Hi everybody this entry is a little different to my usual entry, well I think it is anyway.
You may or may not have heard that the Christian world believes that Jesus will return one day. They are almost all in agreement that Jesus will return.
Where the Christian world disagree is what will Jesus do when he returns.
Will Jesus' return bring an end to this world as we know it. Will he create some kind of Utopia that will last a thousand years then at the end of the thousand years all those who believe in him wil be lifted up to be with him in heaven. And all the sinners will go to hell or some other vile place. Or will he come to reign on the earth for evermore and the earth will be this wonderful place remade to be just like God intended it to be. where the lion will lie down with the lamb and as the old song goes "they aint gonna make war no more." Or are you one of the believers that believes that when Jesus returns he is going bring this old earth to an end. He will destroy the whole earth and the believers will be raised from the dead and be with the lord forever.
There is no way of me knowing which one you believe. Then again you might have a different theory as to what will happen when Jesus returns.
A common theme running through all these theories is that they know it will be in the last days. Now most Christians (And I'm not included in this last bit) believe that we are in the last days and most believe that Jesus will return soon ad a good many believe Jesus will return in their life time.
Now I'd like to change tack a little bit.
What do you believe about climate change?
Is it real or is it a conspiracy by the government to sell more solar power cells. Or is the earth really warming and are we in danger of running out of water. Are we, in Australia really moving in to a period of famine or at least into a period where food will become increasingly harder to grow?
Are we in danger of destroying this earth that we call home, because we are over mining its' minerals?
Are we in danger of destroying this planet we live on with the emmissions we spew out of our chimneys and are car exausts?
Are we doing enough to stop ourselves from destroying this world?
I once asked a class I was teaching this question "If you had been at the foot of the cross on the day they crucified Jesus and you realized that you had the power to get him down from the cross and save him and nobody could stop you. Would you have done it?" You know that about two thirds of the class said the would". I said "your kindness would have cost humanity its' salvation."
Now I ask this question "If God has said that Jesus will return to destroy the planet or to refresh the planet or what ever he's going to do to the planet. Do we have the right to interfere?"
Cheers
Terry
Monday, June 29, 2009
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
What's happened this month
I'm not sure if you want to read this but I wanted to write it. You see I've had a mixed bag of a month. Some things were just right, some things were just wrong and somethings were neither right nor wrong. Those things just were.
A good friend of mine (Ern) who shall remain nameless and I were talking on the phone today Thurs 19th March and somehow it came up in the conversation as to whether I was happy with my life. Well it made me think and you know, I am very happy with my life. Sure there are things I'd like to change but am unable to at this time. Things such as Parkinson's Syndrome. I can't change the fact that I have it but what I can change is how I deal with it. I don't let it rule my life, sure it limits some of the things I'd like to do. But then again having PS made me realize some things that I might not have thought about if I hadn't had it, such as becoming a song writer and I would never have thought about putting my works onto disc and selling them.
I would never have met and worked with some of the finest vocalist in South Australia and I would never have worked with some of the best musicians in South Australia.
Have I made any mistakes? Yes I have. Some of them because I pressed a wrong button on my PC. Some of them because of poor judgment. And some I've still to hear about, I'm sure there is some one out there who would like to remind me of some thing I shoulda coulda aughta have done.
So what makes me like my life today?
When:
There are wars and rumours of wars. (that sounds very biblical doesn't it?)
There is famine in third world countries
Children go to bed hungry
Wives are being beaten by their husbands
When people in our own country (Australia) don't have any place to sleep at night
The list could go on and when you get to the end there will be more to add to it and as you add to it more will be added to it.
I could live my life trying to solve all these problems but the reality of it all is that I can't solve all the problems of the world. Neither can you. Neither can the organization or church that you are connected to. In fact no-one can.
What I'm saying is that no-one person is able to save the world from it's self. What I am also saying is that no organization, no matter how large or universal it may be is able to solve the problems of the world. How does knowing this help me be happy with my life? For a start it takes away the guilt that is forced upon us by those ads containing under fed children staring at us as we get stuck into our meals in the evening.
I supported a child in Africa for a year (I did this while trying to survive on a disability pension) but had to give up the support so that I could pay my bills. During the year however, I got, almost weekly, reams of paper asking me to give more and more and always the picture of the cute little girl or boy staring me down daring me to say no. I knew they were hungry but what could I do? I didn't have the means to give any more. Then it hit me why don't I write to the organization and see what they thought of this idea. So I wrote to them and said paraphrased. "Instead of sending me those begging letter why don't you take the money you spend on postage and the money you spend printing those pamphlets and the money that you spend on a person to compile the whole kit and kaboodle who possibly earns about $30.000+ a year or around $11 per hour or 19cents a minute. You could send an extra $10.76 a month to some other family and if you did that for all the people who currently support families your organization could do about 25% more than what you currently do.
They wrote back a very nice letter which basically said pull your head in and that was that.
If you are a Christian or a believer and you believe the bible to be the word of God then you need to know that God doesn't feel guilty about how the world has turned out. In-fact it's man's fault that the world is in the condition it is today. Genesis says that God saw everything was good.
It was man that sinned and consequently I sinned, then Jesus came and took away my sin so now I don't feel guilty.
But there are those who need us to feel guilty. Yes I said "Need us to feel guilty". You see most organizations work on the premise that if you feel guilty for such and such then you will work for them in a volunteer capacity.
The Church is good at having us do things by guilt. From the pulpit they say God has taken away our guilt. While saying, away from the pulpit, it is our duty to save all those who haven't heard the word. Now I'm not going to get into a discussion on the Great commission other than o say I don't believe in the Great commission (See my blog on The Great Commission) or to be more precise. I don't believe that the Great Commission can be applied to us today. But members of Churches are told over and over again that "The workers are few and the harvest is great" If that's not a guilt trip then what is. By the way I believe that to be one of the most misquoted passages in the new testament as well. Especially when it is applied to church goers today.
Guilt keeps the masses under control.
If you as a believer become what I'll call here a free thinker. That is, that you question the structure of the Organization that you are with. Then you'll feel the pressure of those who want you to conform and it will come to you in the guise of "Don't you think that what you are saying /promoting etc is going to cause some of the weaker members of the organization/group to stumble? That is called guilt.
How did I get onto this: Oh yes I was talking about why I feel happy with my life.
Well, since I still believe in the creator, I no longer depend on him to heal me of all my little and big ailments and, by the way, there is no proof of God healing anyone since the New Testament was closed off.
Since I no longer depend on God for my happiness. (See my bog on "The Secret")
And since I came to the realization that it isn't God who created the mess we now call earth and God isn't going to get us out of it by some war called Armageddon in the near future.
And since I realized that the Creator sent Jesus to die for all mankind and womankind and that when he said "it is finished" It was finished.
Well since I realized all that I became content because the power had been put back into my hands.
If I was going to be healed I would have to find the cure.
If I was going to be happy. I would have to initiate my happiness.
If I was going to live on this earth i would have to look after it.
And if God sent his son to take away my sin and set me free from guilt then "Why should I feel guilty?"
I'm content.
One more thing. When God said "I will remember their sins no more". Why do we insist on reminding him constantly that we have sinned?
See ya
A good friend of mine (Ern) who shall remain nameless and I were talking on the phone today Thurs 19th March and somehow it came up in the conversation as to whether I was happy with my life. Well it made me think and you know, I am very happy with my life. Sure there are things I'd like to change but am unable to at this time. Things such as Parkinson's Syndrome. I can't change the fact that I have it but what I can change is how I deal with it. I don't let it rule my life, sure it limits some of the things I'd like to do. But then again having PS made me realize some things that I might not have thought about if I hadn't had it, such as becoming a song writer and I would never have thought about putting my works onto disc and selling them.
I would never have met and worked with some of the finest vocalist in South Australia and I would never have worked with some of the best musicians in South Australia.
Have I made any mistakes? Yes I have. Some of them because I pressed a wrong button on my PC. Some of them because of poor judgment. And some I've still to hear about, I'm sure there is some one out there who would like to remind me of some thing I shoulda coulda aughta have done.
So what makes me like my life today?
When:
There are wars and rumours of wars. (that sounds very biblical doesn't it?)
There is famine in third world countries
Children go to bed hungry
Wives are being beaten by their husbands
When people in our own country (Australia) don't have any place to sleep at night
The list could go on and when you get to the end there will be more to add to it and as you add to it more will be added to it.
I could live my life trying to solve all these problems but the reality of it all is that I can't solve all the problems of the world. Neither can you. Neither can the organization or church that you are connected to. In fact no-one can.
What I'm saying is that no-one person is able to save the world from it's self. What I am also saying is that no organization, no matter how large or universal it may be is able to solve the problems of the world. How does knowing this help me be happy with my life? For a start it takes away the guilt that is forced upon us by those ads containing under fed children staring at us as we get stuck into our meals in the evening.
I supported a child in Africa for a year (I did this while trying to survive on a disability pension) but had to give up the support so that I could pay my bills. During the year however, I got, almost weekly, reams of paper asking me to give more and more and always the picture of the cute little girl or boy staring me down daring me to say no. I knew they were hungry but what could I do? I didn't have the means to give any more. Then it hit me why don't I write to the organization and see what they thought of this idea. So I wrote to them and said paraphrased. "Instead of sending me those begging letter why don't you take the money you spend on postage and the money you spend printing those pamphlets and the money that you spend on a person to compile the whole kit and kaboodle who possibly earns about $30.000+ a year or around $11 per hour or 19cents a minute. You could send an extra $10.76 a month to some other family and if you did that for all the people who currently support families your organization could do about 25% more than what you currently do.
They wrote back a very nice letter which basically said pull your head in and that was that.
If you are a Christian or a believer and you believe the bible to be the word of God then you need to know that God doesn't feel guilty about how the world has turned out. In-fact it's man's fault that the world is in the condition it is today. Genesis says that God saw everything was good.
It was man that sinned and consequently I sinned, then Jesus came and took away my sin so now I don't feel guilty.
But there are those who need us to feel guilty. Yes I said "Need us to feel guilty". You see most organizations work on the premise that if you feel guilty for such and such then you will work for them in a volunteer capacity.
The Church is good at having us do things by guilt. From the pulpit they say God has taken away our guilt. While saying, away from the pulpit, it is our duty to save all those who haven't heard the word. Now I'm not going to get into a discussion on the Great commission other than o say I don't believe in the Great commission (See my blog on The Great Commission) or to be more precise. I don't believe that the Great Commission can be applied to us today. But members of Churches are told over and over again that "The workers are few and the harvest is great" If that's not a guilt trip then what is. By the way I believe that to be one of the most misquoted passages in the new testament as well. Especially when it is applied to church goers today.
Guilt keeps the masses under control.
If you as a believer become what I'll call here a free thinker. That is, that you question the structure of the Organization that you are with. Then you'll feel the pressure of those who want you to conform and it will come to you in the guise of "Don't you think that what you are saying /promoting etc is going to cause some of the weaker members of the organization/group to stumble? That is called guilt.
How did I get onto this: Oh yes I was talking about why I feel happy with my life.
Well, since I still believe in the creator, I no longer depend on him to heal me of all my little and big ailments and, by the way, there is no proof of God healing anyone since the New Testament was closed off.
Since I no longer depend on God for my happiness. (See my bog on "The Secret")
And since I came to the realization that it isn't God who created the mess we now call earth and God isn't going to get us out of it by some war called Armageddon in the near future.
And since I realized that the Creator sent Jesus to die for all mankind and womankind and that when he said "it is finished" It was finished.
Well since I realized all that I became content because the power had been put back into my hands.
If I was going to be healed I would have to find the cure.
If I was going to be happy. I would have to initiate my happiness.
If I was going to live on this earth i would have to look after it.
And if God sent his son to take away my sin and set me free from guilt then "Why should I feel guilty?"
I'm content.
One more thing. When God said "I will remember their sins no more". Why do we insist on reminding him constantly that we have sinned?
See ya
Sunday, February 22, 2009
I need to have answers
Glad you could make it back to my blog.
One of my many faults which seems to irritate people is that I don't accept anything I'm told just because I've been told it.
It doesn't matter who tells it to me whether they be a minister of religion or a minister in government. Whether they be a high school teacher or a University lecturer, it makes no difference who they are or where they work or what their qualifications are. If they can't show me how they have arrived at a certain answer or opinion then I don't accept it until they or I can prove it to be correct or incorrect.
One of my many faults which seems to irritate people is that I don't accept anything I'm told just because I've been told it.
It doesn't matter who tells it to me whether they be a minister of religion or a minister in government. Whether they be a high school teacher or a University lecturer, it makes no difference who they are or where they work or what their qualifications are. If they can't show me how they have arrived at a certain answer or opinion then I don't accept it until they or I can prove it to be correct or incorrect.
Over the years that I was an agnostic, then a Christian and now a believer, this attitude has been seen as arrogance, trouble making, etc. I think the reason people don't like my asking questions is the following
1. It puts the one being questioned on the defensive.
2. It makes the one being questioned look at what they are teaching
3, It brings into question the teachers' authority
4, It makes the one being questioned discover for themselves what they are teaching.
There are many more reasons but these will stop you from getting board.
I was an agnostic until May 2nd 1972 when I became a member of the Church of Christ (Non Denominational) as it was called back then. I let my guard down and allowed them to get away with teaching me stuff that I just accepted. I'm not picking on the C of C here because back in the 70's we were all looking for a place to find rest. And I believed at the time that this was the place. Just as those who sought out the Catholic Church or Baptist church you name a church and you'll find that in the 70s it grew. I thought that it was the Jesus revolution which was about to commence.
1. It puts the one being questioned on the defensive.
2. It makes the one being questioned look at what they are teaching
3, It brings into question the teachers' authority
4, It makes the one being questioned discover for themselves what they are teaching.
There are many more reasons but these will stop you from getting board.
I was an agnostic until May 2nd 1972 when I became a member of the Church of Christ (Non Denominational) as it was called back then. I let my guard down and allowed them to get away with teaching me stuff that I just accepted. I'm not picking on the C of C here because back in the 70's we were all looking for a place to find rest. And I believed at the time that this was the place. Just as those who sought out the Catholic Church or Baptist church you name a church and you'll find that in the 70s it grew. I thought that it was the Jesus revolution which was about to commence.
Then after a number of years I started to ask questions. I remember one particular incident which I will relate here: I was in my office at work when a younger member of the congregation made an appointment to see me and is query was this. Why does the church teach that it is wrong to use musical instruments in our whorship? He asked me where it said that we couldn't use musical instruments in the Bible. This man was a music teacher and was very good on the instruments he chose to play. I played in a band with him for some time. However, back to the story, I believed that it was wrong because I had been taught that musical instruments were wrong if used when worshipping God. So rather condescendingly I told him that I would help him see that the church was right and that would put him back in his place. So I went home that night and read the scriptures that I had been told, taught that musical instruments were wrong and I couldn't prove it from there. So I went outside the things I had been taught and still I couldn't prove it.
I remembered we used to say to others who were not of our group "We spreak where the Bible speaks and we are silent where the Bible is silent" and I realised that we weren't "silent where the bible was siilent...". So I called a meeting of the men (That's another story) to tell them that we had got something wrong. I knew that when the leaders heard that we were not teaching the right thing about musical instruments, they would rectify it right away. So I stood up in the meeting and got about halfway through my account when one of the most influenial men in the group stood up and said we don't want to hear anymore I say it's right so it's right. And I stood there with my mouth open, not because of what was said but becauae all the rest of those men who were their were nodding in agreement. From that day on I never accepted anything that the leaders taught. I always checked it out. And I became a pain in the neck. You might be asking why didn't I leave? Well, where could I go? I had studied the major churches and none of them taught what I thought was the truth. It took a few years before the cracks began to show.
Eventually I left the Church altogether but I never left God. I went back to the church after about five years because a good friend of mine (who had kept in touch) convinced me that things were different now. But they weren't. People still didn't want to know what I believed the bible said to us. I didn't want them to change (well it would have been nice if they did see what I saw) I just wanted them to hear me out and then show me where I was wrong. It was and still is lonely when you're the only one that sees things differently, or should I say you think you're the only one who sees things that way. When we used to have Elders I approached the Elders of the church, very early in my quest not one of them had an answer for me. but one member, another friend of mine, came to see me about the issue but he used the same old arguments that I had been using and it told me that he hadn't looked at the problem but that he already had the answer and that was the official line of the church.
Well that's enough history.
Well that's enough history.
Now I have some questions for you, should you choose to take them.
1. If God expects me to forgve my enemies. Why is this same God going to create a place where his enemies are going to be tormented forever?
2. If God has forgiven all men through Jesus. How can there be a judgment day?
3. If Jesus died for all men doesn't it stand to reason that all men are saved?
4. If the Bible says that God will write his laws on our hearts and that no more will man teach his neighour. By who's authority do we teach our neighbour today.
5. The bible says quite clearly that Jesus says "I came only to the hebrews...". Why do we still believe that he came for us as well. Note Jesus doesn't say "I came to the Hebrews he says I came only to the hebrews
6. When Jesus says I come to bring judgement on the Hebrews. Why do we think he meant us as well?
1. If God expects me to forgve my enemies. Why is this same God going to create a place where his enemies are going to be tormented forever?
2. If God has forgiven all men through Jesus. How can there be a judgment day?
3. If Jesus died for all men doesn't it stand to reason that all men are saved?
4. If the Bible says that God will write his laws on our hearts and that no more will man teach his neighour. By who's authority do we teach our neighbour today.
5. The bible says quite clearly that Jesus says "I came only to the hebrews...". Why do we still believe that he came for us as well. Note Jesus doesn't say "I came to the Hebrews he says I came only to the hebrews
6. When Jesus says I come to bring judgement on the Hebrews. Why do we think he meant us as well?
That's enough.
If you want to look at the questions go ahead but here's what I want you to do (that's if you want to)
1st you need to recognise what the queston made you feel when you first read it.
2nd you need to recognise that you felt that way because you have already decided what the answer will be.
3rd And this is the hardest thing to do. (I know because I still have to go through this excercise every time I start to question something) You need to say to youself "What do I believe right now about this question? (write down your answer) Am I prepared to change my view?
Ok.
Go ahead Make my bed
Terry
Monday, January 19, 2009
How do we know it's God answering the prayer?
It’s been a long time since I last wrote on my blog. But here I am again.
I was watching a program last Sunday morning on the ABC that’s our government backed TV station. It’s like the BBC in England. Anyway I was watching this program all about the Mormon Church when I heard an interesting story. It was the account of two devout Mormons, I say devout because they allowed God into their decision making at all times. It appeared, from what they were saying that they didn’t make any decisions with in their lives without asking God first.
They were the parents of seven children and they cherished each one of them. Then one day they felt that there was one child that hadn’t arrived yet. Apparently they both felt it very strongly, that they had room for just one more child.
Well they didn’t want to make this decision on their own and so they asked God if they should have an eighth child. They prayed for quite some time about this and finally they got their answer. I’m not sure how they got their answer but they were quite certain that God had said yes. So they planned for their new addition to the family and soon his wife was pregnant again. Then came the day when she went into the hospital to deliver the child and shortly after that a healthy boy was born. Unfortunately the mother developed a blood clot on the brain and was dead within minutes of the birth.
The program went on to tell how the husband felt about what had happened and I couldn’t help feeling for his loss, for not only the loss of his wife but also his loss of confidence in his God. He was still grieving for his wife and he was grieving over his God as well.
When the interviewer asked him if he would do the same thing again, that is, ask God for directions. He was visibly shaken, as if he hadn’t considered the question before, His answer caused him a problem too because he said. “Some days I would but then on others I wouldn’t”
That is a true account. No doubt some readers of this blog might be saying “Mormons aren’t Christians “. I’m not going to get into theological arguments right now but I’m sure you can relate that account to something that has happened in your life. Maybe not as dramatic, maybe not has harrowing but I’m sure you have seen people who have prayed for things or for illnesses and you believe God has answered their prayer but then it seems He hasn’t answered it.
The account of this Mormon family got me thinking about when we pray. How do we know God has answered the prayer and it isn’t just our minds wanting it?
Actually I’d like you to answer my question by using my comment box at the end of this article.
I would also appreciate it if you would consider the following:
Did God know that the woman was going to die if she had the child? If He did why didn’t He warn them? Why wasn't His answer NO don’t have a child because it will kill you?
Was it the fault of the couple? Did they misunderstand the answer? If that is the case then why didn’t God make it clearer?
One thing I would ask you not to do. Please don’t fob me off with answers that don’t answer the question. An example of this is “We need faith”. That is not an answer. It is the lazy persons way of saying “I can’t be bothered finding the answer”. Why don’t you read the last prophet in the Old Testament “Malachi” and see what God things of that answer
I’m not a person who hasn’t read his bible. I have read the New Testament from cover to cover over 100 times in the last few years. That’s not boasting, it is my way of letting you know not take these questions lightly.
Ok I’ll leave it there
Hope to hear from you soon
I was watching a program last Sunday morning on the ABC that’s our government backed TV station. It’s like the BBC in England. Anyway I was watching this program all about the Mormon Church when I heard an interesting story. It was the account of two devout Mormons, I say devout because they allowed God into their decision making at all times. It appeared, from what they were saying that they didn’t make any decisions with in their lives without asking God first.
They were the parents of seven children and they cherished each one of them. Then one day they felt that there was one child that hadn’t arrived yet. Apparently they both felt it very strongly, that they had room for just one more child.
Well they didn’t want to make this decision on their own and so they asked God if they should have an eighth child. They prayed for quite some time about this and finally they got their answer. I’m not sure how they got their answer but they were quite certain that God had said yes. So they planned for their new addition to the family and soon his wife was pregnant again. Then came the day when she went into the hospital to deliver the child and shortly after that a healthy boy was born. Unfortunately the mother developed a blood clot on the brain and was dead within minutes of the birth.
The program went on to tell how the husband felt about what had happened and I couldn’t help feeling for his loss, for not only the loss of his wife but also his loss of confidence in his God. He was still grieving for his wife and he was grieving over his God as well.
When the interviewer asked him if he would do the same thing again, that is, ask God for directions. He was visibly shaken, as if he hadn’t considered the question before, His answer caused him a problem too because he said. “Some days I would but then on others I wouldn’t”
That is a true account. No doubt some readers of this blog might be saying “Mormons aren’t Christians “. I’m not going to get into theological arguments right now but I’m sure you can relate that account to something that has happened in your life. Maybe not as dramatic, maybe not has harrowing but I’m sure you have seen people who have prayed for things or for illnesses and you believe God has answered their prayer but then it seems He hasn’t answered it.
The account of this Mormon family got me thinking about when we pray. How do we know God has answered the prayer and it isn’t just our minds wanting it?
Actually I’d like you to answer my question by using my comment box at the end of this article.
I would also appreciate it if you would consider the following:
Did God know that the woman was going to die if she had the child? If He did why didn’t He warn them? Why wasn't His answer NO don’t have a child because it will kill you?
Was it the fault of the couple? Did they misunderstand the answer? If that is the case then why didn’t God make it clearer?
One thing I would ask you not to do. Please don’t fob me off with answers that don’t answer the question. An example of this is “We need faith”. That is not an answer. It is the lazy persons way of saying “I can’t be bothered finding the answer”. Why don’t you read the last prophet in the Old Testament “Malachi” and see what God things of that answer
I’m not a person who hasn’t read his bible. I have read the New Testament from cover to cover over 100 times in the last few years. That’s not boasting, it is my way of letting you know not take these questions lightly.
Ok I’ll leave it there
Hope to hear from you soon
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
Bible passages that I believe are misused or misunderstood
Bible passages that I believe are misused or misunderstood
This week Matthew 10
Luke 2:14 says: "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests."
Matt 5;9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.”
John 14:27 “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” Or
John 16:33 "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."
It seems strange that Jesus would say things like blessed are the peacemakers, or Peace I leave with you my peace I give you. When in Matthew 10:34-36 Jesus states:
"Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.
35 For I have come to turn "'a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law -
36 a man's enemies will be the members of his own household.
There must be a reason for this apparent mis-speak. Did Jesus bring peace to mankind or did he bring a sword? Did Jesus bless the peacemakers while he himself would fight them with his sword?
When I was a young Christian I learned that there are two types of peace. The passages where Jesus says such things as my peace or peace I leave you etc. I was taught that this peace is inner peace like contentment and peace of mind. Now all that sounded good to me when I was a very young believer but as I got older and as I started reading the Bible instead of studying key passages I realized that there was more to it than there being just two words. Peace of mind comes from knowing that everything is alright or that everything will be alright, I would venture to say that faith in God would give us that level of Peace. Jesus says that he had not come to bring peace but in fact he had actually come to do the opposite. He says “I haven’t come to bring peace but I have come to bring war or fighting, hence the sword. But Jesus says a little bit more. Jesus says in Matt 10.35 – 36. “For I have come to turn "'a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law - 36 a man's enemies will be the members of his own household. What did Jesus mean when he said that he would do these terrible things? I don’t think he was talking about what the churches teach us today, that this was what would happen to believers who followed the Christ. The churches teach that this happened in the early Churches and has been happening ever since. But I believe that it could be something else.
When Jesus says that he has come to turn a man against his father or a daughter against her mother or a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law he wasn’t meaning that they were going to “Dob-in” each other to the authorities. When Matthew tells us that Jesus said “A man’s enemies will be the members of his own household ”He was telling them of something far worse than what we have been led to believe. Jesus is not going to bring peace on the Israelites he has come to judge them he has come to declare war. I will touch on this at a later date. Romans 1:18 would be a good passage to read because it speaks about the Wrath” of God
Let ‘s now look at some of Matt 10:
Matthew 10:1–4 Jesus gathers his disciples around him. Now notice it is very specific. This verse says he called the twelve disciples to him and gave them authority… What did Jesus give them authority over? He gave them authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal every disease and sickness. Have you ever wondered why there are no evil Spirits around today like there was in the first century? I mean, if we believe the bible account they were everywhere and people knew about them and saw them. Today we don’t see them outside the Pentecostal assemblies. I’m not saying that they breed in the Pentecostal assemblies but that they seem to be the only ones that can see them. If indeed they can see them. My view is that those evil spirits are no longer around (not even in the Pentecostal assembly) because there is no one to give us authority over them plus, and I believe that this is the real reason, Jesus defeated them when he was resurrected. And what about authority over every disease? Every disease, I know no-one who has that kind of authority not over every disease. The seventy were not given authority at this time. The women were not given authority. None of the others were given authority to do those things. It was the twelve disciple, and then, as if to make sure that we understood the significance of this. Matthew writes in verse 2 “These are the names of the twelve apostles…” I guess Matthew knew some people would say that it probably wasn’t just the twelve. But just to drive the point home Matthew tells us in verse 5 “These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions…”
As we read the rest of Matt:10 we notice that no one else is included until Matt 11:1 I believe that that means the whole of Matthew 10 deals only with Jesus and his apostles. After Jesus had finished instructing his twelve disciples, he went on from there to teach and preach in the towns of Galilee. Here Matthew makes it clear again that it was the twelve. This verse clearly states that: “After Jesus had finished instructing his twelve disciples…” Why is this important? Does it matter how many are sent out? That isn’t the point. The point is this passage is very specific and we don’t have the right ignore it or change it. If we can do it here can we do it with other verses such as the resurrection for instance. Was Jesus dead when he was put into the tomb? I believe he was but if you are one of those who believe that when Jesus says that when he spoke to the twelve he could have meant any body within earshot then what’s to stop you from doing that with the resurrection? It’s not important how many are sent out. What is important is what the passage say’s and the passage says that only twelve disciples were in attendance or were selected by Jesus for a specific task and only twelve were given authority.
Let’s look at some of those instructions that Jesus gave the twelve. I believe that they say a great deal. In verse 5 Jesus tells the twelve where not to go. “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans.” Would the disciples have been obeying Jesus if they had said “Yes we know that Jesus said not to go to the Samarians but it won’t do any harm because later on we’ll probably be going to the Samaritans so, we can save time..” Of course they didn’t say that, they wanted to obey Jesus. Then he tells them where to go in verse 6: Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel…” Then Jesus tells them (in verse 7) what to preach to the lost sheep of Israel. He tells them to say that the “kingdom of heaven is near…”
How specific is Jesus:
He calls the twelve
The twelve are named
He gives them authority he is the only one who can do this
do not go among the Gentiles
do not enter any towns of the Samaritans
Go to the lost sheep of Israel
Tell them “the kingdom of God is near
Jesus is very specific. He tells them where not to go and he tells them where to go then he tells them what to teach them.
Then comes a series of instructions on what to do if certain things happen to them. But lets go down to verse 17ff. I believe that these are some of the most misunderstood and some of the most misquoted passages in the New Testament. I’m not going to go into the mis-quotes other than to say that we can not apply these passages to believers today. Why not? Well Jesus was talking to the twelve Apostles, we established that in the first 5 verses.
In Matt 10:17-20 Jesus tells the twelve (already established) to be on guard against men because these me are going to hand them over to the leaders and they will be flogged. In verse 18 they are told that they will be brought before Governors and Kings and Gentiles as witnesses. Then in verse 19 Jesus tells them not to worry because when they are in front of these powerful men they will not speak their own words but they would speak the words of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit of God would speak for them. The disciples wouldn’t need an office to work from or a library of commentaries or some other aid. The Spirit would give them what to say.
There is the joke about the preachers son watching his preacher dad working on his sermon one Saturday evening. His dad is having a bit of a problem with the subject matter and there is a lot of under the breath murmuring and papers being screwed up then being tossed into waste paper bin and the bin was getting full. The little boy approaches his dad and says “What ya doin dad?” and dad says I’m preaching God’s word in assembly tomorrow. And the boys says innocently “Well dad, if it’s Gods word, why are you making so many mistakes? You see the disciples were given what to say. They didn’t have to think about it.
Matt 10:21-22 Jesus already spoke about the family dobbing each other in but when would it happen? Note it has nothing to do with Christians. It would happen while they (the twelve) were out preaching the Kingdom was near. Verse 22 this passage is used by some to teach us that we are saved by standing firm but that is not what it teaches. Once again it has nothing to do with Christians. Who are we dealing with? We are still working with the twelve apostles, no one else has entered the picture yet. Verse 22 states that “All men will hate you. Who? The Apostles. But he who stands firm to the end will be saved. Who will be saved? The Apostles. No one else, once again it has nothing to do with Christians Verse 23 is a very interesting passage so I’ve typed it out in full. 23 “When you are persecuted in one place, flee to another. I tell you the truth, you will not finish going through the cities of Israel before the Son of Man comes.” It is a sad indictment on some teachers/preachers when they are approached about the last part of this passage that they don’t know how to answer it. The sad part isn’t that they don’t know the answer but that when they start looking at the problem they see it goes against everything that they know to be true. So they drop it like a hot cake. They deal with the first part easily. “When you are persecuted in one place, flee to another…” They say that when you are out preaching the gospel to the people and you are being persecuted simply get out of there. But it doesn’t say that. This passage just like all the rest in chapter 10 is specific to the twelve and so if they flee from one place to another it can only be to a city or a place where the lost tribe of Israel are. But once again it has nothing to do with Christians
What does it teach? “I tell you the truth, you will not finish going through the cities of Israel before the Son of Man comes.” What did Jesus mean? Was he going somewhere? We know from chapter 11:1 that Jesus went on to Galilee after he had finished speaking to the twelve.
This is where I stick my neck out but I believe that Matthew has a problem with the time line. If you scan over to Matt 11:2 you will note that John the baptizer was still alive but in prison and he sent some of his disciples to ask Jesus if he was the Messiah or not. If you check out the account by Mark in Mark 6:16 John has been beheaded and also in Luke 9:9. So did Matthew get it wrong or was he not too fussed about when it happened but rather that it did happened? I believe the second part and that he wasn’t worried about when it happened. Look at the Sermon on the mount. Matt 5 – 7 some scholars now say that it appears to be a collection of writings not necessarily preached on a mountain side. H H Halley (Halley’s Bible Handbook Zondervan Publishing House 1965 p433) says that “Matthew places the sermon on the mount in the forefront of his story of the Galilean Ministry, although it seems to have come some months later at the time of the choosing of the twelve.” So if Matthew wasn’t concerned with getting the time right but only that something happened was he saying that the disciples would be out preaching that the Kingdom was at hand when Jesus came in judgment on the Jews? What else can it be? “I tell you the truth, you will not finish going through the cities of Israel before the Son of Man comes.”
Another passage that is misquoted and misused is Matthew 10:29 - 31
29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. 30 And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.
I admit that I have preached the love of God for all Christians by using this passage but I was wrong. And I apologize to any one that I have lead astray by preaching it. So what is this passage teaching? Well it’s teaching that God is aware of those he has chosen to do work for him. I don’t mean those who think that God has sent them out but those whom God sent out such as the twelve disciples. Jesus has just told the twelve that he is sending them to be persecuted, whipped, abused, thrown into prison and even killed and he says that men will hate them. Now understand what they are feeling. Scared would be understatement. So what does Jesus tell them? He says God knows when the sparrows die and he controls that. Then he tells them “So don’t be afraid; (you will get special treatment from God) Why? Because you (the twelve) are worth more than many sparrows.
But, I hear you saying, God loves all of us and so we can teach that from this passage. I say again we can’t because if we do then we can also teach that if we die we will be raised up on the third day by God. Isn’t it time to make a decision about whether we believe the bible to be the word of God or not instead of paying lip service to it? If the book is from God then we had better watch how we use it. We can’t pick and choose passages that fit our doctrine or don’t fit it.
32 "Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. 33 But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven.” We can’t use this passage to say that we need to acknowledge God because although it says “Whoever…me before men,…” This passage is dealing with the twelve and their message that was being preached to the lost sheep of Israel. It was never meant for the gentiles and we have to start looking seriously at what and where we teach from.
Next time I’m going to look at why Jesus talked so much about the lost sheep of Israel.
This week Matthew 10
Luke 2:14 says: "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men on whom his favor rests."
Matt 5;9 “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.”
John 14:27 “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.” Or
John 16:33 "I have told you these things, so that in me you may have peace. In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world."
It seems strange that Jesus would say things like blessed are the peacemakers, or Peace I leave with you my peace I give you. When in Matthew 10:34-36 Jesus states:
"Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace, but a sword.
35 For I have come to turn "'a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law -
36 a man's enemies will be the members of his own household.
There must be a reason for this apparent mis-speak. Did Jesus bring peace to mankind or did he bring a sword? Did Jesus bless the peacemakers while he himself would fight them with his sword?
When I was a young Christian I learned that there are two types of peace. The passages where Jesus says such things as my peace or peace I leave you etc. I was taught that this peace is inner peace like contentment and peace of mind. Now all that sounded good to me when I was a very young believer but as I got older and as I started reading the Bible instead of studying key passages I realized that there was more to it than there being just two words. Peace of mind comes from knowing that everything is alright or that everything will be alright, I would venture to say that faith in God would give us that level of Peace. Jesus says that he had not come to bring peace but in fact he had actually come to do the opposite. He says “I haven’t come to bring peace but I have come to bring war or fighting, hence the sword. But Jesus says a little bit more. Jesus says in Matt 10.35 – 36. “For I have come to turn "'a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law - 36 a man's enemies will be the members of his own household. What did Jesus mean when he said that he would do these terrible things? I don’t think he was talking about what the churches teach us today, that this was what would happen to believers who followed the Christ. The churches teach that this happened in the early Churches and has been happening ever since. But I believe that it could be something else.
When Jesus says that he has come to turn a man against his father or a daughter against her mother or a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law he wasn’t meaning that they were going to “Dob-in” each other to the authorities. When Matthew tells us that Jesus said “A man’s enemies will be the members of his own household ”He was telling them of something far worse than what we have been led to believe. Jesus is not going to bring peace on the Israelites he has come to judge them he has come to declare war. I will touch on this at a later date. Romans 1:18 would be a good passage to read because it speaks about the Wrath” of God
Let ‘s now look at some of Matt 10:
Matthew 10:1–4 Jesus gathers his disciples around him. Now notice it is very specific. This verse says he called the twelve disciples to him and gave them authority… What did Jesus give them authority over? He gave them authority to drive out evil spirits and to heal every disease and sickness. Have you ever wondered why there are no evil Spirits around today like there was in the first century? I mean, if we believe the bible account they were everywhere and people knew about them and saw them. Today we don’t see them outside the Pentecostal assemblies. I’m not saying that they breed in the Pentecostal assemblies but that they seem to be the only ones that can see them. If indeed they can see them. My view is that those evil spirits are no longer around (not even in the Pentecostal assembly) because there is no one to give us authority over them plus, and I believe that this is the real reason, Jesus defeated them when he was resurrected. And what about authority over every disease? Every disease, I know no-one who has that kind of authority not over every disease. The seventy were not given authority at this time. The women were not given authority. None of the others were given authority to do those things. It was the twelve disciple, and then, as if to make sure that we understood the significance of this. Matthew writes in verse 2 “These are the names of the twelve apostles…” I guess Matthew knew some people would say that it probably wasn’t just the twelve. But just to drive the point home Matthew tells us in verse 5 “These twelve Jesus sent out with the following instructions…”
As we read the rest of Matt:10 we notice that no one else is included until Matt 11:1 I believe that that means the whole of Matthew 10 deals only with Jesus and his apostles. After Jesus had finished instructing his twelve disciples, he went on from there to teach and preach in the towns of Galilee. Here Matthew makes it clear again that it was the twelve. This verse clearly states that: “After Jesus had finished instructing his twelve disciples…” Why is this important? Does it matter how many are sent out? That isn’t the point. The point is this passage is very specific and we don’t have the right ignore it or change it. If we can do it here can we do it with other verses such as the resurrection for instance. Was Jesus dead when he was put into the tomb? I believe he was but if you are one of those who believe that when Jesus says that when he spoke to the twelve he could have meant any body within earshot then what’s to stop you from doing that with the resurrection? It’s not important how many are sent out. What is important is what the passage say’s and the passage says that only twelve disciples were in attendance or were selected by Jesus for a specific task and only twelve were given authority.
Let’s look at some of those instructions that Jesus gave the twelve. I believe that they say a great deal. In verse 5 Jesus tells the twelve where not to go. “Do not go among the Gentiles or enter any town of the Samaritans.” Would the disciples have been obeying Jesus if they had said “Yes we know that Jesus said not to go to the Samarians but it won’t do any harm because later on we’ll probably be going to the Samaritans so, we can save time..” Of course they didn’t say that, they wanted to obey Jesus. Then he tells them where to go in verse 6: Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel…” Then Jesus tells them (in verse 7) what to preach to the lost sheep of Israel. He tells them to say that the “kingdom of heaven is near…”
How specific is Jesus:
He calls the twelve
The twelve are named
He gives them authority he is the only one who can do this
do not go among the Gentiles
do not enter any towns of the Samaritans
Go to the lost sheep of Israel
Tell them “the kingdom of God is near
Jesus is very specific. He tells them where not to go and he tells them where to go then he tells them what to teach them.
Then comes a series of instructions on what to do if certain things happen to them. But lets go down to verse 17ff. I believe that these are some of the most misunderstood and some of the most misquoted passages in the New Testament. I’m not going to go into the mis-quotes other than to say that we can not apply these passages to believers today. Why not? Well Jesus was talking to the twelve Apostles, we established that in the first 5 verses.
In Matt 10:17-20 Jesus tells the twelve (already established) to be on guard against men because these me are going to hand them over to the leaders and they will be flogged. In verse 18 they are told that they will be brought before Governors and Kings and Gentiles as witnesses. Then in verse 19 Jesus tells them not to worry because when they are in front of these powerful men they will not speak their own words but they would speak the words of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit of God would speak for them. The disciples wouldn’t need an office to work from or a library of commentaries or some other aid. The Spirit would give them what to say.
There is the joke about the preachers son watching his preacher dad working on his sermon one Saturday evening. His dad is having a bit of a problem with the subject matter and there is a lot of under the breath murmuring and papers being screwed up then being tossed into waste paper bin and the bin was getting full. The little boy approaches his dad and says “What ya doin dad?” and dad says I’m preaching God’s word in assembly tomorrow. And the boys says innocently “Well dad, if it’s Gods word, why are you making so many mistakes? You see the disciples were given what to say. They didn’t have to think about it.
Matt 10:21-22 Jesus already spoke about the family dobbing each other in but when would it happen? Note it has nothing to do with Christians. It would happen while they (the twelve) were out preaching the Kingdom was near. Verse 22 this passage is used by some to teach us that we are saved by standing firm but that is not what it teaches. Once again it has nothing to do with Christians. Who are we dealing with? We are still working with the twelve apostles, no one else has entered the picture yet. Verse 22 states that “All men will hate you. Who? The Apostles. But he who stands firm to the end will be saved. Who will be saved? The Apostles. No one else, once again it has nothing to do with Christians Verse 23 is a very interesting passage so I’ve typed it out in full. 23 “When you are persecuted in one place, flee to another. I tell you the truth, you will not finish going through the cities of Israel before the Son of Man comes.” It is a sad indictment on some teachers/preachers when they are approached about the last part of this passage that they don’t know how to answer it. The sad part isn’t that they don’t know the answer but that when they start looking at the problem they see it goes against everything that they know to be true. So they drop it like a hot cake. They deal with the first part easily. “When you are persecuted in one place, flee to another…” They say that when you are out preaching the gospel to the people and you are being persecuted simply get out of there. But it doesn’t say that. This passage just like all the rest in chapter 10 is specific to the twelve and so if they flee from one place to another it can only be to a city or a place where the lost tribe of Israel are. But once again it has nothing to do with Christians
What does it teach? “I tell you the truth, you will not finish going through the cities of Israel before the Son of Man comes.” What did Jesus mean? Was he going somewhere? We know from chapter 11:1 that Jesus went on to Galilee after he had finished speaking to the twelve.
This is where I stick my neck out but I believe that Matthew has a problem with the time line. If you scan over to Matt 11:2 you will note that John the baptizer was still alive but in prison and he sent some of his disciples to ask Jesus if he was the Messiah or not. If you check out the account by Mark in Mark 6:16 John has been beheaded and also in Luke 9:9. So did Matthew get it wrong or was he not too fussed about when it happened but rather that it did happened? I believe the second part and that he wasn’t worried about when it happened. Look at the Sermon on the mount. Matt 5 – 7 some scholars now say that it appears to be a collection of writings not necessarily preached on a mountain side. H H Halley (Halley’s Bible Handbook Zondervan Publishing House 1965 p433) says that “Matthew places the sermon on the mount in the forefront of his story of the Galilean Ministry, although it seems to have come some months later at the time of the choosing of the twelve.” So if Matthew wasn’t concerned with getting the time right but only that something happened was he saying that the disciples would be out preaching that the Kingdom was at hand when Jesus came in judgment on the Jews? What else can it be? “I tell you the truth, you will not finish going through the cities of Israel before the Son of Man comes.”
Another passage that is misquoted and misused is Matthew 10:29 - 31
29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? Yet not one of them will fall to the ground apart from the will of your Father. 30 And even the very hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 So don't be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows.
I admit that I have preached the love of God for all Christians by using this passage but I was wrong. And I apologize to any one that I have lead astray by preaching it. So what is this passage teaching? Well it’s teaching that God is aware of those he has chosen to do work for him. I don’t mean those who think that God has sent them out but those whom God sent out such as the twelve disciples. Jesus has just told the twelve that he is sending them to be persecuted, whipped, abused, thrown into prison and even killed and he says that men will hate them. Now understand what they are feeling. Scared would be understatement. So what does Jesus tell them? He says God knows when the sparrows die and he controls that. Then he tells them “So don’t be afraid; (you will get special treatment from God) Why? Because you (the twelve) are worth more than many sparrows.
But, I hear you saying, God loves all of us and so we can teach that from this passage. I say again we can’t because if we do then we can also teach that if we die we will be raised up on the third day by God. Isn’t it time to make a decision about whether we believe the bible to be the word of God or not instead of paying lip service to it? If the book is from God then we had better watch how we use it. We can’t pick and choose passages that fit our doctrine or don’t fit it.
32 "Whoever acknowledges me before men, I will also acknowledge him before my Father in heaven. 33 But whoever disowns me before men, I will disown him before my Father in heaven.” We can’t use this passage to say that we need to acknowledge God because although it says “Whoever…me before men,…” This passage is dealing with the twelve and their message that was being preached to the lost sheep of Israel. It was never meant for the gentiles and we have to start looking seriously at what and where we teach from.
Next time I’m going to look at why Jesus talked so much about the lost sheep of Israel.
Saturday, April 5, 2008
Grace is a gift which we are hell bent on earning
What do I mean by "we are hellbent on earning the grace which god gives us?"
We all know what grace is, we've been taught about grace since the day we walked into a bible school or the meeting of our local church. If not on the first day it would have been by the end of the first month.
You see, I believe that grace is really important. It is my belief that without grace nothing would have been accomplished on the cross. Jesus could have died for us on the cross but. Let me emphasize that but, BUT if God had not forgiven us then we would still be lost. If God, the creator of everything, had not given us his grace, when Jesus was dying for us then you and I would still be in our sins.
If Jesus had decided, while in the heavenly places, that he might nip down to earth and save those wretched people, because he had nothing better to do. Then you and I would still be living with the weight of sin on our shoulders.
Grace is the important thing. Grace is behind Jesus dying on the cross. Grace is behind our forgiveness. You see, It wouldn't matter how sincere Jesus was, It is Gods attitude of Grace that reconciled us to him.
Do you get the picture yet?
Now you might hear people say "I got a free gift in the post this morning". Well I'm here to tell you that you can't get a 'free gift". Because the gift by its' very nature is free. If I offer you a gift the assumption is, is that it is free. In other words you are receiving it with no expectations, no obligations and no thought of repayment.
You wish!
When we give gifts, except in some rare instances, it's because we like the person or they have done something for us. Or we hope they will do something for us or for someone else. We give gifts because it's expected of us ie Christmas, birthdays etc.. All these things are not gifts. Oh yes they are being given. But, except in some rare occasions, there is a reason for the giving and it is usually by way of some reward for the giver. We might call them wages or rewards for a job well done
God does not give Grace in that way. When God gave us his grace it was with no strings attached. Now you may find this hard to grasp that God gave us grace with no expectations. Grace is free.
If grace is free then what can we do to earn it?
The simple and the only answer is NOTHING, NADA, and all those other words that mean NOTHING.
We can do nothing to earn Grace. We can't gamble for it. We can't do an odd job here or there for it. We can't starve ourselves for it. We can't do good for it. Are you getting the picture? We can't earn grace.
Now this next statement will raise a few eyebrows. We have grace whether we believe in God or not, whether we want it or not. Whether we are Muslim or Catholic, Church of England, Church of Australia, Assemblies of God, Jehovah Witnesses, Mormon, that new sect down the road that believes that space ships are coming back to pick up the remnant of Israel, whatever our belief we cannot escape the grace of God. I can hear people diving for their bibles and turning to such passages as John 3:16 & 36 but I say to you read it with this in mind that Jesus wasn't sent to the Gentiles but only to the Jews and he came to the Jews with the news that they had failed as Gods people and were about to be destroyed as a nation. Matt 15:24. If you want to take on that mantle then be my guest.
Gods' grace is not meant for a few baptized believers. Now I'm not saying that everyone is going to be comfortably tucked into bed when they arrive in the after life. They, as are we, are going to live forever. How and where and in what condition is up to the only righteous judge, Jehovah God. Not us.
Yet our Church language is riddled with the idea that we can earn grace. Or that we can pay God back for what he's done for us.
One thing that lingers on in the tithing Churches and in the churches of Christ, which is where I learned it, is that we give back to God a little or in the case of the tithing community 10% of what we earn.
Sometimes nullifying Gods grace is couched in terms that make it sound right. "We should go and do such and such to show God our gratitude."
Prayer is used to nullify Grace. "Let's all thank God for the grace he has given us."
What about "God wants us to worship him."
Then the insidious "If you loved God you would be in this place whenever the doors are open." That one is not for God's benefit but for the benefit of the speaker.
Grace is free.
There are no strings attached. God expects nothing from us. Read your New Testament from cover to cover if you don't believe me.
No! I mean it. If you think differently then do as I did. Suspend all your beliefs until you have read the book which you call your guide book or your manual for living at least 3 times (not a magic number) and watch all the doctrines of man fall away.
Take notice from today onward of the things that we say which help our minds get rid of the power of grace.
We all know what grace is, we've been taught about grace since the day we walked into a bible school or the meeting of our local church. If not on the first day it would have been by the end of the first month.
You see, I believe that grace is really important. It is my belief that without grace nothing would have been accomplished on the cross. Jesus could have died for us on the cross but. Let me emphasize that but, BUT if God had not forgiven us then we would still be lost. If God, the creator of everything, had not given us his grace, when Jesus was dying for us then you and I would still be in our sins.
If Jesus had decided, while in the heavenly places, that he might nip down to earth and save those wretched people, because he had nothing better to do. Then you and I would still be living with the weight of sin on our shoulders.
Grace is the important thing. Grace is behind Jesus dying on the cross. Grace is behind our forgiveness. You see, It wouldn't matter how sincere Jesus was, It is Gods attitude of Grace that reconciled us to him.
Do you get the picture yet?
Now you might hear people say "I got a free gift in the post this morning". Well I'm here to tell you that you can't get a 'free gift". Because the gift by its' very nature is free. If I offer you a gift the assumption is, is that it is free. In other words you are receiving it with no expectations, no obligations and no thought of repayment.
You wish!
When we give gifts, except in some rare instances, it's because we like the person or they have done something for us. Or we hope they will do something for us or for someone else. We give gifts because it's expected of us ie Christmas, birthdays etc.. All these things are not gifts. Oh yes they are being given. But, except in some rare occasions, there is a reason for the giving and it is usually by way of some reward for the giver. We might call them wages or rewards for a job well done
God does not give Grace in that way. When God gave us his grace it was with no strings attached. Now you may find this hard to grasp that God gave us grace with no expectations. Grace is free.
If grace is free then what can we do to earn it?
The simple and the only answer is NOTHING, NADA, and all those other words that mean NOTHING.
We can do nothing to earn Grace. We can't gamble for it. We can't do an odd job here or there for it. We can't starve ourselves for it. We can't do good for it. Are you getting the picture? We can't earn grace.
Now this next statement will raise a few eyebrows. We have grace whether we believe in God or not, whether we want it or not. Whether we are Muslim or Catholic, Church of England, Church of Australia, Assemblies of God, Jehovah Witnesses, Mormon, that new sect down the road that believes that space ships are coming back to pick up the remnant of Israel, whatever our belief we cannot escape the grace of God. I can hear people diving for their bibles and turning to such passages as John 3:16 & 36 but I say to you read it with this in mind that Jesus wasn't sent to the Gentiles but only to the Jews and he came to the Jews with the news that they had failed as Gods people and were about to be destroyed as a nation. Matt 15:24. If you want to take on that mantle then be my guest.
Gods' grace is not meant for a few baptized believers. Now I'm not saying that everyone is going to be comfortably tucked into bed when they arrive in the after life. They, as are we, are going to live forever. How and where and in what condition is up to the only righteous judge, Jehovah God. Not us.
Yet our Church language is riddled with the idea that we can earn grace. Or that we can pay God back for what he's done for us.
One thing that lingers on in the tithing Churches and in the churches of Christ, which is where I learned it, is that we give back to God a little or in the case of the tithing community 10% of what we earn.
Sometimes nullifying Gods grace is couched in terms that make it sound right. "We should go and do such and such to show God our gratitude."
Prayer is used to nullify Grace. "Let's all thank God for the grace he has given us."
What about "God wants us to worship him."
Then the insidious "If you loved God you would be in this place whenever the doors are open." That one is not for God's benefit but for the benefit of the speaker.
Grace is free.
There are no strings attached. God expects nothing from us. Read your New Testament from cover to cover if you don't believe me.
No! I mean it. If you think differently then do as I did. Suspend all your beliefs until you have read the book which you call your guide book or your manual for living at least 3 times (not a magic number) and watch all the doctrines of man fall away.
Take notice from today onward of the things that we say which help our minds get rid of the power of grace.
Monday, June 11, 2007
Whitticisms challenged
I like to read Dwight Whitsett's "Whitticisms" dwhitsett.wordpress.com/ . They are well thought out comments on a wide range of subjects. However I don't always agree with what he writes. That is not to say that Dwight is wrong when we disagree after all it is my opinion. I don't usually go public when I disagree but I feel strongly about Dwight's latest "Whitticism".
In his latest "Whitticism" "World Evangelism is a 'God Thing'" Dwight writes
"6.5 Billion! Mind-blowing, isn’t it? How can we possibly be expected to bring the good news to all those people? Illogical! Unreasonable! No way! Staring at the overwhelming task, we’re tempted to opt out. And yet, Jesus says, “Do it.”"
I'm assuming that Dwight, when he writes "Do it" is referring to Matthew 28:19 and /or Mark 16:15, where Jesus tells the Apostles (see Matt 28:16 Mk 16:14) to go into the whole world and preach the Gospel.
It's my belief that we were never told to preach the Gospel to the whole world. It was only for the Apostles.
Let's look at some biblical facts:
Jesus spent three and a half years teaching the Apostles.
Then he had to give them "Another Helper (John 14:16,17) whom the world could not receive. This helper would testify of Jesus (John 15:26).
John 16:13 says the Spirit of truth was to come and lead or guide them into all truth.
In Mark 16:16 Those early believers who believed the Apostles teaching were given signs.
The Word was confirmed by the accomanying signs. Mk 16:20
Now, what have we been given?
Jesus hasn't spent three and a half years with us.
No signs, no miraculous gifts, no special helper, no Spirit of truth. which answers the next question which Dwight asks.
"Okay, so let’s ask ourselves, would he give us a command without also giving us everything we need to obey it? Not likely!"
I agree Dwight, Not likely.
Next we read that God expects us to do his will with His power and provisions (1Peter 4:11) Philippians 4:19, 2 Corinthians 9:8, 10,11.
In his latest "Whitticism" "World Evangelism is a 'God Thing'" Dwight writes
"6.5 Billion! Mind-blowing, isn’t it? How can we possibly be expected to bring the good news to all those people? Illogical! Unreasonable! No way! Staring at the overwhelming task, we’re tempted to opt out. And yet, Jesus says, “Do it.”"
I'm assuming that Dwight, when he writes "Do it" is referring to Matthew 28:19 and /or Mark 16:15, where Jesus tells the Apostles (see Matt 28:16 Mk 16:14) to go into the whole world and preach the Gospel.
It's my belief that we were never told to preach the Gospel to the whole world. It was only for the Apostles.
Let's look at some biblical facts:
Jesus spent three and a half years teaching the Apostles.
Then he had to give them "Another Helper (John 14:16,17) whom the world could not receive. This helper would testify of Jesus (John 15:26).
John 16:13 says the Spirit of truth was to come and lead or guide them into all truth.
In Mark 16:16 Those early believers who believed the Apostles teaching were given signs.
The Word was confirmed by the accomanying signs. Mk 16:20
Now, what have we been given?
Jesus hasn't spent three and a half years with us.
No signs, no miraculous gifts, no special helper, no Spirit of truth. which answers the next question which Dwight asks.
"Okay, so let’s ask ourselves, would he give us a command without also giving us everything we need to obey it? Not likely!"
I agree Dwight, Not likely.
Next we read that God expects us to do his will with His power and provisions (1Peter 4:11) Philippians 4:19, 2 Corinthians 9:8, 10,11.
I'm a little confused at this point. I knew Dwight when he was a missionary in South Australia. As far as I know, he used to teach that the gifts of the Holy Spirit were not available to us today. I still believe that. However Dwight uses 1Peter 4:11 which speaks of gifts (see verse 10). Now, do we believe in the gifts or don't we.
Dwight writes. Also remember that, along with the tools, we are stewards of a mighty message with guaranteed effectiveness (Isaiah 55:10,11; 2 Corinthians 4:7 and Romans 1:16
Where are these tools? And what is this mighty message that we are stewards of. You see, ask 20 people and you will get twenty versions of the "message". If we all face up to the truth and not cover our eyes and close our ears. We would have to admit that we don't really know what the message is. Other than saying things like: The Gospel is the power of God for salvation. or It is the cross, or It's that God so loved the world that he gave his only son to die for us. As great as all these things are, it wouldn't take Jesus three and a half years to teach that to the disciples. Nor would they have so much trouble remembering those things that they would need a special helper or the Spirit of truth to guide them into all things.
What’s more, we have easy access to divine power – power to do much more than we can dream (2 Corinthians 10:4; Ephesians 3:20,21).
How does this power manifest itself? And if we have this power. Why are the churches declining.
My explanation: Jesus came to this earth because of the Jews and came only to the Jews. Matthew 15:24
Matthew 5:17, 18. Jesus came to fulfil the law and the prophets
Luke 21:20-22 Jesus says that those days were the days of vengence for the Hebrews that all things which were written might be fulfilled. All things. All things, to me, means everything, nothing left to do.
When Jesus said on the cross "It is finished" John 19:29. I believe he was saying that he had accomplished everything that he had been sent to do.
I also believe that when the Roman army came upon Jerusalem in AD 70 the Jewish nation ceased to exist. That is why Jesus came to the earth not to turn God's people back to God but to tell them (God's chosen ones) that it was all over for them, that there was no going back (read Malachi). But he also reconciled us, the Gentiles back to God. Read Romans 5.
I also believe that the church is a leftover from the Judaistic way of doing things and that there is no pattern or authority for what we do today. I'm not saying that those who want to meet and do the ritualitic things are doing wrong either. I'm saying that I don't find any authority today for it.
Now , instead of jumping up and down and getting annoyed at me. Step back and look at what you believe as a christian. People say that the bible has no mistakes in it but compare Mathew 27:5-8 with Acts 1:18. In Matthew the Pharisees buy a field after Judas hangs himself but Luke in Acts 1:18 says that Judas bought a field then fell headlong and his middle burst open. I have heard this explained this way: that Judas did hang himself that the rope broke and he fell and burst open. That's not what the Bible says. That is what man says happened. It still doesn't explain how one passage says that he bought the field and the other passage say that the Pharisees bought it. How do you explain Mark 16:9-20 which supposedly is not in the original text? Likewise 1John 5:7-8. For there are three... most of 7 and the first half of verse 8 is disputed and only appears in 4 or 5 late manuscripts.
I think sometimes that we trust the Bible more than we trust God and the Holy Spirit. Do you know how the Holy Spirit works in you? Do you know if the Holy Spirit is trying to make you do something? We need to start looking at what we teach and see the inconsistencies in what we teach and are taught. Stop accepting what those who consider themselves teachers say we have to believe. It's hard at first but being free is hard work. There is always someone who wants to take you captive.
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