AN EXCHANGE ON REDDIT

 

THE QUESTION:

My church is ordaining a woman and I’m not sure how to feel about it. My understanding of scripture has always been that pastoral positions are reserved for men. I’m trying to make sure I’m not jumping to judgment on this. What say you Reddit?

RESPONSES: This is a recent exchange on REDDIT.  I am in burgundy. The other colors are other writers.

God specifically outlines that men and women have different places within the church. Women pastors go against scripture. The exception being if the entire body is only women. 

 

The time in which the Bible was written has to be taken into account here. The ways women were and still are treated in Middle Eastern cultures doesn’t always align with realities in Western cultures. I believe wholeheartedly that women like Joyce Meyer were given a calling and do a very good job preaching the Lord’s word. She’s one of many examples of women being called by the Lord to preach so if the Lord tells a woman it’s her calling to become a pastor are you saying the Lord is wrong? Being a man I find it funny to not embrace women who have a gift and while I agree both Paul and Timothy say a woman cannot be a preacher, I believe the Lord wants all his children to be saved and if the path to salvation comes at the guidance and direction of a woman preacher then that’s His will being done and we’d be using scripture to go against His will in action.

 

You are saying the timeless God was taken unaware that Western cultures would do what they have done. That is blasphemy and Joyce Meyer is a literal catalog of false teaching who has a stated animas from her own mouth against one of God's choicest servants, Paul, who was directed to write what he wrote by the Holy Spirit. People were misconstruing Deborah who was a judge to be a pastor which she was not.

Either you believe the Bible or you don't, and there is ample evidence of how far from God Joyce's teachings are. It is best to check everyone out. I often tell those to whom I preach to check me out! I preach at least twice a week, and we are held to a high standard by God - stricter than people in general.

 

 

I think, if we're looking for what the Bible has to say on the matter, it's easy to get hung up on a couple verses that are often taken out of context or hard to understand (head coverings, anyone?)

If we look at characters and themes, however, we see Priscilla helping to teach Apollos (a woman teaching a grown man, and teacher to boot?), Phoebe, Lydia, Esther, Miriam, Huldah, and Deborah. The irony of the last one is that the story highlights the failure of men to step up, and so God uses whom He will, even though it's culturally embarrassing.

Women in the Bible are teachers, elders, deacons, prophets, and more.

Please understand that I'm not trying to be "woke" or anything along those lines, but as far as men or women in leadership I don't really care what their biology says: I want to know what their character is. I want to see a person who exemplifies the Spirit of Christ, knows the Bible backwards and forwards, and is capable of communicating those things to others.

Waaaay too many men have failed as church leaders because of lack of character, and we keep elevating people like this simply because they are charismatic men who are gifted in oratory. We bring in "pastors" from the outside and choose them based on how well they perform in the pulpit, without really getting a sense of who they are as people. I've seen multiple churches in my city burn through man after man, called "pastor", many who have brought disunity or even church splits. That is the worst kind of shepherding I can imagine.

But you know who's always stepping up behind the scenes? Godly moms and Sunday school teachers who teach generation after generation. They are often even instructing our young men until they reach the age our culture decides they are "adult" (which is a different age than it was in Jesus' time).

I am a middle-aged man, but I will gladly receive teaching from a woman who is humble, demonstrates the fruits of the Spirit, and is full of integrity, rather than a man who is an eloquent speaker trained formally in rhetoric and biblical studies but devoid of strong character.

 

 

All scripture must be taken into account. Christianity is not a buffet religion where we eat only what is appealing to us while leaving all else behind. 2 Tim. 3:16.

 

In my opinion, if scripture teaches that we no longer follow a written code, that cannot be dismissed buffet style either. I believe a harmoniously reconcilation of the two is that all scripture is profitable (that is, helpful) for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, but not profitable for determining a written, infallible code of right and wrong. The Bible guides but does not claim to be an infallible code (following the letter) especially in the New Covenant.

"[5] Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God, [6] who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life." 2 Corinthians 3:5-6 ESV

"[14] For the whole law is fulfilled in one word: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”" Galatians 5:14 ESV

"[4] Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant [5] or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; [6] it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth." 1 Corinthians 13:4-6 ESV

 

So the  Holy Spirit is fallible? The word is perfect. Man's ideas are not. Neither you nor I know more than God or are in a position. To decide what to obey and what not to. Many churches have adopted your position and they are unrecognizable as Christian institutions. I have been I. Christ almost seventy years and devour the Bible. People love to say how different we are from 2000 years ago yet growing up, all women covered their heads in church and except for some fringe groups and some Pentecostals all pastors were men. The majority of black children had both a father and mother in the home and divorce was relatively rare. If someone got pregnant they birthed the child rather than taking pills and flushing it down the toilet.  The truth is we are different from only 65 years ago. What changed?  Wholesale dismissal of the scriptures and moral codes accepted by most even if not Christian. I do not live in a bubble but lead a ministry in several states and talk with a lot of people with varying positions on the issues. I have yet to find a single church that advocates what you do that has produced good spiritual fruit and where the lives of the people mirror the character of Christ. On the other hand, I see incredible decline with rampant premarital sex, with one female AG youth pastor in NJ saying she had no expectation that the youth in her care would emerge from their teen years as virgins.  Purity in that was the NORM in our Bible-believing church growing up. I had a query from a Lutheran lady pastor for work who was in a lesbian relationship and littered the churchyard with LGBTQetc signage. A church in Texas actually sponsored a Drag Queen show. My wife had been in a female headed church - the pastor being the first AME-ordained woman minister. She was very harsh, the men were enfeebled, and my wife had to leave.  The bottom line is that churches that follow scripture thrive, even with fewer people, and those that view it as a buffet inevitably compromise on the core issues of holiness. I have yet to see an exception. Incidentally, I was a youth pastor in a Pakistani church years ago and all the girls covered their heads when praying, just like their mothers, and my wife puts a net on her hair as a sign of submission. I never demanded that, and I believe that long hair can be a covering as well as the scripture seems to allow for that, but the Pakistani practice is clearly compliant and very beautiful.

 

Read Psalm 119 which is all about the Bible. The ceremonial law was nailed to the cross and Jews have not sacrificed animals for about 1954 years. Christ and the apostles taught none of the Ten Commandments, with the tenth on the Sabbath clarified to reflect freedom in Christ. In terms of daily compliance with the character of God, the New Testament notes the faith of those who came before Christ and we are privileged to clearly know what pleases God as it put it all on writing. I have had a business for 45 years, and we put it in writing. When people do not, there are endless challenges as people have selective memories. 

 

I am curious on precisely which parts of the Bible you wish to ignore. You should make a list and that will tell you everything you need to know if you are honest with yourself.

 

I actually think it’s fundamentalists like yourself who are too prideful to properly interpret the Bible. It’s ironic to imagine that you can read a verse like 1 Corinthians 7:12 “Now, I will speak to the rest of you, though I do not have a direct command from the Lord…” by Paul, admitting that not everything he says is a direct divine Commandment - but ignore it because you think you know better.

 

First which of the five fundamentals of the faith do you disagree with? 

1.      The Deity of our Lord Jesus Christ (John 1:1; John 20:28; Hebrews 1:8-9). 

2.      The Virgin Birth (Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:23; Luke 1:27).

3.      The Blood Atonement (Acts 20:28; Rom. 3:25, 5:9; Eph. 1:7; Heb. 9:12-14).

4.      The Bodily Resurrection (Luke 24:36-46; 1 Corinthians 15:1-4, 15:14-15).

5.      The inerrancy of the scriptures themselves (Ps 12:6-7; Rom 15:4; 2 Tim 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20). 

Those are the fundamentals. We reject all MAN-MADE rules which are of no value against fleshly indulgence. Some so-called Fundamentalists are by far not unique in that regard - those who liberally interpret the scriptures have their own sets.

The Bible says not to slander. I am a servant of the most high God set aside as a minister of the Gospel and have been in his kingdom for almost 70 years. I have read the entire Bible numerous times (three times before the age of 12) and am not a biblical illiterate. I have produced almost 3000 radio programs, many of them verse-by-verse messages, so the Bible and I are not simply occasional friends. I am determined to teach what the scripture says without compromise, but our ministry organization founded in 1985 was forced to bring people together regardless of denomination, race or economic status. I have preached in a wide range of churches, even in places where I disagreed with much of their doctrine.

You will note that Paul in THIS INSTANCE made the statement you noted which means all the rest of what he said was NOT emanating from him but from the Holy Spirit. Wise leaders will always make the distinction as to whether what they are saying is a clear word of God or their OPINION of what God wants. When it comes to controversial subjects like the sequence of the end times, I make sure to distinguish what is an arguable belief and what is pure scripture. Private interpretation is forbidden, yet I see many Bibles with the preacher's name on them which contain sectarian and arguable interpretations. I avoid all of those.

THE FEAR OF THE LORD AND REPENTANCE

I am writing this post in response to a request from a minister friend who is distressed at how little attention this subject gets from other ministers he knows. I have a few thoughts that I trust will bring some clarity to a subject so many people seem to want to avoid, I have listened to R. C. Sprout, Derek Prince, and others on the topic to complement what I believe on the subject.

Many like to avoid the subject of the fear of the Lord. They react against those who seem scared to live a normal life, always scared to death of what God will do to them next. They also like to claim that Jesus talked more about hell than heaven, though it depends how you count reference and inferences. To be sure, Jesus was unequivocal in warning about hell, and Matthew 10:28 quotes Jesus, “Fear Him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.”  Some think hell is just a place sinners go, but the sheer terror of what happens IN HELL when God’s wrath is poured out should sober anyone. It sure did ME!  

I was but five years old and I lied (a very stupid one for no particular reason) and my sister told me that would send me to hell. Of course she was right, as 43 scripture verses say that liars go to hell.  Thank the Lord I believed her and knew she was right and I came to know Jesus. That was almost 70 years ago and I have been in the Lord ever since.  A healthy fear of the consequences of sin used to be more routine in the church, but the pendulum has swung in the direction of “love” to the exclusion of everything else.  Ironically, if you keep reading Matthew 10, you will see the love of God towards us in His care for every detail of our lives. 

When we truly understand the totally of who God is, we gain more than mere respect, though that is a good start. We understand the holiness of God and why He has to deal with sin. We understand the price of redemption paid by Christ, so God put himself out there to enable us to avoid hell. Many concentrate on how Jesus felt when the Father looked away as He became sin for us, but it is hard for me to comprehend how the Father felt when he had to forsake HIS one and only precious son on the cross. I am a Father and I stand in awe of a God willing to do that for me. Sometimes the only thing that keeps us from sin are the consequences. I believe we should obey out of love for God, but I do not believe there could be any argument when I say that it is better to obey out of fear than to disobey!

In actuality, having a Fear of the Lord that transcends reverence and awe brings us freedom from sin. Derek Prince calls it gaining confidence in God which can lead to true satisfaction in life and knowing God is our refuge as we seek to totally please him. Proverbs 16:6 says, “By steadfast love and faithfulness iniquity is atoned for, and by the fear of the Lord one turns away from evil.” (ESV)) We do not have to repent when we do not sin, and if we genuinely have the fear of the Lord, we sin far less and do not have to keep repenting for the same things over and over again! Israel messed with God repeatedly, worshiping other gods, attributing to idols the works of God, and pursuing carnal pleasures just like the pagans. When people lack the fear of the Lord, they downplay sin and are never delivered from it. They also pay a STEEP price for that. It is no wonder that preachers who refuse to preach about the fear of the Lord also tend to either downplay the seriousness of sin or refuse to use the word “sin” at all!

A man who was talking with John Piper on Skype noted, “Dear Pastor John, hello to you and the team at Desiring God. I’m a relatively new Christian in Sweden, and I have a problem with my church. I got baptized four years ago and became a member. As time passed, I notices our sermons don’t touch on sin and never call for repentance. I’ve asked one of the pastors about this, who said they are not preaching contradictory to the Bible; they just decided ti not talk directly about sin. They want to focus on the love of Jesus and his acceptance of sinners. It sounds well with me as an effort to attract lots of people into the church. At the same time, they don’t celebrate repentance and obedience. What do you think of a church that doesn’t preach against particular sins?”

John Piper’s answer to the confused young man is on the web at https://www.desiringgod.org/interviews/my-pastors-dont-preach-against-sin-is-that-okay.  In summary he lists four reasons - The Prophets, Jesus and the Apostles all dealt with sin - naming specific sins and their consequences,.  Secondly, sanctification comes when sin is conquered, and we are supposed to kill sin. How can we kill something we do not even know what it is? Christ bore sin in his body on the cross  so that we might die to sin and Ive to righteousness in accordance with I Peter 2:24.   We cannot die to unnamed and undefined sin.  Third, we are born again to be new people. Free from sin - we need to know what displeases God so we can flee from it.  Fourth, Galatians 5 lists the fruits of the flesh and the fruits of the Spirit. If we do not know the fruits of the flesh, how are we going to avoid them and grow into exhibiting the fruits of the Holy Spirit?

When I visit a home, there are often DVD’s in a row by the TV or books on the shelves, I am often taken aback that people see nothing wrong with filthy R-rated movies or books which should never have been written in the first place and are unfit for any human consumption.  I know a pastor who uses four letter words liberally oblivious to the command not to let any filthy communication to process out of his mouth, and knew a now-deceased man who led a Christian men’s group who would tell off-color jokes and cast off correction. I believe one of two things is at work here - either the people do not know right from wrong, as that spiritually ignorant man from Sweden in a poor church clearly had issues concerning, or they KNOW it is wrong but have no fear of the Lord and figure they are saved.  Those who believe in once-saved-always-saved believe they have their fire insurance policy in hand and holiness is optional. A man who became the pastor of a mega-church once told me that you have to get people to accept Jesus as Savior first. The Lordship of Jesus was sort of optional and it would be good it that happened later.  Compare that to Romans 10:9 (ESV) “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.” A now-deceased very famous preacher loved by many wrote a book on Eternal Security and stated that a Christian who murdered someone and did not repent would srtill go to heaven when he died because salvation was irrevocable and a gift. I guess he missed Matthew 24:13 which says, “He who endures to the end shall be saved,” as well as a host of other scriptures especially in Hebrews.

Read the Bible! Be a Berean!  Psalm 128:1 says, “Blessed are all who fear the Lord, who walk in obedience to Him.” Read I John and Revelation 2-3 so you know how God views professing Christians and churches who do not walk in his ways. You have to know the ways of the Lord.  You must KNOW the ways of the Lord, as Paul told the Romans, “How shall they hear without a preacher”. Paul communicated to Timothy that people will simply not tolerate sound doctrine, but gather around them teachers who will tickle their itching ears. That is an epidemic now just as it was in the first century. We have preachers who refuse to preach the gospel. Scripture says those who preach other gospels are cursed. We have other gospels of Emergent Christianity, Word-Faith, hyper-grace, Power Evangelism, the passion movement,  contemplative practices, circle prayer, universalism, inclusivity, kingdom now, Palagianism, mysticism, Ghosticism, born again in hell, Chrislam, Nicolaitan practices, Oneness Pentecostal modalism, New Apostolic Reformation, manifest sons, holy laughter, and more. We have people forbidden from leadership serving as pastors - men who love money, men who do not rule their households well, men who are not well thought of in the world, Men unable to teach biblically, and of course women who deny the very order of creation and usurp positions of authority in the church in direct disobedience to I Timothy 2.

I believe all of this stems from having no fear of the Lord. People without the fear of the Lord may not murder adults or born children, but support the shedding of innocent blood in abortions. I know a supposedly “Spirit-filled Christian” who claims God put this on the back burner even though God said it is an abomination to Him in Proverbs 6. The same person talks about “spiritual homosexuality” being worse than the physical perversion when a person in the unfavored political party helps another man fight unjust accusations and also believes women do not have to submit to their husbands if they disagree with them! Submission is only needed when we DISAGREE with the person!  Duh! Total deception because there is no fear of the Lord when we are ignoring crystal clear passages in the Bible not open to any different interpretations.

When people ignore the fear of the Lord, they are actually making themselves an idol - they worship their own opinions ABOVE the commands of God.  That brings us back to where we were earlier in Proverbs 16:6 - without the fear of the Lord, we will not run from evil. IF I may be so bold, I would say that without the fear of the Lord, we will always end up EMBRACING evil.  God forbid.

The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. The fear of the Lord is the BEGINNING of knowledge.  Those who reject the fear of the Lord are not wise but foolish and do not know anything - their knowledge has not even left the starting blocks.

I think I have made my point.  Comments or additions are welcome!

BE INVENTIVE

Sometimes people are not inventive about sharing the gospel. Someone made a suggestion to me just a few days ago, and I acted on it.

I have been involved in radio starting in 2002, and have had over 2,500 programs aired on numerous stations. All these are broadcast domestically, though the programs are available online worldwide, and we have had hits from various countries. A church in Pakistan reached out to me, and instead of the oft-repeated requesters to come to Pakistan, India, Kenya, or another country to speak, which I am not currently in a position to do, this church asked me to preach for them on Skype. I did that last Thursday and based upon the results have agreed to do that monthly for a while.

You can make posts on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and more from your phone and computer, and some are doing that. 

You can also commit to prayer  - we know that no one comes to God unless the Father draws them. Yet many reject God's advances. We can pray for the soil to be plowed up and seeds planted by faithful followers of the Lord so that they will respond when God approaches them and enter into His kingdom. There is a saying that more things are wrought by prayer than this world dreams of. I have seen MANY answers to prayer. IF there are more prayers from more people, there WILL be even more answers!  PRAY ON!

JOIN ME IN FATHER'S FAMILY

Today is Fathers' Day. It is a day to celebrate our earthly fathers AND our Heavenly Father. The Lord gave me a message for you today as you ponder how best to celebrate the day.

God the Father had one and only one begotten Son - Jesus Christ - he did not come about through the union of a man and a woman but is co-eternal with the Father, not created as the heresy of Arianism would say. Yet, the Son was devoted to the Father and was obedient to the Father, even to the point of giving his life as a ransom for many.

John 1:12 describes how we become children of God.  "But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to BECOME Children of God, to those who believe in His name." The world (and many Christians) love to repeat the meme, "We are all God's Children." While we certainly wish that to be true, it is not. Jesus called religious leaders who rejected him children of their father the devil.  We know that we must be adopted into God's family - it is not something that happens by default or as an entitlement - it is a right that must be granted by God himself and no one else. 

Many people do not understand adoption. When a child is adopted, the new parents' names are on the birth certificate and the name is usually changed.  It is as though the new parents gave birth physically to the children and the legal standing, benefits, and everything else is identical. The love of the adoptive parents is the same as if the child came out of their physical union. The love of God is the same for us as it is for his Son, Jesus Christ! John 17:23 reads, "I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me."

The scriptures say that those who accept the sacrifice of Christ on their behalf are adopted into the family of God. Jesus is not ashamed to call us brethren. Brethren, period.  In fact - and this should blow your minds - God the Father has made us adopted children to be JOINT-HEIRS with Jesus Christ!  It is in his WILL! The inheritance that rightfully belongs to Jesus Christ, which is obviously given not at the death of the Father, since God is eternal, but while all are alive! 

The inheritance of Jesus is being shared with all his brothers and sister in faith!  It comes in two stages - the earnest of our inheritance comes when the Holy Spirit takes up residence in us as he took residence in the God-man, Jesus Christ.  We do not have to die physically to receive Him. We call the Father, "Abba, Father." We rejoice in the Holy Spirit. We experience his presence and power 24/7.  The scriptures fly open for us and we are transformed.  Yet, there is more to come!  While the earnest of the inheritance is ours now, the rest of the inheritance comes when we are physically in the presence of Christ!   We shall receive glorified bodies like the one Jesus is in - a body that will never decay, never be sick, never die.  This mortal shall put on immortality.  This corruptible shall put on incorruption. We will flow as brothers and sisters in Christ, the firstborn among many brethren. Oh what a day that will be! As the song says, "When We All See Jesus, We Will Sing and Shout the Victory!" We will live in the House of the Lord forever - a house we had no right to be in whatsoever except for the grace and mercy of God the Father extended to us through Jesus Christ.

This may all be foreign to you, but it is not foreign to me. Everything I have shared is from the scriptures and from my own almost 70 years following Christ. I am living with the earnest of my inheritance right now, and I am convinced beyond any doubt whatsoever that I will receive the balance either when I transition to that eternal life or if Jesus comes for his Church before then. If that faith is not present in your life today, ask for the gift of faith! If God the Father is drawing you to him, do not refuse his love. Do not be proud. Do not wait another day. Welcome his embrace. Welcome his salvation. Welcome his Spirit.  If you do, all I can say is, "Welcome to the Family of God!"

PRAYER NEEDED FOR THE TOUGH ISSUES

 Please note that the post I originally wrote on the prayer needs of the church and nation was censored and actually deleted by Google. 1984 has come to full fruition. We try again.

Prayer is desperately needed for the tough issues facing the church and our nation. For too long, people have been passive and accepted more and more of that which is unacceptable to God.

Christian TV has massive numbers of teachers who have departed from the scriptures on key issues and they have exported that to other nations. This has seeped down into local churches as well which parrot those they have watched. Some decry the bad influence on Christians this has caused, but the damage to Christian witness in the eyes of the world is extensive. People figure Christians are materialistic and narcissistic, abusing people with false promises.  I have personal experience dealing with people who swear by those who have been proven to not be true followers of the gospel delivered to the saints. They will accuse you, slander you, and continue in idolatry to personalities who tell their itching ears what they want to hear.  They gravitate not just to one but to many, and spread their deceptions like wildfire in a parched area.

Jesus, Paul, Peter, John, and Jude all came down hard on those and encouraged Christians not to follow them or tolerate their practices, and gave warnings on that would happen to those leaders t the judgment. Yet many who claim to be true and who oppose false beliefs are too often vague and do not want to deal with those in their churches who "supplement" what they are teaching with contrary doctrines alien to the word of God.  THIS REQUIRES OCEANS OF PRAYER.

The same can be said about the affairs of the nation. Politicians lie and triangulate endlessly and people say to always avoid talking about politics.  Well, politics affects our spiritual lives and our physical lives, so I encourage you to seek out the truth and follow it. By all means, bathe every issue in earnest prayer.

WILL 2024 MARK THE END OF "CHRISTIANITY LITE"?

This post was originally written way back at the dawn of 2005 when Christmas and New Year’s Day were on Sundays.  In 2020, churches were ordered closed in many parts of the country. Precedent was claimed since in 1918 churches were ordered closed (but for only several weeks) during the Spanish Flu. That pandemic hit the young much worse than the old and the fatalities were almost triple percentage wise compared to today. Some still watch online with zero accountability or in-person fellowship with the saints while others go to churches in name only where a faithless word is preached.  One preacher actually told a friend of mine that he preached a lite gospel!  God help us! This post is more timely than ever.  

From 2005:

Much ado has been made of churches canceling services this 2005 holiday season. Our church did not, but we decided to pay a visit to another Pentecostal church near us on New Year's Day, and it was CLOSED! Not closed by Communists, not closed by Muslims, not closed by the ACLU, but closed by none other than CHRISTIANS! It was already just after 11:00 AM, so we went somewhere else nearby - Zion Baptist in Ambler, to give credit where credit is due - and they were not only open, but with a big crowd and in no rush to end it! Over an hour of worship and praise, a wonderful dance performance by Living Stones on getting into the heart of Jesus, and an interactive sermon from Hebrews 13:1-5 that was practical, up-lifting and enjoyable. They then were taking a group to a Senior Citizens' home to minister on New Year's Day afternoon! 

 

For quite some time now even well before 2005 and seemingly more through 2023 which has just drawn to a close:

Why are some assemblies so eager to serve God, and others afraid of being too "radical"? We live in a world of "lite" everything. I think Miller Beer started it all. Remember "More taste, less filling"? We now have "lite" margarine and "lite" everything else. Some of these are perhaps more healthy than the full blown version. However, we also unfortunately have "Christianity Lite" and that for sure is far from healthy. Not only does it have less taste, but it is also less filling. Like Bud Light with their disastrous ad campaign, many churches appear toxic to the world - clowns on "Christian" TV proclaiming health, wealth, and fame counter-gospels and a seemingly endless string of sex and money scandals which are different from Hunter Biden only in monetary amount and publicity, one affecting even one of the most respected churches in Philadelphia.

 

The Psalmist says in Psalms 34:8, "Taste and See that the Lord is Good." Psalm 119:103 says "How Sweet are Your Words to My Taste". So many Christians have not had a solid five course meal of God recently that they do not know what it tastes like. Instead they are in a hurry and fill up on junk food such as get rich schemes, worship that stops almost before it starts or music filled with the spirit of this world that is more about us than about God, and messages more about current trends in the world than on imparting heavy duty soul food into the spirit. In essence, we are driving through to eat spiritual food of dubious nutritional value while pursuing other things. Recipes, the big game, and other thoughts often replace diligent attention to what is being said from the pulpit even those few minutes most churches limit the word to. Not only is the body not nourished, but the enjoyment factor is low because it is not the slightest equivalent to what Jesus has prepared for those who diligently seek him. An appetizer of praise and worship. a fruit salad of the gifts of the Holy Spirit in full operation, and a meaty message are far better and there is no need to count spiritual calories. We need everything to nourish the body, not food of limited value with lots of salt and no balance. We are to be FILLED with the Spirit (Eph. 5:18). We can't have "fillers" and have room for the Spirit, too! Many Pastors are afraid of losing people if the services are too serious. I say, so what? Didn't they EVER study Gideon??? We need to move beyond where we are and fully engage the Lord in concert with the rest of the Body EVERY time we are together. The truth is, sinners would be more attracted to that level of reality. 

 

One unintended consequence of the closure of many churches in 2020 and 2021 is that since so many churches practiced Christianity Lite, those with hunger went to Facebook and YouTube and heard a much stronger word, perhaps for the first time. Pastors of sound churches have been telling me that they have more people online than in the pews, and their outreach has been transformed from primarily local to global.  Many have also experienced increases in giving, so what Satan intended for evil, God has turned to good.  I encourage you in 2024 to look to the Lord in everything. Do not be satisfied with the mediocre.  Do not go to a church where you leave still hungry and unsatisfied.  Taste and see that the Lord is good!  He will surely satisfy you!

Here are some practical tips – 

1)    Know your position in Christ. Do not live in the outer courts or as though the veil is still there and you need a priest to go into the Holy of Holies for you. Jesus tore the veil from top to bottom. LIVE in the Holy of Holies. Live in His presence. You need to carry God's presence with you. You must not walk into it and then out of it! That is far below your privilege! 

 

2)    Pray without ceasing. Know that when you walk with the Lord, you have an open line, a BROADBAND CONNECTION if you will. You needn't talk all the time, and neither will the Lord. However, when either of you have something to say, it can be said and freely received. It is effortless if you live that way. 

 

3)    Worship God on your own. It is not a good sign if you have to be in a church building to worship. Worship at home, in your car, ANY PLACE. Worship with songs, with words, with attitude. Use English or your native tongue. Use your gift of tongues. Worship with the mind and the Spirit. 

 

4)    Write down what the Lord tells you. Expect him to share with you every day. Share what he says with others if it could bless them. Make sure to note specific commands the Lord gives you and follow through in a TIMELY manner. When we obey, the windows of heaven open wider each time. 

 

5)    Contribute sacrificially to God. First your heart, then your time, and last, but not least, your substance. Never give to get. Give to GIVE! God will supply your needs, but we give to facilitate the growth of the kingdom, not for selfish reasons or with expectations of return. Don't let giving be reduced to a formula! Simply learn to hear God's voice and give him WHATEVER he asks of you. Do not hold back anything from your heart, your time, or your substance. 

Don't wait for others to take the lead. Take the initiative yourself. If your church is practicing "Christianity Lite", talk to your leaders and tell them you want more taste and to be constantly filled with the Holy Spirit. As you are filled each time, your capacity grows for Him, so this is a continuing process for both the individual AND the Body of Christ. Tell those guarding your soul you want 2024 to be the end of "Christianity Lite" and the beginning of a "take no prisoners" brand of New Testament Christianity. Our lives surely depend on it!

THE 2 GREATEST COMMANDMENTS

SO MANY PEOPLE  do not really know their neighbors - perhaps by sight, with a wave, or "How about this weather?" Yet Jesus commanded us to love our neighbors as ourselves.  What does that entail?  Check out my video message on Mark 12:29-31 to find out how we can better love God first, and then our neighbors.  Just go to shalomag.com, scroll down until you see the small box with Facebook written in it on the left side, and tap it.  The messages you see are latest first - scroll down to July 30, 2023.  Your comments are welcome!  God bless.

2023 - A MESSAGE TO THE CHURCH

First, may I wish you and those you love a most Happy New Year.” May God grant you in 2023 the satisfaction that comes from achieving everything in Christ that he has laid out for you to do.

I wrote a message years ago questioning whether the New Year would be the end of “Christianity Lite?”  I wish I could say today that the desire of my heart came true in great measure. I know it did in the hearts of some of God’s sons and daughters, but the church as a whole remains immature, and self-satisfied with far less than the inheritance God wants us to enjoy in Christ Jesus.

Despite the growth of mega-churches, Charisma magazine has rightly noted that there is a startling shortage of Christ-like disciples. Those reputed to be leaders talk of the “great traditions of Islam”, ignoring the fact that close to 90% of the worst persecution of the church today comes from Muslims. A best-selling book from the largest church in America barely mentions Jesus and reads more like the Reader’s Digest than a call to follow the Lordship of Jesus Christ. People continue to watch “Christian” TV and pour billions into ministries whose tired and false litany is that every problem in your life can be solved by giving your money to THEIR ministry and that God’s job is to make you happy and fulfilled as opposed to taking up our cross and following the Lord. Meanwhile, they divorce, they have scandals, the true gospel is not preached, and the unholy day-to-day lives of the couch potatoes watching them are barely if at all distinguishable from those of the world.

Churches are going the “Lite” route more and more. Bud Lite and Coors Lite were the nation’s top two selling beers, and churches that preach a “Lite” Gospel greatly dwarf the ones who preach the whole counsel of God. Pastors say that the way to growing a church numerically is to avoid spiritual gifts in the morning service. It supposedly makes those services more attractive to “seekers”. They have statistics to back them up.  You can go all year in many churches without ever hearing about hell and Christ’s requirements of the believer. One person said that Jesus was not even mentioned at their Christmas service! We know the President did not mention Jesus in his Christmas address, but he is an unbeliever at war with the church with policies birthed in hell.  What are people IN the church thinking basically doing the same thing?

The churches that grow the most numerically do indeed practice “Christianity Lite”. You will never hear convicting sermons like Jonathan Edwards’ “Sinners in the Hands of An Angry God”. Instead, divorce practices, sexual practices, business practices, TV/movie practices and a stained vocabulary are not all that distinguishable from the world if at all and they go essentially unchallenged week after week.

The pulpit  - fixed or electronic - is supposed to be the place for the Holy Spirit to challenge folks not only to believe in Jesus but to follow him completely! The church is the place for the gifts of the Holy Spirit to operate. I say that the only growth Jesus Christ cares about is growth on the INSIDE, not mere numbers. Read the account of Gideon in Judges 6 through 8! Listen to Jesus’ teaching that the BROAD way leads to destruction. Yet, Christian leaders are loath to say or do anything that will cause the lukewarm to disappear, even though in Revelation 3 Jesus said he is about to spit them out of his mouth. Why do Christian leaders want to coddle those whom Christ himself is about to spit out??? How do we think we will win the battle we are in with a half-armed and barely dangerous army? The truth is, we won’t. Israel never won when they looked good in the world’s eyes. They only won when they trusted God and God alone, regardless of the numbers, regardless of their carnal weapons, and regardless of the strength of their enemy. These accounts are written for us to learn from, not ignored so we can make the same mistakes Israel did!

Further, the main reason that so many have lost confidence in the gospel is a failure to believe absolutely in the authority of the Word of God. Secular colleges have long despised the Bible, but many strong Christians have emerged battle-tested from those venues, present company included. Nowadays, between 8 out of 10 and 9 out 10 CHRISTIAN colleges do not believe the Bible is really completely true! Some discard the unequivocal teaching of Genesis that God made the world in six literal days and that his creation was GOOD! They allow for or even encourage belief systems that require death and destruction to have entered the world long before Adam sinned. Richard Dawkins, perhaps the most lucid exponent of evolution, clearly understands the linkage between evolution and atheism. Why don’t Christian leaders? Other schools dismiss or throw into the past the role of the Holy Spirit, miracles, spiritual gifts, and the crowning piece of spiritual armor - praying in the Spirit that is mandated in Ephesians chapter 6.

So you may rightly say, that is the diagnosis, but what is your solution? I’m glad you asked! My solution is nothing original and nothing new. It is simply what God instructed us to do in the first place.  We will look at Ephesians 6 and I Corinthians 14 for a few moments tonight and I encourage you to also study them on your own.

10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. 11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. 12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. 13 Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. 14 Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, 15 and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. 16 In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. 17 Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

18 And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. 19 Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should.

I Corinthians 14:26ff tells us what to do when we come together. People, not choreographers, bring hymns, words of instruction, revelations, tongues, interpretations. Not just in small groups. Not just during mid-week meetings when those ”likely to be offended” seldom show up. Truly the weak Christians need this edification more than ANYONE!!! Seekers need to SEE the power of our salvation more than anyone! The Holy Spirit says through Paul “ALL OF THESE MUST BE DONE FOR THE STRENGTHENING OF THE CHURCH.”  Therefore, if we see a weak and enfeebled church, we know why. Why don’t we simply follow the teaching of the Holy Spirit and DO WHAT HE SAYS?????  Now you may say, I have been to Pentecostal places and they are still weak. SO HAVE I. I have heard suspect and shopworn “prophecies” and those who mechanically follow what is supposed to be supremely spiritual. I have also heard wild tales of supposed amazing encounters with God or angels that do not line up with the Bible.  The people may be sincere, but everything has to line up 100% with the Bible or be summarily rejected. That is why there are Shepherds to guard the flock from error. However, I have also been where I Corinthians 14:26 was literally followed, and IT WORKS. Let God be true, and every man a liar!

Ephesians 6 tells us to put on the WHOLE ARMOR of God. Partial armor will not do. What is there of lasting value that is accomplished when we are HALF-ARMED AND BARELY DANGEROUS? We are unprepared to take the offensive and we cede area after area to the minions of Satan. At the same time, we are suffering untold casualties on the defensive side. Satan will simply ignore the protected areas and go for the jugular. That jugular, the place where our blood flows, is UNPROTECTED when we go not pray in the Spirit per Ephesians 6:18. When we try to follow Christ in the flesh and do not follow him in the Spirit, we are sitting ducks. That is why Christians are jettisoning portions of the infallible word of God they feel are hardest to believe. The WHOLE BIBLE is impossible to believe without the GIFT OF FAITH!!!  

The miracle of creation, Nebuchadnezzar’s fire that could not kill the faithful, the parting of the Red Sea, the Virgin Birth, the Resurrection, the raising of the dead, the saving of sinners like me - all of this is so fantastic and so unbelievable and so foolish to the UNBELIEVER! Yet it is the power of God to salvation, and to those who are given the gift of faith, every word of it is true and every word is profitable for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness. I love the word of God, and I am not ceding ONE WORD, ONE CONCEPT, or ONE EVENT to anyone!  

The Lord recently told me that if we reject any portion of the Word of God, Satan will substitute another idea or another concept in its place, and we will believe what Satan says INSTEAD of what God says to our severe detriment. Believing what Satan says is truly addictive! We need to remember that a counterfeit piece of money is usually at least 95% accurate and genuine looking – otherwise everyone would immediately recognize it as play money.   Most weak and counterfeit churches resemble the genuine in many ways – scripture reading, singing, religious vocabulary, and warm fellowship. Satan counterfeits only the most critical aspects of our faith – those that will separate us from the will of God, those that will remove our source of power from us, those that will give us false assurances when we have unconfessed sin in our lives, those that will open the door just a crack for doubt, because Satan knows that doubt grows as a cancer without any further intervention from him.  

 

Let the church be the church and let the church do what Christ commands. The uncompromising church is the church that turned the world upside down in the first century and the one that is causing revival in various parts of the world now. Christians from other parts of the world are stunned at what they see in American Churches. I for one want to change that in 2023. I am determined to present the uncompromised and politically incorrect word of God in every way I can. Are you with me? Will you do the same? If you do, you will have a blessed, prosperous, and very spiritual New Year. If you don’t, please do not complain to me!

 

HOW DO BELIEFS IMPACT INTERPRETATION OF SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE

QUORA - How does the Belief in Creationism Impact how one Interprets Scientific Evidence?

All evidence is common regardless of the belief system you hold to. The question could just as easily be (but seldom is), how does the belief in atheism impact how one interprets scientific evidence? Evolutionists love to pretend they are the truly unbiased ones. Yet I have heard endless illogical arguments that commit fallacies one should have learned to avoid in Logic 101. Reification, Equivocation, Begging the Question, and the Question-Begging Epithet fallacies are some of those.

For example, how many times have you heard “The Evidence says that evolution is true!” - Reification fallacy, Evidence, Science, or any other non-human entity cannot talk or make value judgments. One constantly hears “Creationists are wrong because we see evolution happening all the time. Organisms are constantly changing and adapting to their environment.” Creationists do not deny organisms change, but they do deny we all have a common ancestor. The equivocation fallacy is in full swing - the entire meaning is changed to total misrepresentation of the issues to cover the fact there is zero proof we have a common ancestor. How about the argument that “The Bible cannot be true because it teaches that the earth is only thousands of years old, whereas, we know the earth is billions of years old. That is Begging the Question - the accuser is assuming naturalism, and uniformitarianism and that everything is as it always was. St. Peter actually pointed out this fallacy in his writing almost 2,000 years ago. Finally, we have the Question-Begging Epithet. How many times have you heard evolutionist adherents say, “ To be a Creationist, you would have to ignore tons of scientific evidence!” Emotional language to be sure, not logic.

I believe the Holy Scriptures, as eyewitness testimony supplants the notions of fallible men. I also believe that things are not as they always were – because God said so, and everything from the breakup of the Pangean continent to a careful study of geology and fossils substantiates that. The argument that the age of matter and life is much older rests on unproven assumptions intrinsic to the dating methods, and the R.A.T.E. project exposed that many err by many orders of magnitude. Physical and cultural evidence for the worldwide flood are at the heart of the different core assumptions which have global impact on the resulting interpretations. We would be much more unified if the real issues were honestly discussed by all parties.

Moses sat with the Creator in the tent of meeting so if anyone had doubts about any part of the Bible, the Pentateuch for sure should not be among them. The simple fact is that evolutionary ideas extrapolated to the origins of man and the universe is atheistic to the core, and many logical arguments cast great doubt on that aspect of the theory. Evolutionists largely circumvent the major problems with that portion of their theory and instead censor, attack, and seek to marginalize all who question any portion of their dogma. That is not science. Science means “Knowledge”. The matter of one idea of origins does not cross that threshold.

TWO GREAT ARTICLES

 Check these two prescient articles out on CATHOLIC INSIGHT.

Here are the links

ISSUES WITH TATOOS - so many Christians have or are getting them...

https://catholicinsight.com/tattoos-as-a-spiritual-and-bodily-harm/

GENDER THEORY HAS SPIRITUAL ROOTS - and not good ones...

https://catholicinsight.com/the-gnostic-roots-of-gender-theory/