How can I know that we're *REALLY* in the last days?

Question: Pastor Keith, I've heard it my entire life that "We are in the last days, repent now, the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand!".  To be honest, I'm quite tired of hearing it and I just don't believe it.  Too many years of "Chicken Little" have soured me on the whole idea.  Can you offer me any proof or any persuasion at all, that the "last days" are really here?

Answer: Oh yes I can!

Why I use the methods that I use

There are some Pastors who are so concerned that they'll offend someone, that they water down the truth, withhold information and sometimes just plain LIE about a subject.  I sincerely feel bad for anyone who wastes their time with a person like that.

I'm going to spend a couple of minutes and explain to you WHY I do what I do....

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!

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."

Predestination - Biblical Fact or Fiction?

Today I was presented with a question I get once in a while, from Christians who are starting to grow in their faith. Many people have such difficulty with the concept of "predestination" that they simply believe that it's not true.

Question: I hear about predestination from time to time and I just can't wrap my head around it. How can everything we do or say be predestined to happen before we actually do or say it? Wouldn't that mean that I don't have the ability to make any decisions, because they've already been made for me? I'd much rather believe that I'm in control of my destiny. The other problem I have, is because I don't really know too much about this subject, I can't really discuss it with other people, so instead I've chosen to stay away from it altogether. Can you help?

Answer: Sister, while I can appreciate your "fleshly need" to believe that you need to be in control of everything that happens in your life, the simple fact of the matter is that God is in control of ALL THINGS, not just the things you'd like for Him to be.

The idea about predestination is actually quite simple and entirely Biblically accurate.

God tells us (through His Word), that He knows the ending from the beginning...

Isaiah 46:8-10 - "Remember this, and show yourselves men; Recall to mind, O you transgressors. Remember the former things of old, For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me, Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things that are not yet done, Saying, 'My counsel shall stand, And I will do all My pleasure,'

As far as predestining whom gets Salvation and who burns for all eternity, that is also very simply derived from Gods Holy Word.

Romans 8:29-30 - For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.

John 18:9 - that the saying might be fulfilled which He spoke, "Of those whom You gave Me I have lost none."

Romans 9:11-12 - (for the children not yet being born, nor having done any good or evil, that the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works but of Him who calls), it was said to her, "The older shall serve the younger."

But you are wise to want to keep away from this issue of predestination. Greater men than I have spent hundreds of years arguing and debating this exact issue. If only they'd read the Bible without interpreting it, they could have been praying together instead of planning the others demise!

Hope this was helpful!

Do all born again believers receive the fullness of the Holy Spirit?

I received an awesome question today and I just wanted to share the answer with my readers. I felt that it might be a somewhat common question (for other reasons) and just wanted to make sure that there is a good solid and Biblical answer available for it.

The Question (part 1): Do all born again believers receive the power of the Holy Spirit in fullness?

The Answer:

YES! YES! YES!

The Question (part 2): I am doing a bible study right now that focuses on Matthew 28:16-20 and 

Acts 1:1-8 when Jesus is giving the disciples the great commission and promising them the Holy Spirit before they embark to carry out the commission. This will give them the courage,boldness and authority they will need to witness.

Acts 19:2 - He said to them, "Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?" So they said to him, "We have not so much as heard whether there is a Holy Spirit."

It appears then, that one can be a believer without receiving the Holy Spirit?

Actually, the answer to that question is in the very next verse...

Acts 19:3 - And he said to them, "Into what then were you baptized?" So they said, "Into John's baptism."

Let's remember, John's baptism was a baptism of repentance. That particular group of disciples in Ephesus hadn't yet heard about the gospel of their salvation! This of course is in Acts 19:4-5, the next 2 verses...

Acts 19:4-5 - Then Paul said, "John indeed baptized with a baptism of repentance, saying to the people that they should believe on Him who would come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus." When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.

The Question (part 3):

Just wondering if this could be the reason for people's reluctance to share their faith....they are true believers but haven't received the Holy Spirit or the fullness of the Holy Spirit that gives them the boldness and desire??

Not at all.  It doesn't say anywhere in scripture that EVERYONE is supposed to be out and evangelizing.  True, the great commission DOES emphasize a command for us to do it, but God goes out of His way to say that some of us are more gifted than others at this or that.  To be honest with you, if you're not very good at it, I'd prefer you watched or just stayed home.  Sometimes having someone who isn't very good at what they're doing can destroy what would otherwise be grand... Isn't discipleship fun?

OOH! As a side note to Acts 19:1-5, Paul actually discusses this exact event in Ephesians 1:13-14! I get so excited when I find things like this. What Paul wrote is confirmation of what Luke wrote in Acts!

Excellent question... Be encouraged!

Circular Reasoning & Christianity

Alright -- What do you call a Christian who doesn't know what the Bible says?

CONFUSED

How often do you hear an Atheist proclaim, "Circular reasoning is never going to convince me that there's a god. You're going to have to do better than, 'The Bible says that there's a god, therefore the Bible is true'."

Guess what, they're right!

When Jesus tells us to, "Go into all the world and make disciples of every creature", did you think He maybe meant for us to be able to accurately and adequately be able to do so?

The sad part, if you believe what the Christian Media tells us, these days, most Christians don't share their faith. I suppose if they're going to do it wrong, then we should be grateful.

What I will usually do, to explain to an Atheist who believes that Christians are only able to argue using circular reasoning, is use some LOGIC. (Atheists love logic!) I'll ask them what they call a book that was written more than 3,000 years ago, that has been proven correct again and again? They'll usually claim, "coincidence". That's when you ask them a new question. You ask them, "What do you call it when we're talking about 100's of things, approaching more than 1,000 things?" That's when they'll start to listen.

Now that you have their attention, don't drop the ball! Let's use some more logic!

Ask them what Science means. The more knowledgeable Atheist will tell you that "Science is the study of the observable". Now I love science! Think of all the medical & technological discoveries we've made over the past 200 years! But here's the rub... Most of scientific research gets relegated to what we call "Scientific THEORY". It's called "theory", because the Scientists are trying to prove that what they believe is correct. That's great! It's exactly what you need when you're trying to make breakthroughs! But here's the other rub, if science is the study of the observable, then given our original idea that we started with, how would they classify the Bible?

If there are indeed more than 1,000 things in the Bible that have been proven true, then are we able to say that "they've been observed as true"? If they've been observed as true (either by historians or even through the news today), then can't we say that the Bible has been proven reliable?

Think about it, how often is science wrong? ALL THE TIME. But again, that's how we learn...

Now think about how often the Bible has been wrong... To date.... NEVER.

Remember, this is when the Atheist will tell you that, "The Bible teaches that the world is flat!". This is a 100% untruth! Even today, when we refer to something that will affect the whole world, we use the term, "The four corners of the Earth". Does that mean that we believe that the earth is flat? Does that further mean that we believe that a SPHERE has CORNERS? Certainly not, it's just a "saying" that has survived for a long time. I suppose we could all stop using it, because it's not very accurate, but then again, I suppose as long as the people you're talking to know what it means, then it's ok?

The key thing to remember here, is that either the Bible is 100% correct, or it's 100% wrong. I would think that the most ardent Atheist would like that sentiment. Well, one of the things I like to teach, is that the Bible DOES NOT contain any contradictions, no matter how many "smart people" tell you otherwise. If the Earth was flat, then why does God say this, "Isaiah 40:22 - It is He who sits above the circle of the earth, And its inhabitants are like grasshoppers, Who stretches out the heavens like a curtain, And spreads them out like a tent to dwell in."

So don't be intimidated by someone who seems "smarter" than you are...

At the end of the day, all the intelligence a man can have will fail him....

Hmmm.... Is there actually an "End of the day"? I suppose that's another "old saying" that really isn't very accurate. Should we stop using it too? Perhaps we should say, "When the sun goes down" or "at the next 11:59PM"? No. I'll stick with the original. It just sounds better to me for some reason... :)

Interesting conversation about Mormonism

This is a continued conversation from a discussion I was having with a wonderful gentleman from THIS blog. Please visit that Blog for the origin of the discussion. I needed to post my comments here, because blogspot.com has limitations as to length of comments.

Mr Faux,

I will try to answer each of your points in turn:

Well thank you so much for throwing me a curve ball! You chose the one Translation that I knew least about. I was so disturbed by that translation, I couldn't help but want to ensure that the Greek was sound. It is my belief that the only way one can truly listen to Gods Word, is to listen INTENTLY. How can one listen conceptually? Truly listening to His Word will reveal much to those who study much.

1 Corinthians 7:7 - For I wish that all men were even as I myself.....

As for Paul being a Prophet, there is no evidence that this is so. First of all, if he were a Prophet, the name of Acts would have been, "The Acts of the Prophets" and not "The Acts of the Apostles". Secondly, it is my understanding that the things Paul wrote about AND the visions were given to him by way of The Holy Spirit. To be frank, The Holy Spirit led me to your blog to start a dialogue with you, does that make me a Prophet? I don't believe so. Granted it certainly doesn't make me an Apostle either...lol Thirdly, Paul was NOT "authorized" by the Resurrected Jesus. Jesus has already ASCENDED to Heaven by the time Paul had his "conversation while on the road with his traveling companions. Are you testing me? lol...

God is NOT limited in ANY way, EXCEPT that he KEEPS HIS WORD. Since God can not lie, He is bound by Scripture to not "change His mind"...

Malachi 3:6 - "For I am the LORD, I do not change;..."

So based on Matthew 11:13, I say no, there can not be modern Paul's. That doesn't mean God is limited, it just means that God does not change his mind... I like that about God. I never have to GUESS what He Wills, I just KNOW....

Ahh... You bring up an excellent question regarding following a "Leaderless Christianity"... The answer is simple. If you want a "human" leader, that's one thing, but why bother with a fallible human leader when God already provided you The Holy Spirit as the ULTIMATE LEADER? Hmm? Having to choose between God Himself leading me or some "elected or appointed" official telling me his machinations based on books that are not Biblical, I would most certainly make the first!

You are right, Gods Word was not captured in a single book, it was captured in 66 BOOKS! A far cry from 1, yes? Additionally, we may all be "Gods Children", but we're not all part of Gods Family...

Mark 3:31-35 - Then His brothers and His mother came, and standing outside they sent to Him, calling Him. And a multitude was sitting around Him; and they said to Him, "Look, Your mother and Your brothers are outside seeking You." But He answered them, saying, "Who is My mother, or My brothers?" And He looked around in a circle at those who sat about Him, and said, "Here are My mother and My brothers! For whoever does the will of God is My brother and My sister and mother."

Now that's family!

As for leading yourself without a "Church Organization", how could you trust yourself indeed?

Jeremiah 17:9 "The heart is deceitful above all things, And desperately wicked; Who can know it?"

God makes it clear that we can not trust our own feelings. Rely on Him alone and Trust in Him alone and you've got all you need! As for the Bible being challenging to understand, I would say this to you...

"If you approach the Bible as a book, then all it will ever be to you is a book. A book is filled with information, concepts, wonderings and such. If that's what you want, "information, concepts, wonderings and such", then you might as well check out any book from the library (or get a map at a gas station for that matter...lol). No one can know how to understand the things that are in the Bible without "The official Guide", The Holy Spirit. I am proof of that. I did not grow up Christian, I did not get Indoctrinated into Christianity, I did not "say a prayer" and by some magic I was then a Christian. Verily I say unto you, that if you pray for The Holy Spirit to guide you while you read, you WILL come to understand what is contained within that "More than a Book" indeed."

Feel free to read my Testimony in the right-hand pane on my Blog.

Ok, as for the comment about "already believing Jesus is deity, what else do you need", I say this: First, you do not need faith in RevKeith, that's just silly. Secondly, there are only 2 things you need to do..

1. You need to repent of your sins (repent - turn from)
2. You need to place ALL OF YOUR TRUST in Jesus

If you place all of your trust in Jesus, then you're not wasting any on a "Religion" or any man's interpretation within that religion as being accurate. Remember, where there's Religion, there's Opinion. If you take away the religion, all you have left is Gods Word. Think about it...

"Why do I need RevKeith, who contacts me out of the blue on the web?" A most excellent question. I have heard it said that Rabbi's say that, "coincidence is not a kosher word". I have also read that in the Ancient Hebrew, there IS NO WORD for Coincidence. As someone who trys to keep Gods Laws to the best of his ability, I shall not lie to you. I in no way shape or form sought you out, I in no way shape or form looked for any mormons to interact with and I most certainly do not make a living arguing with people. lol... As for me needing you, I would WHOLE-HEARTEDLY AGREE! I do need you! I need everyone whom God has brought into my life. I may not know why at the onset, but The Holy Spirit makes it clear soon enough...

The falling away is happening right under our noses Mr. Faux. It's not a matter of me "not liking" the New Century, it's a matter of this... When I choose a Bible to read I immediately know if I CAN HEAR GOD in the Words. I personally HEARD GOD in the NKJV, KJV, Geneva, ESV (to some degree) and even a dynamic translation like the GW, which I must admit is not very good for studying, but it's great for contrasting. The NKJV is MY favorite though. I've read the criticism regarding it from the "KJV Only" crowd and all I can say is the things they complain about do NOT effect it's authenticity. Any time devoted to reading the original Greek will PROVE to you that the over 600 changes that Mr. Smith made to the KJV Bible are not true OR accurate. The Bible explicitly warns against adding to or detracting from its teaching (Rev. 22:18; Deut. 4:2). The New Testament contains the inspired and totally accurate witness of contemporary disciples and followers of Jesus. It alone claims to be fully inspired by God and usable for the establishment of doctrine (2 Tim. 3:15–17; 2 Pet. 1:19–21)

Hebrews is most certainly Scripture. And you just used that verse WAAAY out of context. That verse was used to "Set the Qualifications for the High Priesthood". It was designed to help us IDENTIFY Christ as the High Priest. It was also written to help ensure that we understood that Aaron was appointed to the position of priest by God Himself! Those who challenged Aaron's appointing were put to death BY GOD... Again, there can be no more High-Priests, as Jesus is the last.

It is not Biblical for anyone to believe that there are "authorized Prophets and Apostles out there to be found". You are free to believe that, but it's not a Biblically accurate belief.

Being quirky doesn't concern me. Like I said in my previous post, either all of Scripture points to the same thing, or it's not Scripture. If Mr. Smith gave a Prophesy (which he did), that DID NOT HAPPEN and certainly CAN NOT happen now or ever (because he's already deceased), then by definition (not mine), that would qualify him as a "False Prophet".

Deuteronomy 13:1-5 - "If a prophet, or one who foretells by dreams, appears among you and announces to you a miraculous sign or wonder, and if the sign or wonder of which he has spoken takes place, and he says, 'Let us follow other gods' (gods you have not known) 'and let us worship them,' you must not listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer. The Lord your God is testing you to find out whether you love him with all your heart and with all your soul. It is the Lord your God you must follow, and him you must revere. Keep his commands and obey him; serve him and hold fast to him. That prophet or dreamer must be put to death, because he preached rebellion against the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt and redeemed you from the land of slavery; he has tried to turn you from the way the Lord your God commanded you to follow. You must purge the evil from among you"

You may say the key to that verse is "follow other gods", but I say to you that anyone who would describe God or Jesus OR The Holy Ghost differently than what is contained within the OT & NT Canon is NOT the same God. Scripture backs this up, not me...

I agree with your last comment. I too am not in the same league with ANYONE listed above. I am a mere servant of God, doing my best to obey Him and His Word with every ounce of my being. God does speak in the fossil rocks, but just remember, fossils don't have offspring, nor can you prove a fossil had offspring either (but that is a whole different conversation).

Jesus did not leave anyone "hanging", he gave us The Holy Spirit to guide us, if we CHOOSE to follow...

I did not come here to "evangelize" you, that's not my intent. I just know right from wrong and accurate from deception, because The Holy Spirit has given it to me to know.

God Bless,
RevKeith

Belief in things you can't see is crazy, right?

You probably never think about it, but indulge me....

You can't SEE the wind, you can feel it, you know it's there....
You can't SEE gravity, you can CERTAINLY feel it, you know it's there...

You can't SEE God, but I can promise you, I know He's there...

A New Take on the Homosexuality Issue

Over the past 5 eons, there's been an endless debate (more so over the past 60 years) as to whether or not Homosexuality is REALLY an "abomination" before God.

While doing some light reading today, something hit me that never really did before....

Let's start off with this verse:
Romans 12:2 - And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.

Ok, fine. Do not be conformed of this world, got it. Seems to be an easy enough rule for us.

But think of this regarding "sexuality". Sexuality is a CULTURAL ISSUE, true? Yes, it's the most common method of procreation, but throughout all of the world, with or without Christ, sexuality is a cultural issue, right?

Now let's add these verses:
1 Corinthians 5:9-11 - I wrote to you in my epistle not to keep company with sexually immoral people. Yet I certainly did not mean with the sexually immoral people of this world, or with the covetous, or extortioners, or idolaters, since then you would need to go out of the world. But now I have written to you not to keep company with anyone named a brother, who is sexually immoral, or covetous, or an idolater, or a reviler, or a drunkard, or an extortioner --- not even to eat with such a person.

Ok, I get it. Keep away from people that will keep you further from your walk with Christ. That isn't to say "isolate" yourself from them, but not to "keep company" with.

Finally, let's consider this verse:
Matthew 22:30 - For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels of God in heaven.

So let's see, in Heaven, there is no marriage because we are Holy. Got it.

Now let's put them together:
Do not concern yourself with the cultural issues of this world, don't be like or associate with immoral people, because if it's not good enough for Heaven, it's certainly not good enough for us here!

Truth be told, I started thinking about this while I was cooking today. When I finally got a chance to get this written, I may have lost what I was going for. If you found this confusing I apologize and will endeavor to improve it.

Proving Jesus is God - USING THE QUR'AN???

Seen everything yet?

How about a Muslim who can PROVE that Jesus is GOD by using The Qur'an!
You say it can't be?
It be...

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

Just as an FYI, the Videographer has a thick accent, but it is 100% understandable.