certain way. And so much so, that you spend more time worrying about your flesh (which is supposed to be dead) than you do exercising your freedom in Christ. For an awesome teaching on this subject, click HERE and listen in to this most excellent message.

The other thing (thank you Pastor Beau for your research), I mention in almost every single show, "There are more than 38,000 Christian Denominations in the world. Each of them is their own Religion". Well there are many denominations that teach you can lose your Salvation. Does that make them right? NO! How can "man's opinions or interpretations of God's Word be more important than God's actual Word? It can't be! For those of you wondering, here are just a few of the major-denominations that teach that you can lose it:
  • Assembly of God - False tongue speaking religion.
  • Lutheran - Teaches you must "persist in the faith". (This contradicts John 18:9)
  • Roman Catholic - Teaches "final perseverance is a gift from God, but man must cooperate with the gift". (This is a contradiction with Ephesians 2:8-9)
  • Methodist - Teaches that you can "end up losing the salvation that God has begun in us". (Again, contradicts John 18:9)
See, this is what I mean by "Be like a Berean" (Acts 17:10-11). It's only when you place what you are told up against Scripture, that lies, deceit and just plain misunderstood language can come to light. God does not wish for you to be mislead, so He's warned you to watch out! (Matthew 7:15, Matthew 10:16)

As many of you know, we just recently recorded the finale for our "Basic Discipleship Series" and we're currently on hiatus. In a couple of weeks we'll be doing a special on SALVATION. If you'd like to make sure that you're notified, please go to the website @ http://www.butisitbiblical.com and drop us a note and we'll be sure to notify you, so you can listen in live or even call in with questions!

Like I said, I don't need for you to believe me, I do need for you to believe God. Please be like a Berean and look this stuff up for yourself. There's no Greek or Hebrew required, just make sure that you're being lead by the Holy Spirit and also, make sure you take notice of how many times the words "Grace" and "Mercy" are being used in these verses.

2 Chronicles 25:9 - Then Amaziah said to the man of God, "But what shall we do about the hundred talents which I have given to the troops of Israel?" And the man of God answered, "The LORD is able to give you much more than this."

Thursday, April 26, 2012

Why did Angels minister to Jesus?

I often share questions I get from other people here in my blog, because I feel it's a waste to not share them with others who may struggle with the same questions.

Question: What does it mean angels came to Jesus and ministered to him? (Matthew 4:11 & Mark 1:13)

Answer: Well, I suppose if you put it in context, Jesus is God and He created the Angels to serve Him and His every purpose. After 40 days in the desert, I would suppose that since He's fully God and fully Man, that He may have needed some "tending to" or ministering. Or to put it simply, they FED HIM! Could you imagine how weak and hungry He must have been?

I try to tell people all the time, that MINISTER should be EQUAL to SERVANT. As a Minister or Pastor, it is our responsibility, indeed OUR JOB, to serve the sheep. Think about it. Pastor is basically Latin for Shepherd. What do Shepherds do? They continually find the best green grass for the sheep to feed on and protect the sheep from wolves and other potential disasters like keeping them away from cliffs and sharp rocks. No matter how you look at it, it's the Shepherds job to SERVE the sheep.

Matthew 20:28 - just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.

It's only through reading and understanding God's Word that we can truly understand what we should be expecting from our Ministers. Bright white teeth and a wind-tunnel tested hair-do are not requirements of a good Pastor...

I hope you found this helpful!