Pride and Identity

It’s a problem when our personal identity and our pride is the same thing and can’t be separated.

Which love?

Love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world, the love of the Father is not in him.  (I John 2:15)

Inside us, it is either the love of the world or the love of the Father. We can’t have both, according to the text. This tells us that the love of the Father is a love which replaces the love of the world – only divine love can conquer love for the things of the world.

Brokenness

In the Kingdom, brokenness leads to wholeness.

In touch with reality

God is the center of everything, and His Son Jesus Christ is the Head of the human race, the living Head of the men and women He has redeemed, and to the degree we perceive and believe this is the degree we are in touch with reality. We all need a stronger grip on reality, that is, the reality of Jesus Christ, and this is by faith in Him.

Unchangeableness

The unchangeableness of Jesus Christ is our constant in an ever-changing world and a restless, ever-shifting, ever-evolving  “Christendom”. The Bible says He will never change, forever He’s the same (Heb 13:8) which is either good news or bad news, depending on where we stand with Him.

Even the best soil…

In the parable of the sower even the good soil, the best soil available, could not bring forth any life or any fruit without the seed, they were totally void of life until the seed of the word of God was planted in them. The life is in the seed.

Breathing

Prayer is like breathing, and should be, with those alive from the dead.

Interactions

I guess perhaps 80% of Christians have very few meaningful or edifying interactions with other members of the body of Christ, and such interactions are the main medium thru which Christ brings His people to maturity.

Real faith

God is real, therefore our faith in Him must be as real as He is.

Friendship of God

Value the friendship of God far more precious than the friendship of man and God will give you REAL friends, those who also value the friendship of God more than the friendship of man.

Resisting the HOLY Spirit

As new creations in Christ, if there is any unholiness in us it must have been due to us resisting the HOLY Spirit who dwells in us.
Resisting means fighting against. What a sad place to be, to be found fighting against God!

Away from home

This world is not my home. Let’s glorify the Lord Jesus Christ while we’re away from home. He is my home. “In my Father’s house are many rooms, I go to prepare a place for you...”

Poor excuse of a human being

The one who doesn’t have the guts to tell the truth is a poor excuse of a human being.

The way it is

Paul experienced that the more he loved people the less he was loved. This seems to be the normal state of affairs for disciples, they are always loving people who have little or no love for them, being friendly to folks who don’t want to be true friends, giving to people who will not give to them, helping people who will not help them. Disciple of Christ, get used to it, that’s the way it is, this is the way of your Master, following in His steps.

What kept God from sending you to hell?

“There is nothing that keeps wicked men for one moment out of hell except the mere pleasure of God. By the mere pleasure of God I mean His sovereign pleasure, His arbitrary will or purpose. He is not under the slightest obligation to preserve the life of a sinner. He is hindered by no difficulty in releasing him. He is not duty bound to preserve any wicked person’s life for one moment longer.”

~ Jonathan Edwards

Real Pastors are not called “Pastor”

 

 

Will you take a man more seriously, or listen closer to what he says or teaches, if he calls himself Pastor or Reverend, Prophet or Apostle? If you are such a person you may be blind and lacking spiritual discernment.

 

And would you be able to recognize or receive a man as a pastor/elder if he DOES NOT allow people to call him by a title? It’s a good test of how well you know Jesus. If you only recognize men as Pastors if they go by the title, then it could be a sign you’re spiritually blind and heading for a cliff, for Jesus said don’t call men by titles, and He said that those who don’t do what He says are building their house on the sand.

 

The pastor who obeys Jesus and refuses to allow people to call him “Pastor” (see Matthew 23) is actually demanding other brothers relate to him as an equal, he’s requiring that any relationship he has be grounded in the REALITY of the truth in Jesus. He is requiring that people relate to him in real terms, based on what he actually is, teaches, says and does, and not relate to him on the basis of a title. He is forcing people to face reality, face the truth, and that won’t be popular.

 

The majority, perhaps, will never be able to acknowledge a man as a pastor if he doesn’t allow people to call him “Pastor”. The simple-minded will think, “Hmmm… if he were a real pastor then people would call him Pastor?” not understanding that one of the signs of a REAL pastor/elder/overseer is they don’t allow others to call them “Pastor”.

Humble Pie

Humble pie is the best pie.

Disfiguring the image of God

To deny or ignore any part or any truth of the Scriptures is like taking a chunk out of the face of God, it’s like disfiguring His image.

Pressing in

The law and the prophets were until John: since that time the kingdom of God is preached, and every man is pressing into it. (Luke 16:16)

Why do we have to press in? What’s the resistance? The resistance is our flesh, the world and the devil, we have to press into the Kingdom thru these barriers of resistance. The Kingdom is pressed into, it is never effortlessly or accidentally stumbled upon, every man presses into it, and we are to daily ask the Father that His Kingdom come, and this is the Christian life.

Toe the line?

Islamic terror increasing in the world will inevitably precipitate a united response from the “world community”, and this crack down will not be good, for it will result in a decrease in religious liberties, and a marginalizing of anyone who doesn’t toe the official line of the New World Order.