Do you really want me to lie to you?

No matter how much you ask, no matter how much you plead, I will not lie to you in order to make you feel better...

The one thing that separates Silverworks Ministries from the other Pastors you've met, seen on TV, heard on the radio or anywhere else, is that our Ministers DO NOT INTERPRET SCRIPTURE. Yes, we know and understand what they teach in Seminary as Hermeneutics; and we here at Silverworks Ministries translate scriptural truth by using ways and words which allow everyone to properly understand and comprehend what God is saying, we do not however use Hermeneutics to interpret it (a.k.a. change it) into what WE want it to say.

While there are certainly some pieces of Scripture (Revelation as an example), that requires a deeper understanding of Scripture in order to comprehend it, 90% of the Bible can be read and understood to mean exactly what it says.

What I would ask (if you really feel that you need to be lied to), is WHY? Why is it that you need to hear about lollipops, rainbows, puppies and daffodils in order to "feel" more "connected" to God? Why do you need to ignore 99% of Scripture in order to feel better about yourself? Do you not know that you as an individual do not matter in the grand scheme of things? Do you not know that it's God that matters above all else?

What I would suggest (if you feel that you need to read inspirational Scripture all the time), is that perhaps you need to spend more time working on discipleship than reading your devotionals. It's through real, bona fide discipleship that you will come to not only understand WHO God is, but also understand who YOU are in Christ!

Many of today's Ministers are misleading the sheep in DROVES! People like Joel Osteen & Joyce Meyer will have you believe that "you can name it and claim it" or that "words are containers for power" or even that "God wants you to be rich with money, cars, every desire of your heart". How can they teach these things? How is it that they can get away with it? They can teach it and get away with it BECAUSE MORE THAN 90% OF THE PEOPLE WHO CALL THEMSELF CHRISTIANS DO NOT KNOW WHAT THE BIBLE SAYS.

If you don't have the time to read the Bible, then it's like saying "I don't care about what God has to say". If you don't care about what God has to say, then how is it that you've allowed God's Words to abide in you? You can't let something abide in you if you don't know what it is! Since most Christians do not have an intimate relationship with God, the only Words they'll ever get from Him ARE IN THE BIBLE. And since they don't read it, they'll never know what God has to say, only what people like Osteen, Meyer, Parsley, Copeland, Bell and others have to say on the matter.

While I most certainly am not trying to elevate either myself or any of the other Ministers here, I do want you to try and understand what it is that separates us from everyone else. If you really need to have a 24/7 stream of "happy thoughts" thrown at you, then you're probably not a Christian. If you need to constantly hear about how God "wonderfully and carefully made you", then you're probably not a Christian. If you believe that Jesus is a liberal hippie that doesn't pass judgement on all of mankind and that everyone goes to Heaven, then not only are you probably not a Christian, but you also have absolutely no idea who Jesus is.

We'll be more than happy to teach you. Go to http://www.butisitbiblical.com and listen to our shows. The message we bring to you is designed to get you in sync with God, not to get God in sync with you.

Matthew 18 - Dealing with a sinning brother

There are *3* short verses in the Bible that discuss HOW we should handle interpersonal problems. Not only are there verses all over the Bible that teach this, but these *3* verses were spoken by Jesus Himself!

All of Christendom should learn these few short verses. Not only will it prevent small issues like misunderstandings, but they can prevent lawsuits, hate and even WARS if the situation isn't handled Biblically!

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Here is a short expositional view of Matthew 18:15-17: - Moreover if your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault between you and him alone. If he hears you, you have gained your brother.

Jesus says that if your brother sins against you (upsets you, steals from you or makes you think they've done something wrong against you), you should go directly to your brother and tell him what it is that upset you. If your brother hears you (or understands your position and apologizes or otherwise explains the situation) then you have gained your brother (or fixed the problem), then you're done. This single step is missed in problem resolution 99% of the time. That old sneaky "flesh" of ours gets in the way some times and we jump to conclusions and blame people for things that didn't actually happen or if they've accidentally happened. Each of us MUST seek to give our brother the opportunity to straighten out the situation, one-on-one. If you chose to skip this step, you are absolutely going to create whole new problems, bigger than the first! If that's your intention, then perhaps you've got bigger problems than you think? This is why it's so essential to handle things Biblically.

16 - But if he will not hear, take with you one or two more, that 'by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.'

You must go to your brother with an open mind and be ready to listen to what he has to say. But if you go to your brother and he ignores you, belittles you or otherwise tells you that you're wrong and you are not able to make your brother appreciate how you feel or why you feel that way, Jesus tells us to grab 1 or 2 other brothers who are witnesses to the issue or have personal knowledge of the issue and tells us that we should attempt to make a clearer case, so that our brother may better understand what it is that they've done. If you do this and your brother hears the 2-3 witnesses, then you have gained your brother like in verse 15. If you don't approach your brother in the Spirit of love, if you approach your brother as an "angry mob", if you can't approach your brother in "all humility", again, perhaps there are bigger problems than your brother has created?

17 - And if he refuses to hear them, tell it to the church. But if he refuses even to hear the church, let him be to you like a heathen and a tax collector.

Jesus tells us that if you have taken 1-2 witnesses with you to speak to your brother and he refuses to admit or acknowledge his wrongdoing, you should THEN and ONLY THEN bring the situation to the attention of the church. At that point, you are devoid of actual witnesses, but you then bring it upon their hearts and their minds that they make decisions on the issues based on how they feel. This is usually a Christian's first step in the problem resolution chain and instead of amicably fixing the problem, you have now had people who weren't involved in the first place making judgment calls on things that can only be based on how they "feel about" the situation. Very rarely will the "whole of the church" decide to handle things Biblically, but instead, emotionally. Very little good ever comes from this step and should be reserved for only the most heinous and unforgivable acts. Jesus goes on to say that if your brother refuses to hear the whole of the church at this point, you should probably try to share the Gospel with your brother, because if he's not willing to love his brother as himself, then he's probably not a Christian and this may be your opportunity to evangelize him and get him in line with God's Will and not his own. Finally, Jesus says that if your brother still refuses to listen, he should THEN be treated as an outcast at that point.

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If your brother stole your oxen, your car or even your wife, I can see you going to the church as a whole. If your flesh is on fire for revenge or the ability to "put your brother in his place", perhaps you've got deeper issues than whether or not your brother has "sinned against you"?

Jesus tells us in Matthew 10, that if you get blamed or accused by your brother of something other than what you actually did, at that hour, you shouldn't worry about what you speak, because it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you. Following the steps the way Jesus lays out is a guarantee that we maintain the Spirit of Truth and the Spirit of Peace. If you've accused your brother (even in your heart), and you're in the wrong, you owe it to yourself and to your brother to obey Jesus' instructions in these verses. Amen?

Preaching at the Pub?

Something really wonderful happened last night and I felt like sharing it...

As many of you know, I just finished writing a book and I'm in the process of working with marketing people and a publicist and one of the things I'm doing is giving out 50 signed copies of the book to close friends, family and other people who may be in a position to assist me in doing the Lord's work.

I have a friend, who just a few short years ago was a youth Pastor. Today, he has fallen away and as a result, spends most of his life dealing with tribulation. He can quote Scripture and you can tell that he really loves the Lord, he just can't seem to "walk the walk" so instead of seeming like a hypocrite, he has tried to remove himself from God's sight. (you and I know he can't do that, but that's not the story...)

This friend of mine also happens to be a big drinker. He goes to the pub every night and averages about 15 beers every single day. Yes, WE know he has a drinking problem and I think deep down inside he knows he has one too. The only problem, is that he's in denial and he's dug his heels in good.

Well, I've had his copy of the book sitting on my desk now for about 2 weeks, but our schedules don't seem to mesh lately. Even when I cancel plans to be where he is, somehow his plans get changed and we keep missing each other.

Last night, I asked God, "Lord, he really needs to read this book and I know that the only place I can meet with him, where I know for certain that he'll be, is the Pub. Should I go to him there?" Of course God didn't waste any time and told me I should, so I did.

I get there and he's sooooo happy to see me. It was like he hadn't seen me in years! He asked me what I was doing there and I told him that I had a small gift for him. I handed him the book and he started to weep. You see, he knew that I had been writing the book. In the world that he associates himself with these days, everyone is always talking about what BIG things they're up to and nothing ever materializes. I suppose that when he heard about me writing the book, he forgot that I wasn't part of THAT world and he thought that I was just making stuff up too.

Early on in the book writing process, I had told him that he was one of the inspirations of the book, so handing him a copy of the finished book with a personalized message in it for him made him bust out in tears of joy. He jumped out and gave me a real, loving hug. The kind that men will rarely give another man. He proceeded to tell me how much it meant to him and proceeded to show it to everyone in the Pub telling them, "See this book? My friend over there wrote it and I was his inspiration!"

Of course now I'm sitting down with my head hanging a little bit low. Here I am, a member of the clergy, sitting in a bar and having someone who's on his 7th or 8th beer bragging about me AND the book.

So people started to come over, one by one asking me if I was really the author of the book and if I was really a Minister. I told them that I was and then the really drunk guy comes over and at the top of his lungs says, "HEY... You're a Pastor?" And I said yes. He then says, "HEY... What's a Minister doing in a bar?"

So I now have better than 90% of the people at the Pub looking INTO MY EYES and awaiting my answer. I looked back at them, and right into THEIR EYES and said, "Hey... Jesus himself spent time in bars with drunkards, prostitutes and tax collectors!" And they were like, "what??" And I said, "Sure... Think about it.... Jesus was trying to find people who needed him the most. Where would he find those people, IN CHURCH or at a bar?" Everyone was like, "WOW... YEAH... THAT'S SO TRUE... etc..."

What started out as a trip to quickly drop off a book turned into a FOUR HOUR impromptu Bible study! IN A BAR! I've never heard of anyone doing anything like this before and I can assure you, I certainly had NO INTENTION of staying more than a couple of minutes.

Right before I was leaving, the owner of the Pub came over to me and said, "Come back when you get your first shipment of books. I want you to sell them HERE!" I almost fell down!

What an amazing God we have! Can I get an Amen?