Jeff's Blog

Free Book

2012-01-31T09:06:00.000-05:00

I just received a new shipment of my book From Darkness To Light. Free upon request

Obedience

2012-01-14T14:00:00.002-05:00

Beware of the inclination to dictate to God what consequences you will allow as a condition of your obedience to Him.

Oswald Chambers

Selling One's Soul

2012-01-08T09:43:00.003-05:00

Periodically I receive inquiries from individuals who believe they have 'sold their soul to the devil'. I would like to address that one is not able to sell the soul to any god, 'For every living soul belongs to Me' Ezekiel 18:4. Thus the soul is not to be 'sold' due to the ownwership of its Creator. No one supercedes God. We, as humans, do not own our own soul to begin with, thus we cannot 'sell' what is not ours. As well, the devil does not have the means to 'buy' a soul. This illusion was painted by Faust, which was a fiction story.

Some have referred to the temptation of Christ in the desert to support their belief of selling one's soul. However, in tempting Christ with giving Him the world if He would only bow down and worship satan, the temptation did not include the means of satan owning Christ's soul. Matthew 4:8-9 states 'Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And, he said to Him,"All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me."' Indeed, the devil did have the ability to give Jesus the kingdoms of the world and their glory, but the temptation was of the will. Would Christ do God's will or satan's? If Christ bowed down, He would be given by satan what the god of this world has to give; this world. Jesus chose to go to the cross instead and has given the Christian what is His to give; eternal life with Him.

There have been those who have bowed down to satan and he gave what he has to give. I was one of those individuals. The lie satan proposes is that when one does this, he 'owns' you. There are those who have signed a contract or covenant expressing their allegiance to their god making themselves slaves to darkness.

The good news is Jesus Christ rules all of creation Ephesians 4:21. He supercedes any god, any contract/covenant, or anything that would attempt to separate you from His love Romans 8:28-29. If you have been delivered from the power of darkness and transferred into the kingdom of the Son of His love Colossians 1:13, then you have been bought at a price and you are not your own.

Merry Christmas!

2011-12-25T13:08:00.002-05:00

....there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. Luke 2:11

Christian Witchcraft

2011-12-13T10:41:00.001-05:00

We are adding a chapter; Christian Witchcraft by Brooks Alexander, Spiritual Counterfeits Project to Dancing With The Devil

Freedom

2011-12-08T18:05:00.000-05:00

Jesus triumphed over Satan and all his demons through His work of redemption, particularly by canceling the power of sin at the cross. (Matt. 12:28-29; Eph. 1:19-23; Col. 2:13-15) Satan is already condemned. (John 12:31; 16:11; Rev. 20:7-10)

The principle of authority is that we are in the kingdom of Christ. Jesus is Lord and head of all power and authority. Satan has absolutely no legitimate authority over the believer. We are /free/ from Satan’s claims upon us. All sins are forgiven, all condemnation is ended, all cultic vows, promises, covenants, etc., were broken when a person comes into Christ's sphere of authority (Col. 1:13-14; 2:9-15). One must never compromise this principle by saying that sin gives a demon legal right to invade a believer or attach itself to your soul. Believe in God; disbelieve Satan.

Our primary weapons against demonic stratagems are faithful application of the fundamentals of the faith (Eph. 6:10-20; 1 Pet. 5:6-9). Light expels darkness.

Dancing With The Devil

2011-10-27T13:17:00.001-04:00

Jeff Harshbarger’s Dancing With The Devil is a helpful and needful book, because it is a unique approach to understanding occultism from a Christian point of view. Most evangelicals think of “the occult” as a vaguely defined but threatening realm of spiritual darkness and danger. Harshbarger has collected nine personal tales of occult involvement that bring clarity and detail to that murky image, and refine our abstract impressions of “occultism” into concrete discernments of its real dangers, and the real means of escaping from them. If you are dealing with occult-related issues -- either in your own life or the lives of others -- this book needs to be in your library.
Brooks Alexander, author Witchcraft Goes Mainstream and founder Spiritual Counterfeits Project

“Dancing with the Devil will touch your heart with compassion for those caught in the world of the occult, and enrich your mind with the knowledge to help them. Jeff Harshbarger provides a fast-paced and fascinating look into the realm of the Prince of Darkness.”
Jill Martin Rische, author The Kingdom Of The Occult

I had the privilege of having Jeff Harshbarger as a Bible college student shortly after his deliverance from the occult. It was a thrill to watch him mature in his Christian life and then grow to the point of being able to minister to others caught in the grips of the occult. In Dancing with the Devil, Jeff joins with several other former occultists to bring us their spellbinding stories of their deliverance from being spellbound. This volume is far more than just intriguing true-life stories; it is a manual on how to break free from demonic chains and how to help others find true freedom through Christ. Dancing with the Devil is a must read for anyone trapped on the dark side and for everyone desiring to rescue others from the shadows.
Delron Shirley, former Dean Indiana Christian University

The Occult in all its various disguises is causing havoc around the world. The need for good clear information both to explain to those caught up, what is going on and to help them overcome the various issues in their life, has never been more important than it is today. It is so easy to give advice to those needing help without really understanding what they are going through. Enter Jeff Harshbarger, he is not just a talker, he has ‘been there’ and knows what others are going through.
The last words in the book should be a message of hope to the thousands who are looking for a way out, “Now that we’ve talked to you about actually doing it, you have nine friends who are here to help you. Or if you are someone who has come out of the occult and you need someone to talk to who understands and cares. You can contact us….”
Read, understand and know there are compassionate people waiting to listen to your story and give practical help.
Doug Harris, Reachout Trust U.K.

Release date: September 4, 2012 Charisma House

Ch. 2 - Halloween Witch is dead: Changing Face of Modern Witchcraft

2011-10-26T12:01:00.001-04:00

Ch. 2 - Holloween Witch is dead: Changing Face of Modern Witchcraft

From the best book on the topic, Witchcraft Goes Mainstream by Brooks Alexander

Charles Kraft

2011-08-07T15:54:00.002-04:00

'We are to take responsibility for whatever our spiritual, emotional, and physical condition is. The Scriptures gives us no right to escape our responsibility by blaming the devil or demons. But the Scriptures were written to people who knew the Enemy's devices (2 Cor 2:11). They (the Scriptures) were not intended to offer all the kinds help needed by most American Christians today.For, unlike the people to whom those documents were addressed, most of us are almost totally unaware of how the Enemy works. Though we need to take responsibilty for what happens within us, an important prior responsibilty is to know how the Enemy works and what to do about it.'

Defeating Dark Angels by Charles Kraft

Do you agree with this statement? Thoughts?

Free Book

2011-06-16T18:29:00.002-04:00

If you are interested in reading and applying Telling Yourself the Truth by William Backus, send me an e mail with name and address. The book will be shipped to you for free in the US.

New Book Project!

2011-06-12T13:32:00.000-04:00

Beginning to put together my new book Stand! Facing and Overcoming Your Enemy

Dancing with the Devil

2011-06-09T18:33:00.001-04:00

“You’re angelically oppressed.” My teacher spoke in a low voice and kept his eyes from meeting mine. This man had been my mentor. He had all the answers and this was all he could say?
What!? How could this happen?
I had spent the last four years of my life as a satanist. I had given myself completely. He, or at lease his demons, had taken up residence in me. I had experienced their presence and their power.
Somehow that autumn, while studying to be a child psychologist at Ball State University, I experienced something different. I felt, at least spiritually, what seemed to be an impenetrable wall in front of me.
This wall completely locked me out of the demonic life I pursued. No ritual or ceremony could re-connect me with my demonic masters; I felt dry and brittle. I could watch but not truly participate in the practice of my coven.
I became painfully detached from what had fed me for the last four years. Depression like a cold wet fog began to seep into my soul. How I hated it. How I longed to find an answer.
So to hear, from the very person who introduced me to all-mighty satan that angels, who served the God I hated, stood in my way made my blood boil. I flew into a maddened rage. This God had no real power, or so I thought. I would throw myself more completely into my devotion to Lucifer.
I did everything I could. I mustered every aspect of rebellion in my heart. I set out to be as destructive as I could toward anyone or anything that walked in my way. I began to call upon the demonic in a way that I had not practiced in the previous four years.
Up to this point in my life as a Satanist, I had been an angel of light. I cared about the younger members of our coven and listened to their problems. I did not hurt anyone but simply manipulated the weak to do my bidding.
Now I would work the “nice guy” out of me. Why should I care about anyone? From now on my coven members could take care of themselves. My only desire was to reflect my demonic companions and crucify my human heart.
A good way to do that would be to curse people just for the fun of it. So I did. I would pick a person, a random person, pronounce a curse upon them and send a demon or two after them.
I would go on walks and actively pray to demons; giving them my heart’s desire so that the desires of my heart would die. The greatest desire of all was to find a life-long companion who loved me unconditionally. I wanted a wife and a family. But even this I was willing to sacrifice to show my commitment to my master.
And still the wall that blocked my cancerous growth continued to stand in the way.
How could this be? How cold this God of the bible; this weak Jesus who my master had killed, be able to stop satan? The thought hit me like a sledge hammer one afternoon. I walked along the Muncie river trying unsuccessfully to focus on demonic prayer. The question had too much power. I tried to shove it away but the evidence stood out like the horrid neon clothing so popular at the time. I could not ignore it.

Excerpt from my new book Dancing with the Devil to be published Fall 2012 Charisma House Publishers

Happy Resurrection Day!

2011-04-24T15:57:00.000-04:00

Jesus Christ has risen!!

In the Name of Jesus

2011-04-20T09:07:00.004-04:00

The contemparary church would do well to follow the example of the early church, not to ignore the demonic, but to focus attention on Jesus, who defeats the demonic. Undue concern and involvement with the demonic has often been seen as opening oneself up to its influence. The well-known passage of C.S. Lewis from his preface to The Screwtape Letters bears repeating here:
There are two equal and opposite errors into which our race can fall about the devils. One is disbelieve in their existence. The other is to believe, and to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in them. They themselves are equally pleased by both errors and hail a materialist or a magician with the same delight.

Kart Barth issues a similar warning that the Christian and theologian "must not linger or become too deeply engrossed [in the demonic, as]...there is the imment danger that in so doing we ourselves might become just a little or more than a little demonic." In other words, we should pay as little attention to the demonic as is pastorally possible. Yet we should confront the demonic as much as is pastorally required.

One of the noticeable, though not entirely unique, aspects of the exorcistic technique of Jesus and the early church was its extreme brevity. For Jesus, this probably arose out of his sense of power-authority over the demonic; for the early church it came from their sense of reliance on Jesus. In relation to the contemparary church we can probably conclude that verbosity is an indication of spiritual powerlessness and a lack of discernment.

The New Testament writers held that exorcism was a confrontation between the divine and the demonic in which the demonic was defeated. In the exorcisms among the early church the incantation, the words or prayers of the exorcist were important, not because of any inherent 'power' to evict the demon, but because they brought about a confrontation between Jesus and the demonic. To pick up this trajectory today would be to conduct exorcisms so that the demon is confronted not by words, the exorcists, the sacraments, the Lord's Prayer, nor even the church-but by Jesus. As Tertullian, at the end of our period, put it: The demonic "is defeated by the pressure of divine grace."

Graham Twelftree

Dr. Rebecca Brown

2011-04-19T13:38:00.001-04:00

A Letter from Peter Hoover to a Friend about Rebecca Brown

I am thankful you had the spiritual perception and common sense to realize that people should not be reading the "Rebecca Brown" books. They will not bring anyone closer to Jesus, nor will they help avoid evil, because they are untrue. They are fiction (bad fiction at that) presented as fact, and the Lord Jesus has never needed such literature to help his cause.

For twenty years “Dr. Rebecca Brown” whose real name is Ruth Bailey, and who certainly is no longer a doctor, has been widely recognized as a fraud, and her books a hoax. Already in the 1980s, she was living in what appeared to be a questionable relationship with Edna Elaine Moses, the middle-aged woman she was purportedly trying to adopt as her daughter.

Every piece of “evidence” presented in the Rebecca Brown books can amply and easily be proven false. No discerning person has taken her seriously for many years — but, unfortunately, the books continue to circulate.

Just to give you a superficial idea of the extent of Ruth Bailey’s hoax, I will post here the following observations from people that have investigated her claims. You could easily find more information about her on your own, in your public library or on the Internet. But because this fraud is so old and so long “blown over” among American evangelicals, most people pay little attention to it anymore:

On October 2, 1984, the Medical Licensing Board of Indiana met to consider Ruth Bailey's license to practice medicine. She refused to attend the hearing and sent no one to act as her counsel or agent. After deliberations, this board lifted Bailey's license (#29402) for the following violations and irregularities:

Bailey misdiagnosed patients including, but not limited to Edna Elaine Moses a.k.a. Elaine Moses A.K.A. Elaine Bailey, Claudia Moses, Lucia Lively, Lucinda Sisson, Kelly Sisson and Cheryl Maynard of "leukemia, various blood disorders, gall bladder disease, brain tumors, and various other ailments and conditions, all of which the Respondent stated were allegedly caused by demons, devils, and other evil spirits." In fact, these "patients... were not suffering from the diagnosed ailments and conditions."

On numerous occasions Bailey stated to her patients "that she was chosen by God as the only physician able to diagnose certain ailments and conditions which other physicians could not because the other physicians... were in fact, demons, devils and other evil spirits themselves."

Bailey gave massive overdoses of Demerol and Phenobarbital to Elaine Moses "to the point where the patient would tolerate 600 to 900 cc injections of Demerol, a fatal dose of which is normally in the 150 to 200 cc range, and up to three times the recommended therapeutic dose of Phenobarbital."

Bailey "gave Claudia Moses, the 15 year old mentally impaired daughter of Edna Elaine Moses who possesses the intellectual age of an 8 year old, numerous injections of Demerol for alleged 'nausea' and allowed Claudia to administer injections of Demerol to herself."

Bailey supplied her patients "with excessive amounts of legend drugs and/or controlled substances without any explanation, instruction or appropriate charting."

Bailey "failed to maintain and keep adequate records or charts on her patients and in several instances failed to maintain any charts or records at all."

Bailey "on numerous occasions falsified patient charts and hospital records and misled other health professionals regarding her patients condition... all to the detriment of her patient's well being."

Bailey "misrepresented and falsified prescriptions for controlled substances" for Edna Elaine Moses. The drug in this case was Demerol.

Bailey believed that she had "the capability of 'sharing' her patient's illnesses in fighting the demons, devils and other evil spirits that were allegedly causing the various ailments" and "without a valid therapeutic reason... self medicated herself with non therapeutic amounts of Demerol." In fact Bailey had "been witnessed routinely receiving non-therapeutic doses of at least 3 cc of Demerol on an hourly basis by injecting herself in the backs of her hands, the inside of her thighs, or wherever she could locate a suitable vein."

Read more

Satan's Devices

2011-03-28T11:12:00.001-04:00

"We are not ignorant of his devices." 2 Cor. 2:11.
The devices whereby the subtle god of this world labours to destroy the children of God -- or at least to torment whom he cannot destroy, to perplex and hinder them in running the race which is set before them -- are numberless as the stars of heaven or the sand upon the sea-shore. But it is of one of them only that I now propose to speak, (although exerted in various ways,) whereby he endeavours to divide the gospel against itself, and by one part of it to overthrow the other.

The inward kingdom of heaven, which is set up in the heart of all that repent and believe the gospel, is no other than "righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost." Every babe in Christ knows we are made partakers of these, the very hour that we believe in Jesus. But these are only the first-fruits of his Spirit; the harvest is not yet. Although these blessings are inconceivably great, yet we trust to see greater than these. We trust to love the Lord our God, not only as we do now, with a weak though sincere affection, but "with all our heart, with all our mind, with all our soul, and with all our strength." We look for power to "rejoice evermore, to pray without ceasing, and in everything to give thanks;" knowing, "this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning us."

We expect to be "made perfect in love;" in that love which casts out all painful fear, and all desire but that of glorifying him we love, and of loving and serving him more and more. We look for such an increase in the experimental knowledge and love of God our Saviour as will enable us always "to walk in the light, as he is in the light." We believe the whole mind will be in us, "which was also in Christ Jesus;" that we shall love every man so as to be ready to lay down our life for his sake; so as, by this love, to be freed from anger, and pride, and from every unkind affection. We expect to be "cleansed from all our idols," "from all filthiness," whether "of flesh or spirit;" to be "saved from all our uncleannesses," inward or outward; to be "purified as He is pure."

We trust in his promise who cannot lie, that the time will surely come, when, in every word and work, we shall do his blessed will on earth, as it is done in heaven; when all our conversation shall be seasoned with salt, all meet to minister grace to the hearers; when, whether we eat or drink, or whatever we do, it shall be done to the glory of God; when all our words and deeds shall be "in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks unto God, even the Father, through him."

Now this is the grand device of Satan, to destroy the first work of God in the soul, or at least to hinder its increase, by our expectation of that greater work. It is therefore my present design, First, to point out the several ways whereby he endeavours: this; And, secondly, to observe how we may retort these fiery darts of the wicked one, how we may rise the higher by what he intends for an occasion of our falling.

Ways Satan Endeavours
I am, First, to point out the several ways whereby Satan endeavours to destroy the first work of God in the soul, or at least to hinder its increase by our expectation of that greater work. And, 1. He endeavours to damp our joy in the Lord by the consideration of our own vileness, sinfulness, unworthiness; added to this, that there must be a far greater change than is yet, or we cannot see the Lord.

If we knew we must remain as we are even to the day of our death, we might possibly draw a kind of comfort, poor as it was, from that necessity. But as we know, we need not remain in this state, as we are assured there is a greater change to come, and that unless sin be all done away in this life we cannot see God in glory, -- that subtle adversary often damps the joy we should otherwise feel in what we have already attained, by a perverse representation of what we have not attained, and the absolute necessity of attaining it. So that we cannot rejoice in what we have, because there is more which we have not.

We cannot rightly taste the goodness of God, who hath done so great things for us, because there are so much greater things which as yet he hath not done. Likewise, the deeper conviction God works in us of our present unholiness, and the more vehement desire we feel in our heart of the entire holiness he hath promised, the more are we tempted to think lightly of the present gifts of God, and to undervalue what we have already received because of what we have not received.

If he can prevail thus far, if he can damp our joy, he will soon attack our peace also. He will suggest, "Are you fit to see God? He is of purer eyes than to behold iniquity. How then can you flatter yourself, so as to imagine he beholds you with approbation? God is holy: You are unholy. What communion hath light with darkness? How is it possible that you, unclean as you are, should be in a state of acceptance with God? You see indeed the mark, the prize of your high calling; but do you not see it is afar off? How can you presume then to think that all your sins are already blotted out? How can this be, until you are brought nearer to God, until you bear more resemblance to him?" Thus will he endeavour not only to shake your peace, but even to overturn the very foundation of it; to bring you back, by insensible degrees, to the point from whence you set out first, even to seek for justification by works, or by your own righteousness, -- to make something in you the ground of your acceptance, or at least necessarily previous to it.

Or, if we hold fast, "Other foundation can no man lay than that which is laid, even Jesus Christ;" and, "I am justified freely by God's grace, through the redemption which is in Jesus;" yet he will not cease to urge, "But the tree is known by its fruits: And have you the fruits of justification? Is that mind in you which was in Christ Jesus? Are you dead unto sin, and alive unto righteousness? Are you made conformable to the death of Christ, and do you know the power of his resurrection?" And then, comparing the small fruits we feel in our souls with the fullness of the promises, we shall be ready to conclude: "Surely God hath not said that my sins are forgiven me! Surely I have not received the remission of my sins; for what lot have I among them that are sanctified?"

More especially in the time of sickness and pain he will press this with all his might: "Is it not the word of Him that cannot lie, `Without holiness no man shall see the Lord?' But you are not holy. You know it well; you know holiness is the full image of God; and how far is this above, out of your sight? You cannot attain unto it. Therefore, all your labour has been in vain. All these things you have suffered in vain. You have spent your strength for nought. You are yet in your sins, and must therefore perish at the last." And thus, if your eye be not steadily fixed on Him who hath borne all your sins, he will bring you again under that "fear of death," whereby you was so long "subject unto bondage," and, by this means, impair, if not wholly destroy, your peace as, well as joy in the Lord.

But his master-piece of subtlety is still behind. Not content to strike at your peace and joy, he will carry his attempts farther yet: He will level his assault against your righteousness also. He will endeavour to shake, yea, if it be possible, to destroy the holiness you have already received by your very expectation of receiving more, of attaining all the image of God.

The manner wherein he attempts this, may partly appear from what has been already observed. For, First, by striking at our joy in the Lord, he strikes likewise at our holiness: Seeing joy in the Holy Ghost is a precious means of promoting every holy temper; a choice instrument of God whereby he carries on much of his work in a believing soul. And it is a considerable help not only to inward, but also to outward holiness. It strengthens our hands to go on in the work of faith, and in the labour of love; manfully to "fight the good fight of faith, and to lay hold on eternal life." It is peculiarly designed of God to be a balance both against inward and outward sufferings; to "lift up the hands that hang down, and confirm the feeble knees." Consequently, whatever damps our joy in the Lord proportionably obstructs our holiness. And therefore, so far as Satan shakes our joy he hinders our holiness also.

The same effect will ensue, if he can, by any means, either destroy or shake our peace. For the peace of God is another precious means of advancing the image of God in us. There is scarce a greater help to holiness than this, a continual tranquility of spirit, the evenness of a mind stayed upon God, a calm repose in the blood of Jesus. And without this, it is scarce possible to "grow in grace," and in the vital "knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ." For all fear (unless the tender, filial fear) freezes and benumbs the soul. It binds up all the springs of spiritual life, and stops all motion of the heart toward God. And doubt, as it were, bemires the soul, so that it sticks fast in the deep clay. Therefore, in the same proportion as either of these prevail, our growth in holiness is hindered.

At the same time that our wise adversary endeavours to make our conviction of the necessity of perfect love an occasion of shaking our peace by doubts and fears, he endeavours to weaken, if not destroy, our faith. Indeed these are inseparably connected, so that they must stand or fall together. So long as faith subsists we remain in peace; our heart stands fast, while it believes in the Lord. But if we let go our faith, our filial confidence in a loving, pardoning God, our peace is at an end, the very foundation on which it stood being overthrown.

And this is the only foundation of holiness, as well as of peace; consequently whatever strikes at this, strikes at the very root of all holiness: For without this faith, without an abiding sense that Christ loved me, and gave himself for me, without a continuing conviction that God for Christ's sake is merciful to me a sinner, it is impossible that I should love God: "We love him, because he first loved us;" and in proportion to the strength and clearness of our conviction that he hath loved us, and accepted us in his Son.

And unless we love God, it is not possible that we should love our neighbour as ourselves; nor, consequently, that we should have any right affections, either toward God, or toward man. It evidently follows, that whatever weakens our faith, must, in the same degree obstruct our holiness: And this is not only the most effectual, but also the most compendious, way of destroying all holiness; seeing it does not affect any one Christian temper, any single grace or fruit of the Spirit, but, so far as it succeeds, tears up the very root of the whole work of God.

No marvel, therefore, that the ruler of the darkness of this world should here put forth all his strength. And so we find by experience. For it is far easier to conceive, than it is to express, the unspeakable violence wherewith this temptation is frequently urged on them who hunger and thirst after righteousness. When they see, in a strong and clear light, on the one hand, the desperate wickedness of their own hearts, -- on the other hand, the unspotted holiness to which they are called in Christ Jesus; on the one hand, the depth of their own corruption, of their total alienation from God, -- on the other, the height of the glory of God, that image of the Holy One, wherein they are to be renewed; there is, many times, no spirit left in them; they could almost cry out, "With God this is impossible!" They are ready to give up both faith and hope; to cast away that very confidence, whereby they are to overcome all things, and do all things, through Christ strengthening them; whereby, "after' they have done the will of God," they are to "receive the promise."

And if they "hold fast the beginning of their confidence steadfast unto the end," they shall undoubtedly receive the promise of God, reaching through both time and eternity. But here is another snare laid for our feet: While we earnestly pant for that part of the promise which is to be accomplished here, "for the glorious liberty of the children of God," we may be led unawares from the consideration of the glory which shall hereafter be revealed. Our eye may be insensibly turned aside from that crown which the righteous Judge hath promised to give at that day "to all that love his appearing;" and we may be drawn away from the view of that incorruptible inheritance which is reserved in heaven for us. But this also would be a loss to our souls, and an obstruction to our holiness.

For to walk in the continual sight of our goal, is a needful help in our running the race that is set before us. This it was, the having "respect unto the recompense of reward," which of old time, encouraged Moses, rather "to suffer affliction with the people of God, than to enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season; esteeming the reproach of Christ greater riches than the treasures of Egypt." Nay, it is expressly said of a greater than he, that "for the joy that was set before him, he endured the cross, and despised the shame," till he "sat down at the right hand of the throne of God." Whence we may easily infer, how much more needful for us is the view of that joy set before us, that we may endure whatever cross the wisdom of God lays upon us, and press on through holiness to glory.

But while we are reaching to this, as well as to that glorious liberty which is preparatory to it, we may be in danger of falling into another snare of the devil, whereby he labours to entangle the children of God. We may take too much thought for tomorrow, so as to neglect the improvement of to-day. We may so expect perfect love, as not to use that which is already shed abroad in our hearts. There have not been wanting instances of those who have greatly suffered hereby. They were so taken up with what they were to receive hereafter, as utterly to neglect what they had already received. In expectation of having five talents more, they buried their one talent in the earth. At least, they did not improve it as they might have done, to the glory of God and the good of their own souls.

Thus does the subtle adversary of God and man endeavour to make void the counsel of God, by dividing the gospel against itself, and making one part of it overthrow the other; while the first work of God in the soul is destroyed by the expectation of his perfect work. We have seen several of the ways wherein he attempts this by cutting off, as it were, the springs of holiness. But this he likewise does more directly by making that blessed hope an occasion of unholy tempers.

Thus, whenever our heart is eagerly athirst for all the great and precious promises; when we pant after the fullness of God, as the hart after the water-brook; when our soul breaketh out in fervent desire, "Why are his chariot-wheels so long a-coming?" -- he will not neglect the opportunity of tempting us to murmur against God. He will use all his wisdom, and all his strength, if haply, in an unguarded hour, we may be influenced to repine at our Lord for thus delaying his coming. At least, he will labour to excite some degree of fretfulness or impatience; and, perhaps, of envy at those whom we believe to have already attained the prize of our high calling. He well knows, that, by giving way to any of these tempers, we are pulling down the very thing we would build up. By thus following after perfect holiness, we become more unholy than before. Yea, there is great danger that our last state should be worse than the first; like them of whom the Apostle speaks in those dreadful words, "It had been better they had never known the way of righteousness, than, after they had known it, to turn back from the holy commandment delivered to them."

And from hence he hopes to reap another advantage, even to bring up an evil report of the good way. He is sensible, how few are able to distinguish (and too many are not willing so to do) between the accidental abuse, and the natural tendency, of a doctrine. These, therefore, will he continually blend together, with regard to the doctrine of Christian perfection; in order to prejudice the minds of unwary men against the glorious promises of God. And how frequently, how generally, I had almost said how universally, has he prevailed herein!

For who is there that observes any of these accidental ill effects of this doctrine, and does not immediately conclude, this is its natural tendency; and does not readily cry out, "See, these are the fruits (meaning the natural, necessary fruits) of such doctrine?" Not so: They are fruits which may accidentally spring from the abuse of a great and precious truth: But the abuse of this, or any other scriptural doctrine, does by no means destroy its use. Neither can the unfaithfulness of man perverting his right way, make the promise of God of none effect No: Let God be true, and every man a liar. The word of the Lord, it shall stand. "Faithful is he that hath promised: He also will do it." Let not us then be "removed from the hope of the gospel." Rather let us observe, which was the second thing proposed: How we may retort these fiery darts of the wicked one: How we may rise the higher by what he intends for an occasion of our falling.

How to Overcome Satan’s Devices
And, First, does Satan endeavour to damp your joy in the Lord, by the consideration of your sinfulness; added to this, that without entire, universal holiness, no man can see the Lord? You may cast back this dart upon his own head, while through the grace of God, the more you feel of your own vileness, the more you rejoice in confident hope, that all this shall be done away. While you hold fast this hope, every evil temper you feel, though you hate it with a perfect hatred, may be a means, not of lessening your humble joy, but rather of increasing it. "This and this," may you say, "shall likewise perish from the presence of the Lord. Like as the wax melteth at the fire, so shall this melt away before his face." By this means, the greater that change is which remains to be wrought in your soul, the more may you triumph in the Lord, and rejoice in the God of your salvation, who hath done so great things for you already, and will do so much greater things than these.

Secondly: The more vehemently he assaults your peace with that suggestion, "God is holy; you are unholy; You are immensely distant from that holiness, without which you cannot see God: How then can you be in the favour of God? How can you fancy you are justified?" -- take the more earnest heed to hold fast that, "Not by works of righteousness which I have done, I am found in him; I am accepted in the Beloved; not having my own righteousness, (as the cause, either in whole or in part, of our justification before God,) but that which is by faith in Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith." O bind this about your neck: Write it upon the table of thy heart. Wear it as a bracelet upon thy arm, as frontlets between thine eyes: "I am 'justified freely by his grace, through the redemption that is in Jesus Christ."

Value and esteem, more and more, that precious truth, "By grace we are saved through faith." Admire, more and more, the free grace of God, in so loving the world as to give "his only Son, that whosoever believeth on him might not perish, but have everlasting life." So shall the sense of the sinfulness you feel, on the one hand, and of the holiness you expect, on the other, both contribute to establish your peace, and to make it flow as a river. So shall that peace flow on with an even stream, in spite of all those mountains of ungodliness, which shall become a plain in the day when the Lord cometh to take full possession of your heart. Neither will sickness, or pain, or the approach of death, occasion any doubt or fear. You know a day, an hour, a moment with God, is as a thousand years. He cannot be straitened for time, wherein to work whatever remains to be done in your soul. And God's time is always the best time. Therefore be thou careful for nothing: Only make thy request known unto Him, and that, not with doubt or fear, but thanksgiving; as being previously assured, He cannot withhold from thee any manner of thing that is good.

Thirdly: The more you are tempted to give up your shield, to cast away your faith, your confidence in his love, so much the more take heed that you hold fast that whereunto you have attained; so much the more labour to stir up the gift of God which is in you. Never let that slip, "I have `an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous;' and, `The life I now live, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.'" Be this thy glory and crown of rejoicing. And see that no one take thy crown. Hold that fast: "I know that my Redeemer liveth, and shall stand at the latter day upon the earth;" and, "I now `have redemption in his blood, even the forgiveness of sins.'"

Thus, being filled with all peace and joy in believing, press on, in the peace and joy of faith to the renewal of thy whole soul in the image of him that created thee! Meanwhile, cry continually to God that thou mayest see that prize of thy high calling, not as Satan represents it, in a horrid dreadful shape, but in its genuine native beauty; not as something that must be, or thou wilt go to hell, but as what may be, to lead thee to heaven. Look upon it as the most desirable gift which is in all the stores of the rich mercies of God. Beholding it in this true point of light, thou wilt hunger after it more and more; thy whole soul will be athirst for God, and for this glorious conformity to his likeness; and having received a good hope of this, and strong consolation through grace, thou wilt no more be weary or faint in thy mind, but wilt follow on till thou attainest.

In the same power of faith, press on to glory. Indeed this is the same prospect still. God hath joined from the beginning pardon, holiness, heaven. And why should man put them asunder? O beware of this! Let not one link of the golden chain be broken. "God, for Christ's sake hath forgiven me. He is now renewing me in his own image. Shortly he will make me meet for himself, and take me to stand before his face. I, whom he hath justified through the blood of his Son, being thoroughly sanctified by his Spirit, shall quickly ascend to the `New Jerusalem, the city of the living God.' Yet a little while, and I shall `come to the general assembly and church of the first-born, and to God the Judge of all, and to Jesus the Mediator of the New Covenant.' How soon will these shadows flee away, and the day of eternity dawn upon me! How soon shall I drink of `the river of the water of life, going out of the throne of God and of the Lamb! There all his servants shall praise him, and shall see his face, and his name shall be upon their foreheads. And no night shall be there; and they have no need of a candle or the light of the sun. For the Lord God enlighteneth them, and they shall reign for ever and ever.'"

And if you thus "taste of the good word, and of the powers of the world to come," you will not murmur against God, because you are not yet "meet for the inheritance of the saints in light." Instead of repining at your not being wholly delivered, you will praise God for thus far delivering you. You will magnify God for what he hath done, and take it as an earnest of what he will do. You will not fret against him, because you are not yet renewed, but bless him because you shall be; and because "now is your salvation" from all sin "nearer than when you" first "believed." Instead of uselessly tormenting yourself because the time is not fully come, you will calmly and quietly wait for it, knowing that it "will come, and will not tarry." You may, therefore, the more cheerfully endure, as yet, the burden of sin that still remains in you, because it will not always remain. Yet a little while, and it shall be clean gone. Only "tarry thou the Lord's leisure:" Be strong, and "he shall comfort thy heart;" and put thou thy trust in the Lord!

And if you see any who appear (so far as man can judge, but God alone searcheth the hearts) to be already partakers of their hope, already "made perfect in love;" far from envying the grace of God in them, let it rejoice and comfort your heart. Glorify God for their sake! "If one member is honoured," shall not "all the members rejoice with it?" Instead of jealousy or evil surmising concerning them, praise God for the consolation! Rejoice in having a fresh proof of the faithfulness of God in fulfilling all his promises; and stir yourself up the more, to "apprehend that for which you also are apprehended of Christ Jesus!"

In order to this, redeem the time. Improve the present moment. Buy up every opportunity of growing in grace, or of doing good. Let not the thought of receiving more grace to-morrow, make you negligent of to-day. You have one talent now: If you expect five more, so much the rather improve that you have. And the more you expect to receive hereafter, the more labour for God now. Sufficient for the day is the grace thereof. God is now pouring his benefits upon you: Now approve yourself a faithful steward of the present grace of God. Whatever may be to-morrow, give all diligence to-day, to "add to your faith courage, temperance, patience, brotherly-kindness," and the fear of God, till you attain that pure and perfect love! Let these things be now "in you and abound!" Be not now slothful or unfruitful: "So shall an entrance be ministered into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord Jesus Christ!"

Lastly: If in time past you have abused this blessed hope of being holy as he is holy, yet do not therefore cast it away. Let the abuse cease, the use remain. Use it now to the more abundant glory of God, and profit of your own soul. In steadfast faith, in calm tranquility of spirit, in full assurance of hope, rejoicing evermore for what God hath done, press ye on unto perfection! Daily growing in the knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ, and going on from strength to strength, in resignation, in patience, in humble thankfulness for what ye have attained, and for what ye shall, run the race set before you, "looking unto Jesus," till, through perfect love, ye enter into his glory!

John Wesley

Research on How God Transforms Lives Reveals a 10-Stop Journey

2011-03-17T16:08:00.000-04:00

Six years after beginning what he assumed would be a relatively typical research process that sought to better understand how God transforms people’s lives, researcher George Barna discovered that he had tackled a deeply challenging and amazingly revealing journey. The product of his effort was the ability to identify some of the developmental processes, experiences, and obstacles that are common across the lives of Americans of all backgrounds. He contends that while the details of people’s developmental story differ, everyone is on a spiritual journey and there is sufficient similarity in those journeys that we can describe a normative life path – a map that can help people make greater progress if their goal is to become more Christ-like.

Using both quantitative and qualitative research methods, including more than 15,000 telephone surveys, George Barna distilled his findings and conclusions in a new book, Maximum Faith: Live Like Jesus, that he hopes will motivate and enable Christians in the United States to re-imagine the goal and methods related to their faith journey.

“It’s no wonder that this was probably the most challenging research project I’ve ever undertaken. If applied, the outcomes could significantly boost the transformational quotient of most people’s lives and enable them to experience God and life in startlingly new and exciting ways. But as substantial as the benefits of the journey are, the obstacles to experiencing those benefits are enormous. Genuine transformation requires a long-term commitment, a solid partnership with God, the willingness to grow through pain and hardship, and the willingness to live a countercultural life.”

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Curses

2011-03-10T17:31:00.000-05:00

Breaking Curses, Including Breaking Generational Curses
This book on deliverance and healing covers on breaking curses, breaking Including Breaking Generational Curses. Curses are in the category of social matters in our lives because of their expressive nature. For curses to have any potential one of their conditions is that they have physical expression in speech or in writing.

Although social in nature they are able to affect any area of life once in operation: social, spiritual, physical or material areas.

The great news is that curses are breakable and much easier than many may assume. May you find all the answers in this book for your life and for the lives of all the people you’re entrusted with

With detailed biblical analysis this book on breaking curses clears all the mysteries and confusion on curses. The first five chapters of the book lay the foundation:

1. What is a curse and the nature of curses?
2. Five conditions for curses to meet before gaining any legal entry
3. What curses are not: matters that do not constitute curses
4. Three sources of curses: God, people and self-infliction
5. Can Satan bring curses? Can Satan curse people?

Then learn about the behind the scenes role angels play in the spirit realm in relation to curses and our Christian lives in general. There is a great deal you’ll learn from this book that will greatly transform your Christian life. It is empowering to say the least.

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2011-02-27T19:04:00.000-05:00

Remember to say Thank You when someone helps you.....(grateful heart)

Thoughts?

2011-02-24T09:56:00.000-05:00

The devil can only do God's will.

comments?

Curious

2011-02-16T11:51:00.000-05:00

I am curious as to why someone who states they are Christian would believe and practice that belief=doctrine, but that doctrine is not recorded in Scripture. How are we being led away from what is clearly taught, and embracing doctrines which are not clearly taught?

Absolute Surrender

2011-02-03T14:56:00.000-05:00

“And Ben-hadad the king of Syria gathered all his host together: and there were thirty and two kings with him, and horses, and chariots: and he went up and besieged Samaria, and warred against it. And he sent messengers to Ahab king of Israel into the city, and said unto him, Thus saith Ben-hadad, Thy silver and thy gold is mine; thy wives also and thy children, even the goodliest, are mine. And the king of Israel answered and said, My lord, O king, according to thy saying, I am thine and all that I have” (1 Ki. 20:1-4).

What Ben Hadad asked was absolute surrender; and what Ahab gave was what was asked of him—absolute surrender. I want to use these words: “My lord, O king, according to thy saying, I am thine, and all that I have,” as the words of absolute surrender with which every child of God ought to yield himself to his Father. We have heard it before, but we need to hear it very definitely—the condition of God’s blessing is absolute surrender of all into His hands. Praise God! If our hearts are willing for that, there is no end to what God will do for us, and to the blessing God will bestow.

Absolute surrender—let me tell you where I got those words. I used them myself often, and you have heard them numberless times. But in Scotland once I was in a company where we were talking about the condition of Christ’s Church, and what the great need of the Church and of believers is; and there was in our company a godly worker who has much to do in training workers, and I asked him what he would say was the great need of the Church, and the message that ought to be preached. He answered very quietly and simply and determinedly:

“Absolute surrender to God is the one thing.”

The words struck me as never before. And that man began to tell how, in the workers with whom he had to deal, he finds that if they are sound on that point, even though they be backward, they are willing to be taught and helped, and they always improve; whereas others who are not sound there very often go back and leave the work. The condition for obtaining God’s full blessing is absolute surrender to Him.

And now, I desire by God’s grace to give to you this message—that your God in Heaven answers the prayers which you have offered for blessing on yourselves and for blessing on those around you by this one demand: Are you willing to surrender yourselves absolutely into His hands? What is our answer to be? God knows there are hundreds of hearts who have said it, and there are hundreds more who long to say it but hardly dare to do so. And there are hearts who have said it, but who have yet miserably failed, and who feel themselves condemned because they did not find the secret of the power to live that life. May God have a word for all!

Let me say, first of all, that God claims it from us.

God Expects Your Surrender

Yes, it has its foundation in the very nature of God. God cannot do otherwise. Who is God? He is the Fountain of life, the only Source of existence and power and goodness, and throughout the universe there is nothing good but what God works. God has created the sun, and the moon, and the stars, and the flowers, and the trees, and the grass; and are they not all absolutely surrendered to God? Do they not allow God to work in them just what He pleases? When God clothes the lily with its beauty, is it not yielded up, surrendered, given over to God as He works in its beauty? And God’s redeemed children, oh, can you think that God can work His work if there is only half or a part of them surrendered? God cannot do it. God is life, and love, and blessing, and power, and infinite beauty, and God delights to communicate Himself to every child who is prepared to receive Him; but ah! this one lack of absolute surrender is just the thing that hinders God. And now He comes, and as God, He claims it.

You know in daily life what absolute surrender is. You know that everything has to be given up to its special, definite object and service. I have a pen in my pocket, and that pen is absolutely surrendered to the one work of writing, and that pen must be absolutely surrendered to my hand if I am to write properly with it. If another holds it partly, I cannot write properly. This coat is absolutely given up to me to cover my body. This building is entirely given up to religious services. And now, do you expect that in your immortal being, in the divine nature that you have received by regeneration, God can work His work, every day and every hour, unless you are entirely given up to Him? God cannot. The Temple of Solomon was absolutely surrendered to God when it was dedicated to Him. And every one of us is a temple of God, in which God will dwell and work mightily on one condition—absolute surrender to Him. God claims it, God is worthy of it, and without it God cannot work His blessed work in us.

God not only claims it, but God will work it Himself.

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The Transforming Power of the Spirit!

2011-01-11T09:13:00.000-05:00

The transforming power of the Spirit!

(J. C. Ryle, "The Lord's Garden")

"To all those in Rome who are loved by God
and called to be saints." Romans 1:7

Believers are separated from the world by the
effectual working of the Holy Spirit. The Spirit
calls them out from the world, and separates
them as effectually as if a wall were built
between them and it. He puts in them . . .
new hearts,
new minds,
new tastes,
new desires,
new sorrows,
new joys,
new wishes,
new pleasures,
new longings.

He gives them . . .
new eyes,
new ears,
new affections,
new opinions.

He makes them new creatures. They are born
again--and with a new birth they begin a new
existence. Mighty indeed is the transforming
power of the Spirit!

Why Must There Be A Hell?

2011-01-10T15:08:00.000-05:00

Why must there be a hell?

(Thomas Watson, "The Ten Commandments")

"The wicked shall be turned into hell." Psalm 9:17

"How can you escape the damnation of hell?" Matthew 23:33

God has built hell built on purpose, for the damned to lie in.

See the dreadfulness of that place! Hell is the epitome of
misery! Besides "the punishment of loss," which is the exclusion
of the soul from the gloried sight of God, which some think is
the worst part of hell—there will be "the punishment of sense."

In hell there will be a plurality of torments:
There will be the "chains of darkness." 2 Peter 2:4.
There will be the "never-dying worm." Mark 9:48.
This is the worm of conscience.
There will be the "lake of fire." Revelation 20:15.
Other fire is but 'painted fire'—compared to this.

This house of hell is haunted with devils! Matt 25:41.
Anselm says, "I had rather endure all torments, than
see the devil with bodily eyes." Such as go to hell, must
not only be forced to behold the devil—but must be shut
up with this lion in his den! They must keep the devil
company! This red dragon is full of spite—and will spit
fire in men's faces!

The torments of hell abide forever! "The smoke of their
torment ascends up forever and ever." Rev. 14:2. Time
cannot finish hell. Tears cannot quench hell. Mark 9:44.
The wicked will always live in the fire of hell—but never
be consumed. After they have lain millions of years in hell,
their punishment is as far from ending, as it was at the
beginning! If all the earth and sea were sand, and every
thousandth year a bird should come, and take away one
grain—it would be a long time before that vast heap would
be removed! Yet, if after all that time the damned might
come out of hell—there would be some hope; but this
word FOREVER breaks the heart!

If anyone should ask, where is hell? I wish he may never
know experimentally. "Let us not so much," says Chrysostom,
"labor to know where hell is—as how to escape it."

Why must there be a hell? Because there must be a place
for the execution of divine justice. Earthly monarchs have their
prison for criminals—and shall not God have his? Sinners are
criminals, they have offended God. It would not be consistent
with His holiness and justice—to have His laws infringed, and
not inflict penalties.

How does it seem to comport with God's justice—to punish
a sin committed in a moment—with eternal torment?

1. Because there is an eternity of sin in man's nature. They
will continue to sin in hell. "Men gnawed their tongues in
agony and cursed the God of heaven because of their pains
and their sores, but they refused to repent of what they
had done." Revelation 16:10-11

2. Because sin is "committed against an infinite majesty,"
and therefore the sin itself is infinite, and proportionally
the punishment must be infinite.

3. Because a finite creature cannot satisfy infinite wrath,
he must be eternally paying what he can never pay.

"Jesus, who rescues us from the coming wrath!" 1 Thess 1:10
What infinite cause have they to bless God—who are delivered
from hell! Jesus Christ suffered the torments of hell in His soul
—that believers should not suffer them. Oh, how should we
bless God to be preserved from the wrath to come!

It may cause more thankfulness in us, to realize that most
people go to hell when they die. To be of the number of
those few who are delivered from hell—is matter of infinite
thankfulness. "Wide is the gate and broad is the road that
leads to destruction, and many enter through it. But small
is the gate and narrow the road that leads to life, and only
a few find it." Matthew 7:13-14

"Divide the world," says one, "into thirty-one parts, nineteen
parts of it are Jews and Turks, and seven parts are heathen;
so that there are but five parts of professing Christians—and
among these, so many deceived Papists on the one hand, and
so many formal Protestants on the other—that we may
conclude that the major part of the world goes to hell.

Scripture compares the wicked to "the mire in the streets."
Isaiah 10:6. Few precious jewels are in the street—but you
cannot go a step without meeting with mire! The wicked are
as common as the dirt in the street! The devil has most of
the harvest—and God has only a few gleanings. Oh, then,
such as are delivered from hell, have infinite cause to admire
and bless God. How should the vessels of mercy run over with
thankfulness! When most others are carried as prisoners to
hell—they are delivered from the wrath to come!

How shall I know if I am delivered from hell?

(1) Those whom Christ saves from hell—He saves from sin.
"He shall save His people from their sins." Matthew 1:21.
Has God delivered you from the power of corruption, from
pride, malice, and lust? If He has delivered you from the
hell of sin, He has delivered you from the hell of torment.

(2) If you prize, trust and love Christ—you are delivered
from hell and damnation. "There is no condemnation to
those who are in Christ Jesus." Romans 8:1. If you are in
Christ, He has put the garment of His righteousness over
you—and hell-fire can never singe it!

The Believer a Temple

2011-01-06T11:31:00.001-05:00

What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? 1 Cor. 6:19

Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; 1 Cor. 6:19

Or don't you know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who lives in you and was given to you by God? You do not belong to yourself, 1 Cor. 6:19

That the religion of our adorable Immanuel is a reality- no airy fiction, as is the Mohammedan, and no "cunningly devised fable," as is the Romish- many, conclusive and precious are the evidences. There is however, to the true believer, one evidence which, apart from, and superior to all others, affixes the seal of credibility; this is the conviction of its truth arising from the indwelling of the Spirit in the heart. There is in this great truth, something so palpable, so undoubted and so self-evident, that no sophistry of man, no ingenuity of Satan and no knowledge of the deep evil of our fallen nature can weaken or overthrow it. It is God Himself, as it were, taking the witness-stand and, setting aside all other testimony, challenging everything that would reduce His own work to a mere non-entity and exclaiming, "Who is he that condemns?" Clad in the armor of this evidence, the feeblest disciple of Jesus takes higher ground in vindication of the truth of the Gospel than the acutest reasoner who is destitute of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. It is true that the conviction arising from this source of evidence is the strongest and most convincing to his own mind; yet there is, in the simplicity, the honesty and the boldness with which his belief is declared, that which carries a powerful conviction to the minds of others. He may be challenged by the sceptic, there may be objections which he cannot meet, arguments which he cannot answer, difficulties which he cannot explain and sophisms which he cannot unravel; and yet the "witness within himself" shall throw such vigor into his reasoning and tenderness into his spirit, and shall invest his whole demeanor with an air of sincerity so touching that his accusers shall be compelled to pay him the tribute once awarded to his Lord, "he speaks as one having authority." He believes and has experienced what he declares, and thus God has given him a "mouth and wisdom, which all his adversaries shall not be able to gainsay nor resist."

Read The Holy Spirit be Octavious Winslow

Merry Christmas!!!

2010-12-25T12:15:00.000-05:00

Jesus Christ is the reason for the season

This Divine Secret!

2010-12-19T09:48:00.001-05:00

"Casting all your care upon him; for he cares for you." 1 Peter 5:7

How full of soothing and repose are these words! Where, in the world's wilderness, grows the flower of heart's-ease as it blooms and blossoms here? What cares have they lightened! What anxieties have they removed! What burdens have they unclasped! What springs of joy and comfort and hope have they unsealed in many a sad and oppressed heart! But do you not, beloved reader, need to be put in constant remembrance of this divine secret—of rest amid toil—of repose amid disquietude—of soothing amid corroding cares—and of confidence and hope in the midst of change and depression?

Bewildered and oppressed by the multitude of anxious thoughts within you—is there not a danger of being so absorbed by the care as to overlook the Caretaker? to forget the heart's ease in the overwhelming of the heart's anxiety? Cast all your anxiety on Him because He cares for you!

Octavious Winslow

Wicca's Charm

2010-12-16T14:32:00.002-05:00

I am reading Wicca's Charm: Understanding the Spiritual Hunger Behind the Rise of Modern Witchcraft and Pagan Spirituality by Catherine Edwards Sanders. I have had this book for three years. It just sat on my shelf. Well, I am not working today and picked it up. I can't put it down! (okay, I did put it down, but only to let you know that you should pick it up). Highly recommended!!!

Ephesians 6:10-18

2010-12-16T11:49:00.002-05:00

10 Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. 11 Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. 13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; 15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: 18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints;

Here is a general exhortation to constancy in our Christian course, and to encourage in our Christian warfare. Is not our life a warfare? It is so; for we struggle with the common calamities of human life. Is not our religion much more a warfare? It is so; for we struggle with the opposition of the powers of darkness, and with many enemies who would keep us from God and heaven. We have enemies to fight against, a captain to fight for, a banner to fight under, and certain rules of war by which we are to govern ourselves. "Finally, my brethren (Ephesians 6:10), it yet remains that you apply yourselves to your work and duty as Christian soldiers." Now it is requisite that a soldier be both stout-hearted and well armed. If Christians be soldiers of Jesus Christ,

I. They must see that they be stout-hearted. This is prescribed here: Be strong in the Lord, &c. Those who have so many battles to fight, and who, in their way to heaven, must dispute every pass, with dint of sword, have need of a great deal of courage. Be strong therefore, strong for service, strong for suffering, strong for fighting. Let a soldier be ever so well armed without, if he have not within a good heart, his armour will stand him in little stead. Note, spiritual strength and courage are very necessary for our spiritual warfare. Be strong in the Lord, either in his cause and for his sake or rather in his strength. We have no sufficient strength of our own. Our natural courage is as perfect cowardice, and our natural strength as perfect weakness; but all our sufficiency is of God. In his strength we must go forth and go on. By the actings of faith, we must fetch in grace and help from heaven to enable us to do that which of ourselves we cannot do, in our Christian work and warfare. We should stir up ourselves to resist temptations in a reliance upon God's all-sufficiency and the omnipotence of his might.

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Your Present Adversity

2010-12-12T10:44:00.001-05:00

"And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to his purpose." Romans 8:28
It is palpably clear and emphatically true that all that occurs in the Lord's government of His people conspires for, and works out, and results in, their highest happiness and their greatest good. The gloomiest and most painful circumstances in the history of the child of God, without a solitary exception, are all conspiring, and all working together, for his real and permanent good.

The painful and inexplicable dispensations, which at the present moment may be thickening and deepening around your path, are but so many mysteries in God's government, which He is working out to their certain, satisfactory, and happy results. And when the good thus embosomed in the lowering cloud of some crushing providence, accomplishes its benevolent and heaven-sent mission, then trial will expand its dark pinions and fly away—and sorrow will roll up its somber drapery and disappear!

All things under the government of an infinitely great, all-wise, righteous, and beneficent Lord God, work together for good. What that good may be—the shape it may assume—the complexion it may wear—the end to which it may be subservient—we cannot tell. To our dim view it may appear an evil, but to God's far seeing eye it is a positive good. Oh, truth most divine! Oh, words most consolatory!

How many whose eye traces this page, it may be whose tears bedew it, whose sighs breathe over it, whose prayers hallow it, may be wading in deep waters, may be drinking bitter cups, and are ready to exclaim—"All these things are against me!" Oh no, beloved of God, all these things are for you! Do not be afraid! Christ restrains the flood upon whose heaving bosom He serenely sits. Christ controls the waters, whose sounding waves obey the mandate of His voice. Christ's cloudy chariot is paved with love! Then, fear not! Your Father grasps the helm of your storm-tossed vessel—and through cloud and tempest will steer it safely to the port of endless rest!

Will it not be a real good, if your present adversity results in the dethronement of some worshiped idol? in the endearing of Christ to your soul? in the closer conformity of your mind to God's image? in the purification of your heart? in your more thorough fitness for heaven? Will it not be a real good if it terminate in a revival of God's work within you—in stirring you up to more prayer? in enlarging your heart to all that love the same Savior? in stimulating you to increased activity for the conversion of sinners, for the diffusion of the truth, and for the glory of God?

Oh yes! good, real good, permanent good must result from all the Divine dispensations in your history. Bitter repentance shall end in the experienced sweetness of Christ's love. The festering wound shall but elicit the healing balm. The overpowering burden shall but bring you to the tranquil rest. The storm shall but quicken your footsteps to the Hiding Place. The bitter-cold north wind and the balmy south wind shall breathe together over your garden, and the spices shall flow out.

In a little while—oh, how soon! you shall pass away from earth to heaven, and in its clearer, serener light shall read the truth, often read with tears before, "And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose."

Octavious Winslow

Precious Remedies Against Satan

2010-12-05T09:37:00.001-05:00

"Lest Satan should get an advantage of us: for we
are not ignorant of his devices." 2 Corinthians 2:11

Christ,
the Scripture,
your own hearts,
and Satan's devices,
are the four prime things that should be first and most
studied and searched. If any cast off the study of these,
they cannot be safe here, nor happy hereafter. It is my
work as a Christian, but much more as I am a Watchman,
to do my best to discover . . .
the fullness of Christ,
the emptiness of the creature,
and the snares of the great deceiver.

Thomas Brooks

Read Precious Remedies Against Satan

Lean Hard!

2010-12-05T09:21:00.002-05:00

"Cast your burden upon the Lord, and he shall sustain you." Psalm 55:22

It is by an act of simple, prayerful faith we transfer our cares and anxieties, our sorrows and needs, to the Lord. Jesus invites you come and lean upon Him, and to lean with all your might upon that arm that balances the universe, and upon that bosom that bled for you upon the soldier's spear! But you doubtingly ask, "Is the Lord able to do this thing for me ?" And thus, while you are debating a matter about which there is not the shadow of a shade of doubt, the burden is crushing your gentle spirit to the dust. And all the while Jesus stands at your side and lovingly says, "Cast your burden upon Me and I will sustain you. I am God Almighty. I bore the load of your sin and condemnation up the steep of Calvary, and the same power of omnipotence, and the same strength of love that bore it all for you then, is prepared to bear your need and sorrow now. Roll it all upon Me! Child of My love! Lean hard! Let Me feel the pressure of your care. I know your burden, child! I shaped it—I poised it in My own hand and made no proportion of its weight to your unaided strength. For even as I laid it on, I said I shall be near, and while she leans on Me, this burden shall be Mine, not hers. So shall I keep My child within the encircling arms of My own love. Here lay it down! Do not fear to impose it on a shoulder which upholds the government of worlds! Yet closer come! You are not near enough! I would embrace your burden, so I might feel My child reposing on My breast. You love Me! I know it. Doubt not, then. But, loving me, lean hard!"

Octavious Winslow

The Claims of Christ

2010-11-13T09:53:00.001-05:00

Death is not the end of human existence. The Bible states that it is appointed unto man once to die, and after that comes the judgment. After the judgment every person will find themselves forever in heaven or in hell. Your eternal destiny will be determined by whether or not you believe the claims of Jesus Christ.

In John 12:44 we read, "Jesus cried and said, 'He that believes on Me, believes not on Me, but on Him that sent Me. He that sees Me, sees Him that sent Me. I am come as a light into the world, that whosoever believes in Me should not abide in darkness. If any man hears my words and believes not, I judge him not, for I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world. Whoever rejects Me and receives not My words has one that judges him; the word that I have spoken shall judge him in that last day. For I have not spoken of Myself, but the Father which sent Me, He commanded Me what I should say and what I should speak. I know that His commandment is life everlasting. I speak whatever the Father said unto Me to speak.'"

Let's look at the radical claims that Jesus has made concerning Himself in these few verses.
He said believing upon Him was equivalent to believing the One who sent Him, or upon the Father. Over and over, He avowed that God sent Him.

To believe on Him was equivalent to believing in God.

He said to see Him was the same as seeing God.

He claimed to come as a light into the world.

Those who believe in Him do not abide in darkness.

He stated that He came to save the world.

He claimed that those who do not believe in Him will be judged by the word that He has spoken.

He claimed that His teaching did not originate with Him, but that He spoke the words that the Father commanded Him to speak.

He declared that His words are life everlasting.

These are the claims of Jesus. There is no denying the fact that they are quite radical. The extreme nature of Jesus statements concerning Himself presents every person with a choice to be made. We must either accept or reject His claims. We must either believe or disbelieve Him. It is not an option to simply ignore or try to evade such radical statements. What Jesus said demands that we form an opinion, and our opinion will ultimately fall into one of two camps. He was either telling the truth or He was lying. He was either the Son of God and the greatest person who ever lived or He was a deceiver and a fraud. You may be more kind and say, "I believe that perhaps He believed those things, but He was deluded and if He were living today, He would probably be institutionalized." But the issue remains, are His claims true or false? Jesus is who He claimed to be, or He isn't.

In the New Testament, we read of many signs that Jesus did to substantiate the claims that He was making. In the fourteenth chapter of John, Jesus reiterates some of these things that He has claimed here, but also adds a few more such as, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and no man can come to the Father except through Me."; "If you have seen Me, you have seen the Father"; and "Believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in Me, or else believe for the very works sake." In other words, Jesus not only claimed to be God in human flesh, the perfect source of truth and the One who grants eternal life, but offered conclusive proof through the miraculous deeds or "works" He was doing. In the Gospel of John, Jesus said that John the Baptist bore witness of Him, but that there was a greater witness than that of John. This greater witness was the works that the Father had given Him to do. Among these authenticating signs was Jesus' power over the elements. He turned the water into wine, He walked on the water, and He calmed a raging storm by His word. He showed His power over disease for He healed the suffering with a touch. He cleansed those with leprosy. He caused the lame to walk, opened the eyes of the blind and even raised the dead. He called upon these works to verify that His teaching was true.

At another time when huge crowds had gathered around Him, Jesus said, "A faithless and perverse generation seeks a sign, but no sign will be given, except that of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the whale, so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth." Thus His resurrection would constitute the basic sign to an unbelieving world, that He was all that He claimed to be.

When Jesus cleansed the temple of the money changers, He was asked by the Jews for a sign of authority to do what He had done. His response was, "Destroy this temple, and in three days I will rebuild it." John tells us that He was referring to His own body as a temple thus the resurrection from the grave three days after His death.
In Acts 1:3 we read that Jesus showed Himself alive after His death by "many infallible proofs." The resurrection of Jesus from the dead is one of the most factually verifiable events in history. It is confirmed by the testimony of many eyewitnesses such as Mary, Peter, the other Apostles and more than five hundred people at one time. If there is any validity to our system of jurisprudence, which establishes fact on the basis of eyewitness testimony, then the resurrection must be accepted as fact. "But," you may argue, "there was no cross examination of the witnesses!" Are you certain of that? Let it be noted that the vast majority of these witnesses were violently killed for their testimony, and none recanted, though doing so could have spared their lives. (For more information see Foxe's Book of Martyrs) So many gave their lives for what they had seen and heard that the Greek word "martus" (which meant one who bore legal testimony) came to mean those who suffered death for the Christian witness.

But along with His miraculous works and His historical resurrection from the dead, we have to also take into consideration the multiplied prophecies concerning the Messiah that Jesus fulfilled. Throughout the Old Testament, there were more than three hundred predictions concerning the Messiah that were fulfilled in the birth, life, death and resurrection of Christ. What would be the odds of one person fulfilling those prophecies by chance? The number is so astronomical, that it puts chance out of the picture. In his book Science Speaks [1], Peter Stoner estimates the odds of one person fulfilling just eight of these Messianic prophecies as being one in ten to the seventeenth power. How overwhelming is this probability? Stoner illustrates this by "supposing that we take ten to the seventeenth power silver dollars and lay them on the face of Texas. They will cover all of the state two feet deep. Now mark one of these silver dollars and stir the whole mass thoroughly, all over the state. Blindfold a man and tell him that he can travel as far as he wishes, but he must pick up one silver dollar and say this is the right one. What chance would he have of getting the right one? Just the same chance that the prophets would have had of writing these eight prophecies and having them come true in any one man, from their day to the present time. It is clear that chance had nothing to do with the fulfillment of these three hundred predictions. It is also important to note that the design spelled out in prophecy was far beyond any one person's ability to control. From the place of the Messiah's birth to the amount of money offered for His betrayal, we find factors that were out of any person's ability to arrange. Jesus could not by chance or by His own personal effort have fulfilled those three hundred predictions. It had to be by God's design.

Peter lived in close association with Jesus for three years and was with Him on some of the most momentous occasions of His ministry. Many times when the other disciples were excluded, Peter was brought in to see the special work of God. When they came to the house of Jairus, whose little daughter had died, Jesus put all of the people out. Yet He took Peter and John into the room that they might be witnesses of His power to bring her back to life. When He was in the area of Caesarea Philippi, and was transfigured on the high mountain before His disciples, it was Peter, James and John who were selected by the Lord to witness the event. In his second epistle, Peter writes about this experience and describes Jesus with His raiment shining like the sun, and seeing that glory of the eternal God coming forth from Him. He said, "We were not following cunningly devised fables when we declared to you the glory of the Lord." It wasn't some cunningly devised story. He said, "We were actual eye witnesses of His glory when we heard the voice of God there on the Mount." But even as significant as this experience was, Peter pointed to "the more sure word of prophecy" as the secure foundation of our faith.

When predictions are made about the future, there is a governing principle known as the Law of Compound Probabilities. This principle states that the more conditions placed on a prediction, the greater the chance that it will not come to pass.
Let us say that Newport Beach in California is shaken by an earthquake on an average of once every two years. If I should predict that there will be an earthquake in Newport this year, my chances are 1 in 2 of being right. If I said it will happen on June 13th, then there being 365 days in a year, the chances of it happening the 13th of June would be 1 in 365. If I said it would happen this year on June 13th, the chances would be 2 X 365 or 1 in 730. If I then declared it would happen this year, on June 13, at 2:05 in the afternoon, there being 1,440 minutes in a day, the likelihood of accuracy would then be 2 X 365 X 1,440 or 1 in 1,051,200. Now if I wanted to be very daring and say that the quake would strike at 2:05 and 15 seconds, I would increase the chances tremendously, for there are 86,400 seconds in a day x 1,051,200 and thus the chances of it happening as predicted are 1 in 90,823,680,000. This is just considering 4 factors. If I added more factors to the prediction, such as magnitude, epicenter, and the money needed to repair the damage, until I had 300 conditions, can you imagine what the odds against such a prediction being fulfilled would be? If they all came to pass you would have to conclude that I was either a true prophet, or else had inside information. This is exactly the situation we face with the prophecies concerning Jesus. He fulfilled over 300 conditions prophesied of Him. No wonder Peter called it the more sure word of prophecy!

There is certainly sufficient evidence and proof that the claims of Jesus were true. If you do not believe these claims, it is not because they are unbelievable, or because they are lacking in evidence, but because you don't want to believe them. Why would a person not want to believe the glorious claims of Jesus? He is claiming that He came to save you. He is claiming that His words will bring you everlasting life. But He is also declaring that if you don't believe, one day you will stand before God in judgment. He would not judge you, but you would be judged by the words that He spoke, because you didn't believe them. He said that He came that you might have life, and that more abundantly. Why would a person not want to believe that? Jesus loves us and died to save us from the penalty of sin, which is death. He loved us and died in our place that we might have eternal life. Why would a person not want to believe that? Many times a person doesn't want to believe because faith in Christ would require that they change their lifestyle. They are living after their selfish desires and they love their way of life. The commandments that Jesus gave are not pleasant for a person who wants to live after his fleshly lust. Jesus said if you would come after Him, you should deny yourself and take up your cross and follow Him. He condemned adultery, but many desire to have affairs. He condemned stealing, but so many want to steal. He condemned immoral sexual expression, but so many desire to throw off any and all moral restraints.

This world says, "Indulge yourself!" There is so much emphasis today upon self indulgence. People don't like to hear that they have to deny what they may want at a given moment. Thus, they don't want to believe on Jesus because it would require a change of lifestyle. Jesus said that people will not come to the light because one of the characteristics of light is exposing that which is in darkness. The secret hidden things are covered by darkness. Thus He said they will not come to the light because their deeds are evil. They hate the light and don't want to be exposed by the light. Have you ever noticed how places like bars are kept purposefully dark? People there want to hide. They really don't want to be seen. They love the darkness rather the light because their deeds are evil. Jesus said that was the reason many will not believe in Him.

If you do not believe in the claims of Jesus, I would be very interested in hearing the reasons why. Why don't you believe them? Some will say, "Well, I don't believe those things because if salvation was such a wonderful thing then everyone would be saved." That sounds rather logical, yet does that mean you don't believe in soap, because there are a lot of dirty people in the world? Would you like to make an argument that soap is of no value at all? Look at all the dirty people in the world. If soap was so good, why isn't everyone in the world clean?

Some have said they believed until God failed to answer their prayers. In fact, Ted Turner claims that at one time in his life he was a Christian. His sister was very sick when he was a boy and he prayed that God would heal her, but she died. After that incident, he no longer believed in God. There are many people like Ted Turner, who have been disappointed because God did not answer a particular prayer. When God did not answer, they concluded that He did not exist. Of course, God is not obligated to answer our every prayer. In reality, I would not want God to answer any prayer of mine that wasn't according to His will. I wouldn't want to force God to do something that He was reluctant to do. So often we think that God is like a Santa Claus that is suppose to respond to our every whim. To reject God because He didn't answer a prayer is as childish as saying, "Well if I can't be the chief of police, I'm not going to play with you anymore! I'm going home! If you don't do it my way, then you won't have me for a friend." This is at best an immature basis for a relationship.

Yet that is the kind of relationship many people try to have with God. "As long as God plays along with my wishes and my desires, I'll believe in Him and I'll play along with the game. But let Him cross me once and that's the end. I won't believe anymore. I'll take my marbles and go home."

Ignorance can also be a factor in rejecting Christ. I heard of a man who said he believed in God and in the Bible until one day he read a section in Leviticus concerning the animals that were unclean to eat. It was telling the factors that determine whether a species was clean or unclean. Mentioned in this section was the hare (which he interpreted to be a rabbit) which according to the passage was a cud chewing animal. Believing that rabbits don't chew cud, he concluded that the Bible contained an error of fact and was therefore not trustworthy. So he quit believing in God after he read in the Bible that the rabbit chews the cud. Interestingly, a bit of research could of cleared up this problem.

Some Hebrew scholars question whether the word in this passage actually refers to a rabbit. The Hebrew word arnebeth (translated hare) is of uncertain derivation. Biologists have also come to the conclusion that rabbits do exhibit a behavior very similar to chewing cud. But the more important point is to note how easily some people will dismiss the entire message of Scripture based upon the misunderstanding of a relatively insignificant particular. Imagine what it would be like to stand before God on Judgment Day with this kind of attitude. "Well, I used to believe in You until I read in Your Bible that the rabbit chews the cud." Could you imagine hearing God reply, "That's not a hare. That's an arnebeth. It's not even in the rabbit family."

I have encountered many people who have tossed out the faith based upon some supposed contradiction or error they have found in Scripture. Many of these problems can be avoided by an understanding of certain rules of biblical interpretation that we need to know and follow. First of all, let me say that I don't pretend to understand everything that is in the Bible. There are a lot of things in the Bible that I quite frankly will confess to you that I don't understand. If I were smarter, I might. However, if my interpretation of a passage is blatantly contradictory to another verse of scripture, then my interpretation is wrong. The scripture isn't wrong, my interpretation is wrong. So many people are ready to say, "Well, the Bible is wrong, because look..." No, the Bible isn't wrong. The interpretation is at fault.

I have encountered many people with faulty interpretations of scripture. If your interpretation of a scripture would cause it to seem ridiculous or foolish, then your interpretation of that scripture is wrong. God didn't say anything that was ridiculous or foolish. Rather than pointing the accusing finger at Scripture, it is more helpful to identify the basic problem with my limited understanding. It is far more productive to confess that the meaning of a passage eludes us than to throw up our hands and cry out, "Hopeless contradiction!" We must make every effort to understand what God is saying. We can be assured that when we discover the proper interpretation of a verse it will be reasonable and rational and will not contradict the rest of the Scriptures.

It is crucial to remember that many of our problems with Scripture are a result of our own personal assumptions and biases. For instance, the Bible says, "Spare the rod and spoil the child." That means that if you don't spank your child, you'll spoil him. It's just a statement of fact, if you spare the rod, you'll spoil the child. When he was young, my son interpreted that as a commandment. He said, "You're supposed to spare that rod and spoil me." Wrong interpretation, son. So there are many passages that can have a dual interpretation based on one's point of view. We may be looking at it in too limited a fashion, rather than considering the verse in its context. When a person comes up to me with a question about a passage, I immediately read the context. Most generally, I catch in its context the correct interpretation and show them that it reads in an entirely different way than what they were thinking.

Jesus declared that in the last days, those who don't believe in Him and do not believe His words will have to stand before God to be judged. He said He's not going to judge them. He didn't come to judge the world. He came to save the world. This brings to mind His conversation with the religious leader Nicodemus. Jesus told him, "God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world, through Him might be saved. He that believeth on Him is not condemned." He reiterates the same point here, "I didn't come to judge the world, I came to save it." He affirms His mission was that of saving the world. He said in another passage, "I've come to seek and save that which was lost." To believe on Him is to have everlasting life. It is to be saved from the penalty and the consequence of sin. It is to be saved from the judgment and the wrath of God that is to come against all the unrighteousness of men, even those who have held the truth of God in unrighteousness. "He that believeth on Me," Jesus said, "is not condemned." Paul the apostle said, "There is therefore now no condemnation to those that are in Jesus Christ" It is important to note that Paul did say to the church, "We must all stand before the judgment seat of Christ." But the kind of judgment Paul speaks of is one of rewards for the things we have done while we are in these bodies. It is like the judge's seat at the Olympics, where the various participants come up to receive medals for the victories they have won in the particular event. So we will stand before Christ to receive our rewards.

For those who don't believe in Jesus, it is a different story. They will stand before the judgment seat of God to receive sentencing for their failure to believe the words of Jesus, and for their failure to receive the forgiveness that God offered them through Christ. I am certain that God will give each person a chance to plead their case. But I'm sure at that time every excuse that people might seek to offer will sound so totally ludicrous, most will be unable to even say a word.
So we have seen the claims of Jesus Christ, radical, spectacular, and glorious. He has claimed that He has come to save you. He has claimed that you can have eternal life through believing His words and following His commandments.

The longer I live and the more I see of what the world has to offer the more vain it seems. I see the emptiness that people experience who seem to have attained more worldly goods than the rest of us. In light of the hopelessness of even the best this world has to offer, Jesus' offer of life is too good to turn down. I have no intellectual problems with this whatsoever. In fact, I would have great intellectual difficulties in not believing Jesus Christ, because somehow, I would have to rationalize His miracles. I would have to come up with an explanation for His ability to walk on the water, to raise Lazarus from the dead, and His own resurrection. I'd have to explain how one Man could, by accident, fulfill all three hundred of the Messianic prophecies. I would find myself very hard pressed to try to rationalize these things away. I would have tremendous difficulty giving some kind of an explanation that would be rational or plausible.

Many years ago, I, like most people, experienced a time of doubt. I thought, "Well maybe I'm an atheist. Maybe God doesn't exist. Maybe it is all just the figment of man's imagination. Man needs something to believe in, so he invented a god, and the Bible is simply a collection of stories expressing man's concepts and ideas of a supreme being." That lasted for around a half hour until I started to critically evaluate this point of view. The moment I started thinking, and tried to explain the existence of universe apart from God, I had to yield to reason. To hold on to an explanation of life apart from God would require a mindless state akin to idiocy. I couldn't put myself in that kind of unreasonable state of mind. I would have to believe all kinds of absurdities. I would have to believe that such patently miraculous features of life such as the marvelous ability to see, were created by thousands of fortuitous accidental circumstances. I would have to buy the idea that the perfect structure and function of the eye began with the sun beating down on a little worm and creating a mutation on its forehead. (I don't know how a worm would know what was his forehead and what was not.) But gradually over a process of time, through billions of years and countless mutations, this aberration formed into an eye. So then living things gained the ability to see. This same little worm scraped its tissue so often that it formed scar tissue that became legs complete with fully developed feet. Now our worm is a salamander and can see and walk. Is that rational? Give me a break!

The fool has said in his heart there is no God. A person must take a very mindless position to try to argue away the evidence of design in creation. In my own experience, I found it was easier to believe in God than to deny His existence. Not to believe in God brought forth too many difficulties. I believe in the existence of God, which according to scripture proves I'm not a fool. But every man has to make the choice to believe or not to believe. Jesus has made the claim that if you've seen Him, you've seen the One that's sent Him. If you believe on Him, you believe on the One who has sent Him. He claims that He came to save, that His words are eternal life and that they are not his words, but the words of the Father. The Father is the One who told him what to say and what to speak to us. If you don't believe, you're abiding in darkness and one day you will stand before God at the great judgment. I want to believe! I do believe! I have no problem with my belief.

Father, we thank you that you have provided such an abundance of evidence that any thinking, rational man can be completely satisfied in having faith in Jesus Christ. We can easily believe that He is the Son of God who came to save the world from sin. He came as light into this darkness, and those who hear his words and follow Him, do not walk in darkness but have the light of life. Thank you Lord for the many infallible proofs that confirm the claims of Jesus. Father, we pray for those who have been wrestling with this issue. Help them to see, Lord, that there is no neutral ground. They either believe or they don't believe. I pray, Father that you will bring them to a solid, strong faith and you will confirm in their hearts that position of faith by your Holy Spirit bearing witness of the truth. In Jesus name we pray. Amen.

by Chuck Smith

Footnotes:
[1] Stoner, Peter W. Science Speaks. Chicago: Moody Press, 1963.

Document Posted on 2001.08.04
Document Posted at www.calvarychapel.com/library/smith-chuck/books/tcoc.htm

The Invisible War

2010-10-17T11:05:00.002-04:00

Reading The Invisible War by Chip Ingram. Right on concise primer on spiritual warfare. I recommend!!

Harry Potter and the Paganization of Children's Culture

2010-10-14T16:07:00.002-04:00

You need to read this!

Experience

2010-09-30T19:03:00.002-04:00

We can only possess what we experience.

Truth to be understood must be lived.

There is a difference; a qualitative difference
Between what I know as a fact and what I know as truth.
It stands as great divide to separate my thinking
From what when I'm thinking foolishly and when I've understood.

The facts of theology can be altogether cold
Though true in every way they alone can't change me
Truth is creative, transforming and alive
It's truth that keeps me humble, saved and set free.

Straight up honesty, that's my obligation
That's the pointwhen I obey the truth without hesitation
When faith gains consent of my stubborn will
And makes the irreversible commottment real
To the Jesus of my journey, to the Christ of crucifixion,
Resurrection and redemption, to the Father of mercy
To the God of all comfort
Then and only then, then and only then
Then and only then, truth begins its
Saving and illuminating within the heart
And not a moment sooner, not one moment sooner

There can be no sympathy, there can be no understanding
You must surrender to the truth to really understand it
Oh, look at me, my opinion slipped out
But I'm under an obligation, without hesitation
To speak the truth in love
Somebody said,"Opinion is the queen of the world"
I believe this goes way beyond opinion
Crown this one king, crown this one king, crown this one king
Baby, where I come from that's a bold, bold statement
But I ain't no company man, you can respect that can't you?

Charlie Peacock

Believe in God; disbelieve Satan

2010-09-19T14:19:00.000-04:00

Jesus triumphed over Satan and all his demons through His work of redemption, particularly by canceling the power of sin at the cross. (Matt. 12:28-29; Eph. 1:19-23; Col. 2:13-15) Satan is already condemned. (John 12:31; 16:11; Rev. 20:7-10)

The principle of authority is that we are in the kingdom of Christ. Jesus is Lord and head of all power and authority. Satan has absolutely no legitimate authority over the believer. We are /free/ from Satan’s claims upon us. All sins are forgiven, all condemnation is ended, all cultic vows, promises, covenants, etc., were broken when a person comes into Christ's sphere of authority (Col. 1:13-14; 2:9-15). One must never compromise this principle by saying that sin gives a demon legal right to invade a believer or attach itself to your soul. Believe in God; disbelieve Satan.

Our primary weapons against demonic stratagems are faithful application of the fundamentals of the faith (Eph. 6:10-20; 1 Pet. 5:6-9). Light expels darkness.

Thank You!

2010-09-17T18:35:00.001-04:00

Thank you to everyone who is praying for us in our new book project. Be blessed!

My Afternoon

2010-08-22T17:16:00.000-04:00

Spent the afternoon writing on reaching the occultist for Christ for the new book. I really wish that this came naturally....Spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. Pray for the project, please

Writing A Book

2010-08-15T12:26:00.002-04:00

I'm working on a new book that is a compilation from former occultists and I am the editor. The contributing writers are from various occult backgrounds and from various cultures/parts of the world. The purpose of the book is to help the reader in understanding who the occultist is, what the occultist believes and practices and to effectively reach the occultist and minister to them.

Would you please pray for our project?

Vampire Logic

2010-07-28T19:31:00.000-04:00

With the issuing of the third movie in the Twilight series I have to speak out about our culture's twisted fascination with vampires. I don't hesitate to tell people that I am totally disgusted with the new fad sweeping over our youth culture these days. It is not just kids that are taken up with the wiles of the dark world either: many moms of teens are swooning for them too. I think that these seductive creatures are simply the spawn of the Harry Potter culture that has for over a decade now been indoctrinating kids to think that the occult world is normal and that all this evil messaging is harmless when dressed up as entertainment. That's vampire logic - and just what the devil wants us to think.

Gone are the days of Bella Lugosi's Dracula (1931) where good was good and evil was evil. A crucifix would drive Dracula away and then he had to go into his infernal coffin when the first streaks of dawn appeared. He was in every way presented as a creature of evil, dark of heart and dread to encounter. He drank human blood too, a feature that was supposed to strike terror in every person who valued his life's essence. The image of a blood-sucking creature who lives in slime and darkness and will pounce on you to drain out your very essence should terrorize every decent person. This is because vampires used to be images of demons. That's what demons are all about: the vanquishing of all human decency and life. They represent the spiritual vortexes of the demon world that drag down to the depths of hell all who fall prey to their wiles.

But, my, how vampires have come up in the world these days.

Nowadays vampires are divided into good and bad - no longer intrinsically evil. The good ones rescuevulnerable women instead of biting them and, allegedly, drink only animal blood (well, we haven't seen the last Twilight movie yet...). And crucifixes? Don't think you'll see any of those driving away bad guys in these movies. The heroes are the "good" vampires, not the Church or religious faith in Christ.

These super-star vampires also walk around in sunlight and, as a matter of fact, their skin just happens to glisten like diamonds when exposed to direct sunlight. Isn't that wonderful? The glam vamps are gentlemen, chaste and well-intentioned, yet they are always hovering around the edge of "falling" and in seductive situations which cause young people to think that they are capable, like their hero vampire, Edward Cullen, of going just so far and pulling back, out of self-control. That's teaching them to play with fire, not a real chastity message for kids.

The worst part of this fascination with vampires from a faith point of view, however, is its blasphemy of the Eucharist. "Unless you eat my flesh and drink my blood you have no life in you," said our Blessed Lord in Chapter 6 of John's Gospel. He is the One who offers His flesh and blood for the life of the world. The vampires eat (bite) the flesh and drink the blood of victims rather than give their own to redeem others. Their bites corrupt and transform their victims into vampires like themselves. They have no life in them. They are the "living dead" by their own estimate.

How sad that this generation has been so taken in by those who represent the very antithesis of the core reality of our Faith - the Eucharist. Vampire logic is anti-Eucharistic logic, and it's very dangerous for our kids. In their obsessive fascination with such darkness, kids (and adults) turn their backs on the One who actually died for them.

To those who say, "Oh, Father, it's only harmless entertainment," I say simply: You've been warned.

Sincerely,

Fr. Tom Signature

The Christian In Complete Armour

2010-07-22T12:35:00.003-04:00

The Christian in Complete Armour;
A Treatise
Of the Saints' War against the Devil:
Wherein a Discovery is made of that grand Enemy of God and his People, in his Policies,
Power, Seat of his Empire, Wickedness, and chief design he hath against the Saings.

A Magazine Opened,
From whence the Christian is furnished with Spiritual Arms for the Battle, helped on with his Armour,
and taught the use of his Weapon: together with the happy issue of the whole War.

By William Gurnall, M.A.,
Of Emanuel College, Pastor of the Church of Christ, Lavenham, Suffolk.

ACCURATELY REPRINTED FROM THE AUTHOR'S OWN EDITIONS.

With a Biographical Introduction,

By the Rev. J. C. Ryle, B.A.

Read book

Possibly the greatest book to read other than the Bible

Grace

2010-07-18T15:53:00.000-04:00

I'm reading Grace: An Exposition of God's Marvelous Gift by Lewis Sperry Chafer. Way too many Christians live in a law based relationship with God rather than a simple trust that the Christian is in His favor; loved, accepted as is and provided for....the difference is knowing God as either a business partner (law based) or as your Father (Grace based)

Sin Against the Holy Ghost

2010-07-11T11:30:00.000-04:00

A LETTER ON THE SIN AGAINST THE HOLY GHOST

TO JOHN UYTENBOGARD, HIS MOST DEAR AND PECULIARLY BELOVED BROTHER IN CHRIST, JAMES ARMINIUS WISHES HEALTH AND HIS WELFARE THROUGH CHRIST

Most Friendly Of Mankind:

As You intend soon to preach before the members of your church on The Sin against the Holy Ghost, you request that I will disclose to you my meditations and musings on that subject, on which you had also previously asked my opinion; but at that time, it was not in my power to comply with your request; for I had formed no distinct conception in my mind respecting it, neither have my sentiments upon it yet attained to any certain and full persuasion. But my slight musings and meditations, I neither feel any desire of denying to you, nor would it be my duty to withhold them from one to whom I have long ago transferred the plenary fight of requiring and even commanding any thing from me. Nor will I suffer myself to be seduced from this desire of obeying you by any false and rustic shame, though I know that my contemplations on this question, are such as cannot satisfy you, since, in fact, they are not much approved by myself. For, of what kind soever they may be, I am aware that they deserve to obtain some excuse, as they are concerning that question, than which scarcely any one of greater difficulty can be found in the whole Scripture, as St. Augustine testifies when professedly treating upon this subject, (tom. 19, fol. 9,) in his explication of Matthew 12:31,32. Besides, I hope and feel fully persuaded, that you will so polish these, my rough notes, that I may afterwards receive them from you not only with interest, but also others which will be able entirely to complete my wishes.
But I will not at present examine what St. Augustine has produced on the same passage, when writing about this sin; nor what is found on this subject in the writings of other authors, whether among the ancients or in our own times, lest I should be unnecessarily prolix, especially as you are yourself extremely well furnished with their works, and are ready to make the necessary inquiry into their sentiments. I will transcribe for you my own meditations, not in that order which is suitable to the nature of the thing itself, (for how is it possible for me to do this, when it is not fully known by me?) but in the order which it is possible for me to observe in the confusion of various thoughts.
It will not be useless, in the first place, to prefix to this investigation those passages of Scripture in which mention is made of this sin, or in which it seems at least to be made.
“Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men; but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men. And whosoever speaketh against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him; but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world nor in the world to come. (Mat. 12:31-32.) “Verily I say unto you All sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men, and blasphemies wherewithsoever they shall blaspheme; but he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost, hath never forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal damnation.” (Mar. 3:28-29.) “and whosoever shall speak a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him; but unto him that blasphemeth against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven.” (Luk. 12:10.) There are, besides, two passages in the epistle to the Hebrews, the first of them in the sixth chapter, the other in the tenth, which it seems possible to refer to this subject without any great detriment. “For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, and have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, if they shall fall away, to renew them again to repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame? (Heb. 6:4-6.) “He that despised Moses’ law, died without mercy under two or three witnesses; of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?” (Heb. 10:28-29.) To these may be added a passage from St. John’s first epistle: “If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death: I do not say that he shall pray for it?” (1Jo. 5:16.) Let the following passage also, from the epistle to the Hebrews, be added, for the sake of explanation, not because it is on exactly the same subject:
“For if the word spoken by angels was steadfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense of reward, how shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation, which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him, God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will?” (Heb. 2:2-4.) To these, let another passage be subjoined from the Acts of the Apostles: “Ye stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears, ye do always resist the Holy Ghost. As did your fathers, so do ye.” (Act. 7:51.) But about the same persons, it was said, in a preceding chapter, “And they were not able to resist the wisdom and the Spirit by which Stephen spake.” (Act. 6:10.) “And all that sat in the council looking steadfastly on him, saw his face as it had been the face of an angel.” (Act. 6:15.)
I unite these passages for no other reason than that I may be able to contemplate them all together at one glance, and may direct my thoughts according to them.
And, first, we must see the appellations which the sin receives about which we are here treating.
The Evangelists Matthew, Mark and Luke call it “the blasphemy of the Spirit,” or “the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost.” In the sixth chapter of the epistle to the Hebrews, it is called “a prolapsing” or “falling away,” and in the tenth chapter of the same epistle, it is called “contumely poured on the Spirit of grace,” or “a doing despite to the Spirit of grace.” I might add, from the sixth chapter, “the crucifying afresh of the Son of God,” and “the putting of him to an open shame;” and from the tenth, “the treading under foot of the Son of God,” and “the profanation of the blood of the covenant,” unless they were capable of being referred to some other thing, which we shall afterwards discuss. In 1Jo. 5:16, it is designated as “a sin unto death.” The sin which is described in Hebrews, 2:2-4, is denominated “a neglecting of the salvation which was first announced by Christ and his apostles,” and confirmed by God with infallible testimonies. In Act. 7:51; it is called “a resisting of the Holy Ghost.” We are permitted thus to employ these passages, because an inquiry is instituted into the genus of the sin.
He, against whom the sin is committed, is styled by St. Matthew, Mark and Luke, “the Holy Spirit;” and, in Hebrews 10, he is called the “Spirit of grace;” by this addition of the epithet “of grace” to the Spirit, seems to be intimated that the person of the Holy Spirit himself is not so much the object of consideration in this passage, as some gracious act of his. The same Evangelists make a distinction between this sin and that against “the Son of Man,” while in Hebrews 6 and 10, the same sin is said to redound to the ignominy of the Son of God and of his blood-two declarations which must afterwards be reconciled, for each of them is true.
But when the men who commit this sin are described, in Hebrews 6, as “those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of that heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, and have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come,” in Hebrews 2, salvation is said to have been announced to them, and confirmed by indubitable testimonies. In Acts 6, it is attributed to them that “they were not able to resist the wisdom and Spirit by which Stephen spoke,” and that they “saw his face as that of an angel.” From these particulars, it seems proper to collect by what cause they were impelled who committed this sin.
It is, moreover, attributed to this sin by Matthew, Mark and Luke, that it is irremissible, or not to be forgiven; by St. John that his unto death. The same thing is affirmed in Hebrews 6, but, as it appears to me, it is in the cause; for it is said to be impossible that he who has thus “fallen away should be renewed again unto repentance.” In Hebrews 10, in the application of the comparison, this sin is said to deserve a more severe punishment than the despising of the law of Moses; and in the commencement of the same passage, the certainty of punishment is signified by these words: “He died without mercy,” which seems also to be placed in the antapodosis, the repetition or summing up. In Hebrews 2, he who neglects this salvation is said “to receive a just recompense of reward.”
Besides, the cause why that sin is irremissible, unto death, and why the man who thus sins cannot be renewed unto repentance, seems to be rendered in Hebrews 6, in the following terms: “- seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.” And in Hebrews 10, in the following words: “- who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing.” For it does not seem to me that these expressions can be placed collaterally with falling away and doing despite to the Spirit of grace; but I think they must be placed in subordination among themselves.
Lastly, in Heb. 2:10, is instituted a comparison between this sin and the violation and the despising of the law of Moses; for this likewise is worthy of consideration, that we may correctly determine concerning the kind of sin. From this comparison of it appears that the sin about which those passages treat, is not committed against the law of Moses.
But from the contexture of those things which precede, and from a comparison of those which follow, is to be taken the occasion through which Christ, in the Evangelists, St. Paul in the epistle to the Hebrews, and St. John in his first epistle, have made mention of this sin.
Let us now commence an inquiry into the matters which come under consideration in this sin, following, as far as possible, the guidance of those passages which we have premised and prefixed to this our disquisition. But to me it appears possible, most commodiously to circumscribe them within the following bounds: Let us, in the first place, (1.) enter into a discussion on the genus or kind of this sin; (2.) its object and mode; (3.) those who commit the sin; (4.) the impelling cause; (5.) the end of this sin; (6.) the degrees of this sin; (7.) the peculiar attribute of this sin -- its irremissibility or unpardonableness, and its cause. To these we shall subjoin the three other questions, which you mention in your letter. (1.) Can this sin be known by the human judgment, and what are the marks? (2.) Are those who are commonly considered to have perpetrated this sin, to be held as being guilty of it or not, (3.) Does not this distinction between the sin against the Son of Man, and that against the Holy Spirit, contribute to the confirmation of the truth of the personality of the Holy Ghost?
1. With respect to the genus or kind, it is a subject of much regret that a disquisition upon it is a matter of great difficulty. For it is produced from no other source than the too great fertility of sin, and its deduction and derivation into various species; yet it is not necessary to refer all the distributions and distinctions of sin to this point; we must descend commodiously by those degrees which may bring us down to this kind of sin. In order to do this, we must commence with that which is the highest. Sin, therefore, is the transgression of the divine law, of whatever description that law may be; for we are treating upon a sin of this kind. A transgression of the law is either special, against one or more of the precepts of the law; or it is universal, against the whole and entire law, which is called a rejection and abrogation of the law, and a defection from it, and which is as much against what is commanded or forbidden in the law, as against him who directly commanded it, through contempt for Him. This kind of sin, I suppose, is signified in the Old Testament by the phrase, to sin with a high or elevated hand; for the moral law consists of a preface which is contained in these words: “I am the Lord thy God, who brought thee out of the land of Egypt,” &c., and of an enumeration of the precepts. Either the preface itself is rejected and God directly despised, or sin is committed against the precepts, none of which can in fact be violated without bringing ignominy on the divine Majesty and pouring contempt upon God. But every sin is not from a contempt for God. David committed adultery, which may be reductively or consequently referred to a contemning of God, and resolved into it; but he did not commit that sin through a contempt for God.

The law of God is now two-fold-the one of works, the other of faith; or, the precepts of the law are of two kinds: some, of the law properly so called, and others of the gospel. But this sin about which we are treating is not of the kind of those which are perpetrated against the law of God, whether it be a special or universal transgression and an apostasy from the law. This is evident from Heb. 10:28-29; for this sin is there compared with the violation or abrogation of the law of Moses, as a greater sin with a smaller one. It is also evident from Heb. 2:2-4. This sin is also called “a doing despite unto the Spirit of grace,” which is not that of the law, but the Spirit of Christ and of his gospel. It is easy to perceive the same thing in the Evangelists; for, in St. Matthew’s gospel, Christ says, “but if I by the Spirit of God cast out devils, then the kingdom of God is come unto you.” (12:28.) This sin, therefore, is committed against the Spirit who testifies that the kingdom of God has arrived; and, on this account, it is not committed against the law of God, but against the gospel of Jesus Christ. The same thing may be rendered evident from Hebrews 6, in which the apostle treats about a falling away from those gifts which are there enumerated, and which are the gifts of the gospel of Christ. Christ is also said “to be crucified afresh and put to an open shame “by this “falling away;” and, in Hebrews 10, he is said to be “trodden under foot,” and “the blood of the covenant is said to be profaned.” All these are sins committed, not against the law, but against the gospel of Christ.
From these observations, it is evident, that those persons who assert that this sin is committed against the acknowledged truth concerning God, and concerning His will and works, have not taught concerning it with sufficient distinctness; they ought to have subjoined “against the truth of the gospel.” But the commands of the gospel are two-that of faith in Christ, and that of conversion to God. Concerning faith it is manifest. About conversion let us now inquire; for as aversion from God is produced by sin, the law accuses him who is thus averse or turned aside, and condemns him to cursing, without any hopes of pardon; but the gospel requires conversion and promises pardon. Therefore, conversion to God is an evangelical command, and not legal. But impenitence is opposed to conversion to God; and this, when final, condemns a man through the peremptory decree of God, that is, through that which is evangelical. This final impenitence, however, cannot be called “the sin against the Holy Ghost,” which is the subject on which we are now treating. For (1.) final impenitence is common to all those who are to be condemned; while the sin against the Holy Ghost attaches to certain persons, or, rather, to very few. (2.) Final impenitence is not committed except at the closing period of life; but this sin is perpetrated while he is still running the space of life. This is apparent from 1Jo. 5:16: “There is a sin unto death; I do not say that he shall pray for it.” (3.) Concerning him who commits the sin unto death it is said that “it is impossible for him to be renewed again to repentance;” but this would be a useless expression respecting one who was finally impenitent; for it is well known that all hopes of pardon are terminated by the short course of the present life. (4.) Respecting the sin against the Holy Ghost, it is affirmed that “it shall not be forgiven, neither in this world nor in that which is to come;” that is, it shall never be forgiven. But it is unnecessary to make such an affirmation concerning final impenitence.
This sin, therefore, is a transgression of the precept which commands faith in Jesus Christ. But as the doctrine concerning faith in Jesus Christ is not only entire, but likewise consists of certain parts; from this may be assumed a difference in the transgression, that one is universal, the other special. The universal is that by which Christ is simply rejected and refused, and which may receive the general appellation of “infidelity” or “unbelief.” The special is that by which Christ is not universally rejected, but is merely not accepted as he has been manifested in his word; and this is called “a heresy,” that term being employed concerning those who, after having professed faith in Christ, do not preserve his doctrines entire and unsullied, but corrupt them. But the sin about which we are treating does not lie in this special transgression. It belongs, therefore, to the universal transgression of this precept concerning faith in Christ; and it is infidelity or unbelief. It is not all unbelief, of which there are various kinds. (1.) The infidelity of those who have heard nothing respecting Christ; but such persons do not commit the sin against the Holy Ghost. (2.) That of those persons who have indeed heard of Christ, but have not understood; (Mat. 13:19; ) neither does the sin against the Holy Ghost attach to these men. (3.) The unbelief of those who have understood, but who have not been certainly persuaded and convinced in their consciences respecting the truth of the things understood; but these persons are not guilty of the sin against the Holy Ghost. (4.) That of those men who, being convinced in their consciences that Jesus is the Christ, by their infidelity still reject him; and, according to my judgment, to this class of persons belongs the sin against the Holy Ghost, about which we are now treating.
Therefore, the genus or kind is a repulsion and rejection of Christ in opposition to conscience. It is not a mere abnegation or disowning; for that is the part of him who has previously made a profession. It is not an oppugnation or attack; for that belongs to further progress, [in the sin], as we shall, afterwards perceive. But it is worthy of observation, that in reality it is one and the same thing, whether it be called “a refusal of Christ,” or “a rejection of the truth concerning Christ,” provided a universal rejection be understood, and not a particular rejection in one doctrine or more.
2. Let us now come to the object. The object of this sin is said to be a person against whom the offense is committed, whether that person be God, or the offending mortal himself, or his neighbor. But we must take into our consideration not only the object, but also its mode, which the schoolmen denominate “the formal reason.” This mode, when added to the object, causes the latter to be proper, adequate, and peculiar or suitable. A surface is an object of sight, but it is one which is colored. An offense is committed against God by ingratitude, but it is against him as having merited better returns from us. We also sin against God by disobedience and contempt, as against him commanding, forbidding, promising, threatening, chastising, correcting, &c. Apostasy is committed against God, but it is against him when acknowledged as God, and to whose Deity and name he who falls away had devoted himself by oath. But, in this place, the object of the sin about which we are treating is Jesus Christ, and he immediately. This is the reason why I add the word “immediately,” because he who rejects the Son, rejects also the Father. The mode of formal reason has been manifested and proved, [to the man who commits this sin,] nay, it has been known to be the Messiah and Redeemer of the world. This is evident from Heb. 6:6, in which those who thus “fall away” are said to “crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh and put him to an open shame.” It is also evident from Heb. 10:29, in which such persons are said to “tread under foot the Son of God, and to count the blood of the covenant an unholy thing.” This is still more apparent from the words of the Pharisees, who said, “He casteth out devils by Beelzebub, the prince of devils,” which are thus related by St. Mark: “For they said, he has an impure spirit,” whether by these words they committed this sin, or not; for they contain the occasion on which Christ began to speak about the sin against the Holy Ghost. But because this mode agrees with the object through some gracious act, which proceeds principally and immediately from the Holy Spirit or the Spirit of grace; on this account this sin is called “the sin against the Holy Ghost” or against “the Spirit of grace;” because the offense is committed against that act of the Holy Spirit, either by despising the act, or by treating him also with ignominy. But that act of the Spirit is the act of testifying concerning Christ and the coming of his kingdom; an act not only sufficient to prove that Jesus is the Christ; but also efficacious, and assuredly convincing the mind and conscience of him to whom the testification is communicated concerning Christ; the operation and complete effect of which, in the mind of man, are an assured knowledge and persuasion of this truth, that “Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God.” But of this sin the Holy Spirit is not the object; for it is not directed against his person. This is apparent from the end of the testifying and the object; for the end of this testification is Christ. But the object of this sin committed against the testification, and the object of the testification itself, are one and the same. And the end of the testifying is, not that the Holy Spirit, but that Jesus, be acknowledged and accepted for the Son of God and for the Anointed of the Lord. This is declared by Christ in the following words: “If I by the Spirit of God cast out devils, then is the kingdom of God come unto you.” It also conduces to the same purpose that, not the Spirit out of Christ, but Christ himself in and through the Spirit, performed the miracles. From this, it appears, that the performing of miracles serves to prove the truth of the preaching of Christ concerning himself.

From these remarks, I think, we may easily solve the difficulty which lies in the words of Christ, who distinguishes this “sin against the Holy Ghost” from “the sin against the Son of Man,” and who declares that the former is irremissible or unpardonable, but that the latter is capable of forgiveness. For the sin against the Son of Man, without this testification of the Spirit, is remitted to many men; and it appears from the whole of this discussion, that regard is not had so much to the person against whom the sin is committed, as to the act of testification proceeding from the Holy Spirit, against whom the sin is perpetrated. With respect to the act, therefore, it is said to be perpetrated against the Holy Ghost, not against the Son of Man, but, with respect to the object, against the Son of Man, but who is known from the act of testifying. Since, then, regard is had rather to the act than to the object, in this respect this sin is called by Christ “the sin against the Holy Ghost,” and is distinguished from the sin which is committed against Christ without any consideration of this mode and formal reason. I know there are among the fathers those who understand the appellation, “Son of Man,” through a reduplication or reflection, to signify Jesus as he is the Son of Man, and the epithet, “Son of God,” to signify Jesus as he is the Son of God. They also consider, that, when a sin committed against Jesus as he is the Son of Man, the offense is another and a less one than when he is sinned against as the Son of God. But such a consideration has no place here; for the testification of the Holy Spirit conduces to this end -- that the person who is sometimes denominated the Son of Man and sometimes the Son of God, be received as the true and only Messiah. Yet if any man be desirous of referring this consideration of some of the ancient fathers to the point under discussion, he will be able to say that a sin is committed against the Son of Man when Jesus is not recognized as the Son of God, but that a sin is committed against the Son of God, when it has been already proved, by undoubted testimonies, that he is the Son of God. The expressions in the Evangelist “Whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him,” serve to favor this consideration, as do also those in the Epistle to the Hebrews, “crucifying to themselves the Son of God,” and they who have “trodden under foot the Son of God,” that is, Jesus, whom, through “the enlightening” of the Holy Spirit, they had previously accounted as “the Son of God.” For it is manifest from the Scriptures that it was necessary to believe this attribute concerning Jesus of Nazareth, that he was the Christ, the Son of God, the savior and Redeemer of the world, &c.; and as the object and the acts occupied about it have a mutual relation so that from an adequate object we can determine concerning the act, and from an act we can form a conclusion respecting the adequate object, it appears possible for us to conclude, from the acts which the apostle enumerates in Hebrews 6, and 10, that those persons who had thus sinned against Jesus, not only acknowledged him as the Son of God, but also sinned against him as against the Son of God whom they had so acknowledged. For, no one is said to “crucify the Son of God afresh,” and to “tread him under foot,” except that man who acknowledges him as the Son of God, and who sins against him under that consideration. For instance, the American Indians cannot be said to have “trodden under foot the gospel of Christ,” when they trampled under their feet, and threw into the fire, the small volume of the four gospels, which was shown to them by the Spaniards, who, in a boasting manner, represented it to them as the true gospel.
3. Let us now proceed to the description of the persons who commit this sin, that is, such as they are defined to us according to the Scriptures. But, generally, they are those who, through the testification of the Holy Spirit in their minds and consciences, are convinced of this truth-that Jesus, the son of Mary, is Christ the Sod of God. Yet these persons may differ among themselves, and in reality do differ; for, after having been convinced of this truth, they either immediately reject Christ, never tendering him their names to be enrolled among his followers; or, having for a season embraced and professed Christ, they decline from him and fall away. Of the first of these two classes were the Pharisees, if, at the time when they said that” Christ cast out devils through Beelzebub,” they were convinced in their consciences that such ejectment of the devils was truly the work of the Holy Spirit, as Christ had laid down his argument, “If I by the Spirit of God cast out devils, by whom do your sons cast them out?” Of the second class, are those of whom mention is made in Hebrews 6 and 10. For they who embrace Christ even with a temporary faith, do this through the illumination of the Holy Spirit; because “no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, except by the Holy Ghost.” (1Co. 12:3.) To these persons has been granted some “taste of the heavenly gift, of the good word of God, and of the powers of the world to come;” for the testification of the Holy Spirit concerning Jesus Christ the Son of God, when impressed with a full persuasion on the mind, can be followed by no other effect than the excitement of joy and gladness in the heart of him who professes Christ, as Christ himself declares, in Mat. 13:20, “But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it,” and as he also declares, in Joh. 5:35, concerning those who “were willing for a season to rejoice in the light of John the Baptist.” But on this subject consult Calvin’s Institutes. (Lib. 3, cap. 2, sec. 11.) With regard to what is added in Heb. 6:5, that the same persons “were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,” this may be understood to relate to those extraordinary gifts of the Holy Spirit which at that period flourished in the church. This is likewise declared in Heb. 2:4 “God likewise bare them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will.” In these persons, that abnegation or renouncing of Christ occurs which, in Hebrews 6, is denominated “a falling away,” that is, from the truth which they have acknowledged, and from the confession of the name of Christ which they have made. About this renunciation of himself, Christ treats in a general manner in Luk. 12:9, subjoining to that passage a special mode in the particular deed which we are now discussing, and says, “Whosoever shall speak a word against the Son of Man, it shall be forgiven him; but unto him that blasphemeth against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven.” To this genus of renunciation belongs the deed of Peter; but it is distinct, and differs greatly from this species, as will be very apparent in the next member that comes under our consideration. Therefore, the sin against the Holy Ghost is distinguished according to the mode of efficient causes, of which we have already adduced a distinction.
4. It follows that we now institute an inquiry into the cause of this sin. The cause of all sin is commonly represented to be either ignorance, weakness, or malice. Ignorance, not negative, but privative of the knowledge which ought to be within, and, therefore, ignorance of the law. Weakness, too infirm to resist vehement passion and temptation, and the seductions which impel men to sin. Malice, by which any one knowingly and willingly, being enticed indeed by some temptation, but which can be easily resisted by the will, and which the will is able readily to overcome, is induced to sin. Though ignorance and infirmity are not directly and immediately the causes of sin, yet they are causes through the mode of prohibiting absence-ignorance, through the mode of the absence of right knowledge and reason, which might be able to hinder from sin by instructing the will-infirmity, through the mode of the absence of strength and capability, which might hinder from sin by confirming and invigourating the will. If, therefore, we be desirous accurately to examine this matter, the will is the proper, adequate and immediate cause of sin, and has two motives and incentives to commit sin, the one internal, the other external. The internal, which lies in man himself, is the love of himself and a concupiscence or lusting after temporal things, or of the blessings which are visible. The external motive is an object moving the appetite or desire; such objects are honors, riches, pleasures, life, health and soundness, friends, country, and similar things, the contraries to which the man hates and execrates, and is afraid of them, if he imagine them to be impending over him. But these motives do not move the will so efficaciously that the will is necessarily moved; for, in this case, the will would be excusable from sin; but they move the will through the mode of suasion and enticement. But now, when, through love of himself and the desire of some apparent good, (in which is included an avoiding or hatred of an apparent evil,) man is solicited or enticed to some act, which is indeed forbidden, but which he does not know to be sinful, then the will, following the appetite and erroneous reason, is said to sin through ignorance. But when, through the same motives, he is tempted to an act which he knows to be sin, then the will, following the appetite, sins indeed knowingly; but whether such sin is committed through infirmity or through malice, ought to be decided chiefly from the necessity of that good which the man is pursuing, and from the deep heinousness of the evil which he avoids. On this point, a judgment must also be formed from the vehemence of the appetite or passion, as well as from the inclination towards the person who seems desirous to hinder the completion or fulfilling of the desire, (a circumstance which does not on every occasion occur, but which for a certain reason I thought must be added in this place,) where a discrimination of the mode by which he endeavors to hinder, comes under consideration, whether it be good, lawful, and commanded, or whether it be evil, unlawful and forbidden.

Let us now apply these remarks to our purpose. Paul persecuted the church of Christ, but he did it ignorantly, being inflamed with too great a zeal and desire for the law, as many of the Jews also crucified Christ, being ignorant that he was the Lord of glory; otherwise they would have refrained from such a nefarious crime. By those men, therefore, the sin about which we are treating was not committed. Peter denied Christ his Lord, whom he knew to be the true Messiah and the Anointed of the Lord, and his knowledge of this was obtained through an immediate revelation from the Father; but his conduct proceeded from a desire of life and a fear of death-feelings which may attack even the bravest of mankind. he did it, therefore, through infirmity. Through fear of banishment, prescription, condemnation to the mines or to perpetual imprisonment, some persons have shrunk back from a confession of the name of Christ; and they must be considered as having thus sinned through infirmity. In order to recover the dignity of the sword, the official girdle, &c., which the emperor had threatened to take away from them unless they abjured Christ, some of the early Christians retained all their honors at the expense of denying Christ; yet still even these must be said to have sinned through infirmity. Some individual, having been vehemently tormented, afflicted, injured and stripped of his goods by a Christian prince, or by Christian people, breaks forth into passionate expressions of blasphemy against God and Christ; yet he must be considered as having acted thus through anger and dreadful commotion of spirit. But if the persons in the preceding instances were to add, to this their sin, hatred against Christ Himself and his doctrine, according to my judgment they would not be far from committing the sin against the Holy Ghost. To express and conclude the whole in one word, I affirm that this sin against the Holy Ghost is properly committed through malice. I understand, here, malice of two kinds: The one, by which no resistance is offered to concupiscence or desire, when that can easily be done, without much inconvenience; the other, by which Christ himself is hated, either because he endeavors, by his precepts, to hinder the completion or fulfillment of the unlawful desire; or because the enjoyment of such illicit desire is not permitted, on account of his cause and name. Both kinds of this malice were in those Jews with whom Christ had the transaction which is mentioned in Matthew 12. But they do not seem then to have been fully convinced in their consciences, that Jesus was the Christ and the promised Messiah. Let us add, therefore, to the other parts of the definition of this sin, that it is committed through malice and hatred against Christ, or through hatred of Christ and of the truth concerning him. This hatred I think is included in the words employed by the apostle in Hebrews 6 & 10; for such persons are there said “to crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh and put him to an open shame, to tread under foot the Son of God, to count the blood of the covenant an unholy thing, and to do despite unto the Spirit of grace.” I suppose, by these words, are signified, not the results which happen to those who, beyond expectation, fall away or decline from Christ through their sin; but the acts which, of themselves, and by their own nature are allied to their sin, and which have an affinity with, and are consequences from, the same sin, not without the fixed purpose of those by whom it is committed.
5. To this cause, we will commodiously subjoin an end; for they correspond, for the most part, between themselves, and in a certain respect agree with each other. The end, therefore, is twofold. The one is the obtaining and the enjoyment of an apparent good which has been desired; the other is the completion of hatred, and the rejection of Christ and of his acknowledged truth, which Calvin has enunciated in these words:”-for this purpose, that they may resist.” By this very circumstance, is signified the malice of the man who thus sins, which, not content with obtaining the apparent good through the act of sin, is delighted even with the very act of sin as with its end or intention. This is a certain sign, that the will of this man has not been impelled by inclination or passion to perpetrate this crime, but that it has freely followed the inclination, and has added of its own this other thing-hatred against Christ, from which, this hatred may be said to be entirely voluntary, and, therefore, arising from malice. For as appetite or desire is attributed to the concupiscible faculty, infirmity to the irascible, and ignorance to the reason or mind, so is malice attributed to the will.

But from these things, considered in this manner, it seems the sin against the Holy Ghost may be thus defined: “The sin against the Holy Ghost is the rejection and refusing of Jesus Christ through determined malice and hatred against Christ, who, through the testifying of the Holy Spirit, has been assuredly acknowledged for the Son of God, (or, which is the same thing, the rejection and refusing of the acknowledged universal truth of the gospel,) against conscience and committed for this purpose-that the sinner may fulfill and gratify his desire of the apparent good which is by no means necessary, and may reject Christ.”
6. Let us subjoin these observations concerning the devotees of this sin. The following degrees of this sin, it seems to me possible to lay down in a commodious manner: The First is the rejection and refusal of Christ acknowledged, or of the acknowledged truth of the gospel. This degree is universal and primary; and it holds good under every circumstance, whether he who rejects and refuses Christ have for a season professed himself to be a disciple of Christ, or not-a point which we have already discussed under the third head. The second degree is blasphemy against Christ the Son of God, and against the acknowledged truth of the gospel. The third is the assaulting and persecution of Christ, either in his own person or in those of his members, or the extirpation of the truth acknowledged. A fourth degree may be added, from the difference between the object, and the act by which that object is demonstrated and manifested; and this is blasphemy against the Spirit himself, or against the act of the Holy Spirit. For. he who calls Christ “a wine bibber,” “a friend of publicans and sinners,” “a seducer and false prophet,” while he owns him to be the Son of God, sins in a different manner From him who says, that those miraculous operations of the Holy Spirit were performed by Beelzebub and were diabolical.

7. We have now arrived at the seventh division, which relates to the adjunct or attribute peculiar to this sin, that is, its being irremissible or unpardonable, and the cause why it is thus incapable of being forgiven. This sin is called “the sin unto death,” not in the sense in which all sins merit death eternal, and that are, notwithstanding, remitted to many persons, as they have believed in Christ and are converted to God, but because no one who has committed this sin against the Holy Ghost, or who shall hereafter commit it, has at any time had the felicity, nor will he have it, of escaping death eternal. It is called “irremissible,” not in the same manner as that in which unbelief and final impenitence are unpardonable, through this decree of God: “He that believeth not on the Son of God, is condemned,” and “Unless ye repent and be converted, ye shall all likewise perish,” &c. For these are conditions, without which sin is forgiven to no man. But it is called “unpardonable” in this sense, that, when it has once been perpetrated, the sinner never obtains remission from God, and never can obtain it, through the definitive and peremptory statute and decree of God, even though the offender should live many ages afterwards. But the proximate and immediate cause why this sin is unpardonable, seems to me to be comprehended in these words of the apostle in the epistle to the Hebrews: “It is impossible for those who shall thus fall away, to be renewed again unto repentance.” The efficacy of this cause proceeds from the perpetual and immutable decree of God concerning the nonforgiveness of sins without repentance. But the mind cannot rest here; for it is further asked, “Why is it impossible for those who thus sin to be renewed again unto repentance?” The solution of this question, as it seems to me, must be taken partly from the causes of this “renewing again unto repentance,” and partly from the heinousness of this sin, as described by the apostle in Hebrews 6 and 10. From a collation of these passages, it will be manifest why those who thus sin “cannot be renewed again to repentance.”

(1.) Let us treat on the causes of this renewing again. Renewing again to repentance seems to proceed from the mercy or grace of God in Christ, on account of the intercession of Christ, through the operation of the Holy Spirit, or the Spirit of grace. But this mercy of God, intercession of Christ, and operation of the Holy Spirit, are not infinite, that is, they do not operate according to the infinite omnipotence of God and Christ, and of his Spirit; but they are circumscribed by a certain mode of the equity and will of God, of Christ, and of the Spirit of God. This is apparent from particular passages of Scripture. Concerning the mercy of God, “God has mercy on whom he will have mercy; and whom he will, he hardeneth.” Concerning the intercession of Christ, “I pray not for the world.” Concerning the operation of the Holy Spirit, “whom the world cannot receive.”
(2.) Let us now consider the heinousness of this sin from the description of this apostle, who says, Those who thus sin, “crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame; they tread under foot the Son of God, count the blood of the covenant an unholy thing, and do despite unto the Spirit of grace.” But I account these acts to be so black and diabolical, that we must affirm, the mercy of God in Christ is circumscribed by no bounds whatsoever, the intercession of Christ is concluded within no space, and the Spirit of grace can be hindered by no malice, if God does not deny his mercy to such persons, if Christ intercedes for them, and if the Spirit of Grace is not deterred from them so as not to exert upon them his gracious efficacy. Take into consideration the difference of the sin which is committed against the law of God, and that against the gospel and the grace of God in Christ; and reflect how much more heinous it is to reject the remedy of the disease than to fall into the disease itself! To remove from his hearers their despair of pardon, St. Peter says to them, after having been convicted of the sin which they had committed against Christ, “Now, brethren, I wot that through ignorance ye did it.” (Act. 3:17.) St. Paul says to the Corinthians, “For had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.” (1Co. 2:8.) He also says, concerning himself, “but I obtained mercy, because I did it ignorantly in unbelief.” (1Ti. 1:13.) Christ, when hanging on the Cross, and as the Scriptures express it in Isaiah 53, 12, while making intercession for the transgressors, said, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” (Luk. 23:34.) The Scriptures declare, respecting the Holy Spirit, that he is capable not only of being grieved, (Eph. 4:30,) but likewise of being vexed, (Isa. 63:10) and of being quenched. (1Th. 5:19.) Whosoever they be who answer this description, and crucify Christ long acknowledged by them as the Son of God, and who tread under foot his blood, that blood by which God hath redeemed the church unto himself, which is the price of redemption, than which nothing is more precious, and by which alone the gratuitous covenant between God and men is confirmed and established-who, against their consciences, treat the Holy Spirit with the greatest contempt and disgrace, and who sin so grievously against him that no sin can equal this in heinousness; it follows that, to people of this class, is justly and equitably denied their being renewed again to repentance, unless we completely divest God of justice, and remove from his free will the administration of divine mercy. When we have done this, and have ascribed the dispensing of salvation to the infinity of the divine mercy or goodness only, the very foundations of religion are then overturned, and by this means, life eternal is assigned to all men universally, and even to the devils.
If any one supposes that the affirmations which are made in Hebrews 6 and 10, belong only to those who, after their open profession of Christianity, shall relapse and fall away, let him know that contumely and reproach are poured on “the Spirit of grace,” by those who have never made a profession of Christianity, and that these words-“to renew them again unto repentance,” and “the blood through which he was sanctified,” seem properly to belong to those who have not made a profession, and that the remaining parts of the description belong to the entire order of those who sin against the Holy Ghost.
Having considered the preceding matters in this hasty and slight manner, let us now proceed to investigate those three questions which you proposed.
I. With regard to the first, I think it may be known when any one has committed this sin; because, if this had been impossible, John would not have forbidden us to pray for that man. For we ought to pray for all those to whom, with even the least semblance of probability, the mercy of God has been manifested, for whom the intercession of Christ has been prepared, and to whom the grace of the Holy Spirit has not been denied. The ancient church formed a similar judgment, when she not only accounted it improper to pray for Julian, the apostate, but also actually prayed against him. But, according to my judgment, an indication of the knowledge of this sin is afforded by acts on the part of those who commit it. The first act is that profession of the name of Christ which is neither forced nor affected, but voluntary; the second is the rejection of Christ and the abandonment of all profession. If to these two acts be added blasphemy, opposition, &c., the judgment concerning this sin is rendered still more evident.

From these remarks, it is manifest that the judgment of man can be formed only concerning those persons who have, at some time or other, made an open profession of Christianity, and have afterwards relapsed and fallen away. For it is impossible for us to know, except through [an act of] divine revelation, what effects the testification of the Holy Spirit has produced in the minds of those who reject Christ before they make an open profession of him and his religion. This seems to be intimated by St. John, when he says,” If any man shall see his brother,” that is, one who has made an open profession of faith in Christ, “sin a sin which is not unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life;” and it appears to be immediately repeated on the general principle, “There is a sin unto death,” which, if a brother commit, I do not say that he shall pray for it.” Let the whole history concerning Julian, the apostate, be taken into consideration, and it will be rendered manifest that the judgment of the church in that age was founded on the two acts which we have enumerated-the former being the public profession of Christianity, and the latter the act of desertion, blasphemy and persecution.
II. The second question is-“Have Cain, Saul, Judas, Julian, Francis Spira, &c., perpetrated this crime?”

In regard to this, I say, without any prejudice to the judgment of those who hold other and perhaps more correct sentiments on the subject, it seems to me that Cain did not perpetrate this crime. For this, a probable reason may, I think, be rendered: For he did not sin against grace through hatred to it, but through a perverse jealousy for grace, and through envy against his brother, because Abel had obtained that grace which was denied to himself, he committed crime of fratricide. Concerning the despair which is attributed to him, we know that interpreters differ in their opinions; and though he may have despaired of the mercy of God, yet it cannot be concluded from this that he had committed the sin about which we are treating; for despair is also a consequence of other sins, and not always, I think, an attendant on this sin.
The sin of Saul was against David as a type of Christ, whom he persecuted in opposition to his conscience; but he committed it with this intention-that he might afterwards preserve the kingdom safe and unimpaired for himself and his posterity. But as it is another thing to sin against the type of Christ, than to sin against Christ himself, (for Saul was in all likelihood ignorant of David being such a type,) and as he did not entirely decline from the Jewish religion, it has to me the air of probability that Saul did not commit the sin against the Holy Ghost.
My opinion is different respecting Judas Iscariot; for I think that he sinned against the Holy Ghost, and this by the two indications which we have previously laid down. For as he lived three whole years in familiar converse with Christ, heard his discourses, saw his miracles, was himself sent forth with his fellow-disciples to preach the gospel, and was so far enlightened by the Holy Spirit as to be capable of executing that office, and actually did perform its duties, and, having been made a partaker of the Holy Ghost, he himself performed miracles, cast out devils, healed the sick, and raised the dead in the name of Christ, it cannot remain a matter of uncertainty that he assuredly and undoubtedly acknowledged his teacher, Jesus Christ, as the true Messiah and the Son of God. However, he not only deserted him whom he had thus acknowledged, but also delivered him up to his enemies, that sought to put him to death; and he did this not through weakness or some excusable necessity, but merely out of malice and pure hatred of Christ. This is evident from the history of the Evangelists, who relate that, at the moment when the “very precious ointment” was poured on the head of Christ, Judas departed and went to the chief priests, and bargained with them concerning the reward of his treason, which conduct was undoubtedly adopted by him to revenge himself upon Christ for the loss of the three hundred pence, for which the ointment might have been sold, and which were taken away from him, by Christ’s permission. To this must be added, that the Scriptures reckon him among those against whom David, the type of Christ, formerly uttered the same petitions as those which St. Peter enumerates in that passage, (Act. 1:2 ) as having had their accomplishment in Judas.
I entertain a similar opinion respecting Julian the apostate, whom I consider to have completed every branch of this sin through consummate malice and the most bitter enmity against Christ. For he abandoned Christianity, poured infinite contumelies on Christ, and persecuted Christian people and the Christian truth in various ways, nay, by every method which it was possible for him to devise. He also attributed the miracles of Christ more to the devil than to the Son of God, for which reason, the church, in those early days, prayed against him, and her prayers were heard by God, and answered.
With respect to Francis Spira, it would be with great reluctance that I should venture to pronounce him guilty of the sin against the Holy Ghost. On the contrary, I incline to the opposite opinion respecting him, and in this I follow the judgment of some learned men of the present age, who not only acquit him from the guilt of being charged with this sin, but who likewise do not even exclude him from the pardon of his sins.
For (1.) he did not deny Christ himself, but declined to make such a confession of Christ as the Papists disapproved. (2.) He did not avoid this Protestant confession through malice and hatred of the truth known by him, but through weakness and too intense a desire for a good which appeared to him in some degree necessary; for he feared the forcible seizure and loss of his goods, without which he supposed it to be utterly impossible for him to gain a livelihood for himself and family. (3.) In the very agonies of his despair, he made frequent and honorable mention not only of Christ, but likewise of his truth which he had professed. (4.) Being asked by those who stood around him if he wished God to grant him pardon for that offense and to impress the assurance of it upon his mind, he replied, that there was nothing of which he was more desirous, nay, that he wished it could be purchased even by the greatest torments. The purchase of it, however, he knew to be an impossibility-that no one might suppose that, by this his desire, he inflicted an injury on the blood of Christ. (5.) He diligently and seriously admonished those who visited him to apply themselves to the mortification of the flesh, to renounce the good things of the present life, and also to despise life itself if the cause of Christ and of truth were to be forsaken, lest they, having followed his example, should rush into the same abyss of despair and damnation. All these particulars [in His case] served as inducements to many persons [in the Venitian states] to withdraw from the papal church, and to unite themselves with the evangelical or reformed church; and to some of those who had entered into this union, they served as reasons for persevering in their profession.
III. With respect to the third question, I answer, that this sin is not directly committed against the Holy Ghost himself, but that it is primarily, properly and immediately perpetrated against his gracious act. Yet this so redounds to the disgrace and contumely of the Holy Spirit himself, that he is said to be blasphemed and to be treated with ignominy by this sin; and that not accidentally, but per se, of itself. But I think, from this, by good consequence, may be deduced that the Holy Spirit is not some property, virtue, or power in God, usually considered by us under the mode of quality, but that it is something living, intelligent, willing and acting, distinct from the Father and the Son; upon which men are accustomed to bestow the appellation of “a person.”

To me, this seems possible to be proved by many arguments. (l.) Because he is distinguished in opposition to the Son, which ought not to be done, if he were a virtue or power not subsisting, communicated to Christ by the Father, by which he might perform miracles, as through a principle from which he has the dominion and power of his own act, and not through a principle which itself possesses such a dominion and power. (2.) Because it is said that men sin against the Holy Ghost, and blasphemy is said to be uttered against the Spirit, and he is treated with scorn and contempt. These phrases do not seem to me to indicate the inbeing of the Holy Ghost within God and Christ, but the existence and subsistence of the Holy Spirit; especially as this sin is distinguished from the sin against the Son of Man, which ought not to be done if this sin had been perpetrated against an act of the power which exists within Christ and is employed by him, and not against the act of the powerful and operating Holy Spirit himself; for as there are acts that appertain to persons, (though they operate through some natural property of their own,) so are there also passions belonging to persons. If any man rejects the gracious invitation of God to repentance, that sin is said to be committed against an act of the mercy of God; and, in this manner, he who has so sinned is said to sin against the mercy of God, but so that, by this very act the sin is properly committed against God, who is, himself, the author of this gracious invitation according to his own gratuitous mercy. Neither could he who thus sins against the mercy of God be said not to sin against God, but against his mercy; as he who sins against the gracious act of the Holy Spirit, is said, in this passage, (Mat. 12:31-32) to sin, not against the Son of Man, against the Holy Spirit.
IV. To these three questions might be added a FOURTH: “Can the mere thinking upon the perpetration of this sin, and the serious deliberation about its commission, come under the denomination of the sin itself, and receive such an appellation, in the same way as he is called a murderer who is angry with his brother, and as that man is said to have committed adultery in his heart who has looked upon the wife of his neighbor to lust after her?”

I reply, that this does not seem to me to be the sin itself; for, as long as this deliberation continues, so long flourishes in that man the efficacy of the Holy Spirit employed to hinder that sin, until he finally and absolutely concludes about the commission of this sin, having spurned and rejected the resistance offered by the Holy Spirit. Such a conclusion is followed by the sin in that very moment, with regard to the refusing and rejection of Christ, not with regard to the other devotees enumerated, which the man produces at his own opportunities, even if his malice and hatred of Christ did not cease to impel him to the completion of those degrees.
Amsterdam March 3d, 1599.

Self Talk

2010-07-04T12:47:00.002-04:00

Have you realized that most of your unhappiness in life is due to the fact that you are listening to yourself instead of talking to yourself? Take those thoughts that come to you the moment that you wake up in the morning. You have not originated them but they are talking to you, they bring back the problems of yesterday, etc. Somebody is talking. Who is talking to you? Your self is talking to you. Now this man's treatment (in Psalm 42) was this: instead of allowing this self to talk to him, he starts talking to himself. "Why are you cast down, O my soul?" he asks. His soul had been depressing him, crushing him. So he stands up and says: "Self, listen for a moment, I will speak to you."

Martyn Lloyd Jones

Do As You Say

2010-06-13T19:07:00.001-04:00

If you ever tell someone that you are going to do something for them, please do it. They may be depending on you to be a man/woman of your word......

Power Encounter

2010-06-06T10:37:00.002-04:00

I have been reading Power Encounter by Dr. Opal Reddin. Excellent resource for those of you that have been taught that demons inhabit Christians; about territorial spirits, generational curses and binding and loosing; ad nauseum. Poor theology and doctrine produces bondage. Jesus Christ promises, "If you abide in my Word, then you are disciples of Mine; and you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." Simple. You need to know God's word, not man's.

I had a power encounter with Jesus Christ in 1981. He took a demon possessed suicidal satanist and now I am God's possession filled with His Spirit. He does what He says.......

Spiritual Warfare

2010-05-20T19:42:00.001-04:00

Spiritual Warfare

A page full of awesome articles on the topic. My fave is by Steven Hernandez

The Truth about Demon Possession and Exorcism

2010-05-20T17:28:00.001-04:00

Walter Martin Ministries

Here is an excellent presentation of what you need to know about the topic. I love this ministry!

You Might Be Practicing 'Christian' Occultism/Paganism If You:

2010-05-16T18:38:00.002-04:00

1. Speak things into existence
2. Pray against Satan
3. Attempt to manipulate spiritual conditions by prayer
4. Tell God what to do
5. Spiritual warfare is taking on territorial spirits
6. Establish your doctrine from experience rather than by God's word
7. Cast demons out of Christians
8. Ask demons questions
9. Think faith is a 'force' rather than a simple trust in God and His word
10. Seek a way out of a curse that is on your life, though you are a Christian
11. Believe that the sins of your forefathers have brought demons into your life
12. Add to Scripture

The Condition of My Heart

2010-05-15T13:41:00.002-04:00

The Lord is always teaching me through the example of my wife. She has faith.

Recently she had been placed in a situation where she works which was very unfair to her. Without disclosing the details of the situation, I will say that my wife was unduly handed a situation where she had to unneccessarily sacrifice a very precious aspect of her life. Of course this bothered her. It bothered her to the point that she took the issue to the Lord and gave it to Him. She left it there, as well. She came to me yesterday and shared how the Lord worked the situation completely out for her.

A few weeks ago, my wife and I were walking and she was sharing how she 'wished' that she had a riding partner for she and her horse. We have an Arabian mare that we rescued and Liz enjoys taking her out for a walk through the beautiful woods of South Carolina. But, my wife is a people person. She was alone in this and desired to ride with a friend. Again, she let the Lord know of her need (or desire). The result was that a riding friend showed up at our door and she is exactly who Liz relates to; a teenager! (We have been Youth Pastors for years).

I could continue to share how I have watched the Lord, throughout the years, provide for my wife. However, here is my heart on the matter. I have a real tendency to not 'bother' the Lord with such matters. I still walk believing that I can do things in my own strength! I can honestly say that I would not have 'bothered' the Lord with wanting a riding partner. I have a tendecy to take the big things to the Lord, but struggle with solving the little things; a situation at work, for example.

When will I ever learn that there are no 'big' or 'little' things in life. I don't need to be independent of Him. Ever. He wants everything. Lord, please forgive me...

What the Bible Teaches about Spiritual Warfare

2010-05-07T15:03:00.003-04:00

Many Christians today are losing the battle in spiritual warfare because they lack an adequate knowledge of God's Word. This ignorance has led some people into occult practices that are cleverly disguised as 'neutral' self help techniques. Others have one foot in the world and the other foot in the Bible; thus compromised, they cannot understand why biblical principles never seem to work for them. Defeat is commonplace because their lives are not established on truly biblical principles but rather on the shifting foundation of human experience.

As we have surveyed much of the contemporary literature written for Christians, we have discovered an extremely wide range of ideas, many of which are mutually contradictory. Both the issues and the solutions differ widely. We have read many fine-sounding discussions on spiritual warfare that did not have a biblical basis. Some people teach that christians can be demon possessed whereas others teach that they cannot. On the other hand, if one view is true, then Christians must live one way and the solutions to the problems must lie in one direction. If the other view is true, then the problems and solutions offered by the first view are irrelevant. How can we find our way out of this maze and find timeless truth on which we can base our lives?

We believe that the Bible is our highest authority, and only God has sufficient, infinite knowledge and understanding of both our enemies and our human nature to inform us accurately about spiritual conflict and what to do about it. The Christian must always be like the men and women of Berea who received the highest praise from the apostle Paul because they did not simply take his word but searched the Scriptures daily to verify his teaching (Acts 17:11).

The Real Source of Truth

Many of the errors that have crept into the church, some of which have become very popular, are based on misunderstandings and misintepretation of Scripture. Sometimes this happens because the writers have not taken into account the original languages of the Bible or have misused them. Therefore, it is important that we occassionally refer to the original Greek and Hebrew wording of Scripture to interpret more accurately God's Word.

At other times, error creeps in because we rely on interpretations of experiences or personal testimony that might not be consistent with Scripture, especially in the area of Satan and demons and what they can do to Christians. Testimonies of missionaries working among pagan tribes where demonic activity abound are used to support a particular line of teaching. How should these stories be evaluated, especially since some of these occurrences are used to support one position and others are used to support a contradictory position? Is appealing to these types of experiences a valid means to find truth?

Before we can ever hope to have victory over the sin and evil that are part of our universe, we must first understand the role of God's Word. Much of what is taught today contains testimonies of personal experience or the experience of other people. We must find out how we are to regard such testimony, and we must continually seek to determine a true, biblical approach to spiritual warfare. Failure to do so is one reason that so many believers are impotent in the warfare. They have either lost the sure foundation of the Word of God or severely weakened it by relying upon intepretations of experiences that run contrary to what the Bible clearly teaches.

When you have finished reading this book, we hope that you will understand the difference between the worldly, almost superstitious views of Satan that have invaded many of our churches and a truly biblical perspective of evil and our calling to spiritual warfare. We pray that you will be armed with the truth of the Scriptures and will stand firm against the schemes of the Devil and his terrible deception.

Read the book

Free Resources

2010-05-06T19:41:00.003-04:00

CD’s ONLY:

“Anxiety Attached” by Philip de Courcy
This is a two part series on a subject not often talked about church, but exists in the Body of Christ.

“He is Able” by Chuck Smith
Balances the 1st message – God Alone

“Speak the Truth” by Scott Rachels
A great message from the 10 Commandments. Simple and direct.

“Four Things I Have Learned About God” by Sy Rogers
Sy has a powerful testimony and this is the lessons from his walk with Jesus.

“Someday” by Gisela Yohanna
Do not put off what God is calling you to do..

“The Healing of America – a four CD series” by Charles Stanley
As we celebrate July 4th it is important to remember our country in prayer and return to the belief that our founding fathers had in God. We must, if we are to survive as a nation, return to God and seek Him. Our nation’s survival is at stake.

“Sitting At His Feet” by Jean McClure
The only safe place to be in these trouble times.

“Best of Chuck Missler”

Request by sending your name and address to our friends at firefightersforchrist@cox.net

Ultimatum

2010-05-01T10:29:00.000-04:00

"We who preach the gospel must not think of ourselves as public relations agents sent to establish good will between Christ and the world. We must not imagine ourselves commissioned to make Christ acceptable to big business, the press, the world of sports or modern education. We are not diplomats but prophets, and our message is not a compromise but an ultimatum.”- A.W. Tozer (1897-1963)

Precious Remedies Against Satan's Devices

2010-04-25T10:00:00.004-04:00

By Thomas Brooks, (1608 - 1680)

"Lest Satan should get an advantage of us--for we
are not ignorant of his devices." 2 Corinthians 2:11

THE PROOF OF THE POINT

For the proof of the point, take these few Scriptures: (Eph. 6:11), "Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil." The Greek word that is here rendered "wiles," is a notable emphatic word.

(1) It signifies such snares as are laid behind one, such treacheries as come upon one's back by surprise, it notes the methods or waylayings of that old subtle serpent, who, like Dan's adder "in the path," bites the heels of passengers, and thereby transfuses his venom to the head and heart (Gen. 49:17). The word signifies an ambush or stratagem of war, whereby the enemy sets upon a man at unawares.

(2) It signifies such snares as are set to catch one in one's road. A man walks in his road, and thinks not of it; but suddenly he is caught by thieves, or falls into a pit, etc.

(3) It signifies such as are purposely, artificially, and craftily set for the taking the prey at the greatest advantage that can be. The Greek signifies properly a waylaying, circumvention, or going about, as they do, who seek after their prey. Julian, by his craft, drew more away from the faith than all his persecuting predecessors could do by their cruelty. So does Satan more hurt in his sheep's skin than by roaring like a lion.

Take one scripture more for the proof of the point, and that is in 2 Tim. 2:26, "And that they might recover themselves out of the snare of the devil, who are taken captive by him at his will." The Greek word that is here rendered recover themselves, signifies to awaken themselves. The apostle alludes to one who is asleep or drunk, who is to be awakened and restored to his senses; and the Greek word that is here rendered "taken captive," signifies to be taken alive. The word is properly a military word, and signifies to be taken alive, as soldiers are taken alive in the wars, or as birds are taken alive and ensnared in the fowler's net. Satan has snares for the wise and snares for the simple; snares for hypocrites, and snares for the upright; snares for generous souls, and snares for timorous souls; snares for the rich, and snares for the poor; snares for the aged, and snares for youth. Happy are those souls that are not taken and held in the snares that he has laid!

Take one proof more, and then I will proceed to the opening of the point, and that is in Rev. 2:24, "But unto you I say, and unto the rest in Thyatira, as many as have not this doctrine, and who have not known the depths of Satan, as they speak, I will put upon you no other burden but to hold fast until I come." These poor souls called their opinions the depths of God, when indeed they were the depths of Satan. You call your opinions depths, and so they are—but they are such depths as Satan has brought out of hell. They are the whisperings and hissings of that serpent, not the inspirations of God.

Read the book

Satan

2010-04-11T13:07:00.002-04:00

Satan by Lewis Sperry Chafer is a great read! I honestly wish that I would have run across this gem about 30 years ago. It would have saved me from reading a lot of junk books that sensationalized spiritual warfare and made Satan out to be more than he is. Written in 1919, this book has endured the test of time and is now a classic on the topic. Put down the books that are being produced today on the topic and read this for sound, biblical teaching.

Highly recommended!

Survey of the Old Testament

2010-04-11T11:54:00.002-04:00

A Popular Survey of the Old Testament by Norman Geisler is well-illustrated with maps, photos, and charts and written in an easy, informal style, this survey will be enjoyed by all Christians who want to enrich their understanding of the Old Testament people and events. Along with the cultural and historical background of each Old Testament book, the themes of the various groups of the Old Testament books are discussed. Here is a solid, evangelical, and uniquely Christ-centered survey.

Highly recommended!

Christians and Demons

2010-04-03T09:47:00.001-04:00

From time to time teachings circulate through the body of Christ that are neither Scripturally nor historically held. The Apostle Paul calls such unsound teaching "wind of doctrine (Ephesians 4:14)." Tragically, as these winds blow through the church some people find themselves caught up and blown out!

Recently, there has been interest in the so-called "deliverance ministries" which claim to have cast demons out of Christians. They often report of demons being coughed up and vomited out of believers.

What about these experiences? Let us always be careful never to let experience supersede the Word of God. The Word is the only authority upon which we can build doctrine. Paul said, "but though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed (Galatians 1:8)."

So what does the Bible say about demon possession in Christians? First of all, we are told, "For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places (Ephesians 6:12)."

These demonic forces seek to hassle our walk with Jesus and hinder our work for Jesus. Sometimes, for no apparent reason, you may find yourself bummed out and feeling down and discouraged. This can be the work of a demonic attack, but a demon cannot enter into or exercise control over the life of any true believer. Let's see why.

First, you are in Christ Jesus

When you accepted Jesus as your Lord, you were placed into Christ Jesus. Jesus said, "... ye shall know that I am in My Father, and ye in Me, and I in you (John 14:20)."

In that same teaching Jesus went on to say, "... for the prince of this world (Satan) cometh, and hath nothing on Me (John 14:30)."

Satan and demons have nothing in Jesus for Jesus is, "Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named ... (Ephesians 1:21)."

Where are we? "And (He) hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 2:6)."

We see that Satan or any of his powers have nothing in Jesus Christ and, therefore, have nothing in us either! Praise the Lord!

Secondly, Christ Jesus is in you.

When you accepted Jesus as Lord, Jesus came into your heart to live in you (see Revelation 3:20).

He is, "... the light of the world . . . (John 8:12)" and Scripture declares that, "... God is light, and in Him is no darkness at all (1 John 1:5)." Darkness and light cannot dwell in the same place at the same time.

Now, those who teach demons can possess Christians often hide behind a semantical smoke screen and say, "Demons possess or invade the body and the mind but not the spirit." But the Lord dwells in the body as well, as the word clearly states, "What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you ... (1 Corinthians 6:19)." The Lord also dwells in our mind for we are told, "... we have the mind of Christ (1 Corinthians 2:16)." There just is no room for darkness when the Lord of light lives in us!

Thirdly, the Bible gives absolutely no example or teaching on demons in Christians

If such a major problem as demon possession in Christians was possible, without a doubt we would see several examples of this in the Gospels and the Book of Acts. We would also have clear teaching on this in the epistles, but it is just not there. The one example some do use as a "proof text" is that of Ananias and Sapphira. A careful study of that text, however, seems to indicate that they were not true believers at all. Even if they were, there was not an "exorcism or deliverance" that took place but rather instant judgment (see Acts 5)!

Also, is it not arresting that nowhere in the epistles is a teaching on demon possession or demon invasion of believers? Would God ignore such an important issue if it were such an important issue?

Then, why do people have such experiences of demons being regurgitated, cast out, or coughed up? I believe that these unscriptural practices come from sincere people who have a tendency to pass the blame for their carnal acts onto the devil. remember Flip Wilson's famous comedy sketch in which he said, "The devil made me do it?"

It is interesting to me that often the supposed demons identify themselves as the demon of lust, envy, impurity, witchcraft, anger, etc. But Galatians 5:19 specifically lists these activities as being "works of the flesh!" We are told to "... put off the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts (Ephesians 4:22)," and recognize these things to be dead (Romans 6:11). We are never told to, "cast them out."

I believe we, as Christians, should avoid pitfalls of looking for demons and focusing on Satan; rather, we should keep our focus, teachings, and attention on our Lord Jesus Christ. The way to overcome darkness is to turn on the light. The way to overcome the devil is to resist him, and he will flee from us (James 4:7). We resist him by keeping close to our Lord (James 4:7), for "greater is He (Jesus) that is in you than he (Satan) that is in the world (1 John 4:4)."

by Jon Courson

Free Resources

2010-03-31T19:09:00.001-04:00

CD’s ONLY:
“Edith’s Easter” by Russell Kelfer
This is Russell as a storyteller doing what he does best, weaving a tale that draws you into the heart of God. He is a poet and one of our favorite teachers. We have run this before but felt lead to do it again.

“Are You Available?” by Jim Remington
Salvation assured. Now, get about the Father’s business; become more Christ-like.

“A Message to the Church” by Lt. General William Boykin
A more personal CD than “Never Surrender.” A close look at the times we are living in.

“Six Cures For the Fear of Evangelism” by Charlie Campbell
We have all “chickened out” when the Holy Spirit calls us to witness. Easter is a great time to show our faith to non-believers.

“Wonderful Grace of Jesus” by Lorraine Rankin
A testimony from the heart; she shares her life with a schizophrenic. This is for all those in the valley praying to get out.

“Run With Truth” by Dan Bush
Music – Enjoy!

Request yours from firefightersforchrist@cox.net

The Holy Spirit

2010-03-28T12:39:00.002-04:00

The Holy Spirit: His Gifts and Power by John Owen is the best book that I have read on the Subject. He not only wonderfully masters teaching as to Who the Holy Spirit is, but invites the reader into understanding the ways of God. Many are confused, especially in "spirit-filled' churches as to Who the Holy Spirit is and His ways. This is illustrated in the last decade or so of the 'revivals' ad naseum that have been propogated; Todd Bentley, Toronto Blessing, Brownsville etc.The christian needs to know, understand and apply the teaching of this classic book.

Do Unto Others As You Would Have Them Do Unto You

2010-03-14T10:54:00.004-04:00

If you claim to know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, I beg you to be very aware of how you affect others. Many of us are so caught up in oourselves that we literally treat others as though they are a task that we have checked off as completed. You have heard the 'Golden Rule' probably enough times that it possibly has become something that you do not hear with your heart.

Jesus Christ is a Man who very much treats everyone with the love, honor and respect that everyone is so in need of. Please follow His lead.....

"Undefining" God's Mission - The Emerging Church "On a Mission from God"

2010-03-14T10:47:00.000-04:00

The following essay is chapter two from Bob DeWaay's book The Emergent Church – Undefining Christianity. We publish it here because the terminology and concept of missional has spread throughout evangelicalism. Christians need to be warned that being "missional" has nothing to do with the fulfillment of the Great Commission.

Almost universally, people involved with the Emergent "conversation" espouse one theme: they consider themselves to be missional. Being "missional" is not what traditional Christians have known as "missions." We have believed that the Christian mission was to send people with the message of the gospel to places where the gospel had not been heard—to preach it and establish churches. As Christianity became established in various cultures, other Christian workers usually came to establish schools, hospitals, and perform other practical expressions of Christian love and mercy. This is not what Emergent thinkers have in mind when they describe themselves as "missional."

For one thing, the description above started with the idea of the gospel as defined in the Bible. The Emergent mission does not begin with any theological idea. It is not gleaned from Biblical texts such as this one: "and that repentance for forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in His name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem" (Luke 24:47). In fact the Emergent mission does not even start from a set of theological beliefs. I say this because their use of "missional" describes the idea that any works that make the world a better place bring us toward the ideal future.

As we saw in the previous chapter, the Hegelian synthesis is ever lurking in the background of Emergent thinking; and this is the case with the idea of "missional." For example, Brian McLaren writes concerning his idea of "missional:" "The term, as I understand it, attempts to find a generous third way beyond the conservative and liberal versions of Christianity so dominant in the Western world."1 McLaren's idea is that one does not begin with a set of theological beliefs that determine one's mission, but rather begins with a mission and some sort of theology emerges in the process: "Theology is the church on a mission reflecting on its message, its identity, its meaning."2 So in his thinking we can know our mission before we know theological truth.

When I first read that I thought it irrational on the grounds that one would need some theological belief in order to justify going on any mission in God's name. Our a priori beliefs tell us what an appropriate mission would be. That was before I discovered their eschatological beliefs. Now I know why they are missional. They believe God to be bringing everything along toward an ideal future without judgment. Therefore any practice deemed to make the world better is a suitable mission. In their view the only thing that doesn't make sense is preaching repentance for the forgiveness of sins so people can avoid a literal, future judgment (because they do not believe in future judgment). Ironically, the one approach to missions that Emergent leaders reject routinely is the one based on Jesus' own words to His church.

Not surprisingly, Jürgen Moltmann, 40 years ago, proposed that in light of his eschatology, what we have now is a mission—the knowledge of truth is something that lies in the future.3 For example, Motlmann writes, "The horizon within which the resurrection of Christ becomes knowable as ‘resurrection', is the horizon of promise and mission, beckoning us on to his future and the future of his lordship."4 Moltmann claims that we cannot even know what "resurrection" means or even what the resurrection of Christ means until the future:

‘Raising of the dead' is an expression which looks expectantly towards the future proof of God's creative power over the non-existent. What ‘resurrection of the dead' really is, and what ‘actually happened' in the raising of Jesus, is thus a thing which not even the New Testament Easter narratives profess to know. From the two mutually radically contradictory experiences of the cross and the appearances of Jesus, they argue to the event in between as an eschatological event for which the verifying analogy is as yet only in prospect and is still to come.5

So in this thinking we really do not know what the cross or the resurrection of Christ mean since they are deemed "contradictory," but we will find out in the future. Yet we continue to have a mission. The only reason by which a Christian mission is deemed valid is a dialectic process that leads somewhere universally good. Moltmann states, "Cross and resurrection are then not merely modi in the person of Christ. Rather, their dialectic is an open dialectic, which will find its resolving synthesis only in the eschaton of all things.6

Knowing that Moltmann's theology (and that of others similar to his) lies at the heart of the many Emergent leaders' thinking, let us think again about McLaren's previously cited statement: "Theology is the church on a mission reflecting on its message, its identity, its meaning." The reason he thinks we do not know these things now, is that according to the Emergent eschatology they are by nature unknowable (now, that is). So the only recourse is to discover one's mission in the world through observation, with the belief that the many contradictions that one encounters are being synthesized into a new, better reality that lies in the future. This is very much what Moltmann himself stated: "The Christian consciousness of history is not a consciousness in the knowledge of a divine commission, and is therefore a consciousness of the contradiction inherent in this unredeemed world, and the sign of the cross under which the Christian mission and the Christian hope stand."7 In other words we have no knowledge of a divine commission, and, as I cited him earlier, we have no knowledge of what the cross and resurrection mean, either (at least not now). So we have an undefined mission that must be discovered.

McLaren and others are quite sure of the one thing the mission is not: the salvation of souls so that people go to heaven when they die. He and other Emergent writers regularly mock that idea as a consumer good being sold to the unsuspecting for the benefit of badly motivated religious leaders. For example, McLaren writes, "Is it any surprise that it's stinking hard to convince churches that they have a mission to the world when most Christians equate ‘personal salvation' of individual ‘souls' with the ultimate aim of Jesus? Is it any wonder that people feel like victims of a bait and switch when they're lured with personal salvation and then hooked with church commitment and world mission?"8 The only reason McLaren thinks ideas such as salvation from God's future judgment are unworthy of defining the church's mission is because he does not believe in a literal future judgment. And as we saw in the previous chapter he and his co-authors of another book think we are headed toward a universal paradise. Rescuing perishing souls when no one's soul is actually going to perish is certainly a fool's mission—unless, of course, the Bible is true, and there is a literal hell and many people will end up there!

full article

Night Watch Radio Interview

2010-02-07T16:34:00.004-05:00

I did an interview with Jill Rische from Walter Martin Ministries last night. Here is the link. Go to 2/6/10 part 2 Night Watch radio to listen:

Interview

The Purpose of Prayer

2010-02-05T20:15:00.002-05:00

We must remember that the purpose of prayer is not to persuade a reluctant God to do our bidding. The purpose of prayer is to align our will with His, and in partnership with Him, to ask Him to accomplish His will on earth (Matther 6:10)

NAR Revisited

2010-01-30T10:55:00.004-05:00

I hope that you read the article on the 'New Apostolic Reformation'. I am tremendously concerned as to the influence that this movement is having on the body of Christ. My concerns are in three areas:

1. The misrepresentation of who God is.
2. Misrepresentation of who satan is, and
3. Presentation of a pagan worldview.

I spoke at a conference that was held by the 'new apostles' a few years ago. My experience woke me up to what was going on with them. My first meeting with one of the leaders of the movement included his greeting me by stating 'how good looking his secretary is'. I was supposed to stand there with this 'apostle' in front of his secretary and my wife and respond as to her looks? Why was he leading me to look at another woman? Red flag. The conference taught that christians can 'get demons' by doing the wrong things, such as going to see the movie The Chronicles of Narnia. Red flag. The general feel of the whole conference was that christians are so susceptible to the devil's abilities that we are in need of doing something about it. Red flag.The way that we are to deal with the issue of the christians vulnerability is to turn to methodology and perspectives that are extra/unbiblical. For example, when a christian 'has a demon' we are to talk to the demons for the truth of how to get them out of the christian. Red flag.

I was delivered by the Man Jesus Christ from the demons that were inside of me, not by anyone else. Yes, when the demon revealed himself, Jo Richardson told it to leave. It was as uncomplicated as that. I realized at that point the Jesus Christ is powerful. Not the devil. The devil is simply an instrument of God's will. Jesus Christ promised me that if I stay in His word, not the word of man, He would set me free by and through His revealed Truth, not the form of paganism that is propogated by the 'new apostles. Guys, I'm sticking with God, His word and the 'old apostles'.

If you haven't taken the time to read the article on the NAR, I would encourage you to do so....

The Roots and Fruits of the New Apostolic Reformation

2010-01-02T10:45:00.001-05:00

“So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God's household, having been built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone” (Ephesians 2:19, 20).

This article explores the idea of apostles in the church throughout church history. In it I will show that the restoration/Latter Rain idea that fuels the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) is unbiblical and dangerous to the well-being of Christians who become part of it. First we will review how the early church understood apostles in church history. Then we will examine the Roman Catholic Church’s teaching about apostolic authority. From there we will examine the ideas of a 17th-century mystic given new life in the Latter Rain movement, and now the NAR.

At a 1996 Fuller Seminary conference hosted by C. Peter Wagner, a movement that Wagner previously labeled “post-denominational” became the New Apostolic Reformation.1 Besides Wagner himself is another person prominent in the movement—Bill Hamon—who is strongly endorsed by Wagner. Hamon is important, as we will see, because his ministry goes all the way back to the early 1950’s and began on the heels of the Latter Rain Movement.

How the Early Church Understood Apostles

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Knowing God

2009-12-20T13:21:00.002-05:00

On January 7, 1855, the minister of New Park Street Chapel, Southwark, England, opened his morning sermon as follows:
It has been said by someone that “the proper study of mankind is man.” I will not oppose the idea, but I believe it is equally true that the proper study of God’s elect is God; the proper study of a Christian is the Godhead. The highest science, the loftiest speculation, the mightiest philosophy, which can ever engage the attention of a child of God, is the name, the nature, the person, the work, the doings, and the existence of the great God whom he calls his Father.

There is something exceedingly improving to the mind in a contemplation of the Divinity. It is a subject so vast, that all our thoughts are lost in its immensity; so deep, that our pride is drowned in its infinity. Other subjects we can compass and grapple with; in them we feel a kind of self–content, and go our way with the thought, “Behold I am wise.” But when we come to this master science, finding that our plumbline cannot sound its depth, and that our eagle eye cannot see its height, we turn away with the thought that vain man would be wise, but he is like a wild ass’s colt; and with solemn exclamation, “I am but of yesterday, and know nothing.” No subject of contemplation will tend more to humble the mind, than thoughts of God. . . .

But while the subject humbles the mind, it also expands it. He who often thinks of God, will have a larger mind than the man who simply plods around this narrow globe. . . . The most excellent study for expanding the soul, is the science of Christ, and Him crucified, and the knowledge of the Godhead in the glorious Trinity. Nothing will so enlarge the intellect, nothing so magnify the whole soul of man, as a devout, earnest, continued investigation of the great subject of the Deity.
And, whilst humbling and expanding, this subject is eminently consolatory. Oh, there is, in contemplating Christ, a balm for every wound; in musing on the Father, there is a quietus for every grief; and in the influence of the Holy Ghost, there is a balsam for every sore. Would you lose your sorrow? Would you drown your cares? Then go, plunge yourself in the Godhead’s deepest sea; be lost in his immensity; and you shall come forth as from a couch of rest, refreshed and invigorated. I know nothing which can so comfort the soul; so calm the swelling billows of sorrow and grief; so speak peace to the winds of trial, as a devout musing upon the subject of the Godhead. It is to that subject that I invite you this morning.

These words, spoken over a century ago by C. H. Spurgeon (at that time, incredibly, only twenty years old) were true then, and they are true now. They make a fitting preface to a series of studies on the nature and character of God.

Who Needs Theology?

“But wait a minute,” says someone, “tell me this. Is our journey really necessary? In Spurgeon’s day, we know, people found theology interesting, but I find it boring. Why need anyone take time off today for the kind of study you propose? Surely a layperson, at any rate, can get on without it? After all, this is the twentieth century, not the nineteenth!”

A fair question!—but there is, I think, a convincing answer to it. The questioner clearly assumes that a study of the nature and character of God will be impractical and irrelevant for life. In fact, however, it is the most practical project anyone can engage in. Knowing about God is crucially important for the living of our lives. As it would be cruel to an Amazonian tribesman to fly him to London, put him down without explanation in Trafalgar Square and leave him, as one who knew nothing of English or England, to fend for himself, so we are cruel to ourselves if we try to live in this world without knowing about the God whose world it is and who runs it. The world becomes a strange, mad, painful place, and life in it a disappointing and unpleasant business, for those who do not know about God. Disregard the study of God, and you sentence yourself to stumble and blunder through life blindfolded, as it were, with no sense of direction and no understanding of what surrounds you. This way you can waste your life and lose your soul.

Recognizing, then, that the study of God is worthwhile, we prepare to start. But where shall we start from?

Clearly, we can only start from where we are. That, however, means setting out in a storm, for the doctrine of God is a storm center today. The so–called debate about God, with its startling slogans—“our image of God must go”; “God is dead”; “we can sing the creed, but we can’t say it”—is raging all around us. We are told that “God–talk,” as Christians have historically practiced it, is a refined sort of nonsense, and knowledge about God is strictly a nonentity. Types of teaching which profess such knowledge are written off as outmoded—“Calvinism,” “fundamentalism,” “Protestant scholasticism,” “the old orthodoxy.” What are we to do? If we postpone our journey till the storm dies down, we may never get started at all.

My proposal is this. You will know how Bunyan’s pilgrim, when called back by his wife and children from the journey on which he was setting out, “put his fingers in his ears, and ran on crying, Life, Life, Eternal Life.” I ask you for the moment to stop your ears to those who tell you there is no road to knowledge about God, and come a little way with me and see. After all, the proof of the pudding is in the eating, and anyone who is actually following a recognized road will not be too worried if he hears nontravelers telling each other that no such road exists.
Storm or no storm, then, we are going to start. But how do we plot our course?

Five basic truths, five foundation principles of the knowledge about God which Christians have, will determine our course throughout. They are as follows:
1. God has spoken to man, and the Bible is his Word, given to us to make us wise unto salvation.
2. God is Lord and King over his world; he rules all things for his own glory, displaying his perfections in all that he does, in order that men and angels may worship and adore him.
3. God is Savior, active in sovereign love through the Lord Jesus Christ to rescue believers from the guilt and power of sin, to adopt them as his children and to bless them accordingly.
4. God is triune; there are within the Godhead three persons, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit; and the work of salvation is one in which all three act together, the Father purposing redemption, the Son securing it and the Spirit applying it.
5. Godliness means responding to God’s revelation in trust and obedience, faith and worship, prayer and praise, submission and service. Life must be seen and lived in the light of God’s Word. This, and nothing else, is true religion.

In the light of these general and basic truths, we are now going to examine in detail what the Bible shows us of the nature and character of the God of whom we have been speaking. We are in the position of travelers who, after surveying a great mountain from afar, traveling around it, and observing how it dominates the landscape and determines the features of the surrounding countryside, now approach it directly, with the intention of climbing it.

Excerpt from Knowing God by J.I.Packer

Indwelling Spirit of God

2009-12-20T12:49:00.003-05:00

'The Spirit of God, who raised Jesus from the dead, lives in you' Romans 8:11 NLT

I love that Scripture!God Himself lives in the born again Christian. Man, if that doesn't get your horn honking, you may still be dead in your trespasses. Or, you may have lost focus on what really matters. Folks, this is a passing stage of His plan. Don't get 'hung up' on this world and it's ways. We aren't 'obligated' to do what our flesh tells us to do. Christians can actually have joy in a bad situation. Remember Paul singing praises to God while he was imprisoned? He had his eyes and heart set on what really matters, and it wasn't this world.

Think for a moment about the reality of being indwelt by the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead. Allow this Scripture to impact your life! More importantly, if you have not experienced the reality of this Scripture take a moment to pray, seeking God to make this Scripture real to you. Stay focused and run the race with endurance.

What Happens When A Person Is Born Again

2009-12-13T17:27:00.002-05:00

Colossians 2:13-15

And you, being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He has made alive together with Him, having forgiven you all trespasses, having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us, which was contrary to us. And He has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. Having disarmed principalities and powers, He made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them in it.

a. And you, being dead: This is the place of every person before they are raised with Him through faith in the working of God as Paul described in Colossians 2:12. Before we have new life, we are dead. Before a person comes to new life in Jesus, they are not a sick man who needs a doctor; they are dead people who need a Savior.

b. Being dead in your trespasses and the uncircumcision of your flesh: Before we have new life in Jesus, we are dead in our trespasses. A trespass is a specific kind of sin: overstepping a boundary. We are dead because we overstep God's boundaries in our sin and rebellion.

c. He has made alive together with Him: We can't make ourselves alive, but God can make us alive together with Jesus. We can never be made alive apart from Jesus.

i. The new birth (made alive) and cleansing (forgiven you all) go together as features of the New Covenant, as prophesied by the Old Testament (Ezekiel 36:25-27) and the New Testament (John 3:5).

ii. Having forgiven us is the ancient Greek word charizomai - a verb form of the ancient Greek word charis (grace). We are forgiven by grace.

d. Having wiped out the handwriting of requirements that was against us: The handwriting of requirements has in mind a list of our crimes or moral debt before God, a debt no imperfect person can completely pay. But it can be taken out of the way, by payment from a perfect man, Jesus Christ.

i. What a glorious picture! My "rap sheet" or "debit ledger" is settled forever, because Jesus nailed it to the cross.

ii. Martin Luther told once how Satan laid heavy condemnation on him because of his sins. Luther told Satan to list them all, and even reminded him of some he had forgotten. Then he told Satan to write across the whole list "paid in full by the blood of Jesus Christ," and Luther rejoiced in the payment Jesus made.

iii. Having nailed it to the cross: We must keep that list up on the cross. We get into trouble when we take that list down from the cross and carry it around. We forget that it was all settled at the cross.

e. Having disarmed principalities and powers: Another aspect of Jesus' work on the cross is that He disarmed principalities and powers. These ranks of hostile angelic beings (Romans 8:38, Ephesians 1:21, Ephesians 3:10, Ephesians 6:12) don't have the same weapons to use against Christians that they have against those who are not in Jesus.

i. Against the believer, what weapons do demonic spirits have? They are disarmed, except for their ability to deceive and to create fear. These are effective "weapons" that aren't tangible weapons at all.

ii. Demonic spirits only have power towards us that we grant them by believing their lies. The weapons are in our hands, not theirs. We will one-day see how afraid they were of us.

iii. Perhaps Satan, for a moment, thought that he had won at the cross. But Hell's greatest "victory" was turned into a defeat that disarmed every spiritual enemy who fights against those living under the light and power of the cross. The public spectacle of defeated demonic spirits makes their defeat all the more humiliating.

commentary by David Guzik

As Unto The Lord

2009-12-13T12:40:00.002-05:00

Work willingly at whatever you do, as though you were working for the Lord rather than for people Colossians 3:23

Focusing on who you work for will bring tremendous results. For example, I am in management and have 12 employees in my department. 11 employees are very unhappy and, honestly, spend alot of their time and energy not being productive. One of my employees has the reputation throughout the company as one of the best. He is hard working and does not complain. What is the difference in the employees? One is a Christian who works as unto the Lord, the others work for man.

When someone looks to a company for fulfillment, there is going to be disappointment. Our company is made up of imperfect individuals who, literally should never be in a position of making anyone else happy or content. It simply doesn't work that way. When one is born again and looks to God for everything, then that person can throw themselves completely into whatever task is at hand because the task is no longer menial, something that you have to do in order to get your paycheck. It is an opportunity to serve Him, develop Christ like character and to rejoice in the Lord. You are governed by His Spirit rather than ruled by flesh; yours and your employer's.

Work unto the Lord

The Dishonoring of God in Popular Spiritual Warfare Teaching

2009-12-05T09:54:00.001-05:00

"The Lord has established His throne in the heavens; And His sovereignty rules over all." (Psalm 103:19)

"[A]nd He made from one, every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times, and the boundaries of their habitation" (Acts 17:26).

"Let every person be in subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God." (Romans 13:1)

Many popular teachers question God's sovereign rule over His own creation. Their unbiblical scenario goes like this: God made Adam the ruler of the world; Adam committed "treason" and turned the rightful dominion of the earth over to Satan; and Christ's atonement was to regain this lost dominion. According to this theology, however, Christ turned the rulership of the world over to the church when He ascended into heaven. The church consequently lost it back to Satan by ignorance, unbelief, and dis-unity. Now in these last days supposed prophets and apostles are being raised up to take control over the Satanic forces in the heavenlies and Christianize the world. This happens as the church takes cities through binding and casting down the spiritual forces of darkness that rule over them. Many dominion spiritual warfare teachers embrace this scheme, though differing on some details.

The "dominion" scenario and its underlying theological premises are unbiblical. We shall consider the various claims of this teaching point by point and compare them with the teachings of the Bible. Quotations of popular teachers who espouse various new spiritual warfare teachings will be given to show how widespread these ideas have become.

Adam Gave World Rulership to Satan?

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Life of Liberty

2009-11-29T09:30:00.003-05:00

Here is a challenge: take the next week or so and read through the book of Galatians. This book is completely awesome because Paul teaches us how to live a life of liberty or freedom.

Folks, God has provided but many of us still are struggling for what He has already provided. Self effort is not going to attain anything. Christianity is a relationship with God; He knows you and you know Him, based on faith or trust in Him

Here is a link to a commentary by one of my favorite Bible teachers, David Guzik

Galatians

Still Trying To Be God?

2009-11-22T13:24:00.005-05:00

Wherever you are in your walk as a human being, God Himself would love to reveal Himself to you. You may be a Christian who is surrounded with the 'things' of God; church, bibles, Christian friends, Christian books and various paraphernalia but you really don't know Him. Or, you may be an occultist or pagan who is attempting to manipulate the spiritual realm for your own well being. You have your beliefs, practices and paraphernalia. You may be sincere in your attempt to pursue Truth.

Folks, we inherited a real tendency to hide. Adam fell from his relationship with God (Genesis 3) and he immediately responded by hiding from God. God pursued Adam after he disobeyed still desiring the relationship. However, Adam played the blame game attributing his condition to Eve and insinuating that God Himself was at fault. Adam was afraid and hid.

How are you hiding? Probably by attempting to control your life. Your life was given to you by your Creator and He has a plan for your life. His plan, not ours. He also plans to provide for you as you walk with Him. He desires for you to reveal yourself to Him as you are. Completely naked. That way you have no need to hide from Him in fear. You will overcome the fear and hiding from Him as He reveals Himself to you. You will not need to fear Him, or anything for that matter, because of who He is. He will become your God, fully accepting of who you are, as you are but desires to fill you with His Spirit in order to transform you into the image of Jesus Christ.

Here I am, some 20+ years into my walk with Him and I am not the same person that I was. My wife today stated that I am not a fearful person. Do you know what? I'm not. Before I knew God or rather am known by God, I was literally tormented by anxiety, worry and fear. Today I have confidence in Him. God is who He says He is. He reveals Himself through His word, the Bible. His word is Truth. And folks, you can place your trust in Him. He is faithful.

So, wherever you are, I would challenge you to reveal yourself to Him. Go to Him as you truly are. He will release you from whatever binds you; anger, fear, shame etc He wants you to be free.

All Things

2009-11-22T11:20:00.001-05:00

According as his divine power hath given unto us all things that pertain unto life and godliness ...
2 Peter 1:3

Notice that Peter is not telling us that everything we have need of pertaining to life and godliness will be given to us. No, he says everything we need to live an abundant, fulfilled life — and everything we need to live like Christ has already been given to us.

This is radical because many of us don’t have this understanding. We think we’re still pursuing some key, and if we can find it, then we’ll be able to unlock the secret of life. We’re looking for the combination on the padlock of godliness. But Peter says something wonderful when he says God has already given us all things — not most things, not a bunch of things — but all things that pertain to life and godliness.

When my son Benjamin was born, although he wasn’t all that he will be one day, everything he needed was already packed in his little body. His job, then, was not to find additional body parts to add to himself. His job was simply to grow.

‘That’s obvious,’ you say. But a whole bunch of Christians do what I did for some years in my walk — they read, search and look for what’s missing in their faith instead of simply taking God’s Word at face value which says His divine power has given us everything we need for godliness and all we need for abundant life.

Knowing this can save us a bunch of time and a lot of money. For instead of searching bookstores and infomercials to find the seven secrets of effective people, or the way to ‘awaken the giant within’, we can simply grow in the knowledge that we’ve already been given everything we need to live abundantly and godly.

by Jon Courson

How Deliverance Ministries Lead People To Bondage

2009-11-02T15:54:00.003-05:00

by Bob DeWaay

The Lord's bond-servant must not be quarrelsome, but be kind to all, able to teach, patient when wronged, with gentleness correcting those who are in opposition, if perhaps God may grant them repentance leading to the knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, having been held captive by him to do his will. (2Timothy 2:24-26)

In 1977 I was in a ministry that specialized in inner healing and deliverance. People came to us from all over the country seeking release from hearing voices, addictions, emotional trauma due to past hurts and abuses, and many other forms of spiritual bondage. At the time our ministry was considered “cutting edge” in the world of spiritual warfare. Ours was a Christian community where people could come and live with other Christians to find healing.

About that time a woman from another state came to stay at our ministry center for a few days to receive prayer and deliverance. She had grown up in a family that was deeply involved in the occult and had been named after a Greek goddess. When she called us she was trying to get out of her occult bondage and was being attacked by evil spirits who did not want to let her go. They manifested themselves through her taunting us and making hissing sounds. We soon found out that the demons that tormented her were powerful and had no intention of leaving. Two of us took on the responsibility of ministering to her. After we had led her in some prayers, confronted some of the demons, and demanded them to leave in Jesus’ name, she found some relief.

The most dramatic event in our ministry to her came after one of our Tuesday night meetings. After most people had left she stayed for more prayer. Before we even got to her, she was taken over by a violent evil spirit. Her countenance changed, her voice altered, her face contorted and her hands became like claws. She let out a loud scream and charged at me, intending to gouge my face with her fingernails. As she screamed and raced across the room, I and the other man who had been ministering to her stood our ground and said, “Stop! in the name of Jesus.” When she got two feet from us she hit what seemed like an invisible wall and fell to the floor whimpering. We prayed with her and asked God to set her free.

We had encountered many cases of demonic manifestations in our ministry, but this was the most dramatic. As I look back on this incident now, what is most significant is not what happened that night, but what happened the next day. The next day she felt much better and asked to talk to us before leaving for home. She told me, “Bob, Satan is very scared of you. You have much power and authority.” What that statement and the event that led to it meant to me then was very different from how I understand it now. The difference is due to the “warfare” worldview I held then and the “providential” worldview I hold now. The way we interpret events is determined by our worldview. In this article I will discuss exorcism from the perspective of each of these worldviews.

Read more...

The Fraud of Deliverance Ministries

Christian Wicca?

2009-10-26T10:45:00.006-04:00

This is in response to Bluefirewitch:

"Christian Wicca"?
The Ultimate Oxymoron!

© Spotlight Ministries, Vincent McCann, 2003
www.spotlightministries.org.uk

In recent times, with the gaining popularity of the Wiccan and neo-pagan religions, there have been some attempts to reconcile Wicca with Christianity. For example, Wiccan authors, Tony and Eileen Grist claim:

"It is also possible to be a Wiccan and a Christian who goes to church regularly". (Tony and Eileen Grist, Illustrated Guide to Wicca, p. 13).
Some have even coined the questionable term "Christian Wicca". Is such a position really possible? While it is certainly important that Christians and Wiccans dialogue and are respectful to each other as human beings, we should not try and fool ourselves into thinking that Christianity and Wicca are in any way complementary. It is simply not honest to declare otherwise, as the key differences are just too vast. This brief outline points out some significant differences between Wicca and Christianity to demonstrate the reasons why they are clearly not compatible.

The majority of Wiccans do not believe in a Heaven or a Hell but instead hold to reincarnation. The Bible teaches that we die but once then face judgement (Heb. 9:27).

Most Wiccans believe in many god's (Polytheism). Christians believe in only one true God (Monotheism).

Wiccans believe truth is relative and that there are no absolutes. Christianity is built on absolute truth (e.g. Jesus said: "I am the way and the truth and the life..." John 14:6).

Wiccans do not accept the sinful nature of humanity or the need of salvation, but rather see a spark of the Divine in all people. Christianity teaches that all people are sinners in need of salvation (e.g. Rom. 3:23; 6:23).

Wiccans do not believe Satan exists. However, Jesus clearly viewed him as a personal being. To deny the reality of Satan is to make Christ out to be a liar. The Bible ascribes the following personal attributes to Satan: He speaks (Job 1:6-2:1-5; Matt 4:1-11); he has a will (1 Chron. 21:1; Luke 22:31; 1 Thess. 2:18; 2 Tim. 2:26); he tempts (Matt. 4:1-11; 1 Cor. 7:5); and he oppressors people (Acts 10:38), all characteristics that we would expect from a personal being, not a symbol or abstract force.

Most Wiccans tend to view the Bible as unreliable and inaccurate in parts. The vast majority of Christians view the Bible as reliable and trustworthy.

Wicca tends to view most sexual orientations as normal and natural: heterosexual, homosexual and bisexual. Although there are some liberal wings in the Church that also teaches this, the vast majority of Christians throughout history utterly reject this as being at odds with the plain reading of Scripture (e.g. Romans 1:18-32; 1 Corinthians 6:9; 1 Tim. 1:9-10). Sexual relations are to be between a man and a woman.

Jesus was from a thoroughly Jewish background, grounded in the Old Testament, which utterly condemns most of the occult practices of modern day Wiccans (e.g. Deut. 18:10-12; Lev. 19:26; 2 Kings:17:10-17; 2 Chron. 33:6).

Most Wiccans view the Divine as female (the goddess). Wiccans do worship a male god as well, but the emphasis is by far upon the "goddess". Although Christians do not believe that God is a 'He' in the sense that He is a male creature, we have to address God in some way. God transcends human sexuality. However, Christians follow Christ's example by calling God "Father" (e.g. the Lords prayer - "This is how you should pray. Our Father who art in heaven..."). There is no evidence that He called God a goddess.

Surprising Things Said By Wiccans On Youtube

Shadowboxing

2009-10-24T12:40:00.002-04:00

All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness. 2 Timothy 3:16

It is imperative for Christian to have understanding of what the Bible teaches. This should be a basic desire of everyone who has any desire to have a relationship with Jesus Christ. He promised "You truly are my disciples if you remain faithful to my teachings. And you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." John 8:31-32 The freedom Christ promises is that He frees us to follow Him, and not ourselves. However, when we are not faithful to His teachings, we end up in all kinds of self imposed bondage.

Let's look at 2 Timothy 3:16. We are taught that all scripture is inspired by God and profitable. Okay, the Bible is claiming to be from God and advantageous for us to know what He is saying. This is important because in our human nature, we have a real tendency to fool ourselves. We have a deceptive heart which must be kept in check. We have a tendecy to read something into what God is saying in the Bible and we have a tendency to add on to what God is saying.

2 Timothy 3:16 further states that the Bible is profitable for teaching. Let's stop there for a moment. Jesus promises us that His teachings will set us free if we reamain faithful to what He taught. 2 Timothy 3:16 states that the whole Bible teaches us what God desires for us. He has revealed Himself and has spoken to us. Now, the question that needs to be addressed is; are we faithful to what He taught and do we have a real understanding of what God has spoken in the 66 books of the Bible?

I have to admit, I have seen quite a bit of loose interpretations of Scripture in my journey as a Christian. Specifically, I am tremendously concerned about what is being taught and understood as being God's word concerning spiritual warfare and deliverance. My understanding of what Jesus Christ stated in John 8:31-32 is that the Christian is to remain faithful to what He has taught; not what He has not. My understanding of 2 Timothy is that the Bible is God's word and it is profitable for teaching; not for what the Bible does not teach.

I believe the error is when we add on to the Bible. Simply stated, the Bible does not teach that the Christian is under a generational curse, or must break soul ties, bind satan and his demons. Nor does it teach that demons have legal rights to a Chritian's life. I could continue with my list of 'teachings' that will not be found in the Bible. They are extra biblical teachings and are not from God.

We simply cannot go on believing what the Bible does not teach as God's word. This mindset and approach will set you up for self imposed bondage and you will not be battling the devil or his demons. You will be in a place of acting from your own will,in the name of Jesus Christ. You will be deceiving yourself.

Have you ever seen someone shadowbox? He may look like a boxer. He may have evrything in place, good shoes to grip the floor, good satin shorts which make him look good in the ring and his gloves are fitted for the impact that he will land on his opponent. However, his opponent is not actually there. He fights himself.

The REAL Truth About Halloween: Harmless or Hellish?

2009-10-16T14:25:00.003-04:00

This was written in 2003 in response to a lot of queries about Halloween’s history.

There are a lot of stories told about Halloween. Some stories are fond remembrances of family celebration, spooky stories, “trick-or-treating” in the neighbourhood, bobbing for apples, and the genial fun of a night of mischief. Some stories are profound and moving worship of God, and mourning the loss of those who have died over the years. Some are stories of the end of labour, as the harvest finally draws to a close and winter begins, bringing with it the care and worries that the season brings to farmers.

All of those stories are true ones, and many of us have heard them one way or another. Yet there are other stories told of this time of year: stories of ancient Druids who terrorized the populace into giving bribes ranging from the best cattle to virgin daughters; stories of gruesome witches who poison candy and steal children for horrid sacrifices; stories of dark occult practices, and of modern-day evildoers, who use the mystery of this night to perpetrate acts of atrocity.

Year after year, Christians are warned of tainted treats, dangerous pranks, or random acts of cruelty that some people play on others on this night. Such warnings are certainly important, and should be heeded. Yet there are also sermons, tracts, and literature that speak of spiritual danger, portraying Halloween as the “Day of the Devil,” and telling a dark history of cruelty and evil. Yet others—some Christian, some not—have come forward to decry these statements as falsehoods,
As Christians, we are called to resist the devil: yet we are also called to speak the truth. If, as some state, Halloween is the Devil’s Day, then of course we should shun it, “for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness?” [1] Yet how are we to know the facts of the claims being made? More importantly, once we know the facts, how shall we respond to them in a manner that honours Jesus?

Do Druids Trick-or-Treat?
There are a great many things we “know” about the Halloween. We “know” that the Druids were the priests of the Celts. We “know” that Halloween was an ancient Celtic festival, where the Druids would go from house to house asking for sacrifices (the origins of “trick or treat”). We “know” that the Druids would take humans as sacrifices (hence the stories that modern Witches and Satanists will do the same). We “know” that the Druids held the Celts in awe and fear by reason of their power, until the advent of Christianity (hence St. Patrick’s confrontation with the Druids, as represented by his “driving the snakes from Ireland”). The problem with all that we “know” is that most, if not all, of it is wrong.

Most people assume that it was the Celts who started Halloween. It’s quite true that there was an Irish festival called Samhain (pronounced “SOW-en”), but this was not the name of a god in Celtic mythology; indeed, we cannot even be sure if Samhain was a religious festival as we envisage today.

In modern Irish Gaelic, the word samhain simply means “The end of summer,” and refers to the harvest festivals that scholars speculate probably occurred at that time. We can imagine a joyful festival, rather like the modern Thanksgiving in America or the Harvest Home church festivals of the UK, or we can imagine dark rituals of sacrifice and divination, but the honest truth is that we do not know how, or even if, the Celts celebrated Samhain. No evidence survives, and the Celts left no written records, and if anyone definitively says that the Druids did this or the Celts did that for the festival of Samhain, they’re either speculating or lying outright.

Scholars are fairly certain that the Celts did not have a “unified” religion. The Gods of one tribe were called by different names than the Gods of other tribes, and though much speculation has been made about the role of the Druids in unifying the Celts, there is no achieve or archaeological evidence to support this.

It must be understood that the Celts were not a single people: though they spoke similar languages, the Celts were over a hundred different tribes that usually got along almost as well as Liverpool and Millwall fans. Surviving Celtic literature—such as the Táin Bó Cúalnge [2] of Ireland, or The Mabinogion [3] of Wales—is rife with tales of raids, wars, and grudges nursed and passed on over generations.

Additionally, contemporary authors—including Tacitus [4] and Julius Caesar [5]—tell us that the Celts were just as likely to start a fight between themselves as they were to go to war against the Romans, or the neighbouring Germanic tribes. With this kind of reputation, it hardly seems that the Druids could have been an all-powerful force within the tribes as a group, though it is quite possible that they may have held considerable power within an individual tribe.

What about human sacrifice? At the time of writing, there is one archaeological find that contains sufficient evidence of ritual that has led archaeologists to suppose that he MIGHT have been a sacrifice—or might not have been one. Whilst other bodies have been found within the Celtic time period in contexts that have lead scholars to suggest they may have been murdered or had unusual burial rites performed upon them [6] this is a long way short of the quantities of bodies described by the Roman contemporary historians of that time. The famous “Lindow Man” also known to the press as ‘Pete Marsh’ was one of four bodies so far [7] discovered in a peat bog near Manchester in 1984, and while Drs. Ann Ross and Don Robins of the Institute of Archaeology at the University of London have published a popular book concerning this “Druidic Prince,” the fact of the matter remains that many of their arguments are based on weaving a cloak of supposition from a scant few threads of evidence. [8]
And what of the advent of Christianity destroying the power of the Druids? Both in England and in Ireland, many of the Druids converted with out dissent or quarrel: Adomnan of Iona writes in his Life of St. Columbus that several Druids who were converted were granted large tracts of land by the Church, [9] and we know that the class of Druids was recognized by post-Christian Irish law. [10] Indeed, from the evidence now available, the Druids were not the “priests,” but were the intellectual caste of the Irish, skilled in such disciplines as philosophy, poetry, history, astronomy, music, medicine, sorcery, and prophecy or divination; this parallels the Brahmins, who are the intellectual caste of the Hindu. It is probably true that priests were drawn from the Druidic caste, but again, this is speculation, not definite knowledge.

One thing that must be acknowledged about the Druids was their connection with magic and divination, both of which are forbidden by the Bible, and their possible connection with pre-Christian worship. However, it should also be acknowledged that the Druids were a recognized and accepted part of the administration of laws of Ireland well into the late eleventh or early twelfth century.

Indeed, as both the civil and criminal law code of Ireland survive in their completest form in the ‘Leabhar na h Uidre’ (Book of the Dun Cow) dating from the late eleventh or early twelfth centuries, it might be remarked that there had been no amendment of the laws relating to the Druids by that time. Two reasons can be argued: one, that the Druids still existed with a definite, if diminished, role in Irish society; two, that the Druids had vanished and so no one bothered to change the laws. [11]

It is likely that the Celts, as did most ancient societies, had some form of harvest festival—but we do not know what they did, how they celebrated, or even with certainty whether or not they did. It is quite probable that at least some of the Celtic priests were of the Druidic caste, but not all Druids were priests, and we are not certain that all priests were Druids. It is likely that the Druids did engage in sacrifices, perhaps even human sacrifices, but the only evidence we have for this are the writings of their enemies in war, and the uncertain evidence of a handful of archaeological finds.

Our knowledge of the Celts and the Druids—what little we have of it—does nothing to explain the origins of Halloween. Yet history does show that the roots of this celebration do rest in Ireland and England—specifically, the Ireland and England of the Medieval and Renaissance ages.

Halloween’s Beginnings.
The establishment of All Saints day is relatively well documented. Originally held the first Sunday after Pentecost, the date was moved to November 1st by Gregory III when he dedicated a chapel in the Basilica of St. Peter to “All the Saints.” In 835, Gregory IV permanently moved the celebration to November 1. [12] Originally, All Saints Day was a solemn occasion, to be celebrated with a vigil spent in fasting and prayers the evening, followed by a “feast day,” a day to attend Mass and refrain from servile work. [13]

For some, however, this release from work devolved into a carouse, but even in this, the medieval Church tried to moderate the worst of the excesses. The solemnity of All Saints Day became combined with the festivity of harvest celebrations. While there may have been parades and bonfires and revelry, the Church worked with the nobility to keep the celebration within reasonable bounds—and also offered the revealers alternatives to debauchery.

Local practices emerged connected with the harvest glut including local cuisine specialties: in Europe, apple dishes were a popular food on this day (especially since the apple harvest ends relatively late in the year), and in England, the custom of making “soul cakes” to distribute to the poor in exchange for prayers for deceased members of the donor’s family.

It is to this time that we must look for some of the customs of our modern Halloween. Late autumn was apple season, and there was a bounty of apples: it becomes evident that this is the most likely origin of such games as bobbing for apples. The “soul cake” custom was the probable origin of our modern “trick-or-treat.” Far from the horrifying pagan blackmail of pre-Christian Druids imagined by some, this was actually a method of not only feeding the poor, but of persuading attendance at Church!

This is not to say that all of these activities were innocent. Even at this time, it is certainly possible that people attempted to divine the future with apple peels, or by roasting chestnuts. Yet it must be remembered that these local customs were just that: local, frequently isolated folk practices that had little influence across cultural or national boundaries. It was not until the Colonial Age, and the advent of cross continental and inter-continental travel that these local practices combined to create the Halloween customs that we are familiar with today.

Emigration and Travel
Harvest celebrations, and the various local customs that attended them, came to America with the waves of colonists. Just as Europe does not share all its traditions and customs, neither were the American harvest celebrations identical. In New England, with its heavy population of Puritans and Calvinists who disapproved of frivolity in any form, the celebration of harvest festivals was frowned upon; in Maryland and the more southern colonies such celebrations were popular.

As the beliefs and customs of different European ethnic groups, as well as the American Indians, meshed, a distinctly American version of Halloween began to emerge. The first celebrations included “play parties,” public events held to celebrate the harvest, where neighbours would share stories of the dead, tell each other’s fortunes, dance, and sing. Colonial Halloween festivities also featured the telling of ghost stories and mischief making of all kinds. By the middle of the nineteenth century, annual autumn festivities were common, but Halloween was not yet celebrated everywhere in the country. [14]

This American indifference was changed by an event in Ireland. The advent of the Potato Famine in 1846 led to a dramatic influx of Irish immigrants to all parts of the world, including America. While they certainly brought their customs and traditions with them—including their Halloween traditions—they faced many obstacles, including a growing anti-Immigrant and anti-Catholic prejudice. It is possible that the origins of the “Anti-Halloween” movement stem from this prejudice, as many of the complaints directed by Christians against Halloween are also directed against the Roman Catholic Church. [15]

Yet for all of the potential for problems, Halloween adapted to America as readily as the Irish and English immigrants who took it there.

In the late 1800s, there was a move in America to mold Halloween into a holiday more about community and neighbourly get-togethers, than about ghosts, pranks, and witchcraft. At the turn of the century, Halloween parties for both children and adults became the most common way to celebrate the day. Parties focused on games, foods of the season, and festive costumes. Parents were encouraged by newspapers and community leaders to take anything “frightening” or “grotesque” out of Halloween celebrations. Because of their efforts, Halloween lost most of its superstitious and religious overtones by the beginning of the twentieth century. [16]

Yet there are problems with Halloween. It has been known since the 1920s as a night of mischief, pranks, and vandalism, and since the 1950s, there have been tales about poisoned and adulterated sweets, diabolical witchcraft, Satanic sacrifices, and spiritual danger. Is there any basis to these tales? Where did they come from? Most importantly, what is a Christian supposed to do about Halloween?

Halloween and Samhain: Today’s Witches
Halloween has long been known as a night of mischief, but in the eyes of many Christians, it has also become a night of devilment—literally. Since the 1950s, various groups in England, the Americas, and Australia have emerged that celebrate the time around October 31st as a night dedicated to their pagan gods.

And we Christians have responded … though not always with wisdom. Since the 1970s, various Christians have come forward claiming to have once been members of the occult. They have given testimonies that they had witnessed, been the victims of, and even participated in, diabolical acts. Lurid tales of sacrifices, orgies, debauchery and cruelty have sprung up in countless places, and various forces—from Wiccans to Satanists—have been accused of committing crimes that are almost unspeakable in their atrocity. [17]

Both Pagan and Christian authors and reporters have called these witnesses into question, and many of the tales have been proven false. “Sacrifices” have left no forensic evidence for the investigators; locations where “bodies were buried” prove to have been undisturbed for decades; and those who were supposedly engaged in such activities are frequently nowhere near the location they claimed to have been. Yet these stories continue to circulate, without evidence—and in some churches, without a critical challenge. [18]

Samhain is a pagan and also a wiccan festival occasionally shared by those witches and occultist who have empathy with the Celtic deities and entities. Not all occult practiotoners celebrate samhain.

As far as Satanists are concerned Halloween is not their most high of unholy days it was and will remain their birthday. The only Satanists you will find celebrating on October 31st are those who were born on that day. [19] Some satanic lodges do use both Walpurgis Nacht (30th April) and the 31st October to hold initiations for their new ‘recruits’ but this has an awful lot more to do with the new recruits wanting a ‘special’ night in their own eyes a for their initiation to take place. Its part of the sardonic humour you will find shared by the more serious students of the occult.

Perhaps the most crucial story about Halloween is that it provides a gateway to the occult:
Halloween is harmful because it lures people into the occult. Many children are introduced to occultic practices at Halloween parties. I first learned about the occult at a Halloween party as a teenager. Many kids get their first exposure to occultic horror movies at Halloween parties. After the initial exposure to the occult some children are attracted to the occult because of the power it offers them. Others see it as the ultimate means of rebelling against there parents. [20]

So what is a Christian to do?
For any Christian at anytime prayer is an essential part of our relationship with God. [21] Such is its importance that Christ Himself taught people how to pray to God [22] Some Christians feel a special conviction to pray at this time of year so what should we be praying about?

Ephesians tells us that our battle is not against people but in resisting the hard sell of compromise with a fallen world. [23] It is Christ who by his sacrifice upon the cross has the authority to rebuke these entities so we should follow the example of Michael and leave the actual rebuking to him [24]. However we should pray for those who are spiritually seeking especially those who feel that they should explore evil practises at this time of year. Pray that they be touched in such a way that they begin to seek God.

Pray for those whose work and care is with young people. For teachers, youth workers, mentors, social workers and parents. Pray that the example of their lives provides a positive witness for Christ to young people.

Pray that God protects, blesses and gives His peace to all who find this time of year un-nerving or frightening.

Pray that those who plan to use this time of year as an excuse to cause fear, malicious mischief and criminal damage become convicted that such would be wrong and refrain from doing so.

Pray that the emergency services; the police; the fire service; ambulance crews and hospital staff that they have a peaceful night free from the consequences of out of control celebrations.

Pray for those churches that are hosting alternatives to Halloween for their young people that they are honouring to Christ and a good witness for Christ to those who are not Christians.

“ They (the church) are afraid because wolves have come to fleece the flock repeatedly with their fictional stories of sadistic rituals and evil madness.
They are afraid because they ignorant of the truths that come to bear upon this whole matter.
Even IF every urban myth was true. Even IF every witch was out to get you
My God is still on the throne….!!!
If only my brothers and sisters in Christ would study God’s word rather than Rebecca’s or Bill’s then would I no longer fear this season of the year? Let every Christian know that these myths are just not so. Hide away if you feel you must but while you do that pray for the rest of us who feel this season tug at our souls. God made this day too. He is the King of Kings
Let every child of God spend their efforts preparing for this day. How often does the world beat a path to your door? Now you will have extra people to pray for.
So why not give them some treats and pray for them to come to know Jesus?
And in between the precious little ones dressed in weirdness calling read your Bible and pray, having thrown the mislabelled fiction away.
Mark Ex-occultist

Praise Parties.
As Hallowe’en as opposed to samhain was originally a time of prayer and celebration within the church consider reclaiming it with a praise party and honour God. Many young people have vibrant ideas on ways of worshipping God and can be very creative if given opportunity and encouragement to become more involved in their churches life. Perhaps younger children would appreciate a party in which they celebrate the awe and wonder of God. Older teens might prefer a worship celebration they have organised with opportunity to socialise during and afterwards so they could invite their friends.

Remember most teens would far rather have somewhere warm and safe to have fun and meet their friends away from home than be cold and bored on a dark wet street.
Building relations with schools.

There are many teachers who welcome the chance to enliven their teaching sessions with seasonal activities. In recent years thanks to the commercial hard sell of Halloween goodies by businesses awareness of Halloween has been raised. There are certainly plenty of books aimed at children with themes of ghosts, witches, fairies, dragons, monsters and the like.

If Christians choose not to partake of school life for the rest of the year and only go in to complain and demand that Halloween activities are evil and should not take place they will appear as fanatics. Its far better to gradually build up a relationship with the school over a period of time so that those involved in teaching and administration at the school appreciate you share their concerns in providing a safe environment for their children. Even pagan teachers will appreciate that concern if you are known and your views are considered, reasonable, thought out and motivated by compassion.

This will then allow you to explain with reason your concerns about Halloween activities and request that it would be sensible to advise youngsters not to experiment with occult activities.

There will always be some who despite warnings from Christians and mature pagans alike do try and experiment so consider also suggesting that if any child is or becomes worried or scared by activities they do over Halloween they can always speak to their parent, teacher or even ChildlineUK. ChildlineUK is there for any child who has worries; has difficulties at school and so on it is not just those who suffer abuse.

*NB Jeff Harshbargeri will happily provide details of similar oranisations in the states just ask him*

Trick or treat
Christian children and the children of Christians should not be involved in this activity. In the UK more so than the USA the tricks can be rather malicious and frightening. It is not honouring to Christ to partake of an activity that in essence is pure blackmail to prevent vandalism and reprise attacks.

Encourage children to consider how this activity can frighten the very young and the very old if they were to turn up unexpectedly wearing scary costumes and latex masks. Enter into debate to consider the impact of being repeatedly woken up and disturbed on the frail and elderly. Most young people do have a sense of justice and once they begin to explore an idea they can see injustice and cruelty. Even pagans urge their children to think and act responsibly and take care for their elderly neighbours at this time of year.

Encourage you friends and neighbours to talk to their children into declining to take part in trick or treat and explain the reasons why in a way that allows for debate. You never know you might build a bridge to be able to share about Christ.
If your church fellowship is having an open Praise Party why not extend an invitation to your friends and neighbours inviting their children to that instead.
Please be aware that how you act and react at this time of year can produce or destroy opportunities to building a bridge to share the gospel of Christ with others. Pray that God guides you to act responsibly compassionately and with care for others as Christ Himself had.

For our own children?
Most of our young people will have friends at school who are wiccan; some will be exploring assorted pagan beliefs and a few will perhaps have blown pocket money on Lavey’s satanic bible. Our children are less likely to have our hang-ups about being friends with and discussing beliefs with such people. It is important that we as Christian parents provide our children with the most accurate information we can. If we do not they will know we do not know what we are talking about regarding the occult and that could lead them to wonder if we know what we are talking about when it comes to Christ.

Many teens do feel the pressure that wanting to be part of a group they can identify with brings. Pray that your Children know Gods peace and strength about their own convictions so that they feel able to make a stand when they feel they are being pressurised into decisions that concern them or they feel are morally wrong.

As young people grow they appreciate even if they do not like explanations as to why you view something as wrong or evil and would prefer them to refrain from doing something. Allowing discussions on ‘sticky’ subjects keeps open the door for your child to communicate on your part. As children become teenagers and begin to explore their own morality, belief and faith and yes rebellion this becomes even more important.

If you are banning Halloween parties with friends outright it can help if you are able to offer an alternative. Check if your church or a neighbouring church has any youth activities planned they could attend instead. Perhaps you could allow them to invite friends back to your home maybe with a take away or other favourite foods on offer. There are a range of DVDs they could share watching that do allow a wide debate on the nature of God ranging from ‘Raiders of The lost Arc’ well would you steal Gods box?’ to ‘Bruce Almighty’ what happens when man tries to be God’ and for those stronger parents of older teens ‘Dogma’ When angels go Bad and God makes better than new’.

‘I celebrate LIFE! Halloween has been forsaken by a lot of (ignorant) Christian who believe (falsely) that if they dress up and go get some candy that they are participating in the pagan and/or occult celebration. Hogwash!
Yep, I said it! Hogwash.
Christians can be some of the most ignorant, well meaning sheep that walk the planet. I do not accept the view that if I purchase my products at Wal Mart that I will become ‘possessed’ with the spirit of Sam Walton; Greed. Okay poor illustration, but come on the church needs to come to a place that fear isn’t the reason that we do/don’t do something in relation to observation of sabbaths, holidays etc.
If a person knowingly observes Halloween with its pagan/occult background, then that person is observing Halloween as a pagan/occult holiday. But, to put on someone else that they shouldn’t have fun and go get some candy…………PHEW!
Jeff Ex-Satanist.

One final word of caution.
Despite all that has been said there will remain a small group of people who for whatever reasons will attempt occult explorations for the first time this Halloween simply because it’s the 31st October. The majority of such people are going to be disappointed but given the unpredictable nature of the spiritual domain some with get a lot more than they ever anticipated possible.

If you have concerns about someone you care about or if you feel you have got out of your depth and want to know more about Christ then please contact Refuge Ministries
If they can help they will.

I wish to thank all those pagans who have so willingly shared their time, resources and thoughts with me regarding this article.

My most grateful thanks must go to Cern and Veritas.

To Cern thank you for understanding the need for an updated article that would provide insight to allow for constructive dialogue to begin. His comments and suggestions from the point of view as a pagan, a parent and a teacher were most helpful.

Veritas whose willingness to share his scholarly knowledge and resources of early historical achieve resources and social history allowed this article to be complied so quickly.

It would have taken me far longer to source material without his help.
I also wish to thank those ex-occultists ex-wiccans and ex-Satanists and all those practising who read through commented and made suggestions.

Thank you all.

Caitlin

— Footnotes —
1: 2 Cor. 6:14. All Bible quotations taken from the King James Bible.
2: A translated version of the Tain is available at http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/cool/
3: A translated version of The Mabinogion is available at http://www.sacred-texts.com/neu/celt/mab/
4: A translation of The Annals of Tacitus is available at http://classics.mit.edu/Tacitus/annals.html
5: A translation of Caesar’s The Gallic War is available at http://classics.mit.edu/Caesar/gallic.html
6: British Archelogy No38 October 1998 ‘Human Sacrifice in Iron Age Europe. Miranda Aldhouse Green
7: British Archaeology No 13 April 1996 ‘Plastic Pete and Lindow Man’
8: Ross, Anne and Don Robins. The Life and Death of a Druid Prince: The Story of Lindow Man, An Archaeological Sensation. For the opposing view, please see Ellis, Peter Berresford. The Druids.
9: Sharpe, Richard, transl. Adomnan of Ionia: Life of St. Columba.
10: Ellis, op cit.
11: Ibid.
12: http://users.rcn.com/tlclcms/saintori.htm
13: For the definition of vigils within the Catholic Church, see http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/05647a.htm. For feasts, see http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06021b.htm.
14: http://www.historychannel.com/exhibi…hallowmas.html It should be noted that the earlier part of the document engages in some rather irresponsible speculation concerning the “Celtic connection” to Halloween.
15: Bethancourt, W. J. Halloween: Myths, Monsters, and Devils. http://www.illusions.com/halloween/
16: History Channel, op cit.
17: Examples include Michelle Smith and Lawrence Pazder, authors of Michelle Remembers; Mike Warnke, author of The Satan Seller; Lauren Stratford, author of Satan’s Underground; and Dr. Rebecca Brown and “Elaine,” authors of He Came To Set the Captives Free. Please see http://www.religioustolerance.org/bk_fraud.htm for more information. However, it should be noted that the Religious Tolerance is a “religiously neutral” website: while their research is first rate, they do not solely adhere to Christian standards, and many Christians may disagree with some of their conclusions.
18: Please see http://www.religioustolerance.org/chrw_int.htm and http://www.religioustolerance.org/chrw_rad.htm. However, it should be noted that the Religious Tolerance is a “religiously neutral” website: while their research is first rate, they do not solely adhere to Christian standards, and many Christians may disagree with some of their conclusions.
19: The Truth about Satanism by Lance King. http://www.spiritwatch.org/sattruth.htm One of the best-researched articles on Satanism by Christians available on the web.
20: Quoted from http://logosresourcepages.org/halloween.html
21: “Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints2 Ephesians 6 v18 KJV
22: Matthew 6 5-15
23: “For we wrestle not against flesh and blood but against principalities against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places” Ephesians 6 v12 KJV
24: “Yet Michael the archangel when contending with the devil he disputed about the body of Moses, durst not bring against him a railing accusation but said, ‘The Lord rebuke thee’” Jude 1 v9 KJV

Your Parents and You

2009-10-12T14:08:00.003-04:00

Parents are our primary role models. They have the awesome responsibility of shaping the perceptions we learn by observation and experience. We apply these perceptions to our view of God, our self-concept, and our relationships with other people. The problem is that our parents are imperfect people who model beliefs and behaviors learned from their imperfect parents. As a result, our perceptions are often faulty, and we and our relationships suffer.

Our misperceptions, manifested pain, insecurity, anger, or rejection are cycled from one generation to the next, and would go unaltered were it not for the truth of God's Word.

THE PROBLEM: Our perceptions of God, Self-concepts and relationships with others are shaped by our parents.

THE SOLUTION: A healthy perception of God, others and ourselves.

THE PROCESS: Changing our perceptions of God, self-concepts and relationships with others.

Recommended reading: Your Parents and You

Generational Curses

2009-10-09T10:59:00.002-04:00

Biblical Answers to Questions Raised by the phrase "visit the inquities to the third and fourth generation"
by Bob DeWaay

“You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me, but showing lovingkindness to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.” (Exodus 20:5,6)

“Know therefore that the Lord your God, He is God, the faithful God, who keeps His covenant and His lovingkindness to a thousandth generation with those who love Him and keep His commandments; but repays those who hate Him to their faces, to destroy them; He will not delay with him who hates Him, He will repay him to his face.” (Deuteronomy 7:9,10)

Oftentimes when a passage is unclear it is used to support false teachings. Because when many Christians are unsure of the meaning of a passage, they are less able to discern erroneous teaching based on the verses in question. This is surely the case for the popular teaching on generational curses that is based on the Biblical passages cited above. Many popular books published in the last thirty years claim that Christians are subjected to unknown generational curses that have detrimental effects on their lives. The writers of the books offer their special knowledge that can break the curses.

In this article we will examine the Old Testament passages about generational curses. By careful exegesis centering around the whole counsel of God, we shall show that these passages do not support the idea that Christians are cursed because of the sins of their parents, grandparents, and great-grandparents. We shall also make it clear that these verses do not teach that demons have the right or ability to inhabit Christians because of generational curses nor that Satan has the right to inflict curses upon Christians because of ancestral sins. On the contrary, Christians have the “blessing of Abraham” because of their relationship to Christ.

Read article

Emerging Church

2009-10-05T16:54:00.003-04:00

I had an interesting experience the past few days. I made contact with an evangelistic/church planting denomination. They ran an ad for a church planter in my area. Well, I was interested as I am planting a church (Calvary Chapel) and was curious as to their method, perspective etc. I wasn't necessarily looking to jump on their bandwagon, but I thought that dialog might be beneficial and fellowship may be available.

We exchanged e mail and initially liked what I saw. They seemed to have a real sense of direction in the way they go about doing what they do. I, being the curious one, tracked down each and every link that was available and found out that they embrace the 'emerging church' method and perspective. Here is a good explanation of what the 'emerging/emergent church' is:

'The emerging, or emergent, church movement takes its name from the idea that as culture changes, a new church should emerge in response. In this case, it is a response by various church leaders to the current era of post-modernism. Although post-modernism began in the 1950s, the church didn't really seek to conform to its tenets until the 1990s. Post-modernism can be thought of as a dissolution of "cold, hard fact" in favor of "warm, fuzzy subjectivity." The emerging / emergent church movement can be thought of the same way.

The emerging / emergent church movement falls into line with basic post-modernist thinking—it is about experience over reason, subjectivity over objectivity, spirituality over religion, images over words, outward over inward, feelings over truth. These are reactions to modernism and are thought to be necessary in order to actively engage contemporary culture. This movement is still fairly new, though, so there is not yet a standard method of "doing" church amongst the groups choosing to take a post-modern mindset. In fact, the emerging church rejects any standard methodology for doing anything. Therefore, there is a huge range of how far groups take a post-modernist approach to Christianity. Some groups go only a little way in order to impact their community for Christ, and remain biblically sound. Most groups, however, embrace post-modernist thinking, which eventually leads to a very liberal, loose translation of the Bible. This, in turn, lends to liberal doctrine and theology.

For example, because experience is valued more highly than reason, truth becomes relative. Relativism opens up all kinds of problems, as it destroys the standard that the Bible contains absolute truth, negating the belief that biblical truth can be absolute. If the Bible is not our source for absolute truth, and personal experience is allowed to define and interpret what truth actually is, a saving faith in Jesus Christ is rendered meaningless.

Another area where the emerging / emergent church movement has become anti-biblical is its focus on ecumenism. Unity among people coming from different religious and ethnic backgrounds and diversity in the expression of corporate worship are a strong focus of the emergent church movement. Being ecumenical means that compromise is taking place, and this results in a watering down of Scripture in favor of not offending an apostate. This is in direct opposition to passages such as Revelation 2:14-17, Jesus' letter to the church of Pergamum, in which the Church is warned against tolerating those who teach false doctrine.

False doctrine seems to abound within the emerging / emergent church movement, though, as stated previously, not within every group espousing emerging / emergent church beliefs. Because of this, care must be taken when deciding whether or not to become involved with an emergent church group. We all need to take heed of Matthew 7:15-20, "Watch out for false prophets. They come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ferocious wolves. By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles? Likewise every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them."

While seeking new ways to witness to a changing culture is admirable, utilizing ways which compromise the Truth of the Gospel in any way is nothing more than promoting false doctrine and leading others away from Christ instead of to Him.' www.gotquestions.org

As I shared my concerns about the emerging church and its means not justifying the ends, the response was that what really mattered was transformed lives, not doctrine. However, there will not be transformation without the Truth. It is the Truth that sets us free.

To learn more about the emerging church go to http://www.apologeticsindex.org/290-emerging-church I recommend reading and checking to see if even your church may be embracing the emerging church. Truth matters, folks.

Recommended reading: The Truth War: Fighting for Certainty in an Age of Deception
by John MacArthur

Christians and Demons

2009-09-24T09:27:00.002-04:00

Wiccan or "Christian" America

2009-09-20T10:42:00.001-04:00

On the 4th of July, 2007, pagan religious leaders led a rally across from the White House to call for the appointment of a Pagan military chaplain and to request approval of Pagan religious symbols by the Department of Veterans Affairs. Elevating the “religion” of paganism as a legally-endorsed activity by the United States Military, of which the President is Commander in Chief sounds both fair and odd.

Fair: Democratic rights must be applied to all religious expressions. Everyone should be free to worship the god of their choice, as the saying goes. But what should be classified as a religion? The lines between religion and politics cannot be clearly drawn. People are political, social and religious entities—all the time, and all at the same time. Political questions always have a moral/ethical component and morals cannot be separated from religious truth. When well-known politicians die, the so-called “state funeral” always ends up in a cathedral somewhere, and the living politicians show up on the front row. Church/state separation, so vigorously applied during the politician’s life, evaporates before the great religious mystery of death.

more

recommended reading: Spirit Wars by Peter Jones

Free Bible Software

2009-09-10T13:18:00.003-04:00

E4 Bible Study Library, Vol. 1 & 2
Titles: Greek New Testament (Textus Receptus - parsed with Strongs Numbers), King James Version with Strongs Numbers, Young's Literal Translation of the Bible , The Weymouth New Testament , American Standard Version , La Biblia (Versión Reina-Valera De 1909), E4's Naves Topical Bible , Thompson Chain References , E4's Hebrew Lexicon , E4's Greek Lexicon, E4's Tense Voice Mood, Easton's Bible Dictionary , McCheynn - Sermons and Letters, Ryle - Holiness, Edwards - Jonathan Edwards on Revival, Smeaton - Paul’s Doctrine of the Atonement, Owen - The Glory of the Trinity , Haldane - Commentary on Romans , Hodge - Commentary on Ephesians , Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary , Hodge - Outlines of Theology , Guthrie - Your Salvation, Spurgeon - All of Grace, Spurgeon - A Collection of Sermons , Hodge - Sermon Outlines , The Westminster Confession and Catechisms , Hodge - Commentary on Westminster Confession , Vincent - A Family Instructional Guide, Baxter - The Reformed Pastor , Witherow - The Apostolic Church, Which Is It?

Go to Free Bible Software

Biblical Illiteracy

2009-09-07T13:37:00.006-04:00

I have to admit, I have been extremely surprised at the level of biblical illiteracy among God's children. Why is this phenomena occurring? I think that we have such an influx of Bible teachers that we simply don't believe that we need to read the Bible for ourselves or to practice what the Bereans did in Acts 17:11 'And the people of Berea were more open minded than those in Thessolonica, and they listened eagerly to Paul's message. They searched the scripture day after day to see if Paul and Silas were teaching the truth.' The Bereans had a goal: they wanted to know the Truth that could set them free and they were responsible enough to know the scripture to make certain that they were not being misled.

I once spoke at a conference that had a speaker who taught that Christians would 'get a demon' by viewing The Lion, The Witch And The Wardrobe movie. The biblically illiterate Christians bobbed their heads in unison as though they just knew that to be truth. However, it is hogwash. Kenneth Copeland teaches that faith is a 'force' that is released etc. That's not exactly what the Bible teaches. The Bible teaches that faith is simply a believing trust in God and His word. Do you see how easy it is to be led astray if one does not know the scripture and relies on others to teach you?

Folks, I will do everything that I can to assist you in your biblical understanding. We have a link StudyLight, that has a vast amount of free resources for your understanding. I will post offers for free CDs, MP3s, bible software and biblically balanced articles on topics. I also strongly recommend that you request your free MP3 Bible. However, only you can do as the Bereans did; search the scripture day after day for the Truth.

The Legend: Anton Szandor LaVey

2009-09-06T14:04:00.001-04:00

"I'm one helluva liar. Most of my adult life, I've been accused of being a charlatan, a phony, an impostor. I guess that makes me about as close to what the Devil's supposed to be, as anyone. It's true. I lie constantly, incessantly. Because I lie so often, I'd really be full of @#$% if I didn't keep my mouth shut and my bowels open."
- Anton LaVey, Satan Speaks, page 101

"The bigger the lie, the more the people will believe it" - Adolf Hitler, Mein Kampf

LEGEND: Claimed that "Anton Szandor LaVey" was his genuine birth name.
REALITY: Born "Howard Stanton Levey".
SOURCES: Birth certificate 4/11/1930, Cook County, Illinois. Confirmed by relatives.

LEGEND: Claimed his parents were Joseph and Augusta LaVey.
REALITY: Parents were Michael and Gertrude Levey.
SOURCES: Birth certificate 4/11/1930, Cook County, Illinois. Confirmed by ASL's daughter Zeena and daughter Karla according to her entry on ASL's death certificate.

LEGEND: Claimed he was introduced to the Dark Side by his Transylvanian Gypsy grandmother, who regaled him as a child with supernatural folklore and tales of vampires and werewolves.
REALITY: ASL's grandmother was not Transylvanian nor of Gypsy stock. She was a Ukrainian named Cecile Luba Primokov-Coulton ("Coulton" was Anglicized from "Koltonoff"). Despite his frequent claims, ASL had no Gypsy ancestry.
SOURCES: Relatives, including ASL's parents.

LEGEND: In 1945 the 15-year-old ASL was brought to the ruins of postwar Germany by his uncle, a U.S. Coast Guard officer. There the teenaged ASL was shown top-secret films inspired by Satanic cult lodges and their rituals. ASL claimed that the "German" rituals in his 1972 book The Satanic Rituals were actual transcripts of the filmed rituals he saw as a youth.
REALITY: Young Howard spent the entirety of 1945 in suburban northern California, and never visited Germany at any time in his life. The uncle who he claimed brought him to Germany was incarcerated at McNeill Island Penitentiary for involvement with Al Capone-related criminal activity during 1945, and was never in the armed forces. Allied martial law forbade U.S. citizens from visiting postwar Germany. The "German" rituals in the Satanic Rituals are written in extremely poor, Anglicized German. They are clearly uncredited adaptations of the short story The Hounds of Tindalos by Frank Belknap Long and H.G. Wells' famous novel The Island of Dr. Moreau.
SOURCES: ASL relatives, former wife Diane LaVey, The Hounds of Tindalos, The Island of Dr. Moreau, The Satanic Rituals, Church of Satan member Rosalind Herkommer (who translated ASL's rituals into German).

LEGEND: ASL purchased the house at 6114 California Street (which would later become the headquarters of the Church of Satan - the infamous "Black House") because he discovered on first inspection that it was the former brothel of Barbary Coast madam Mammy Pleasant. The house was honeycombed with trapdoors and secret passageways, built by Pleasant to elude police raids.
REALITY: 6114 was ASL's parents' home. It was never a brothel, nor did Mammy Pleasant ever live or work there. ASL's parents first allowed ASL and his first wife Carole to live in the house, then transferred ownership of it to ASL and his second wife Diane in 1971. Such secret passages and hidden rooms that exist were constructed by ASL.
SOURCES: Relatives, San Francisco property records (Michael & Gertrude Levey, Joint Tenancy Grant Deed, July 9, 1971).

LEGEND: ASL wrote the Satanic Bible, his principal work, to fulfill his congregation's need for a scriptural guide.
REALITY: The Satanic Bible was conceived as a commercial vehicle by paperback publisher Avon Books. Avon approached ASL for some kind of Satanic work to cash in on the Satanism & witchcraft fad of the late 1960s. Pressed for material to meet Avon's deadline, ASL resorted to plagiarism, assembling extracts from an obscure 1896 tract - Might is Right by Ragnar Redbeard into a "Book of Satan" for the SB, and claiming its authorship by himself. [Ironically these MiR passages are the ones most frequently quoted by ASL disciples.] Another third of the SB consists of John Dee's "Enochian Keys", taken directly but again without attribution from Aleister Crowley's Equinox. The SB's "Nine Satanic Statements", one of the Church of Satan's central doctrines, is a paraphrase, again unacknowledged, of passages from Ayn Rand's Atlas Shrugged. The last words in the SB - "Yankee Rose" - have been puzzled over for years by readers. "YR" is actually the name of an old popular tune in ASL's nightclub repertoire.
SOURCES: ASL, The Satanic Bible; Ragnar Redbeard, Might is Right, Port Townsend: Loompanics (reprint), 1896; Ayn Rand, Atlas Shrugged (Galt's speech, ca. pages #936-993); "Yankee Rose" by Sidney Holden & Abe Frankl (Irving Berlin Music, 1926).

LEGEND: ASL claimed that at the height of the Church of Satan's popularity there were hundreds of thousands of formal members.
REALITY: Diane LaVey (who administered the Church as High Priestess 1966-1984), Michael A. Aquino (senior Magister of the Church and Editor of its Cloven Hoof newsletter 1971-1975), and Zeena LaVey (High Priestess of the Church 1985-1990) have all affirmed that the figures claimed by ASL were grossly exaggerated. The membership of the Church of Satan never exceeded 300 individuals, several of whom were nonmember subscribers to the newsletter or ASL friends receiving complimentary mailings.
SOURCES: Diane LaVey, Michael A. Aquino, Zeena LaVey.

LEGEND: ASL claimed to be a multimillionaire, owning three homes in northern California, a convent in Italy, a chateau in France, a fleet of luxury automobiles, a 185-foot yacht, three salvage ships, and other property.
REALITY: During Diane [LaVey] Hegarty's 1988-91 lawsuit against ASL, and ASL's subsequent 1991 filing for bankruptcy, ASL stipulated under oath that he owned nothing more than 50% of the house his parents had given jointly to him and Diane, along with the personal items he kept therein. ASL's final years were subsidized by California state aid. Assessors declared the house to be in such poor repair as to be nearly worthless on the real estate market. Family members have attested to the fact that by the mid-1970s the LaVeys lived in near-poverty, frequently having to rely upon ASL's father's generosity. According to other LaVey relatives, ASL continued to rely on handouts from friends and relatives until the end of his life.
SOURCES: Hegarty v. LaVey (San Francisco Superior Court Case #891863), Anton LaVey Bankruptcy, Chapter 7 (U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Northern California, Case #91-34251), Zeena LaVey, other relatives.

And, yes I am aware that Blanche Barton is refuting this.....

Telling Yourself the Truth

2009-09-03T11:19:00.005-04:00

How is your thought life? Are you under the influence of the Holy Spirit when it comes to what is going on in your mind?

Folks, the way and what we think affects everything; the way that we feel and our behavior/actions. Wrong thinking produces wrong emotions, wrong reactions and wrong behaviors - and unhappiness! So, when you learn to deal with your thoughts, you have taken your first step on the road to real contentment.

Jesus promises us in John 8:31-32 that if we remain or abide in His word, we will be His disciples. And, His disciples are free. Go get your Bible and read it for yourself. Are you free? Adam Clarke states "It was a maxim of the Jews, "That no man was free, but he who exercised himself in the meditation of the law." No man is truly free, but he in whose heart the power of sin is destroyed, and who has received the Spirit of adoption, through which he cries, Abba! Father! See Romans 8:15. The bondage of sin is the most grievous bondage; and freedom from its guilt and influence is the greatest liberty."

We need to be set free from our own sin in our thought patterns. Maybe we have been told by someone that we will never amount to anything, so we feel like a failure and live a life of failing. That was my thought pattern, simply because I believed a lie from one of my parents. I thought wrong (I would never amount to anything), wrong reaction (anger and depression), wrong behavior(set out to be 'someone' by entering the occult). I was unhappy! However, Jesus words have been (it is a process) setting me free as I renew my mind.

I am responsible to believe God's word and to place my mind under His Spirit's influence. By that I mean that I am to think correctly which is a discipline. Ouch! that is a word many of us do not want to hear. We like for God to 'do something' for us. But Jesus told us that it is our responsibilty to abide or remain in His word, or for His word to remain in us; believing His word, responding to His word, producing His fruit by His Spirit. It is a simple three step process of:
1.locating a lie in our thoughts and self talk
2.arguing against the lie
3. replacing the lie with the truth.

Remember folks, Jesus said if we would do this, He and His word would set us free!

recommended reading : Telling Yourself the Truth by William Backus

Providence and Promise: How God Rules His Universe for the Good of His People

2009-09-01T10:27:00.006-04:00

Pastor Bob DeWaay has written an extraordinary article. Here is an excerpt of the article:

'People's lack of knowledge of the doctrine of providence (or their failure to believe it) has practical implications. The most profound is that Christians begin to think like pagans, resorting to spiritual warfare teachings to ward off curses or bad fate. They resort to divination to seek to divine information that supposedly will ensure good outcomes to their endeavors. All of this is a result of their not believing that God can care for us unless we obtain new, secret information.'

http://www.cicministry.org/commentary/issue113.htm

Free Resources

2009-08-25T14:44:00.004-04:00

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Bait and Switch

2009-08-24T10:45:00.003-04:00

Trading the Vibrant Life of Jesus for a Ritualistic Religion Called Christianity.

I saw the sign a year ago in Georgia: Live Free for Three Months. It was a developer's marketing strategy for a declining housing market. When I saw it, however, I wasn't thinking about houses. I thought about Christianity and how we invite people to live free in Christ and then soon after saddle them with all the obligations of being a "good Christian". We generally don't even let them have three months.

When the early believers were first called Christians, we don't know if it was a complement or a mockery. We do know that they didn't invent the term for themselves. The culture called them "little christs" because they had found so much identity in following Jesus. Whatever spawned the term, those early believers adopted it for themselves and for 2,000 years it has been the dominant identifier for those who claim to follow Christ. But that might be changing.

Recent surveys show even believers are becoming uncomfortable with the term. At least in the United States it is increasingly used not for people who reflect the passion of Jesus in a broken world, but for adherents of a religion that has been built on a distortion of the life and teaching of Jesus, not necessarily it's reality. The results can be confusing.

"Are you a Christian?" I used to love it when someone on a plane asked me that question. "Absolutely," I'd answer, proud to be on the side of all that's good and right in the world. But over the last fifteen years, answering that question has become far more difficult. Much of what has been done in recent years in the name of Christianity embarrasses me and disfigures the God I love. Some of it even horrifies me.

So now when I'm asked the question today, I hedge a bit. "It depends on what you mean by 'Christian'," I often respond. If they are asking whether or not I am a faithful adherent of the religion called Christianity, I have to confess that I'm not. I'm not even trying to be. But if they are asking me if I am a passionate follower of Jesus, the answer would be an enthusiastic yes.

In a few short years those realities have diverged significantly. Perhaps there has not been a time since the Middle Ages, where what it means to be a good Christian and what it means to thrive in a relationship with God, couldn't be more at odds. You can do everything required of a 'good Christian' in our day and still miss out on what it means to know him and be involved in a meaningful relationship with him that transforms you to love as he loved.

How many people endure repetitive rituals certain that doing so endears them to God? How many embrace a slate of ethical rules or doctrinal propositions thinking that doing so ensures God's blessings? Jesus offered us a vibrant life of relationship with his Father, and we ended up creating a religion that often disarms that very Gospel of its glory.

"These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are but rules taught by men." (Mark 7:6-7) These words are as true for us today as when Jesus voiced them to the religious captives in his. His warnings in Matthew 23 about the pitfalls of religion, are more applicable in our day than they were in his. When is the last time you heard a sermon from that text? Read it. You'll know why.

Something Is Broken
For the last few months I've done numerous radio interviews for people concerned about what's being called the collapse of Christianity. Newsweek did a cover article in April about the collapse of Christianity's influence in America and that fewer people identify themselves as Christian or are a committed part of a local congregation.

There's a lot of handwringing going on about those statistics, most of them blaming the culture. But the problems in religion itself have never been greater. Conservative Christianity aligned itself with a political agenda and a party that turned out to be as corrupt as it blamed the other party for being. More and more believers I know are embarrassed at the anger and arrogance of many so-called leaders who speak to the press on behalf of Christianity. So it's no wonder to me that last year 4000 churches closed in America, 1700 pastors left the ministry each month and another 1300 pastors were terminated by their church, many without cause, and over 3500 people per day left their church last year.

Clearly we have a problem that cannot be blamed on the secularization of our culture. The kingdom is no longer a pearl of great price, and knowing Jesus is no longer the fruit of our religious activities. And people who are beginning to see that, are often marginalized as rebellious or unsubmitted for simply wanting what Jesus promised them.

Many people giving up on local institutions are not doing so because they've rejected Jesus, but finding that the culture of Christianity is actually diminishing their faith not enhancing it. In an email I got the other day, from a frustrated pastor trying to help people follow Jesus, and is just coming to realize that his own job may be at odds with his greatest passion. "Church has become a hindrance to building relationships and loving others."

He's not alone. Many of us came to faith enamored by the life and teachings of Jesus. We were promised a relationship with God but were handed a religion of doctrines we had to believe, rituals we had to observe, obligations we had to meet and a standard of morality to adopt. While most of those were true enough, many found that their attempts to follow them did not produce either the life of Jesus it promised, nor the reality of true, caring communities of faith.

We have traded the simple power of the Gospel for a religion based on human effort. We were invited to relationship and ended up with a host of irrelevant dogma and burdensome obligations. Fortunately people from all over the world are waking up to a fresh hunger to shed the dictates of religion and embrace the wonder and power of a love-filled relationship with the living God.

Was Christianity Ever Meant to Be a Religion?
I guess all of this begs the question, did Jesus intend to start a religion called Christianity, or did we do this to ourselves? I suspect the latter. I am wholeheartedly convinced that he came to end all religions, not by lashing out against them, but by filling up in the human spirit what religion promises to fill but never can. Religion seeks to manipulate human effort to earn God's approval, when such approval can never be earned.

Abraham, a Jewish man, lead the tour portion of a trip to Israel I was on fifteen years ago. Some of those on the tour had been rude to his faith as they tried to "help" him embrace Jesus as the Messiah. On the last morning, I found him alone by the bus and had the chance to ask him if he'd been offended by some of the remarks.

He smiled. He told me he'd been guiding tours for 30 years and someone is always trying to convert him to their faith--Christians, Reformed Jews, Muslims and Mormons. Then he asked me, "Do you know why it makes no difference to me?"

I shook my head. He led me out to the street and pointed at a building, "Do you see that synagogue with the star of David? That's our building. The one over there with the cross on it is yours. Further down, do you see the dome? That's theirs. On the surface they may look different, but underneath they are all basically the same. You would think that if one of us was serving the Living God, it would look differently."

I still remember how much his words impacted me. Religion is the same all over the world. It is a prescribed set of doctrine, rules, rituals, and ethics. It celebrates sacred space, exalts holy-men as gurus and tries to muscle its way into the culture. For 2000 years many have practiced Christianity as a religion, essentially no different than the others, except in who it claims to follow. But if one of us was serving a Living God, wouldn't it look very different?

When we cram the life of God into a box, we rob it of its life and power and only distinguish it from other religions by claiming a more truthful doctrine. Could that be why Jesus didn't teach his disciples how to gain a following or build institutions. He didn't teach them how to meet on Sunday mornings at 10:00 with a worship band and a leader to lecture the others. He didn't give them a prescribed set of behaviors that people were suppose to follow as the means to serve God.

No, he invited them into his Father's house, and a reality of relationship with his Father that would transform them and opened the way for them to share that love with others. That you can't put into a religion and trying to only chokes out any hope of relationship. Putting creed and doctrine above a growing friendship with him supplants the reality he offered us, no matter how correct our doctrine or moral our ethics.

Don't get me wrong. Truth is vital, as is righteousness, but without love they are also empty. Learning to live as a beloved child is far more transforming than the greatest principle you can follow. The life of Christian community isn't found by sharing religion together, but by embracing a journey of growing relationship with him that transforms us by his grace and power.

Losing Your Religion
What does this mean for us? Should we stop calling ourselves Christian or judge those who do? Should we come up with a new term to franchise so we could separate the ones who live it relationally from the ones who are caught up in religion? If we did, we'd only be making the same mistakes that have diminished our life in Jesus over the centuries.

The truth is that Christianity as a religion is a dangerous disfigurement of the God of the Bible. But not all who call themselves Christians live religiously. Given all the excesses and failures of Christianity, I am delightfully grateful that the Gospel of Jesus is still relatively intact inside its doctrine. Unfortunately it only lets new believers live free for so long before burdening them with religious obligations.

And I meet many believers and leaders who have a profound faith and are seeking healthy ways to communicate that journey with others. I rejoice in that, as I do the amount of compassionate aid that such groups share with the world in need. But too many people miss out on the life Jesus offered them by practicing it as a religion instead of growing to know him.

Ultimately the transformation from practicing religion to living inside a relationship with God is not an institutional battle; it is a personal one. We could tear apart all of our religious institutions today and nothing would change. I've been in many a house church filled with people who see the institutional church as the problem and are oblivious to the fact that they've just moved their religion into a home, where close fellowship only makes it more oppressive.

When God is a distant concept to you instead of a real presence.

When you find yourself following another man, woman, or a set of principles instead of following Jesus.

When fear of eternity, not measuring up, or falling into error drives your actions.

When you find yourself in empty rituals that do not connect you in a real way to him.

When you are burdened by the expectations of others and feel guilty when you can't do enough.

When you look at others who struggle with contempt instead of compassion.

When the approval of others means more to you than remaining in the reality of his love.

When you hesitate to be honest about your doubts or struggles because others will judge you.

When you think of holiness as an unachievable duty, rather than aglorious invitation.

When you think righteousness depends on your efforts instead of his grace working in you.

When following him is more about obligation than affection.

When correcting someone's doctrine is more important than loving them.

When God seems more present on Sunday morning, than he does on Monday.

If you have only known Christianity to be a set of doctrines, rules and rituals, I have great news. Jesus came and died to open up access between you and his Father. Religion supplants that, distracting us with discipline, commitment and hard work that never yields the fruit it promises. If you've been worn out by religion, don't think you're alone. Others are just pretending, afraid they are the only ones, too. Life is only found in him.

Switching Back
There's something about our flesh that craves the illusion of safety that religion affords. Anyone of us can find our heart easily turned toward following rules instead of engaging him. When we recognize that happening, we can simply turn our hearts back to him and choose to move away from the religious traps and connect once again with God as our Father.

Living the Gospel means we live in his love. We come to know the Father's love for us and then sharing that love with him, and with others he puts in our path. (John 13:34-35). No other motive will suffice; no other is necessary. This is where the journey begins and this is the only place it can continue.

Returning to our first love isn't as difficult as we like to make it. For me it just means finding a quiet place and talking to God. When you find yourself caught in religion, tell him you're tired of chasing a religion that isn't working and you want to know him as he really is. Then, wake up each day with a similar prayer on your heart. Watch how he makes himself known to you in the simple reality of living each day. Follow the nudges he puts on your heart instead of the obligations and rituals. Find others who are on this journey and find ways to share the reality of a growing relationship and help guard our hearts about following into empty religious practices.

If you've been steeped in religion for a long time, you'll find yourself going through a very disorienting time. One woman I met called it a Pharisectomy, which is simply having your inner Pharisee removed. You might feel guilty, lonely, lost, or fearful in the process. Your former religious friends may feel threatened that you're no longer doing the things they do. But in time you'll find yourself sliding into the reality of relationship with him that is as increasingly real, transformative and engaging.

Among It, Not of It
So let's not go to war with religion, railing against its failures fighting against its dictates. Instead let's do what Jesus did--let's live beyond it. Let's find a reality of freedom and authenticity in him that can walk alongside anyone with patience and gentleness. Religion is what people crave when they haven't found life in him. Taking their religion away won't fix that. The only thing that will is helping them see a reality of relationship with God that makes all our religious activity unnecessary and unattractive. Jesus could be in religious settings and not be captured by them. He could care about a Pharisee as much as a prostitute.

Live among religion if he asks you to, loving toward those mired in it but you never have to be of it. The Gospel opens the door for us to re-engage the transcendent God, to know him as our Abba and to walk with him through the twists and turns of life, sharing his affection with others.

Live in the reality of that relationship and you'll find it quite naturally finding expression through you as you love and treat others the same way God treats you. People who refuse to live to fear, conform to ritual or put doctrine above love will find themselves having ample opportunity to help others on this journey as well. A dear friend wrote me recently who was feeling a bit swamped by all the people seeking out his help these days, "You didn't say anything about being safe is like hanging up a "counseling available" shingle."

We live in a great day. The emptiness of tradition is being seen for what it is and people are hungering for the reality of relationship. Live there each day and there's no telling where that will take you or who you'll end up walking alongside as Jesus becomes your life.

Then you can live free, not just for a few days or even three months. He came to set you free
eternally!
by Wayne Jacobsen

My Trip to the Netherlands

2009-08-18T18:46:00.005-04:00

Several years ago, my wife and I were asked to come speak at a church by Pastor Edward Kwapong. We were to be 'special' guests on Easter for his congregation. I accepted his invitation without hesitation and made plans to travel, which my wife and I love to do with a passion!

The pastor shared that his congregation was mostly comprised of refugees from Africa, as the Netherlands is a port of receptivity for refugees. This sounded intriguing, as I was eager to meet pastor and his congregation.

As my wife and I arrived in the Netherlands, we were asked if we would be interested in going to a refugee camp the following day (this would be the Saturday before Easter). We stated that we would be interested, as pastor was going to share and minister to those that lived there.

I have to admit, as we traveled to the refugee camp, I was expecting to experience a down trodden group as they struggled with fleeing their country and living in what used to be a prisoner of war camp. However, as I met the refugees, they were extremely friendly and full of joy! We only had a few moments to greet and meet one another before we had church. We met in a room that I do not want to know how it was used during the war, because it was being filled with the glory of God. The refugees sang praises to the Lord in such a manner that I had never been apart of previously. We did not have musical instruments and was led by a young man who sang completely from his heart. I was literally crying due to the purity of heart that the refugees expressed in their love, adoration and worship toward their God. These individuals were living in a camp well below the level of my lifestyle. Yet their hearts were not concerned with things of this world.

My wife and I entered the church the following morning expecting anything. I learned a lesson the previous day and my eyes were open that this was not my typical church experience. This was a life changing experience. The congregation showed up by walking, riding bikes or however they could make it, they made it. Many came from far away enduring the freezing rain. I heard no one complain or make a negative remark about the weather or anything else for that matter!

The service was marvelous, as the congregation dressed in their finest tribal dress/apparal to celebrate the Lord's Resurrection. Worship was literally heavenly as we sang and loved God in worship. I was then asked to minister, but I honestly felt that I had been ministered to by this wonferful congregation and pastor. We ended the service with the pastor arranging a African dance celebrating Christ. I stood in amazement as I saw men and woman dancing joyfully before the Lord. The pastor saw that I was observing and 'pulled me in' the dance. It was awesome.

Asd I flew home from the Netherlands, I thought about how the refugees lived simple lives and loved God and others. I think often of their love, passion and freedom in Christ.

Strength

2009-08-18T11:57:00.003-04:00

Recently, I have been finding out how incredibly weak I am. I have a real sense of trying to fool myself into believing that I am capable of doing things that I am not. Try imaging me with hammer in hand setting out to build a horse stall. Not possible. I am not that person. I hire people to do such tasks, because I have to.

"My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness". 2 Cor 12:9. I have a difficult time with that Scripture. I like to see myself as strong and capable. But, the Lord has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things which are mighty. 1 Cor 1:27 I guess that it really boils down to depending on the Lord for everything.

Weak and dependent on God. That is where the Lord would have me. And, that is where I choose to stay. Anywhere else is my own pride. And I really would rather see His strength instead of living a life fooling myself that I am strong.

Free

2009-08-15T10:22:00.003-04:00

If the Son therefore shall make you free, you shall be free indeed. John 8:36

Drowning in Freedom – If Yeshua sets you free, what are you free to do? The cultural understanding of freedom would incline you to answer, “Well, I am free to live the life I want. I’m free to choose, free to pursue happiness, free to make what I want of my life.” Ah, yes, that would certainly be a Greek understanding of eleutheros (free). But it isn’t what Yeshua would say. His view of freedom is inextricably tied to one thing and one thing only – to serve God. He is free to be God’s slave.

In spite of the appeal of the Greek idea of freedom, the actual human experience of such individual license is not freedom at all. If you take a careful look around, you discover that we are drowning in freedom. For one man to be completely free, all other men must be imprisoned. No man is absolutely free to do whatever he wishes unless he first imprisons all those who would also choose their own liberty. But every man can be free to choose slavery. The difference between those who embrace the Messiah’s view of freedom and those who do not comes down to this: those who do not follow in the footsteps of the Messiah are not really free at all. They are already slaves to their own desire for independence. They were never able to make a real choice since they were born slaves to the need for community restraint of freedom. But once the Messiah opens the prison door, we are empowered to “become” the sons of God. How? By actually choosing to be slaves to Him.

The progenitor of our seductive slavery is Havvah (Eve). Consider the appeal of the serpent. “Your eyes will be opened and you will become like elohim – gods.” The Hebrew word is plural. You will not become God, but you will become like gods. How? By making self-determination the ruling principle of your life. Havvah thought that she could become a better person if she could just determine for herself what she needed from life. So, she chose to listen to her inner voice rather than to the external advice of God. In that instant, she became a slave, stripped of relationship with her God. We experience exactly the same “original” sin when we make the pursuit of independence the operating principle of life. What did Yeshua say? “The one who seeks to save his life shall lose it."

There is no Greek idea of freedom in the Bible. None. Man is not free. Not before he sees his pitiful condition and not after he repents. Freedom is not an inalienable right. Man was created to be bound by covenant relationship to his Creator. There is choice, but the choice is not freedom. Choosing to serve the God who is compassionate, holy, just and good is choosing to put away the mythology of freedom. That’s very difficult to do, especially in a society that venerates “freedom” as the most important thing in life. Havvah would certainly provide a different kind of advice today. She learned the hard way. Apparently, we do too.

God’s way is much simpler. Just do what He says. There is no great anxiety worrying about the pro’s and con’s of choice. There is no numbing confusion about sorting through all the possibilities. God’s way is a straight path. Stop-Wait-Listen-Act. I don’t know why we get so muddled. Maybe we’re trying too hard to be free. Maybe we think slavery is a bad thing. Maybe we’re really not so anxious to follow in the footsteps of Yeshua, a slave to the Father.
by Skip Moen

Released from Shame

2009-08-10T13:12:00.005-04:00

I grew up known as the town drunk's kid. My house was the house that the police frequented. We lived in small towns whenever we moved, which was often. Everyone knew our 'business' and I wanted someone to come and take me away from all of it. I did not smile and I kept my head down. I was ashamed of who I was and my family. I felt the judgement of being less than others. I attempted to live a 'normal life as much as I was able. I joined the sport leagues; baseball, football and basketball. But, my family did not come to my games. I was alone.

By my middle school years, I was depressed due to my anger and 'unresolved issues'. I constantly wondered why someone would not do something about the way I was living. Again, everyone knew our business, but there was no one intervening or helping. I walked around in life among adults who knew what was going on in our family; alcoholism, domestic violence etc but they just turned their heads? I don't know, but I had to find an escape.

My high school years led me to become exactly like what had been set before me; alcoholism and violence. I turned to drinking thinking that this would alleviate the pain of my shame. The drinking did nothing for me. I turned to drugs and, obviously the occult had become a real avenue of interest.

My upbringing really did a number on me; how I saw myself and how I saw others. I lived under their judgement, beit real or imagined, of not measuring up. I was actually told by my dad that I would never amount to anything. I constantly felt bad about myself. I spent alot of time, energy and effort attempting to measure up, attempting to live a 'normal life' and fitting in.

When I became a Christian in 1981, I exchanged the judgement that I had been living under for the judgement of God. I had to learn how God saw me and from that perspective I learned how to view others. I did not need to measure up to anything or anyone. I no longer needed to feel bad about myself. I fit in; I know Whom I belong to.

Someone did come along and do something about the way I was living. Someone intervened on my behalf and took me away from it all. Jesus Christ interrupted my life, which was ruins, with His Grace. He took away the shame of who I was.

recommended reading http://www.amazon.com/Released-Shame-Recovery-Children-Dysfunctional/dp/0830816011/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1249928253&sr=1-2

Far Above

2009-08-10T10:54:00.000-04:00

Far above all principality, and power, and might, and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to come: and hath put all things under his feet …
Ephesians 1:21-22

Principality, power, might, and dominion are all words that describe various categories of demonic entities and angelic beings. Jesus has power over them all, and the same power that caused Him to be resurrected is in you. Whatever you're struggling with, whatever I'm wrestling through is infinitesimal compared to what it took to raise Christ into heaven. Therefore, if I'm in bondage, it's not because I need more power but because I've failed to utilized the power already in me.

We say, 'I'm addicted.'
God says, 'You're free.'

We say, 'I'm wounded.'
God says, 'You're as whole as you need to be.'

We say, 'I need counseling. I need drugs. I need a program.'
God says, 'You have Me.'

How does this work out practically? All things are under Jesus' feet. What things? Dominions, powers, addictions, problems, pornography, profanity, gossip, depression, meanness, temper, sadness, laziness - whatever it is you can't get over.

'But my problem is so overwhelming,' you say.

It couldn't be any more overwhelming than the waves threatening to drown the disciples. Yet even the waves which rolled over their heads were under Jesus' feet and provided the very foundation He walked upon to reach them (Matthew 14:25).

Nothing is over Jesus' head. All things are under His feet. Jesus is in absolute control of every situation, be it financial, physical, relational, vocational, or parental. Whatever might seem to be rolling your way, ready to sink your boat, and wipe you out is already under His feet - and might be the very path He chooses upon which to walk to you.
by Jon Courson

Imitate me, as I imitate Christ

2009-08-05T10:48:00.006-04:00

I walked in as service was just beginning. The church was Faith Fellowship, a small congregation in Muncie, Indiana. I was in need of help. I had been a satanist for the past 4 years and had attempted suicide twice, not to mention that I was demon possessed.

As I walked in, I felt very uncomfortable. But I knew what I had to do. The people of the church were a bit uneased by my appearance. I was frail and wore sunglasses. This was an evening service. I took my seat in the back row of pews. I attempted to listen as Larry Delaney, the pastor taught. However, it was very uncomfortable as what was inside of me did not want me to be there.

After the service, I lingered, hoping that someone would initiate conversation. Harry Richardson did just that. He approached me and we began to talk. I shared very little about myself, but he was very open and seemed genuinely interested in me. I met his wife, Jo and they asked if I would like to come to their house for dinner later that week. I said yes.

I was picked up at my house by the Richardsons and driven to their home. That gesture allowed me to see that this couple was willing to assist me. As we arrived at their home, I realized that these folks were of a 'higher class' than I had been around. Harry had been Ball State University's Librarian and Jo had been an Arts professor. They lived in a beautiful home and had 'nice things'. However, they were very humble individuals and made me feel at home.

Dinner was a bit awkward, as I was feeling them out as to what I should reveal about myself and my life. After dinner, we went into their living room and I opened up. I told them that I had been a satanist but was looking to get out. Jo immediately reached out her hand and said "You need prayer". Indeed I did and this was the help that I was seeking.

She and Harry prayed for me and cast out the demons that had been tormenting me for years. I smiled so much after they came out that my face hurt. I was literally set free and prayed again to totally give my life to Jesus Christ. I was now a Christian.

Harry and Jo became like my parents. They poured out their lives for me. Endless hours of counsel, prayer and unconditional love was my experience all because I was asked to come to dinner. Meeting Harry and Jo saved my life. God used them in an awesome way.

I want to be like or imitate Harry and Jo. They were available for God to use them. They cared. They were humble servants.

Book Review: The Kingdom of the Occult by Walter Martin

2009-08-02T13:20:00.002-04:00

This is the standard pertaining to the information that the Christian must know about the occult. Walter Martin has compiled the information which was edited and published by his daughter, Jill Rische and Kurt Van Gordon. I am so thankful that this book has been published!

I became a Christian in the '80's amidst the 'satanic panic'. The devil is everywhere, so Geraldo Rivera would have us believe. And, the publishing houses had a heyday putting out books about 'babies being concieved in hell' and an individual who used to be a doctor telling a ficticious story (though sold as the truth), not to mention the once famous Christian comedian, who posed as a satanic High Priest. The sad thing is, that the church took what they were saying and believed it.

I came out of satanism and I thought that many Christians were simply making satan and his minions out to be way more powerful than they actually are. This was exactly what satan wanted. Christians believing a lie, or the ficticious work of 'authors' and publishing houses. No one checked out their stories to see if they were telling the truth. Lots of misinformation about satan, demons, the occult and spiritual warfare was the result.

This book clears it all up. Literally. This book reflects the depth that Dr. Martin gave us in his work The Kingdom the Cults, which is a classic on the subject. He tackles the topic(s) and lists resources in order for the reader to offer help for those in the occult. A must read!

Book Review: Demon by Tosca Lee

2009-08-02T11:52:00.002-04:00

My initial reaction when I was given a copy of Demon a memoir by Tosca Lee was; “Oh no, Interview with a Vampire goes Sunday school!” Over the years, Jeff and I have seen many meager attempts at literary genius by Christians trying to either imitate the world or show that they are cool too. Books, music, clothing; as Christians it seems to be our goal to impress the world with out understanding that because we lack the spirit of the world that we will fail at every attempt. Unless of course we let God do the creating through us. That it seems is what Tosca Lee has done.

Yes, it is an interview and with a demon, this time instead of a vampire and the ending is somewhat similar. In Interview with a Vampire the interviewer know as “the boy,” is seduced by the obvious power of the vampire life begs to become a vampire too. In Demon, the subject: Clay, in this case, in the beginning is somewhat sympathetic to the demons plight. As the interview continues, he becomes more and more repulsed until he realized that he has to make a choice; to either become a Christian or be dammed along with the demon he is interviewing. His choice I will let you find out for yourself.

This book differs in that it paints a well-researched picture of the fallen legion of angels and their hatred of humanity. It also gives a very good image of a loving God and the lengths He will go to save us.

Demon is fiction and so in reading it there are several things to keep in mind. First, I have yet to meet a human, even people who actually worship the Devil, who would repeatedly survive conversations with a demon and remain anything close to normal. Second, in my opinion, the overall picture that no matter what the Devil throws at us, God is ultimately in control was not painted clearly enough. No matter what, God is in charge.

I think Demon is a great read. Especially for those who have been into the supernatural books making the rounds of late. It is not another vampire novel nor is it another book about witches going to school. It is a realistic look at what might have happened between God and Lucifer. I think it actually turn some heads, and maybe help to change a heart or two. That after all is what we as Christians should be about.
by Liz Harshbarger

Satan: A Defeated Foe

2009-07-29T13:37:00.001-04:00

The enemy has already been defeated. Christ has thoroughly routed him by His sacrificial death, bodily resurrection, and ascension to power and glory. Satan's condition, since the cross, is described as follows:

He is 'bound': Mark 3:27; Luke 11:20; Revelation 20.

His power is restricted and restrained: 2 Thessalonians 2:6.

He has been rendered 'powerless over believers': Hebrews 2:14.

He is defeated, disarmed, and spoiled: Colossians 2:15; Rev. 12:7; Mark 3:27.

He has fallen and thrown down: Luke 10:18; Rev 12:9.

His kingdom has been replaced by God's: Daniel 7; Luke 11:20.

He was crushed under the foot of early Christians: Romans 16:20.

He has lost authority over Christians: Colossians 1:13

He has been judged: John 16:11.

He cannot touch a Christian: 1 John 5:18.

His works have been destroyed: 1 John 3:8.

He has nothing: John 14:30.

He must flee when resisted: James 4:7

Surely, Satan is alive, but not well on the planet Earth!

His minions, likewise, have been cast out, subject to the authority of Christians, overcome by them, bound in chains, etc (Matthew 10-12; Mark 1:27; Luke 9:1; 10:19; 1 John 4:4; Jude 6; Rev. 12:9). Satan truly is a defeated foe! His power over unbelievers is still great: the whole world lies in the evil one 1 John 5:19; he can take them captive at his will 2 Timothy 2:26. Yet this no longer is true of the believer. Thus the Christian by God's grace (help) can overcome evil and is exhorted to do so Romans 12:21.

Recommended Reading:
Satan: A Defeated Foe by Charles Spurgeon

http://www.allbookstores.com/book/compare/0883682672

Stand

2009-07-27T15:07:00.001-04:00

Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the Devil and he will flee from you." James 4:7

Resist - This word is made up of two Greek words, anti (meaning "against") and histemi (meaning "to stand"). Therefore, we get "to stand against". This word finds its way into English in the word "antihistamine" (a substance that blocks production of certain chemicals). The key to understanding this word is the grammar. It is aorist, active, second person, plural. That means it is a single action, actively engaged in, personal, for every one of us. In others words, James is saying that each one of us is called to actively take a stand against the devil to make that stand a deliberate effort in our lives. This is not passive dismissal. It is not looking the other way or avoiding. It is the role of the peacemaker from the Beatitudes to stand in harm's way for the sake of the kingdom.

But notice what James does not say. He does not say, "Fight!" He says, "Stand!" Don't fall down, don't collapse, don't give in. Just stand against evil. God will do the fighting, you do the resisting. The picture we need to have in mind is the protester who stands in front of the approaching tank, no weapons, no conflict just resistance by placing himself in the way.

And look at the promise. "He will flee from you". The word is pheuxomai. It means "run away from danger" (I know we only do one word a day but this is important). Do you see how powerful it is to just stand against evil? God says that when we take this stand, the devil runs away because he knows he is in danger. Without a shot fired, without any battle fought, we win. He runs. He is scared to death of the person who stands on trust in God. There is an old Sunday school song that goes, "Standing on the promises of Christ my King". That is all we need. We might have to stand quite awhile, but the victory is certain. It is a promise.

STAND UP TODAY! Let God put you in harm's way and watch the devil run.

"Draw near to God and He will draw near to you" James 4:8

Draw - Eggisate is the Greek word that means "come close at hand". The English word "progress" comes from this root. It is combined in a special phrase eggizo to Theo (meaning "draw near to God") that is used for offering sacrifices in worship. Drawing near to God means worshipping God. You can't get any closer than that.

James has just told us to submit to God (place yourself under Him), stand up against evil and the devil will run away (yesterday's verse James 4:7). Now he tells us to get as close as possible to God. All of these ideas deal with movement. Put yourself in a place stand come close. This is the perfect physical picture of how we are to live. Start by bending your knee to God. Put yourself in the right place. Then, don't be lazy. Get up. Stand in front of evil. Make your presence known. Watch the devil run away. And return to bending your knee - come close to God in worship. And guess what? God will get up close and personal with you.

So many times in my life I felt removed from God's presence. I knew that I believed but I did not feel close. Now I see that many of those times I was just hiding out. I was avoiding some encounter with the devil, hoping it would go away. God was waiting for me to stand up and be counted. Not grit my teeth and fight. Just resist. Push back. Stake my claim. And worship. We know that the context of worship is bending the knee in reverence and awe. First I stand. I watch God's power chase away my enemy. Then I get on my knees in thanksgiving and praise. And what do you know, God comes close to me.

Remember "progress". There is progress hidden in these words. Submit - stand watch worship. Make progress your goal today.
by Skip Moen